Board of Directors

Robert C. Daigle became CEO of Amtech Systems in August 2023, having joined the Board in August 2021 and elected Chairman in March 2022. Prior to his role at Amtech, Mr. Daigle served as Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Rogers Corporation, where he had a distinguished 30-year career in various senior executive positions. At Rogers, he successfully built and led both the High Frequency Circuit Materials and Power Electronics Solutions businesses. Mr. Daigle holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering and Materials Engineering from the University of Connecticut and an M.B.A. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Robert M. Averick has been a Director since January 2016. Mr. Averick has over 15 years of experience as a small-capitalization, value-driven public equity portfolio manager. His previous work experience includes positions of increasing responsibility within structured finance, strategic planning and consulting. Mr. Averick received an undergraduate degree in Economics from The University of Virginia and a Masters in Business Administration in Finance from The University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School of Business. Mr. Averick has worked as a portfolio manager at Kokino LLC since 2012. He previously served on our Board during 2005 and 2006. Mr. Averick also serves on the board of directors of Gulf Island Fabrication, Inc., a publicly-traded fabricator of complex steel structures, modules and marine vessels and is a member of its compensation committee and corporate governance and nominating committee. Additionally, Mr. Averick currently serves as a director of PhoneX Holdings, Inc., an OTC bulletin-board company, and he previously served as a director of Key Technology, Inc. until its sale in 2018. Mr. Averick serves as Chairman of our Compensation Committee and as a member of our Audit and Nominating and Governance Committees. Mr. Averick’s experience in finance and strategy planning allows him to provide valuable advice to the Board of Directors and the Committees on which he serves.

Michael Garnreiter has been a Director since February 2007 and was appointed Lead Independent Director in May 2020. He is the Chairman of our Audit Committee and serves as a member of our Compensation and Nominating and Governance Committees. Mr. Garnreiter is our designated financial expert on the Audit Committee. Mr. Garnreiter, for the past three years, has served as Interim Chief Financial Officer for LeVecke Corporation, a privately-held, California-based distilled spirits bottling company. He retired from that role in early 2023. Also, he retired in December 2015 as Vice President of Finance and Treasurer of Shamrock Foods, a privately-held manufacturer and distributor of foods and food-related products. From January 2010 until August 2012, Mr. Garnreiter was a managing director of Fenix Financial Forensics, a Phoenix-based litigation and financial consulting firm. From August 2006 until January 2010, he was a managing member of Rising Sun Restaurant Group LLC, and, from December 2008 until December 2009, he was president of New Era Restaurants, LLC, both of which are privately-held restaurant operating companies. From 2002 to 2006, Mr. Garnreiter was CFO of Main Street Restaurant Group, a publicly-traded restaurant operating company, and from 1976 to 2002, he was a senior audit partner of Arthur Andersen LLP. Mr. Garnreiter serves on the boards of directors of Axon Enterprise, Inc. (as Chairman), a publicly-traded manufacturer of non-lethal protection devices, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc., a publicly-traded nationwide truckload transportation company, and Banner Health, a multi-state health care delivery system. He graduated from California State University Long Beach with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Business Administration. Mr. Garnreiter is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Arizona and Certified Fraud Examiner. Mr. Garnreiter’s financial background and expertise allows him to provide valuable advice to the Board of Directors.

Michael M. Ludwig has been a Director since January 2023. He served as Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Rogers Corporation ("Rogers") from September 2018 until May 2021. Rogers is a publicly-traded global leader in engineered materials, including advanced electronic and elastomeric materials that are used in applications for EV/HEV, automotive safety and radar systems, mobile devices, renewable energy, wireless infrastructure, energy-efficient motor drives, and industrial equipment. From May 2011 to March 2018, Mr. Ludwig served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of FormFactor, Inc., a publicly-traded global leader in the design and manufacturing of advanced probe cards, analytical probes, probe stations, metrology systems, thermal systems and cryogenic systems sold to semiconductor and scientific institutions. Prior to May 2011, Mr. Ludwig held various senior financial management positions at FormFactor, Elo TouchSystems, Inc. and Beckman Coulter. Mr. Ludwig began his career in public accounting at Arthur Young. He graduated from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Accounting. Mr. Ludwig serves as Chairman of our Nominating and Governance Committee and as a member of our Audit and Compensation Committees. Mr. Ludwig's financial background and expertise allows him to provide valuable advice to the Board of Directors and the Committees on which he serves.