Thomas Zarrella is the President and CEO of SustainX. He was formerly President and Chief Executive Officer for GT Solar, Inc. and was instrumental in managing the company's growth in the global photovoltaic marketplace. During that time, he positioned GT Solar as a leading worldwide supplier of photovoltaic equipment and services. He led them through several liquidity events, culminating in a $500 million initial public offering in July of 2008. On June 24, 2008 Thomas was awarded the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, the world's most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs, which is presented to candidates who have demonstrated professional excellence, extraordinary success in innovation, and financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities.
Previously, Thomas served more than 25 years in the international operations of high technology manufacturing companies, including RWE Schott Solar, where he successfully transitioned the company from an R&D operation to a full-scale manufacture of photovoltaic products. He also served in various management and engineering positions at the North American Operations of Instron Corp., and at Revere Corp. (a division of Allied Signal), Sprague Meter (a division of Textron, Inc.) and Sikorsky Aircraft (a division of United Technologies).
Thomas holds a BSME degree from the University of Connecticut and an MBA from the University of Bridgeport. He is a native of Waterbury, CT.
