REDMOND, Wash., Jan. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Univar, a global leader in the distribution of chemistry and related services, today announced the appointment of D. Beatty D'Alessandro as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. D'Alessandro's appointment follows the announcement that Steven M. Nielsen will be resigning from Univar as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer on January 15.

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"Beatty is a highly accomplished and respected financial executive and we are thrilled to have him join our team," said Erik Fyrwald, Univar President and CEO. "His knowledge of distribution businesses and his expertise in finance and information technology will be tremendous assets for us as we implement our own systems and processes."

D'Alessandro joins Univar after spending 29 years at Graybar, a leading distributor of electrical, communications and data networking products and provider of related supply chain management and logistics services. There, he served as Senior Vice President and CFO as well as on the Board of Directors. Earlier in his career at Graybar, he served as Vice President and Chief Information Officer, overseeing the successful deployment of an enterprise-wide SAP system.

"Univar has an excellent track record of providing strong leadership and driving profitable growth," said Beatty D'Alessandro. "I'm excited to join the team and have the opportunity to enhance and grow the company's position as a global leader in the industry."

Beatty earned his Bachelor's degree and Master's of Business Administration from the University of South Florida. He serves on the Advisory Board of United Missouri Bank, on the Board and Finance Committee of Missouri Baptist Medical Center, and on the Boards of the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Missouri, for which he serves as Chairman, and the St. Louis chapter of Junior Achievement.

About Univar
Univar is a global leader in the distribution of chemistry and related services. Univar represents over 3,500 chemical producers and provides its customer base, made up of 115,000 customers, with a full portfolio of products. Univar operates a global network of more than 260 facilities in North America, Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, and Latin America, with additional sales offices located in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. In 2011, Univar reported sales of $9.7 billion. For more information, visit: www.univar.com.

SOURCE Univar