About CNIguardAbout Us

Helping to protect our critical infrastructure

CNIguard is a high technology firm delivering infrastructure protection and asset management solutions to the energy, electricity, water, transportation and other vital sectors.

In an era of Big Data and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT), through our SensorCore® platform, CNIguard solutions enable grid modernization.

Our devices that include Sentir (Manhole Monitoring System) and GasMarshal (Gas Monitoring System),  are embedded into transmission and distribution networks and comprise diverse sensors in a ruggedized design, with long life battery or power harvesting, and simple, rapid installation.

Chris Quire

Chief Executive Officer

Jim Darroch

Chief Technology Officer

Stephen Rose

Chief Financial Officer

Jason Wilson

Chief Commercial Officer

Jens Sterum

VP Business Development

Jonathan Taylor

VP Customer Delivery

Board & Advisors

Mike is co-founder of the strategic HR consultancy: Westcott & Judge providing leadership and strategic HR advisory services to listed multinationals, private and PE invested companies. He is also Operating Partner with Executive Search and Advisory firm Hobbs & Towne, who partner with disruptive and transformational technology companies in the US and Europe.  Previously, Mike was CHRO for National Grid for 12 years and Head of Commercial Property, stepping down in July 2019.  Prior to this he spent 14 years with Diageo in a number of senior HR roles, including SVP for North America based in Connecticut and SVP International markets, covering LATAM, Asia, Middle East, and Central Europe. His early career was spent in commercial and HR roles with Guinness, ICI, and BOC plc.

CEO of Absolute Return Investment Advisors (ARIA) AG – a multi-family office based in Zug, Switzerland; investment advisor to institutions and ultra high net worth individuals; formerly Chief Alternative Investment Officer at Ferrier Lullin & Cie SA (now Julius Baer) and Union Bancaire Privee.

Ian is Managing Director and Head of CVC Europe at National Grid Partners, who he joined from Ardent Capital where he was Chief Operating Officer. During his tenure at Ardent Capital, Ian oversaw new and follow-on investments into more than ten early-stage companies.  Prior to Ardent, Ian spent ten years with Intel Capital based in their London, UK office, where he made investments into 13 companies, which resulted in 1 IPO and 7 M&A exits, one of which was a Unicorn.  Before joining Intel Capital, Ian worked for four years in corporate finance with Paris-based investment bank Bryan Garnier and Associates, was Founder and CEO of cybersecurity startup Cequrux and worked in consulting for IBM. Ian holds an MBA from HEC Paris and a B.Sc. in Computer Science and Psychology from the University of Cape Town.

Joaquin is a venture partner for Energy Innovation Capital and the CEO of EICP an investment platform focused on sustainable infrastructure investing backed by the George Kaiser Family Foundation and WestRiver Group.  Joaquin is also co-founder and Chairman of Continuus Materials a waste to building materials manufacturer with strategic co-investment from Waste Management.  Prior to EICP, Joaquin co-founded and served as CEO of On-Ramp Wireless from 2008 through 2014.  Under his leadership On-Ramp became a pioneer in the Internet of Things communications space, obtaining a Department of Energy grant and successfully raising three rounds of capital from private equity sources and leading strategic companies such as GE, ConocoPhillips, NRG, Enbridge and Sempra.  Prior to his entrepreneurial career Joaquin was a Vice President at the technology investment-banking firm Montgomery & Co.  Earlier in his career, Joaquin was a Captain in the United States Air Force. Joaquin holds an MBA from University of California, Los Angeles and a BS in Management from the United States Air Force Academy.

Head of Private Equity investment at Nevastar Finance, an independent asset manager for institutions and family offices, Non-Executive Director of Delta Plus Group; Formerly Balmoral Capital Private Equity, Marakon Associates. MBA Wharton, Master International Law, University Aix-en-Provence; Kedge Business School.

Jim retired from Southern California Edison after 38 years of service. Jim was SVP of Transmission & Distribution, responsible for the operation and maintenance of an electrical grid comprised of over 12,000 miles of transmission and 100,000 miles of distribution lines spread across a 50,000 square mile service area. Jim was one of the early pioneers of the SmartGrid, developing a roadmap for a smarter, safer, more reliable and more environmentally responsible electric grid. He pioneered the deployment of synchronous phasor measurement, the Distribution Circuit of the Future, and many other advances in grid sensing, monitoring and control. Among other awards and honors, Jim was selected as the IEEE’s “Leader in Power”. Since his retirement, Jim has advised or directed a number of publicly traded and privately held firms in the energy space.

Tim’s career experience over the last forty years has been split equally between direct utility experience and product strategy roles in companies focused on delivery of new technology to the industry.  At Southern Company, Tim served in both the T&D organizations with the highlight of his career being to manage the delivery of energy to the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.  Primary expertise was in Distribution Engineering. Tim also led organizations delivering products to utilities including Smart Metering, Industrial IOT Systems, Energy Management and Analytics, and Distribution Automation. At Landis & Gyr, he held multiple executive roles in Customer Operations, Sales, Product Management and Engineering. Enabling utilities to adopt new technology to improve operations is what energizes Tim in his current consulting and advisory work.

Jonathan Taylor
VP Customer Delivery

Jonathan is an engineer and project executive with a combined 15 years of experience in utility, manufacturing, deploying, and implementing solutions utility and heavy industrial sectors. He was previously with Osmose Utility Services and Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems, after starting his career within Aerospace and Pulp and Paper. Jonathan holds an Executive Leadership Certification and a BSME from the Georgia Tech, as well as an active Project Management Professional license from PMI.


Jens Sterum

VP Business Development

Jens has over three decades of experience in international business development, specializing in complex technology sales. Spanning FMCG, logistics, security and utilities, his experience traverses EMEA, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas. Prior to joining CNIguard in the USA, he served as MD for a specialized company in industrial automation, having secured and managed a highly successful telemetry framework for the largest water utility in the UK . Jens has a BS in International Economics from Duke University and MS in Management and Organizational Development from University of Aalborg, Denmark.

Jim Darroch
Chief Technology Officer

Jim is a software development executive with 30 years’ experience in designing software and data solutions for Data/Telecoms, Industrial and IoT markets – with an emphasis on reliability, high availability, safety, and security. He has experience in building and leading software teams on a global scale for multiple large corporations (notably HP, Emerson and Honeywell) as well as several small/start-ups; establishing teams to quickly deliver innovative Software solutions. Jim holds a B.Sc. with First Class Honours in Computer Science from Strathclyde University.

Stephen Rose
Chief Financial Officer

30 years qualified accountant with industry based board level experience in the UK, Europe and China. Stephen is a commercially focused accountant having been group financial director for Eaglemoss Publications, an international publishing group for over 20 years. Other roles include management accountant for Porcelanosa and a consultancy role for fashion group, Jumper Retail.

Chris Quire
Chief Executive Officer

Chris is an engineer and technology executive with over 30 years of global experience in designing, manufacturing, deploying, and supporting wireless solutions in the utility and consumer electronics sectors. He was previously with Landis+Gyr and Comverge, after starting his career with Panasonic. Chris holds a MBA from Georgia State and a BEE from the Georgia Tech, as well as two patents.

Jason Wilson
Chief Commercial Officer

Jason is a seasoned sales and business development leader with over 30 years of global experience in high tech and wireless industrial internet of things with a focus on Smart Grid and Digital Oilfield solutions. He was previously with On-Ramp Wireless after starting his career in the United States Air Force. Jason has a Master of Science in Systems Management from the University of Southern California and a Bachelors in Astronautical Engineering from the US Air Force Academy.