Kingsley Hall replaces Peter Rowland as CEO of Micro-X

By Peter Roberts

Cold cathode X-ray machine manufacturer Micro-X has announced the appointment of Kingsley Hall (main picture) as Chief Executive Officer following the retirement of company founder Peter Rowland (pictured, below).

Hall’s appointment as Chief Executive Officer comes at a time when the company has identified the need for a shift of emphasis from technical to commercial leadership, according to an announcement.

While Micro-X has a number of technical coups under its belt, sales of its Rover X-ray machines continue to lag forecasts, according to a recent company update to investors.

It is impossible to overestimate the importance of the company’s greatest achievement under Rowland – the commercialisation of its Electronic X-Ray Tube that uses carbon fibre nanotube technology to offer a more stable, smaller X-ray tube than previously possible.

Micro-X is on the verge of marketing its latest product, its first security product, the Argus X-ray Camera.

The camera uses backscatter radiation technology to safely image the contents of suspicious bags and objects in search of improvised explosives devices (IEDs).

Micro-X is also developing an airline passenger checkpoint scanner for the US Department of Homeland Security and an in-ambulance CT scanner for the Australian Stroke Alliance, though the potential of these ambitious projects are not valued by the stock market.

Micro-X’s share price rose 10.5 percent to 10.5 cents by late morning in response to the news, valuing Micro-X at $48.9 million.

Micro-X’s Chairman David Knox thanked Rowland, who had a distinguished career including at BAE Systems Australia, Ellex medical lasers and as head of the Invest SA investment attraction group before founding Micro-X, for his significant contribution as founder and CEO

Knox said: “On behalf of the whole Board of Directors and staff at Micro-X, I cannot thank Peter enough for bringing the Company this far.

“His vision, energy and leadership has turned an idea into a company that is emerging as a force in global radiology and security markets.

“The culture of the organisation, the creativity and commitment of everyone involved at Micro-X are of his creation and position the Company well for the exciting expansion in our next phase.”

Hall joined Micro-X in 2020 as Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary following a career in accounting, consultancy and leadership positions in radio and tourism businesses.

Hall said Micro-X had exceptional commercial opportunities ahead based on its talent and technology.

Hall said he was indebted to Peter Rowland and: “While our team has much to do, he is leaving Micro-X with multiple products capable of securing leading positions in multi-billion dollar markets.

“The strength of our engineering, development and manufacturing teams allows my immediate focus to be on driving further commercial returns from our technology, including a successful commercial launch of the Argus by mid-2023 and adressing sales and profitability in our mobile DR (mobile X-ray machine) division.”

Kingsley will work closely with Australian-based Anthony Skeats as Chief Operating Officer and Seattle-based Dr Brian Gonzales as CEO – Americas and Chief Scientific Officer.