Caitlin Banta has been named president and CEO of Berks County-based Brentwood Industries, a plastics processor that serves customers in the U.S. and globally.
Banta officially assumed her new role on March 31. She succeeds her father, Peter Rye, as president and CEO. Banta is the third generation of the Rye family to lead the company that was purchased by Banta’s grandfather Palle Rye in 1975.
“I’m honored and excited to lead Brentwood into its next chapter. I’m passionate about what we do and the people we serve. And I believe in the talent of our team to continue driving growth by delivering exceptional products and services and upholding the values that define who we are,” Banta said in an emailed response to questions about her new role.
Rye said the company had a clear succession and transition plan, “and Caitlin has proven she is ready to lead the company.”
He will continue as Brentwood’s board chairman and will take on a new role as chief strategy officer, “so I’ll still get to participate in Brentwood’s activities during her first few years of leadership until I’m ready to retire.”
Rye said in his new role, he will be working with Brentwood teams on longer-term strategic plans and projects at the company, including product strategies, new market development and acquisitions.
While Banta is new to the role of president and CEO, she is a veteran of Brentwood Industries. She began her career at the company in 2007 as a summer intern. She returned every summer during college, and after graduating from Tufts University with a degree in mechanical engineering.
Banta has rotated through many Brentwood departments — including HR, IT, marketing and business development — to gain insight into as many areas of the business as possible. Over the past several years, she has worked closely with Rye in preparation for this transition, the company said. Most recently, she held the position of executive vice president for the company.
Brentwood has been part of Banta’s life for as long as she can remember.
“As a kid, I watched my grandfather, Palle, run the business with so much pride and passion,” Banta said in a statement. “When I was 5 and my family moved from Florida so my dad could join Brentwood, I was too young to understand that this marked the beginning of a multi-generational family business.”
While her tenure as president and CEO is just getting started, Banta said she has several immediate goals.
The first, she said, is a temporary relocation to Germany this summer with her husband and children to focus on integrating a recent acquisition — Enexio Water Technologies, which Brentwood purchased from Kelvion.
“Our intention is to learn the European business, create stronger relationships with employees and build bridges between Germany and other Brentwood facilities to improve business processes,” she said. “This is also part of a larger focus on an initiative I call ‘One Brentwood,’ which aims to build one culture that is lived and felt around the world.”
The acquisition was announced in early January 2022, with Rye saying at the time the acquisition would provide “added capabilities, increased worldwide sales and engineering presence, and new areas of expertise for Brentwood.”
Banta added that she is also working to hire a vice president for one of Brentwood’s divisions.
Banta and Rye said they place great value on the company being owned and operated by the family.
“Since we’re part of the day-to-day operations, the business and employees are our extended family. Our hope is to continue this way as long as it makes sense to do so,” they said in the emailed response.
As word spread about the change in leadership, Rye said employees and the company’s partners have been supportive.
“Many of our employees and partners know Caitlin and have built relationships with her, so they understood this transition was coming and are excited about the future,” he added.
Banta is a trustee of her alma mater, Lancaster Country Day School, and is looking forward to joining the United Way of Berks County’s campaign board. She is also passionate about advancing sustainability initiatives at Brentwood. She and her husband, Walter Banta, Brentwood’s vice president of operations, have two children — Astrid and Alice.
Brentwood was founded in 1965 as a plastics molding company focused on the thermoforming process. The founder sold the company to Dana Corp. in 1970. Peter Rye’s father, Palle, was a Dana employee in Canada at that time and was transferred to Reading to work on Dana’s newly acquired company called Brentwood Plastics. Dana later sold the then still small business to Palle and Rita Rye.
The company said its core competency is processing plastics and using plastic materials in innovative ways. A few product applications include getting power to areas that need it, treating water that people drink, providing packaging for critical medical devices, and developing tools that help people do their jobs every day.
In addition to four U.S. locations, Brentwood runs international operations in Mexico, the United Kingdom, Germany, Czechia, Thailand, and India.
