The Dutch company Philips has announced the resignation of its CEO Frans van Houten after discovering toxic and deadly foam in the company’s respirators and was forced to withdraw large quantities of it from the market.
Van Houten is stepping down after 12 years and will be replaced by Roy Jacobs, who currently oversees Philips recalls of multi-million dollar sleep equipment that puts users at risk of inhaling toxic foam, AFP reported.
The Amsterdam-based Philips has allocated almost 900 million euros to replace and repair harmful respirators, and this problem has resulted in a net loss for the Dutch company.
The respirators were recalled last June after Philips announced that users were at risk of inhaling or swallowing bits of foam.
Frans van Houten’s term was due to end in April, but Philips, which went from electronics giant to healthcare company during his tenure as CEO, said Roy Jacobs would take over as CEO effective October 15, 2022.
Source: AFP.