Knibb, Gormezano People

Knibb, Gormezano and Partners gains its main strength from the people it employs as consultants. All have had extensive experience in industry, often in senior positions.

In addition to the principals profiled below, the practice has a research group based in Derby and a regular consulting team of professionals. To this should be added over 60 associated consultants and or 45 small specialist practices around the world. Detailed career résumés for all professional staff are routinely supplied to clients seeking our services for specific projects.

Brian Knibb

Brian Knibb is a mechanical engineer by training but gained most of his industrial experience in the manufacturing engineering field. This included fifteen years with Perkins Engines where he worked in manufacturing development, product and business planning.

He spent seven years with international management consultants A T Kearney, much of it as Manager, European Automotive Group, before setting up his own practice in 1985. He was also Vice President of Berkt Management a US/Swiss automotive consultancy. His consultancy experience has included participation in and leading assignments concerned with on- and off-road vehicles, engines, components product planning, materials, and technologies and industry supply relationships. With Joe Gormezano he was a founding partner of KGP.

During his time as a consultant Mr Knibb has managed numerous assignments in the automotive industry. Many have been international, deploying locally based and multi-disciplinary teams. Recent assignments have included work in Western Europe, North America, India, Indonesia and Eastern Europe.

Alex joined KGP in 1994, shortly after completing a four year degree in Manufacturing Engineering and Economics at Birmingham University.

Since joining as a Research Consultant he has completed a wide range of projects covering both technical and commercial issues.  This experience, which has been gained working for clients worldwide, lead to his appointment as a Director of KGP, and Head of Research.

He is continually involved with client business development and is keen on personal development, and a member of the SAE, AET and IMC.  Alex is managing KGP’s IT requirements in addition to the research team.

He has a good working knowledge of the German language.

Working to strengthen the technical as well as commercial awareness,  he is just completing an MSc in Automotive Systems Engineering at Loughborough University.

Alex has been closely involved in all recent powertrain studies conducted by KGP, especially focusing on the development of production history and forecasts databases.

Michael Smith

Having gained his Honours degree in Engineering, Michael joined the British Oxygen Company, Murex Ltd and spent five years undertaking metallurgical research.  This was followed by nine years at the British Steel Corporation, where he was responsible for the Techno-Economic Analysis Unit, advising on investment in new processes and technology.  Having then taken a year out to complete the Sloan Programme of Business Management, Michael joined the consulting group Planning Research and Systems, eventually joining the board as Director in charge of automotive and engine consulting studies, and Vice President of the US subsidiary company.  

In the early ‘90s Michael joined DRI McGraw-Hill to set up a consulting practice to the automotive industry.   During his time with DRI he was closely involved with many studies in the powertrain field.  He was also a principal author of DRI’s 2000 global multi-client study on 42 volt systems.

Currently a principal consultant with KGP, Michael has recently completed our multi-client study “Transmission Trends in Passenger Cars and Light Commercial Vehicles in Europe”.  He has also been closely involved in several materials studies including the 2001 multi-client project examining light metal applications in European vehicles.

Hans Ensing