A. O. Smith Corporation Announces Executive Changes

Published: 2025-07-01 13:20:33 ET AOS

Published on 07/01/2025 at 13:20

A. O. Smith Corporation announced that Ming Cheng, will become A. O. Smith's next senior vice president and chief technology officer. He replaces Bob Heideman, who has been with the company in different capacities since 1994. Cheng, who was most recently senior vice president of research and development for the Transportation and Electronics Business Group at 3M Company, will join A. O. Smith July 7. Heideman will stay on through Sept.

1, to ensure a smooth transition. Cheng has worked for 3M for the past 25 years. In his current role, he leads a global team focused on technology, product development, product engineering and application engineering.

During his time at 3M, Cheng served as vice president of research and development in the Greater China area for four years. He also worked as vice president of research and development for the electronics materials solutions division, laboratory director, laboratory manager, business development supervisor and research specialist. He received a Bachelor of Science in chemistry from Peking University in Beijing, China, a Doctoral Degree in polymer chemistry from Cornell University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Minnesota.

Heideman was named senior vice president, engineering and technology in 2011, and chief technology officer in 2013, overseeing the company's research and engineering. He joined the company in 1994 as a project engineer at the Corporate Technology Center (CTC), the company's Milwaukee-based research and engineering facility. Over the years, he worked as a section manager for the Metallurgy and Prototyping Group, director of materials and processes at the CTC, and vice president of the CTC.