SimTek Fence
In 2004, MFS was a division of a larger publicly traded company specializing in plastics manufacturing. As a division, MFS built a new factory and equipped it with state-of-the-art rotational molding equipment with the goal to develop a new method of forming an existing product line. This project, unfortunately, had some challenges and was eventually abandoned. This decision left an empty factory and millions of dollars worth of idle equipment. The parent company created a small taskforce with a primary goal of developing new product concepts in order to put the factory and equipment to use.
The team toiled for months developing 25 different product ideas which took advantage of both the equipment available as well as the intellectual property and proprietary process knowledge they had developed during the previous failed project. One concept, a realistic polyethylene stone panel was an immediate hit with the board of directors, and plans proceeded to test, commercialize, and mass-produce the product.
But in 2007 the parent company went through an ownership change and the new product line did not fit into the long-term strategic plans of the new owners. Members of the team of engineers partnered with a couple of young entrepreneurs as well as a private investor and in July 2007, the assets belonging to the division known as MFS were acquired by the newly created group, and SimTek Fence was born. The team initially agreed to work for free in order to create a viable business and to commercialize the product.
The team toiled for months developing 25 different product ideas which took advantage of both the equipment available as well as the intellectual property and proprietary process knowledge they had developed during the previous failed project. One concept, a realistic polyethylene stone panel was an immediate hit with the board of directors, and plans proceeded to test, commercialize, and mass-produce the product.
But in 2007 the parent company went through an ownership change and the new product line did not fit into the long-term strategic plans of the new owners. Members of the team of engineers partnered with a couple of young entrepreneurs as well as a private investor and in July 2007, the assets belonging to the division known as MFS were acquired by the newly created group, and SimTek Fence was born. The team initially agreed to work for free in order to create a viable business and to commercialize the product.
