Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 26, 1994 TAG: 9407220001
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: F2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KATHLEEN WILSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
``Most of those affiliated with Innotech have 20 to 30 years' background in the optical industry,'' said the company's founder, Ron Blum.
``We have knowledge at Innotech,'' he said.
``The key to our decision to invest in Innotech was most definitely the people,'' said Tom Sloan, chairman of Southern Optical, the fifth largest optical wholesale laboratory in the business. ``We were very impressed with the staff.''
And before Merrill Lynch of New York would consider lending investment support, it strongly suggested Blum bring a top polymer chemist on board.
Amitava Gupta, Innotech's executive vice president of engineering, research and development, fit the bill. Gupta - a native of Bombay, India - moved to the United States in 1969 when he began his studies at the California Institute of Technology.
After earning his doctorate, Gupta remained at Cal Tech, working with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he directed NASA-supported research, which included the space shuttles and the Hubble telescope.
(``But not the lenses!'' the rest of the management team is quick to point out when Hubble comes up.)
Gupta also serves on the scientific advisory board of Polaroid Corp.
Innotech's management team also includes:
William D. Pennell, chief financial officer. Pennell formerly served as an executive in Boston for Pfizer Inc., a New York maker of health care products..
Steve Bennington, chief operating officer. Bennington was formerly chief executive officer of TechnaVision Inc., a San Diego-based in-office lens-casting operation.
Bob Padula, executive vice president of sales and marketing. Padula left his position as vice president of sales and service with Humphrey Instruments in San Francisco. He describes Humphrey Instruments - a $70 million division of Zeiss - as having the elite sales force in the optical industry for capital equipment.
While at Humphrey, the firm developed a glaucoma-test product, which wound up grabbing 80 percent of the market share. Padula helped take the product international, selling to the Far East and Australia.
``When I first heard of Innotech, it was described to me as sounding just like Humphrey in the very beginning, with the quality of advertising and promotional materials you'd expect from a company five times as large,'' said Padula. ``It was very impressive.''
James Barney, vice president of marketing. Barney's background includes work as a Los Angeles-based marketing consultant for companies such as Eli Lilly & Co. and Toshiba Corp.
George T. Mier, vice president of sales. Mier was national sales manager for American Optical and World Learning, both based in Boston.
The management team also includes two women. Anne L. Landey, human resource manager, who was the administrative manager for Magnetic Bearings Inc. before joining Innotech; and Lee Anne Wade, director of customer care, who previously worked as customer service manager for Blue Ridge Beverage Co. and as sales coordinator for Greenhill Inc. in Elliston.
by CNB