To reach a customer service representative call 1-800-991-9000 or 1-519-758-8941 Our Team Words from our Founder Our Team Stewardship Careers In the News John Lefas FOUNDER John Lefas founded the company in 1986 after working for the Polymers Department of Imperial Oil’s Chemicals Division (majority owned by Exxon) for six years. Prior to that, he was the General Manager of an industrial gas manufacturing company (Carbonica) in Greece. He is a member of the Society of Plastics Engineers and the Canadian Plastics Industry Association. John has an MBA from the University of Toronto and a degree in Chemical Engineering from the National Technical University in Athens, Greece. Maria Lefas CO-FOUNDER As a founding member of Ingenia, Maria spearheaded the Global Supply Chain and Procurement for the North American Operations. Prior to Ingenia, Maria worked for the North York Board of Education where she served as Curriculum Director of the International Language Heritage programs. She is a member of the Canadian Plastics Industry Association. Maria has a degree in Political Science from Panteios University of Athens and a Masters in Psychology from York University, Toronto. Thanassi Lefas PRESIDENT Thanassi has responsibility for North American Primary and Proprietary Sales, Manufacturing, Strategy, M&A and Finance, as well as Global Human Resources. Thanassi has more than ten years of industrial management, strategy and M&A experience. He completed General Electric’s 2-year Operations Management Leadership Program before holding roles at Ingenia as a process engineer, production manager and business analyst. Following these roles, he joined Bain & Company where advised clients on a wide range of strategic initiatives including sales force transformations, M&A commercial due diligence and merger integrations. Thanassi has an MBA from Columbia University, a Master of Supply Chain Management from Penn State, and a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin. Zach Charlton CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER – GLOBAL Zach Charlton has more than 20 years of experience in the polymer industry. He began his career in the downstream polymer conversion industry working as a process engineer and then plant coordinator for a profile extrusion company in Canada. Thereafter he joined Ingenia in 2001 and has held progressive positions in R&D, Sales and Marketing and Operations Management. Zach has contributed to Ingenia’s growth at its Brantford plant, Houston plant, and led the team of professionals which built the Jubail, Saudi Arabia facility and business from 2007 to 2012. Zach has been located out of Ingenia’s Brantford manufacturing and research facility since 2017. Zach has a Master’s in Law from the University of Toronto as well as Master and Bachelor degree’s in Chemical Engineering from McMaster University Canada. Nitin Tiwari CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER – AMERICAS Nitin Tiwari oversees manufacturing operations and the primary business in North America. Nitin has extensive global manufacturing & business experience in across steel, polymers, and chemicals. Prior to joining Ingenia in 2008, Nitin led manufacturing operations for Usha Martin, Inc. He has hands-on experience in implementing 5S, TPM, Six Sigma, SPC & SQC, ISO, STOP, SAFE-START, and has extensive expertise across safety, quality, reliability, and operations. Nitin has a B.Tech degree in Mechanical Engineering from Aligarh Muslim University, an MBA from Birla Institute of Technology in India, and a GMP from Harvard Business School. Richard Hall VICE PRESIDENT, PROPRIETARY PRODUCT SALES Richard (Rich) Hall leads Ingenia Polymers Proprietary Product Sales and Customer service team in the USA, Canada, Mexico and Latin America. Rich has extensive experience in sales and operations management in plastics distribution with Nexeo Solutions/Ashland Chemical encompassing various roles including Vice President, Sales Director and Quality of Service Director. Rich has a Masters in Management from the University of Phoenix and a Bachelors of Business Administration from Walsh College. Karl H. Foerster VICE PRESIDENT, CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT Karl has 35+ years of industrial management experience and has worked in 10 countries in Europe, Asia, and the US. He held a number of executive positions at BASF, was VP at PolymerLatex, CEO of Neochimiki, and until recently the Executive Director of PlasticsEurope. Karl has a MBA from University of Rhode Island and a BA in Economics from University of Wuerzburg/Germany. Thomas Bernhardt VICE PRESIDENT, GLOBAL PROCUREMENT Thomas Bernhardt is responsible for all procurement across Ingenia Polymers globally, including both indirect and direct materials. Thomas has more then 25 years of polymers and specialty chemicals experience and has worked in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific. He has held a number of senior executive positions in his career, including Vice President and President roles across his 15 years with Clariant, and more recently as CEO at Sukano. Thomas has a M.Sc. in International Strategy and Diplomacy from London School of Economics and Political Science, a Master of Laws from The University of Glasgow as well as a B.Sc, and M.Sc. in Business Administration from EBS University, Germany. To reach a Customer Service Representative please call 1-800-991-9000 or 1-519-758-8941 North America | Europe | Asia © 2020 Ingenia Polymers Corp. Privacy Policy Terms of Use Contact Career Centre