Sir Kevin Smith appointed to Rolls-Royce board

Rolls-Royce Holdings announced on Monday Sir Kevin Smith CBE has been appointed as a non-executive director starting on 1 November.

He will also become a member of the Nominations and Governance Committee, the Remuneration Committee and the Science & Technology Committee.

Sir Kevin has been a full-time partner of Asian private equity firm Unitas Capital in February 2012 and worked closely with Unitas' portfolio companies.

Prior to that, he served for nine years as chief executive of FTSE 100 global engineering and manufacturing company GKN and led its aerospace division for four years.

He was knighted in 2006 for services to industry, holds an honorary doctorate from Cranfield University and is a Fellow of the University of Central Lancashire, The Royal Aeronautical Society and The Chartered Institute of Management.

Rolls-Royce chairman Ian Davis said Sir Kevin is a great fit for the board.

“He has a deep knowledge of global engineering and manufacturing businesses, as well as the aerospace industry.

“His private equity experience in operations intensive businesses with Unitas will also be extremely valuable.”