ZAP chief executive officer Steven Schneider has named Gary Dodd, a respected manufacturing executive formally with Toyota, as president of global operations. This recent move is seen as another step in Schneider's plan to introduce U.S.-built electric vehicles to the masses.
According to Schneider, "Gary will bring serious depth and breadth to our management team where each senior executive has separate and distinct responsibilities, such as operations, finance, marketing and now front-line manufacturing expertise. Gary will guide us into volume production."
Dodd joins the management team alongside Amos Kazzaz, who became ZAP chief operating officer. Kazzaz had spent more than 24 years in executive positions with United Airlines, including president of United Airlines Shuttle, where he had oversight of more than 2,000 employees. "Amos is responsible for maintaining efficient operations, our CFO Bill Hartman is a seasoned CPA with SEC experience, and I know how to position, market, and sell vehicles ... lots of them," Schneider said.
"ZAP will creatively work with American automobile suppliers to build affordable and appealing electric vehicles for American consumers and customers worldwide," Dodd said. "We are going to dramatically expand ZAP's leadership in the electric vehicle marketplace."
Dodd has applied to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on behalf of Zap Motor Manufacturing for a $200 million Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan to build an electric vehicle assembly plant.
"We are very optimistic that the company's loan application will receive funding from the DOE," Dodd said. "Another key part of our strategy is the sizeable competitive advantage we will enjoy because of our close proximity to two proposed Kentucky-based facilities that will be critical to the future of electric vehicles in the United States. Argonne National Laboratory has announced that it will build a national battery manufacturing R&D Center in Kentucky, in an innovative partnership with the State of Kentucky, the Universities of Kentucky, and Louisville. In addition, the National Alliance for Advanced Transportation Batteries, of which we are a member, has announced its intent to build its manufacturing facility in Central Kentucky as well. With both cutting edge facilities within an easy drive of the future manufacturing site, our supply and R&D chains will become the envy of the industry."
In 1998, Dodd founded his own business with the encouragement and support of Toyota and grew annual revenues to more than $700 million by supplying Tier 1, just-in-time and sequenced automotive components from its 11 manufacturing facilities to Toyota, Honda, Nissan, BMW, Mercedes, Hyundai, Ford and General Motors.
About ZAP
ZAP has been a leader in electric transportation since 1994, delivering over 100,000 vehicles to consumers in more than 75 countries. ZAP manufactures a line of electric vehicles, including electric city-cars and trucks, motorcycles, scooters and ATVs. ZAP sells some of the only electric city-speed cars, trucks and vans in production today and is developing a freeway capable electric vehicle called the ZAP Alias.
