Hal Pontez
President & CEO
Hal Pontez is owner and founder of HPI, LLC. The company was launched in 2002 when Mr. Pontez recognized the need for additional capacity and the need for new technology in turbine controls and turn-key power plant design and construction. Since its founding, HPI has grown at a dramatic 200% annually. Formerly an executive with Vosper Thornycroft, Mr. Pontez gained extensive experience and industry insight through various leadership roles in the turbo machinery industry. Upon graduating from Syracuse University with a Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Mr. Pontez began to apply his strong academic training, keen business development skills, and natural business acumen to the relatively staid world of industrial controls. Mr. Pontez also began pursuit of his MBA at Marquette University's Business School program.
His successes were well documented, resulting his receiving many offers from industrial control companies while still in his mid twenties. Mr. Pontez has subsequently held executive management positions with Allen Bradley, Eaton/Cutler Hammer, Honeywell and finally with Hawker Siddeley Dynamics Engineering, which later to become HSDE, then Vosper Thornycroft Controls.
The globalization trend of private sector companies in the 1980’s and 90’s provided Mr. Pontez opportunities for extensive international business and technical experience. In the 1980’s he was an early pioneer in doing business with former Soviet bloc countries where he integrated hybrid marketing approaches, allowing newly privatized companies in Eastern Europe to significantly update their products with western technology.
Upon leaving Vosper Thornycroft, where he successfully managed several high risk endeavors, Mr. Pontez assumed the existing turbine controls contract obligations from Vosper Thornycroft and completed those projects with a core technical team comprised of highly specialized engineers and project managers. The strong pedigree and immediate success of the newly formed team instilled confidence among customers and industry analyst, ensuring HPI a strong foundation and solid start.
In 2006, Mr. Pontez led HPI in negotiating and winning projects to provide emergency power to the nation of Kuwait. In rapid succession, two 300 MW gas turbine power plants were built in an unprecedented short time of six month. These projects provided HPI a two year revenue stream totaling over $300MM.
In 2009, Mr. Pontez successfully concluded contractual agreements for the development in Ghana of a 132 MW combined cycle power plant project. This project promises to be one of many power plants to be built in Ghana, which plans to add an additional 3000 MW by 2015
His twenty-seven years of corporate experience encompasses company ownership, executive management and the Business Development of turbine engineering projects. Mr. Pontez has successfully implemented a unique blend of enterprise and strategic solution selling across the defense, industrial and government industries. Throughout his career, Mr. Pontez has demonstrated how creativity, discipline and determination allowed for mutual success to be achieved across both sides of the table.
A mark of his success, Mr. Pontez was nominated as a finalist for the 2010 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Watch the video here
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