Kentwood-based X-Rite Inc. (NASDAQ: XRIT) Tuesday announced the abrupt departure of CFO Lynn J. Lyall, who had been in the position only since March.

X-Rite said Lyall left "for personal reasons."

X-Rite named Dave Rawden as interim CFO and said it "does not anticipate any disruptions in ongoing talks with lenders or investors" over X-Rite's default of some of its financial convenants.

X-Rite said Rawden has held a number of CFO positions in middle market public companies including Exopack Holding and Allied Holdings. In addition, Dave has had several experiences successfully managing through situations where refinancing and capital structure changes were appropriate.

Rawden is a CPA and holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from Michigan State University.

X-Rite said Rawden would stay in the job until a permanent CFO is hired. The company will also expand the role of Brad Freiburger, vice president and controller, to include planning and analysis.

“It’s crucial for all of our constituencies to understand that I have led and continue to lead all ongoing discussions with our lenders with the assistance of our financial partner, RBC Capital," said X-Rite CEO Thomas J. Vacchiano Jr. "This change will likely have a positive impact on our current situation given Dave’s experience. Further, Lynn’s resignation is in no way associated with any new issues related to our financial condition or recapitalization efforts. The fit between our needs and Lynn’s interests just proved to be a poor match. Dave’s skills will be a great asset to the company at this time, and I look forward to working with him as we work through addressing our lender agreements and capital structure needs. I have every confidence in the abilities of our financial team to meet our day-to-day financial management responsibilities.”

Vacchiano added that “We continue to work diligently with our lenders to address our recent covenant defaults and believe that we will have sufficient cash flow to operate our business and make our scheduled interest payments. We are encouraged by our work with RBC to date and our ongoing discussions with lenders and investors to address our capital needs going forward.”

X-Rite produces hardware, software, color standards and services for the verification and communication of color data.

More at www.xrite.com.