John Crowe has been named president and chief executive officer (CEO) of building-materials company Saint-Gobain's North American holding company, Saint-Gobain Corp., and Saint-Gobain's largest North American subsidiary, CertainTeed Corp.

Crowe will take on both roles effective Sept. 1.

As president and CEO of Saint-Gobain Corp., Crowe will act as Saint-Gobain’s representative in North America, overseeing the company’s North American businesses and chairing the company’s Executive Committee. In that role, he will succeed Gilles Colas, who will return to Saint-Gobain’s Paris headquarters as senior vice president in charge of global strategic developments.

As president and CEO of CertainTeed, Crowe will succeed Peter Dachowski, who will retire Aug. 31 after 35 years with Saint-Gobain and CertainTeed.

Crowe sees his main role as continuing to drive innovation throughout the company.

“Within CertainTeed, we’ve already developed sustainable building products that reduce noise, improve air quality, save energy, and more,” Crowe said. “Within the broader Saint-Gobain family of companies, we’re developing innovative solutions such as substrates for LED (light-emitting diode) and OLED (organic light-emitting diode) sustainable lighting, as well as intelligent, energy-efficient glass that automatically switches from clear to tinted. We’re also investing strongly in solar power and other technologies that will reduce energy costs in the future.”

Crowe most recently served as president of Saint-Gobain’s global abrasives business, with responsibility for more than 13,000 employees and 75 manufacturing facilities in 24 countries. Over 30 years, he has served in a wide range of leadership positions with Saint-Gobain, including president of the Performance Plastics and Crystals businesses.

Crowe holds a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Clarkson University and a master's degree in business administration from Boston College. Also, he has completed Columbia University's executive program in business administration.