OM Group Adds Hans-Georg Betz to Board of Directors

CLEVELAND, Jan. 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- OM Group (NYSE: OMG) today announced that its Board of Directors has named Hans-Georg ("Hans") Betz as a director of the company, effective immediately. Betz becomes the seventh independent director of the company's eight-member board and will serve with the class of directors that stands for re-election in 2014.

"As our company continues to rapidly move forward into a new era of profitable growth, we felt it was important to add another seasoned business leader to the board who could provide objective, first-hand knowledge of the technological challenges facing our customers in the energy and medical devices sectors, among others, as well as expand the global perspective of this governing body," said Joseph Scaminace, chairman and chief executive officer. "Hans comes to the OMG board with proven executive-leadership experience, as well as a wealth of knowledge in operations, finance and strategic development. We are thrilled to add this talented and thoughtful individual to our strong and independent board."

From 2005 to 2011, Betz was the chief executive officer of Advanced Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: AEIS), a global producer of power conversion products and gear used in the production of flat-panel displays, solar panels, data storage devices, architectural glass, and other thin-film products. Before that, he was the founder and CEO for West Steag Partners GmbH, a venture capitalist firm focused on strategic investments in emerging technology businesses. Before forming West Steag Partners, Betz served as COO and later CEO of Steag Electronics Systems.  He spent the first 15 years of his career as a scientist, working first at the Fraunhofer Institute of Semiconductor Technology and later at the Fraunhofer Institute of Microstructure Technology (IMT). In 1987, he joined Leybold AG, where he served as the head of research and development.

Betz, who speaks German and English and now resides in Italy, currently serves as chairman of the board for Mattson Technology (NASDAQ: MTSN) in Fremont, California. He graduated from the Technical University of Munich in 1972 with a degree in electrical engineering, and earned his Ph.D. in 1981 from Fraunhofer IMT.

ABOUT OM GROUP, INC.
OM Group, Inc. is a leading global solutions provider of engineered materials, specialty chemicals, electrochemical energy storage, and unique technologies crucial to enabling our customers to meet increasingly stringent market and application requirements. The company serves a wide variety of sectors, including rechargeable batteries, electronic devices, cutting tools, petrochemical catalysts, electronics manufacturing, industrial coatings, defense, aerospace, medical devices, alternative energy, automotive, electrical installation, and energy conversion and distribution. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, OM Group operates manufacturing facilities in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa. For more information, visit the company's website at www.omgi.com.

SOURCE OM Group