Ballard makes COO appointment, welcoming executive with extensive experience in global operations and manufacturing
Ballard Power Systems has welcomed Ralph Robinett as Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, effective April 13, 2026. He brings more than 25 years of global operations, manufacturing, supply chain, and transformation leadership experience across advanced technology and clean energy businesses.
Replacing the retiring Lee Sweetland, Robinett has led large-scale operational organizations, built and expanded manufacturing facilities in multiple regions, driven cost reduction and productivity improvement initiatives, and helped commercialize innovative technologies at scale.
“I am honored to join Ballard as Chief Operating Officer. Ballard has a strong foundation, a talented team, and an important role to play in the advancement of clean energy solutions. I look forward to working closely with the team to strengthen operations, support customers, and help drive the company’s next phase of growth.”
Ralph Robinett Chief Operating Officer, Ballard
Most recently, Robinett served as Chief Operating Officer at GAF Energy, where he led manufacturing, supply chain, new product deployment, factory expansions, and automation design for the company’s rapidly growing solar roof business.
Through his leadership, he helped grow output and revenue, led deployment of an automated solar shingle manufacturing plant, and supported commercialization of GAF Energy’s second-generation product.
“We are pleased to welcome Ralph to Ballard as our new Chief Operating Officer. Ralph brings a powerful combination of operational discipline, global manufacturing expertise, and strategic leadership to the position. His track record of scaling complex operations, improving productivity, and building strong teams will be invaluable as we continue to execute on our strategy and position Ballard for long-term growth. I also want to thank Lee Sweetland for his contributions to Ballard and wish him well in the future.”
Marty Neese CEO, Ballard
Robinett has also held senior leadership positions at Celestica, Velodyne LiDAR, and SunPower, where he oversaw international manufacturing, implementation of automation strategy, and supply chain transformation.
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