Over 50 years of experience and over 20 U.S. patents in developing, designing, and manufacturing highly-efficient aluminum and steel processing plants.
Ford’s History
PROVIDING USED & BUILT TO ORDER METAL MACHINERY!
Ford B. Cauffiel “Master Entrepreneur”
I am eager to share with you my newest and grandest adventure. The release of my new book, “Master Entrepreneur, Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness in the Unforgiving World of Entrepreneurship “. This is not just a book, but rather a story of entrepreneurship, heavy machinery, success, failure, philanthropy, private car collection, and lessons I share from my life’s journey. You may purchase my book directly from Amazon by going to the link below. Thank you!
Many patents in steel processing machinery and consumer products.
Presidential “E” Award from the U.S. Government for “Outstanding Contribution to Export Expansion”, 1974.
Received the “Celebrate Literacy” award from the International Reading Association for the promotion of literacy for developing and proving a system by paying students to tutor other students and starting a foundation called Students For Other Students (SOS).
Winner of the “Master Entrepreneur Of The Year Award”, 1994, sponsored by Ernst & Young, Merrill Lynch, and Inc. Magazine.
Honored at The Entrepreneur Of The Year Institute’s International Conference in Palm Springs, California, 1994.
Received honor into Libbey High School’s Hall of Fame, 1994.
Honored as one of “The Fifty Most Influential Business People in Northwest Ohio” by Business Venture Magazine, 1996.
Received the “Horace Mann Award”, 1999 from the American Humanist Association, in recognition of philanthropic work funding student tutors in several public schools. (Other recipients of the award: Ted Turner, Isaac Asimov, Carl Sagan, Jonas E. Salk, Erich Fromm).
Charter Executive Masters of Business Administration (EMBA), a credited (MBA) program at the University of Toledo, past chairman of the Advisory Committee from 1996 to 1999.
Helped develop Lithium products to revolutionize U.S. glass plate industry by applying lithium to glass for electrochromics.
Received Distinguished Service Award from the University of Toledo.
Received the “Patriot Award” from the U.S. Armed Air Forces for hiring Iraq and Vietnam war veterans and helped a Vietnam veteran by a steel processing business, 2007.
Received 2008 Ohio Governor’s (Ted Strickland) Exporting Award for Medium Size Business.
Received Jefferson Awards’ Certificate of Excellence 2013 for Outstanding Community Service.
| 1944 to 1948 | Libbey High School |
| 1948 to 1952 | University of Detroit (College of Mechanical Engineering) |
| 1952 to 1954 | Staff Production Engineer for Ford Motor Company. |
| 1954 to 1955 | Sales Engineer for Motch and Merryweather Machine Company. |
| 1955 | Founded Cauffiel Machine Company, as an engineering company. |
| 1959 | Purchased 100,000 square foot factory from National Supply, Toledo, Ohio to manufacture steel processing machinery and develop industrial complex. |
| 1960 | Purchased 200,000 square foot crane building (E. W. Bliss Building), Toledo, Ohio, to form Toledo Industrial Center to develop industrial real estate and expand machinery manufacturing facility. |
| 1963 | Purchased 150,000 square foot railroad locomotive crane building from New York Railroad, known as the Campbell Street Works, Toledo, Ohio, to further expand heavy industry. Still used by Cauffiel Corporation for manufacturing heavy-duty, high-tech steel processing machinery. |
| 1965 | Built first and largest steel processing system to precision cut steel plate from coil up to 3/4″ thick x 84” wide using a cold process which revolutionized the steel industry. |
| 1968 | Built and patented first tapered steel pole process for high tension tapered poles and street light tapered poles. |
| 1974 | Received the President’s “E” Award for “Outstanding Achievement in Expanding Export”, which is the highest given to a business by the U.S. Government. |
| 1981 | Developed highly-efficient evacuated concentrated solar collector, which is used in Africa. |
| 1981 | Founded Alabama Pickling and Warehousing and developed a highly-efficient chemical process using very little energy of agitating hydrochloric acid in a sealed, non-polluting tank for removing scale from hot rolled steel coils. |
| 1982 | Sold 200,000 square foot building and cranes to Champion Spark Plug (later known as Baron Drawn Steel Corporation) to expand industry in the inner city of Toledo. |
| 1983 | Developed a co-generation system for producing heat and electricity for the textile and canning industries using an induction generator. |
| 1984 | Built and operate 72” wide x 60,000# coil capacity push/pull pickle line and steel plant in Illinois located on U.S. Steel Corporation’s property (formerly National Steel Corporation). |
| 1985 | Built classic car museum for great American, true classic cars, which includes: Auburn, Cord, Duisenberg, Packard, Stutz, Mercer, and race cars. Museum is used for parties to raise funds for the Toledo Opera, Toledo Symphony, Young Presidents’ Association, Rotary Clubs, as well as many other Toledo organizations including Students For Other Students (SOS). |
| 1986 | Founded American Steel Products Company, Toledo, Ohio, which revolutionized constructing steel building frames (instead of wood). |
| 1989 | Founded Students For Other Students (SOS), a non-profit organization, which pays students to tutor other students in public schools in Northwest Ohio. Later expanded throughout Ohio with a partnership with Rotary International. Personally funded over $2,000,000 since 1989. |
| 1992 | Invented the “EZ-Table” to replace TV-tables for recliner chairs – sold to Am Fab, Inc., A Bissell Healthcare Company on a guaranteed royalty basis. |
| 1996 | Purchased 80 acres of industrial property near I-75, the Ohio Turnpike and Rt. 795 known as the “Golden Triangle” and developed and sold to many small companies, including Walgreen’s Drug Company. |
| 1997 | Sold industrial buildings to Banner Mattress, Toledo, Ohio, to expand their mattress manufacturing facilities.With a $750,000 grant from the Cleveland Foundation helped start an Executive Masters of Business Administration (EMBA) program. The EMBA program brought in over $7 million to UT. Also served as Director of the Advisory Board for the EMBA program. |
| 2000 | Founded Lithium Innovations, Co., LLC to make battery material and other Lithium products. Perform extrusion and pressing of lithium sheets in a state-of-the-art dry room and largest U.S. glovebox. Supply lithium sputter targets to the dynamic glass (electrochromics) industry and isotopically enriched Li-6 sheets to groups designing neutron detectors. |
| 2001 | Participated in a two day study with Toledo Public Schools’ representatives, including Superintendent Eugene Sanders and staff, teachers’ union, University of Toledo President Daniel Johnson and College of Education. Houston had an 89% passing rate in fourth grade reading. |
| 2004 | Built aluminum rolling mill plant for customer in Nigeria. |
| 2006 | Peer-tutoring program started in Cleveland Public Schools with a $3.5 million grant – over 10,000 students involved (designed after Toledo Public Schools’ SOS program). |
| 2007 | Built rolling mill for U.S. Army for converting titanium powder into sheet for products used to protect our armed forces in Iraq. |
| 2007-2008 | President, Rotary Club of Reynolds Corners – The Rotary furnished funds for Students For Other Students (SOS) pilot programs throughout Ohio to incorporate into 32,000 Rotary Clubs worldwide. |
| 2012 | Sold machinery division to employee, staying with company as a sales consultant. |
| 2013 | Developed neutron detector to place at airports and seaports to help prevent terrorist attacks. |
| 2014 | Purchased American Metal Processing Co., LLC – dedicated toll processor of slitting and cut-to-length from coil for steel mills and steel trading companies. |
| 2014 | Started Ford Recycled Plastics, LLC – funded and developed plastic process for producing polypropylene, nylon, and polyethylene recycled plastic material. |
Past sponsor of “Miss Cauffiel of Toledo”, an Unlimited Hydroplane that reaches speeds over 200 MPH. Brought unlimited hydroplane races to Toledo in Maumee River.
Classic Cars including Auburn, Cord, Duisenberg, Packard, Cadillac, Stutz, Milburn, and other US historical cars from 1917 to 1938.
Investments industrial real estate and stocks and bonds in over 20 small and medium sized companies throughout the United States.
- Past
- Present
- American Management Association
- American Society of Mechanical Engineers
- International Toastmasters Association
- Classic Car Club of America
- Boys Club of America
- United Negro College Fund
- Association of Steel Distributors
- American Iron and Steel Institute
- National Association of Manufacturers
- Toledo Art Museum, President’s Council
- CHILD, Inc. (Children’s Healthcare Is A Legal Duty)
- Arts Commission of Greater Toledo
- United States Industrial Council Education Foundation
- Junior Achievement of Northwest Ohio
- Inventor’s Council of Toledo
- Toledo Astronomy Association
- Cauffiel Industries, Inc.
- Lithium Innovations Co., LLC
- American Steel Products Co.
- American Metal Processing Co., LLC
- Granite City Pickling & Warehouse, Inc.
- Toledo Industrial Center
- Ford Recycled Products, LLC
Designed, built, and installed many steel processing systems/plants all over the world, including England, The Netherlands, France, Israel, Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, New Zealand, Korea, China, Greece, Saudi Arabia, West Germany, Nigeria, Jordan, and Honduras.
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