CertainTeed Corporation, a manufacturer of sustainable building products, has announced the retirement of its president and CEO, Peter Dachowski, effective August 31, 2011.

VALLEY FORGE, Pa. – CertainTeed Corporation, a manufacturer of sustainable building products, has announced the retirement of its president and CEO, Peter Dachowski, effective August 31, 2011.

During his 35-year tenure with CertainTeed, and its parent company Saint-Gobain, Dachowski served in a long progression of executive roles in finance and global management. After Exxon Treasurers and the Boston Consulting Group, he joined CertainTeed in 1976 and was quickly promoted to vice president and treasurer and later, corporate comptroller. Through the late 80s, despite an economic downturn, he led significant growth in CertainTeed’s roofing, ventilation, siding and window businesses through new product innovations and acquisitions. In the early 90s, his responsibilities were expanded to include all of CertainTeed’s building materials manufacturing and wholesale distribution businesses.

In 1996, Dachowski was appointed as president of Saint-Gobain’s worldwide insulation business, based in Paris, driving significant growth particularly in Eastern Europe and Russia, expanding the ceilings business in the Far East, restoring the profitability of the stone wool business, developing a common global brand identity and cultivating the company’s world leadership position in these product areas.

Since his return to North America as president and CEO of CertainTeed in 2004, Dachowski has led key initiatives focused on quality, innovation and sustainability that have positioned the company as a major player in both residential and commercial building products. Under his direction, CertainTeed expanded significantly into Canada, established an industry-first building science team and launched revolutionary product innovations such as AirRenew volatile organic compound (VOC) scavenging drywall, the EnerGen photovoltaic roofing system, and Landmark Solaris solar reflective roofing shingles.

“Leading a company that delivers shelter and contributes to people’s comfort and the sustainability and longevity of their homes and buildings has been very gratifying,” said Dachowski. “I am privileged to have worked with a first-class team of employees who are instituting positive change and driving innovation in a difficult market environment.”

Dachowski currently serves on the board of directors of Ball Horticultural Company, International House of Philadelphia, Foreign Relations Policy Institute, Philadelphia Film Society, and the advisory council to the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. He is an emeritus board director of the Philadelphia Orchestra Association.

Dachowski gained a First Class Honors degree in Economics from the University of Cambridge in the U.K., followed by an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where he received the Wall Street Journal Award for Excellence in Finance.

John Crowe, who is currently the president of Saint-Gobain’s global abrasives business, will succeed Dachowski as president and CEO of CertainTeed Corporation. Crowe has held numerous leadership positions within the Saint-Gobain group of companies over the past 30 years. As the president of Saint-Gobain Abrasives, he is responsible for 13,000 employees and approximately 75 manufacturing facilities in 24 countries.