Robert A. Hoffer
Hoffer Plastics Corp
Inducted 1997
Robert A. Hoffer (1919-2007) was a great American businessman and educator. He founded one of the largest custom molding companies in the United States and was a leader in promoting plastics education with the first certified apprenticeship program.
Hoffer entered the plastics industry after receiving a Bachelor of Science in chemistry from Purdue University in 1941. He held engineering, technical service, and sales positions with DuPont and General Electric for twelve years. In 1953, he founded his own company, Hoffer Plastics Corp., in South Elgin, IL.
Starting with a single, used 6-ounce plunger injection molding machine, Hoffer eventually organized his company into operating units, called molding centers, of twelve machines each, and set up a tool room to serve each “plant.” Eventually, Hoffer Plastics had annual volumes of $ 80 million, operating more than 100 injection molding presses and employing more than 500 people.
As the company grew, Hoffer became active in support of plastics education. As the first chairperson of the Elgin (IL) Community College board, he convened representatives from six local plastics companies to develop one of the first two-year programs in plastics technology. Hoffer Plastics developed the first apprenticeship program in injection molding to be certified by the U.S. Department of Labor. Hoffer contributed more than $400,000 to the plastics program at Purdue University’s School of Technology. He was a chief fundraiser for and significant contributor to the National Plastics Center and Museum (NPCM), of which he became a trustee in 1985 and served as board chairman.
Upon awarding Hoffer its 1984 Award for Outstanding Achievement in Business Management, the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) cited an instance in which Hoffer allowed a local competitor, temporarily put out of business because of a fire, to take over an unused section of his plant. These efforts have been in addition to his longtime commitment as a fund-raiser and donor to non-plastic causes in the Elgin community and at his alma mater. Hoffer was elected Chairman of the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI, now PLASTICS) for the 1973-74 term and received the Founder’s Award of SPI’s Midwest Section in 1973.
Areas of Expertise:
Plastics processing, Plastics business management
Related Links:
http://www.hofferplastics.com/