Avient Corp. names new CEO

Ashish Khandpur. Photo Credit: Avient Corp.

Material supplier Avient Corp. has appointed Ashish K. Khandpur, Ph.D, as president and CEO, effective Dec. 1.

And in connection with the appointment, the Avon Lake, Ohio-based company has also elected Richard H. Fearon, its lead independent director, as non-executive chairman of the board, also effective Dec. 1.

The company said Robert M. Patterson will retire from his roles as president and CEO and resign from the board. He will remain with the company through May 31, 2024, “in an advisory capacity to help facilitate the leadership transition,” Avient officials said in a Nov. 12 news release. Patterson has been president and CEO since 2014 and chairman since 2016.

Khandpur comes to Avient after working for nearly 30 years at St. Paul, Minn.-based conglomerate 3M Corp., where he held a variety of technology and R&D roles, including chief technology officer. He most recently was group president of 3M’s Transportation and Electronics Business.

Khandpur earned a bachelor’s of technology degree in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and a doctorate in chemical engineering from the University of Minnesota.

“Ashish is one of the world’s leading experts in polymers and materials, having earned undergraduate and doctorate degrees in chemical engineering at two of the world’s leading chemical engineering universities, and then used that knowledge over several decades to help pioneer a host of new products for 3M,” Fearon said.  “In addition, as a business leader at 3M he has demonstrated great success in using that expertise to drive sales and profit growth. His passion for leading, innovating, and delivering success is readily apparent and will serve as an excellent fit with Avient’s culture.”

Avient was formerly known as PolyOne Corp.