Paul
Diffendaffer (CEO and Director) has 23 years of experience in a variety
of coating technologies. He has developed coating machines from concept
to full production, including all aspects of qualifying suppliers, managing
the development process, and training operators. He was responsible for the entire process from concept to finished
product for a project which cost over 6 million dollars and involved
many people both here in the US and overseas. He recently managed a decommissioning, transport and recommissioning of a large vacuum sputter roll coater system overseas.
He
has hands-on experience in many coating technologies including vacuum
deposition of organic and inorganic thin films, UV-curing, ultrasonic
and electro-spray coating, sol-gel processes, and a variety of surface
treatments that modify adhesion, surface energy, and other surface properties.
Paul is trained in both safety and ISO 9000 practices having authored
and organized ISO 9001 documents for the vacuum coating R&D section
and served as safety officer for Bekaert Specialty Films where he was
responsible for determining the safe storage, handling, and disposal
procedures for the hazardous materials. He graduated with a B.S. in Engineering and Applied
Science from California Institute of Technology.
Dr.
John B. Fenn Jr. (a Director and consultant of Venture Technology) is
an industrial Leader recognized for technical innovations, corporate
management skills, sales and marketing competence. He managed two divisions
of major corporations from start-up to profitability and founded two
companies that later sold for more than three times original capital
investment. He is experienced in negotiations in both domestic and international
marketplaces and has a broad technical understanding complemented by
financial, marketing and strategic planning skills.
He
was elected President of the Society of Vacuum Coaters in 2002, and
in 2003 presented the Nathaniel Sugerman Memorial Award for lifetime
achievement. He received his Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from Purdue
University, in 1972 and was a Post Doctoral Fellow at the UCLA Chemistry
Department.
In
1983 Dr. Fenn co-founded and managed Andus, a high technology vacuum
coatings manufacturing company. The company raised over $6 million in
venture capital. It very quickly established a worldwide reputation
for technical excellence and product quality. Under his direction Andus
captured a 10% share of the Far East market for their major product
lines. He grew company to $2.5 million annual sales with an EBIT of
10% in five years and negotiated the sale of the company for $18 million
after six years.
He
was President of a $40+ million subsidiary of Leybold Technologies (a
German vacuum capital equipment manufacturer). Dr. Fenn also was Director
of Market Development for Courtaulds Performance Films, a $100+ million
British company specializing in vacuum coating, solvent coating, laminating
and diffusion dyeing of plastic films where he reported directly to
the President with responsibility for strategic market, technology and
product development. He started a new electronic materials business
division with first year's sales of $1 million and had overall responsibility
for developing the Far East market activity for company's industrial
products division, resulting in $3 million growth in annual sales after
first year. As President of Courtaulds Defense Products, Inc. (a wholly
owned subsidiary established to market Courtaulds' products and technologies
to U.S. military and aerospace contractors) he grew the company's annualized
sales to excess of $5 million by second year. He directed an R&D
staff of 25 with a $2.6 million budget and a Sales and Marketing group
of 17 with a budget of $2 million.
In
1997 Dr. Fenn founded NeoVac whose mission was to design, develop and
commercialize thin film products based on vacuum coating processes.
The company achieved annualized sales of $3.6 million in its fourth
year. NeoVac achieved at least 10% market share worldwide with its first
commercial product line of transparent conductive films for use in touch
panels and displays. It established a strong presence in the Far East
and enjoyed a reputation as a can do company with a high level of quality
and customer service. NeoVac was sold to Innovative Specialty Films
(which later became Bekaert Specialty Films LLC ) in April of 2001.
Laurie
Johansen (CFO, Director) was a scientist at NASA/Caltech’s Jet
Propulsion Laboratory in the Planetology Division. She founded a biomedical
lens company and coauthored patents which ultimately led to licenses
and sales of royalty bearing product in excess of $100 million. Consulting
as a patent, merger, and acquisition information searching consultant
for the past decade, she has continued to gain a knowledge of legal
and intellectual property issues.
James B. Stephens founded Venture Technology Inc. in 1977 to find technologists to solve technical problems for companies resulting in dozens of patents and product improvements. Clients of Venture Technology over the years include: Yamaha Motor Corp. (vehicles, engines, robots and safety items), International Paper (radio devices, printing press and paper making advanced technology), Abbott Laboratories (blood sugar measurements, and other bio-measurement technologies), Medtronic (heart pacers), Stortz Endoscopes (all plastic optics), Westpac (Drip Irrigation), Coast Foundry (ball cocks), Wilson Products (Spectra Welding Curtains), Paino Avocados (freeze drying of avocados), Graining Iron Foundry (bath tub drain plugs), and Patent Attys. Pretty, Schroeder, Bruggerman & Clark (prior art searches). Jim Stephens continued as a consultant for Venture Technology until his death in 2006.
