Bodycote, the Macclesfield-based heat treatment and thermal processing giant, announced the appointment of Rolls-Royce executive Ben Fidler as its chief financial officer (CFO) designate and as a member of the board as of February 24, 2023.

Fidler will take up the CFO role on May 1, 2023, succeeding Dominique Yates who announced his intention to retire earlier this year.

“Ben is currently the deputy chief financial officer of Rolls-Royce plc, a position he has held since January 2021,” said Bodycote.

“Ben has spent five years with Rolls-Royce, previously holding the positions of vice president of business performance and director of financial planning and analysis.

“Prior to Rolls-Royce, Ben spent 20 years as an Aerospace & Defence equity research analyst, 18 of which were at Deutsche Bank.

“There he led a team which achieved consistent top rankings in external analyst surveys.

“Ben started his career as a strategy consultant at the LEK partnership. He is a graduate of the University of Oxford and holds a degree in Biochemistry.”

Bodycote CEO Stephen Harris said: “We are delighted to welcome Ben to the group. His experience as a senior executive at a FTSE 100 company, as well as his in-depth knowledge of our end markets, make him an excellent fit for Bodycote.

“He will be a great addition to the team and I look forward to working with him.

“We would also like to thank Dominique Yates. His contribution to Bodycote over the past six years has been invaluable.

“He will leave with our gratitude for the considerable effort he expended over this period. We wish him all the best for the future.”