Kevin Collins
About Kevin Collins
Kevin R. Collins (age 59) is Vice President and General Manager of CVD’s SDC division; he has served as SDC’s General Manager since 1999 and previously worked at Stainless Design Corp. (1990–1999). He attended Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science . During FY2024, company TSR (initial $100) was $119.24 (down from $149.32 in 2022), while revenues grew 11.5% year over year to $26.9M and net loss narrowed to $1.9M, with SDC external revenue up 16.4% and representing roughly 29% of total revenue . These trends indicate modest operational improvement (revenue and loss) alongside challenged TSR since 2022, relevant to incentive alignment .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stainless Design Corp. | Manager of Field Operations; Product Development Advisor | 1990–1999 | Field operations and product development leadership prior to SDC role |
| CVD Equipment – SDC Division | General Manager (later VP & GM) | 1999–present | Leads ultra-high purity gas and chemical delivery systems; SDC external revenue +16.4% YoY in 2024; ~29.1% of overall revenue |
External Roles
None disclosed .
Fixed Compensation
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Base Salary ($) | 203,308 | 206,000 |
| Actual Cash Bonus ($) | 15,000 (Management Bonus Plan) | 30,000 (Management Bonus Plan) |
| All Other Compensation ($) | 27,374 (401k match $7,863; insurance premiums $19,511) | 26,558 (401k match $6,630; insurance premiums $19,928) |
| Total Reported Compensation ($) | 385,680 | 262,558 |
Notes:
- Bonuses reflect the Company’s Management Bonus Plan; specific metric weightings/targets were not disclosed .
- No stock or option grants in 2024 for NEOs; equity awards were granted in 2023 and earlier .
Performance Compensation
Annual Incentive (Cash)
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual/Payout | Vesting/Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Management Bonus Plan | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | $15,000 (2023); $30,000 (2024) | Paid following performance year |
- The proxy does not disclose revenue/EBITDA/TSR or other metric weightings or target levels for Collins’ bonus .
Equity Incentives (Options)
| Grant Date (implied) | Instrument | Strike ($) | Expiration | Vesting | Exercisable | Unexercisable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/15/2021 | Stock Options | 4.01 | 7/15/2031 | Not specified in proxy (standard 25%/yr applies to 2023 grants) | 7,500 | 2,500 |
| 8/27/2022 | Stock Options | 5.02 | 8/27/2032 | Not specified in proxy (standard 25%/yr applies to 2023 grants) | 7,500 | 7,500 |
| 3/23/2023 | Stock Options | 14.11 | 3/23/2033 | 25% per year over four years (10-year life) | 3,750 | 11,250 |
- 2023 option grants vest 25% annually over four years; future vest dates for the 3/23/2023 grant imply remaining tranches on or about each March 23 through 2027, subject to service .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Beneficial Ownership | 104,937 shares (1.5% of outstanding) as of June 16, 2025 |
| Options Included (60-day) | 25,000 options within 60 days counted in beneficial ownership |
| Exercisable vs Unexercisable Options (12/31/2024) | Exercisable: 18,750 total (3,750 @ $14.11; 7,500 @ $5.02; 7,500 @ $4.01). Unexercisable: 21,250 total (11,250 @ $14.11; 7,500 @ $5.02; 2,500 @ $4.01) |
| Ownership Guidelines | Not disclosed in proxy |
| Pledging/Hedging | No pledging disclosed; company enforces pre-clearance, trading windows, and blackout periods under Insider Trading Policy |
| Clawback | Executive compensation clawback adopted Oct 2, 2023 (recoup over three prior years if financial restatement) |
Employment Terms
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Employment Agreement | Other than the CEO, the company discloses no employment contracts or change-in-control arrangements for directors or Named Executive Officers; no specific agreement for Collins is disclosed |
| Severance / Change of Control | Not disclosed for Collins (CEO terms only described) |
| Non-compete / Non-solicit | Not disclosed for Collins |
Performance & Track Record (Division Context)
| Metric | 2023 | 2024 | Commentary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company Revenue ($000) | 24,109 | 26,876 | +11.5% YoY on aerospace/industrial and SDC strength |
| SDC External Revenue ($000) | ~6,700 (net of intersegment sales $0.4M) | ~7,800 (net of intersegment sales $0.6M) | +16.4% YoY; SDC ~29.1% of total revenue in 2024 |
| Net Income (Loss) ($000) | (4,180) | (1,898) | Loss narrowed 55% YoY |
| TSR (Initial $100) | 120.05 | 119.24 | Down from 2022’s 149.32 |
Other notes:
- Concentration: one customer represented 29.5% of revenue in 2024; bookings up 8.9% to $28.1M; backlog grew to $19.4M—macro context for incentive results .
Say-on-Pay & Shareholder Feedback
| Meeting Year | Proposal | For | Against | Abstain | Broker Non-Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | NEO Compensation (advisory) | 3,168,590 | 244,613 | 7,894 | 1,979,465 |
| 2025 | NEO Compensation (advisory) | 2,717,857 | 22,289 | 17,985 | 2,206,675 |
- Section 16(a) timeliness: all 2024 insider filings were timely; in 2023, a single delinquent Form 4 was noted for Collins and several executives (administrative timeliness flag) .
Compensation Committee Analysis
- Compensation Committee: Ashraf Lotfi (Chair), Andrew Africk, and Lawrence J. Waldman (all independent) .
- Use of outside consultant: utilized in 2021; not disclosed for 2024 .
- Clawback in place per Nasdaq rules (effective Oct 2, 2023) .
Related-Party Transactions / Red Flags
- Policy requires Audit Committee oversight for related-party transactions >$120,000; no Collins-specific related-party transactions disclosed .
- No tax gross-ups, golden parachute provisions, or option repricings disclosed for Collins; no pledging disclosed .
- Insider trading policy mandates pre-clearance and limited trading windows (mitigates opportunistic trading) .
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance alignment: Collins’ compensation is modest and predominantly cash-based near term (2024: $206k salary, $30k bonus) with meaningful multi-year alignment via stock options vesting annually through 2027; 2024 had no new equity grants, limiting near-term equity-driven dilution/selling pressure .
- Vesting/selling pressure: The 3/23/2023 option grant (strike $14.11) vests 25% annually; upcoming anniversaries (through 2027) are potential windows for incremental insider selling, subject to trading windows and pre-clearance; in-the-money dynamics depend on market price relative to strikes ($4.01, $5.02, $14.11) .
- Ownership alignment: Collins holds ~1.5% of outstanding shares, including 25,000 options counted within 60 days—material “skin in the game” at a small-cap issuer; no pledging disclosed, and a clawback is in place—favorable alignment features for investors .
- Execution risk: SDC contributed ~29% of revenue with 16% YoY growth in 2024, but company-level TSR retrenched from 2022 highs; continued execution in SDC and broader backlog conversion are central to realizing option value and sustaining bonus payouts absent disclosed formulaic metrics .
- Governance and votes: Strong advisory support on pay in 2024 and 2025 reduces near-term governance risk around compensation, though limited disclosure on bonus metrics hampers a full pay-for-performance assessment for Collins .