Press release submitted on behalf of Aurora Material Solutions.
Aurora Material Solutions announces the appointment of Renee Havrilla as chief executive officer, effective immediately. Havrilla follows Darrell Hughes in this role as part of a planned leadership succession.
In her new position, Havrilla will set Aurora’s strategic direction, oversee capital allocation and finance, manage the top leadership team, and serve as the primary liaison to the board of directors.
“Renee brings more than 30 years of results-driven leadership experience in in specialty chemicals, with deep expertise in both flexible and rigid vinyl compounds, M&A integration, and global P&L management,” says Hughes, now an Aurora board member. “With strong strategic and execution discipline, Renee is committed to leading Aurora for the long term. We are confident she is the right leader to take us forward.”
Havrilla joined Aurora in June 2025 as president of the company’s flexible compounds business segment. In this role, she was responsible for developing the segment’s value creation plan and managing P&L for flexible compound products. She also managed business development, technology, financial controls, and plant management for the segment’s operations.
Prior to joining Aurora, Havrilla served as vice president of Monument Chemical’s solvents business. Other experience includes roles with Westlake Chemical Corporation, where she worked for 11 years; seven of them as vice president of global PVC compounds where she had full P&L responsibility for 13 global locations and provided leadership for overall strategy, sales, marketing, new product development, customer service, quality, supply chain management and plant operations. Havrilla has also served as general manager of the polyurethane spray foam business for Bayer Material Science (now Covestro).
Havrilla replaces Hughes, who has led Aurora for nearly 10 years. Under his leadership, the company grew from a two-site operation with fewer than 100 employees into its now ten-site, scaled organization.
Darrell has been with Aurora for nearly a decade and led the company to through its periods of strong growth. The Aurora board is grateful for his vision, high standards, and genuine care for people have resulted in positive corporate culture that is reflected in world-class employee feedback scores.
Hughes will remain a key member of the Aurora board of directors, where he will continue to contribute his experience and judgment.
About Aurora Material Solutions
Our mission at Aurora Material Solutions is to be our customers’ first choice in polymer compound solutions, enabling their success through innovation and consistently delivering high-quality products with exceptional customer service.