Wolfe to retire, Gilligan in as president at Butler

Ted Wolfe, president of Kansas City, Mo.-based Butler Manufacturing since 2008, has announced he will retire after a 38-year career with the company. He will be succeeded by Tom Gilligan, who most recently served as vice president of sales and marketing, announced Patrick J. Finan, president of BlueScope Buildings North America. In choosing to retire, Wolfe has committed to continue working full time at Butler through the end of 2010 to facilitate the management transition. Gilligan brings to the leadership position a diversity of experience that began with the company in 1994 as an area manager based in Memphis, Tenn. He had worked in sales, project management and as vice president of construction for a Butler Builder contractor prior to joining Butler Manufacturing. He would later serve as sales manager and general manager of product groups involved with metal roofing, self-storage buildings and hybrid steel systems engineered to combine with hard wall-type building projects. He went on to serve as the general manager for both the northeast and western Regions before returning to Butler headquarters in Kansas City. Wolfe’s retirement is the culmination of an exemplary career in positions of steadily increasing responsibility in field sales and supervision. In all, he compiled over 38 years of experience with Butler Manufacturing. He held various positions through the ranks and regions of the business, before advancing to president. He joined Butler in 1972, as an administrative assistant in Birmingham, Ala. Thereafter, he held other various field sales and supervisory positions, including five years as an area manager in the southern region; one year as a product marketing manager in Kansas City, Mo.; three years as regional sales manager in Dallas; and four years as regional sales manager in Birmingham. From 1985 until 2007, he was responsible for the sales group of the Butler Buildings Division, serving as the senior vice president of sales. In this capacity, he managed all of the field sales personnel who work directly with over 1,200 authorized Butler Builders. As senior vice president of sales, he was also responsible for the Butler Corporate Accounts group.