Albert Spaak
Plastics Institute of America
Inducted 2003
Albert Spaak (1921 – 2016) was an engineer, a master craftsman, and a civically active volunteer. Spaak was born to immigrant parents in Patterson, New Jersey, in 1921. Upon graduating from high school in 1938, Albert sought a job as a draftsman.
He learned that a company called DeMattia, a family-owned machine and mold-making shop, was looking for a draftsman. Albert applied for the job and got it, and within a short time, he found himself involved in developing injection molding machines. DeMattia had realized there was a business opportunity making plastic molding machines for customers such as Bright Star Battery. Other early customers for these machines were Lionel Manufacturing Company, which was beginning to replace die-cast components on its electric toy trains, and Earl Tupper, founder of Tupperware. DeMattia competed against some early injection molding machine manufacturers, including Watson Stillman, Reed-Prentice, and HPM. Albert was eventually named chief engineer of the company.
When the U.S. became involved in World War II, DeMattia switched to full-time war production. Albert served during World War II, entering officer’s candidate school and being discharged as a lieutenant at the war’s end. Following the war, Albert enrolled in the Newark College of Engineering of New Jersey’s Science and Technology University (NJIT), where he took evening courses. He eventually earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1949.
He left DeMattia for a job as chief engineer at Mastro Corporation, a NY-based toy musical instrument maker, for a few years. Then, he joined the new Polymer Chemicals Division of W. R. Grace and Company. Polymer Chemicals was a supplier of high-density polyethylene (HDPE). Albert was the director of technical service and application development at the company.
His last professional position was with the Plastics Institute of America (PIA), then at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey. He took the job as executive director in 1970 and stayed with the PIA for twenty years. During this time, Albert was also very civically active, holding positions that ranged from police commissioner to mayor.
Areas of Expertise:
Plastic processing, Plastics Manufacturing, Management