Manufacturing 2024: KOEN KNIPPENBERG

In June, Knippenberg began his new role as Volvo’s senior vice president in North America for Group Truck Operations (GTO), a position in which he oversees four vehicle assembly plants: Volvo’s New River Valley plant in Dublin; two Mack Trucks factories in Roanoke County and Pennsylvania; and a heavy-duty truck plant under construction in Mexico. Scheduled to open in 2026, the Mexican plant will supplement U.S. production.

A Belgium native, Knippenberg previously served as vice president and general manager of the New River Valley Volvo Trucks plant since 2022. The company’s largest truck manufacturing facility, the 1.6 million-square-foot assembly plant produces all Volvo trucks sold in North America and employs about 3,600 people. The plant began manufacturing the company’s redesigned flagship VNL long-haul truck cabs in June.

Before that, he was vice president for the company’s plant in Ghent, Belgium, as well as managing director for Volvo Group Belgium for five years. Knippenberg also was director of operations for Volvo Trucks North America at the New River Valley plant.

Knippenberg holds a master’s degree in electrical engineering from Belgium’s Katholieke Hogeschool Sint-Lieven.