EL SEGUNDO, CA -- Wyle Senior Vice President Drexel Smith announces his retirement following a 37-year career at the company and 40 years in the high tech test and evaluation business. Wyle, a privately held company, is a provider of high tech aerospace engineering and information technology services to the federal government on long-term outsourcing contracts.
Smith, who has led the company's business development, marketing and government relations efforts during the past four years, has been part of the leadership team that has grown the company from revenues of $60 million in 1995 to approximately $800 million today.
"We at Wyle want to thank Drexel for his decades of dedicated service and leadership to the company," says George Melton, Wyle CEO and president.
Having first joined Wyle in January 1972 responsible for contract administration, Smith has held numerous engineering, marketing and senior management positions in the company. He served as general manager of the company's Technical Support Services Group from 1999 to 2005.
Smith is completing terms as a member of the board of directors of the International Test and Evaluation Association and the California Space Authority, and has held numerous board positions with other national boards and associations in the aerospace, space, energy and other industries.
"I look back at my Wyle career with a great deal of satisfaction," says Smith. "At Wyle, I've been involved with some of the country's most exciting and important technology programs."
In the past two years, he has become a leading spokesman for the aerospace industry in the need to increase and improve the teaching of science and math in middle schools to ensure the nation's development of qualified technical workers and engineers.
Smith also has been active in community and charity efforts. Following his retirement at the end of the year, Smith will continue to support Wyle and the industry as a consultant.
