Nicholas Lingg
02-28-2011, 5:42 PM
I copyed this from another site, thought I would share. If I missed it before I'm sorry.
Ron P Hickman OBE FCSD, the British inventor of the iconic Workmate® workbench passed away yesterday, February 17, 2011.
We all spend our more idle moments thinking of that one big idea that could make us our fortune. For some people, these sparks of inspiration can lead to both fame and fortune. The story of Ron Hickman, inventor of the Workmate workbench is an excellent case in point.
Perhaps one of the most well known and popular pieces of equipment for both the professional tradesperson and the DIY enthusiast alike is the trusty Black & Decker® Workmate workbench. Unlike the majority of products from Black & Decker, the Workmate workbench was not the result of in-house development, rather a labor of love by a very special ‘amateur’.
The story began in the late 1960’s, when Ron Hickman, the inventor of the folding workbench, decided to build some wardrobes. Using a chair to act as a workbench and sawhorse while he cut a panel to size, he was so busy concentrating on the pencil line that he discovered on completion that he had cut through the seat of the chair as well as the panel!
The average DIY enthusiast would probably have put the incident down to bad luck. However, Mr. Hickman was not just your average DIY enthusiast. He was already an accomplished product designer working with Lotus and is most famously credited with the design of the Lotus Elan. The chair incident got Ron Hickman thinking and when he found the time a few days later, he sat down to think of a solution to save other people’s household furniture from a similar fate.
After several sketches he came up with his first concept for the Workmate workbench and approached leading power tool manufacturer, Black & Decker to see if they would be interested in putting his concept into commercial production.
Black & Decker eventually agreed exclusive rights to his design. Mass production of the first Workmate workbench began in 1972. In April of 1976, Black & Decker presented Ron Hickman with a miniature silver Workmate to commemorate the one millionth unit produced. The ten millionth Workmate workbench was sold during 1981 and today global sales are in excess of $30 million, making the Workmate® one of the most widely used home improvement products in the world.
Nearly forty years on, the Workmate workbench remains one of the most popular pieces of DIY equipment in the world. If it hadn’t been for the determination of Ron Hickman it would never have reached the wider world. Tradesmen and DIY enthusiasts the world over owe Mr. Hickman a debt of thanks.
His contribution to our Company and his support for many years afterwards will be missed, but his legacy and his invention will live on forever.
Ron P Hickman OBE FCSD, the British inventor of the iconic Workmate® workbench passed away yesterday, February 17, 2011.
We all spend our more idle moments thinking of that one big idea that could make us our fortune. For some people, these sparks of inspiration can lead to both fame and fortune. The story of Ron Hickman, inventor of the Workmate workbench is an excellent case in point.
Perhaps one of the most well known and popular pieces of equipment for both the professional tradesperson and the DIY enthusiast alike is the trusty Black & Decker® Workmate workbench. Unlike the majority of products from Black & Decker, the Workmate workbench was not the result of in-house development, rather a labor of love by a very special ‘amateur’.
The story began in the late 1960’s, when Ron Hickman, the inventor of the folding workbench, decided to build some wardrobes. Using a chair to act as a workbench and sawhorse while he cut a panel to size, he was so busy concentrating on the pencil line that he discovered on completion that he had cut through the seat of the chair as well as the panel!
The average DIY enthusiast would probably have put the incident down to bad luck. However, Mr. Hickman was not just your average DIY enthusiast. He was already an accomplished product designer working with Lotus and is most famously credited with the design of the Lotus Elan. The chair incident got Ron Hickman thinking and when he found the time a few days later, he sat down to think of a solution to save other people’s household furniture from a similar fate.
After several sketches he came up with his first concept for the Workmate workbench and approached leading power tool manufacturer, Black & Decker to see if they would be interested in putting his concept into commercial production.
Black & Decker eventually agreed exclusive rights to his design. Mass production of the first Workmate workbench began in 1972. In April of 1976, Black & Decker presented Ron Hickman with a miniature silver Workmate to commemorate the one millionth unit produced. The ten millionth Workmate workbench was sold during 1981 and today global sales are in excess of $30 million, making the Workmate® one of the most widely used home improvement products in the world.
Nearly forty years on, the Workmate workbench remains one of the most popular pieces of DIY equipment in the world. If it hadn’t been for the determination of Ron Hickman it would never have reached the wider world. Tradesmen and DIY enthusiasts the world over owe Mr. Hickman a debt of thanks.
His contribution to our Company and his support for many years afterwards will be missed, but his legacy and his invention will live on forever.