Mr. Freye, age 76, retired in October 2014 as CEO of CLAAS KGaA, a $4.5 billion family-owned agricultural machinery firm headquartered in Germany. Mr. Freye, a citizen of Germany, has more than 30 years of international machinery experience, including several years as Chairman and President of the North American CLAAS operations and as the General Manager of Caterpillar-CLAAS, a joint venture serving the North American and Australian markets. He holds a Master s Degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Ph.D. in Agricultural Science. His extensive international business experience and engineering background provides value to the Valmont board of directors.