Helix appoints Graham Belgum as CEO
Above: (left to right) Graham Belgum and Darren Cairns.
Courtesy Helix
Graham is a chartered engineer and brings an extraordinary wealth of experience to Helix, with
a particular focus on bringing new electric vehicles to market.
He joins the company after three years at Fortescue Zero (formerly Williams Advanced Engineering), where he served as General Manager for Heavy Industry, responsible for the creation of a new capability to develop and industrialise modular battery power systems for offroad applications, including mining.
Prior to this, Graham was President and then CEO of Optare, where he led their electrification programme and laid the foundation for its rebrand to Switch Mobility. Preceding this, he served in senior leadership roles at Condor Ferries and First Group UK. Before entering the private sector, Graham served in the British Army, where he was overall engineering manager for the Challenger Main Battle Tank fleet.
Outgoing CEO and company co-founder, Darren Cairns, is stepping down 27 years after cofounding the business. He will remain an active part of Helix, working in an advisory role alongside Belgum.
Graham Belgum, Chief Executive Officer at Helix, said: “I’m thrilled to be joining Helix at this truly exciting time. With its exceptional offering of innovative electric propulsion and control solutions across a wide range of sectors – including automotive, aerospace, marine and defence – the company is perfectly placed as we accelerate our growth across the globe. I also want to pay tribute to Darren, whose hard work and dedication over the past three decades has helped cement Helix’s status as a pioneer and market leader.”
Darren Cairns, Outgoing Chief Executive Officer at Helix, added: “As one of Helix’s founders, this company has been an integral part of my professional life and I’m incredibly proud of the success we've achieved together. However, I’m certain Graham is the right person to lead this business and know that Helix will continue to thrive under his leadership. This is an exciting new era for Helix and I am extremely positive about what lies ahead.”
