Jim Norris

President and Chief Executive Officer Control Devices

Last Reviewed: September 29, 2026

Executive Summary

Jim Norris is president and chief executive officer of Control Devices, a Greater St. Louis designer and manufacturer of valves and flow control products for compressed gas, compressed air, oil and gas, and liquid applications. He is a long-serving insider: he first joined the company in 1996, came back as head of sales and marketing in 2008, and was promoted to run it in October 2022 by its owner, the privately held industrial group HBM Holdings. As CEO he has continued the acquisition-led strategy that has defined the business for more than a decade, adding oil and gas, compressed gas and solenoid valve makers to a company that began in a St. Louis garage in 1963.

Career Highlights

• President and CEO of Control Devices since October 2022, promoted by owner HBM Holdings.
• Acquired Gilmore, a Houston maker of severe-service valves for upstream oil and gas, in January 2024, adding about 100 employees.
• Acquired Sherwood Valve, a compressed gas valve maker founded in 1928 with operations in Cleveland and Pittsburgh, in January 2026, adding about 75 employees.
• Acquired Solenoid Solutions of Erie, Pennsylvania, a maker of 2-way, 3-way and proportional solenoid valves and manifolds, in July 2026.
• VP Sales & Marketing of Control Devices from 2008, leading its commercial growth and expansion.
• First joined Control Devices in 1996 in a commercial role, later expanding into product development.

Professional Journey

Norris joined Control Devices in 1996 in a commercial role and moved into product development. The company, founded by Joseph Krechel in 1963 to make check valves and controls for air compressor manufacturers, was then a specialist components supplier in St. Louis. After some years there he left to pursue an entrepreneurial venture of his own, then returned in 2008 as VP Sales & Marketing.

His second stint coincided with Control Devices turning into an acquirer. Over the following years it bought a series of niche valve and flow control brands, including Roberts Manufacturing, Drain-All, Keepflo, Kerick Valve, Gadren Machine, Flexi-Hinge, Harrison Worldwide, Advanced Fuel Components and Dry Link, and it changed hands twice: Goldner Hawn Johnson & Morrison acquired the company in 2013, and HBM Holdings acquired it in October 2021. Under HBM it has also added Essex Industries’ medical gas regulator line. Throughout, Norris led the commercial side of the business, which HBM credits with its growth and expansion.

In October 2022 HBM promoted him to president and CEO, succeeding Scott Kerns, with engineering and operations veteran Dan Lammers reporting to him as SVP of Engineering and Operations. Under Norris the company has kept buying. It acquired Gilmore, a Houston maker of check, relief, regulator and control valves for upstream oil and gas, in January 2024, which Norris said would expand its “products, technology and capabilities”. In January 2026 it bought Sherwood Valve, the leading North American maker of industrial cylinder valves, which he described as bringing “a remarkable legacy of innovation, craftsmanship, and reliability to the compressed gas industry”. In July 2026 it added Solenoid Solutions, which he called “another example of our long-term growth strategy”.

He lives in St. Louis.

Education

Iowa State University

Graduate; the degree and field are not stated in the sources reviewed.