Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/634491
54 SMT Magazine • February 2016 by Pete Starkey i-coNNEcT007 Introduced to Electrolube's President, Gerald Kingsbury, and Group Managing Director Ron Jakeman at productronica, I was delighted to accept their invitation to visit their UK head- quarters in the historic Leicestershire town of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, whose name dates back to the Norman conquest of England in the 11 th century. And Electrolube itself has historic links too. Founder Henry Kingsbury's wife, Gerald Kings- bury's mother, was a direct descendant of Boer War hero Field Marshal Sir John French, 1st Earl of Ypres, whose portrait takes pride of place in the company's boardroom. From a background in the electronics in- dustry, Henry Kingsbury began manufacture of volume controls in the early 1940s, trading as Kingsbury Components, and overcame the tendency of volume controls of that era to fail open-circuit by developing an oil that improved electrical performance, reduced operating fric- tion and extended the life of contact surfaces. This evolved into a range of contact lubricants which became the basis of the Electrolube brand and a company now recognised as a global spe- cialist and brand leader in formulated chemical products for the electronics industry. With a presence in 55 countries, Electrol- ube's extensive portfolio now includes thermal management materials, conformal coatings, encapsulation resins, electronic cleaning solu- tions and general maintenance products. Elec- trolube remains a private company owned by the Kingsbury family and continues to expand, with R&D, manufacture and distribution long established in China to complement the UK op- eration, and a new manufacturing plant being commissioned in India. In my conversation with Ron Jakeman and group technical director Dr. John Humphries, it became clear to me that Electrolube's strength has been built upon the combination of the technical skills of its people and their ability to work closely with customers, with the com- pany's culture of collaboration, innovation, thought-leadership and customer service. Not a complicated formula, but the results speak for themselves and justify the mission statement, "To strive to exceed our customers' expectations ElEctrolubE: We Like Problems! Featu re