Husky founder Robert Schad passes away

Robert Schad.

Robert Schad, the founder of Husky Injection Molding Systems and one of the most famous entrepreneurs in Canadian plastics history, died in Toronto on July 11 at age 95.

Born in Karlsruhe, Germany in 1928, Schad trained as a tool and die maker and then emigrated to Canada in 1951, arriving with $25 in his pocket and a letter of reference from family friend Albert Einstein.

He founded Husky in rented space in an Esso garage in Toronto in 1953, and the company originally built the Huskymobile snowmobile. The commercial interest in this product was limited, however – it was considered too heavy to skim over the snow – causing the business focus to change from snowmobile manufacturing to toolmaking, making tools, dies, and fixtures for others. Husky Moulds got its first piece of business when Amalgamated Electric Corp. placed an order for an electrical component mold.

By 1957, Schad had moved Husky into a 12,000-square-foot facility, where it produced molds and dies for high-production applications. Schad thought that molding machines of the time were too slow to run his molds at their full potential, so he designed and built his own high-speed injection molding machine. The company had found its niche and grew rapidly, being renamed as Husky Injection Molding Systems, and supplying high-speed molding machinery to customers in more than 100 countries from its headquarters in Bolton, Ont.

Under Schad’s guidance, Husky became one of plastics’ most dominant injection molding machine makers, especially in the PET preform and closures market, with manufacturing plants in Canada, the U.S., Luxembourg, and China. The company eventually grew to have sales of $1 billion, 3,350 employees, and 1,600 patents.

Schad also founded Husky’s hot runner division in Milton, Vt., which became an industry leader in hot runners for high-cavitation injection molds.

“Robert’s leadership and foresight were instrumental in setting new standards for quality and efficiency in plastics manufacturing,” Husky’s vice president Wassim F. Labban said in a LinkedIn post. “His dedication to sustainable practices set the stage for an environmentally responsible manufacturing, long before sustainability became a global imperative…and his approach based on value and customer engagement set new benchmarks in building global brand success and recognition.”

Schad retired from Husky in 2005 and sold the company in 2007, but wasn’t done with the industry yet – in 2008, on the cusp of turning 80, he founded injection molding machine maker Athena Automation, in Vaughan, Ont. Athena developed a rugged, accurate, and flexible two-platen machine platform, and then changed its name to Niigon Machines Ltd. in 2018. But the company struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic and went out of business in 2021.

For his contributions to the plastics sector, Schad was inducted into the Plastics Hall of Fame in 2006 – the first Canadian to receive the honour. He also received a Lifetime Achievement Award from The Plastics Academy in 2003, and was named to the Order of Canada in 2010.

Schad was also a noted philanthropist, donating some $200 million to various initiatives over the course of his lifetime. He also created the Schad Foundation in 1987, which supports projects focused on solutions to environmental problems; founded Earth Rangers, a wildlife refuge and outdoor education interpretive centre for children; and was a major benefactor for the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine and Schad Clinic.