Husky founder Robert Schad passes awayBy Mark Pavilons

An iconic businessman, with strong ties to Bolton, has passed away.

Robert Schad, founder of Husky Injection Molding Systems, died July 11 at age 95.

His was truly a rags to riches tale, and he set the bar in the Canadian plastics industry.

Peter Kendall, Executive Director of The Schad Foundation, said Robert was his friend and mentor.

“Robert always demanded a level of excellence that inspired those around him to achieve things they never thought possible. He was a passionate and demanding leader that cared deeply for all those around him. I am deeply grateful for the incredible impact Robert has had on my life. He will be greatly missed.”

Robert Otto Dietrich Schad was born in Karlsruhe, Germany on November 3, 1928. His was a childhood filled with athletic pursuits, a deep curiosity of the world around him, and a natural propensity for mischief, something he never lost.

Following the war in 1945, Robert trained as a tool-and-die maker in a rigorous European apprentice program. He was at his best using his hands and his brilliant engineering mind, drafting and designing a better way of doing things. Even at a young age, he was all about solutions.

Robert landed on the shores of eastern Canada in November 1951, making his way to Toronto with $25 in his pocket and a letter of reference from Albert Einstein. Within two years, he started a business to build a snowmobile which ran beautifully on asphalt but less so on snow.

To pay of his debts, Robert opened a tool-making shop in the back of an Esso garage. He originally built the Huskymobile snowmobile. He switched to mold-making and by 1957, the business grew to the point where he moved Husky into a 12,000-square-foot facility, where it produced molds and dies for high-production applications.

Schad thought that molding machines of the time were too slow to run his molds at their full potential, so he designed and built his own high-speed injection molding machine. The company had found its niche and grew rapidly, being renamed as Husky Injection Molding Systems, and supplying high-speed molding machinery to customers in more than 100 countries from its headquarters in Bolton.

Robert was world renowned for his absolute honesty and integrity, always putting the needs of his customers first. He designed a workplace that was a model of sustainability, and an employee wellness program far ahead of its time. He understood that business and environmental and social responsibility were not an either/or proposition. They could exist in tandem.

For Robert, there was no such thing as dreaming too big. He was a whirlwind of ideas, his mind always churning, his hands always moving, and he expected the same level of commitment and excellence from all those around him. He unapologetically cut a wide swath through mediocrity and demanded only the best from people.

Robert loved animals and nature with an abiding passion and felt privileged to have the means to give back to society, donating $200 million to various initiatives during his lifetime.

He was a man of great integrity, whose word was his bond. His values of hard work, excellence, innovation and social responsibility remained firm and unyielding, even in the face of adversity.