Felix Zandman

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Felix Zandman (born May 7, 1927 in Grodno , then Poland , † June 4, 2011 in Philadelphia , USA ) was the founder and most recently Chairman of the Board of Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. , one of the world's largest companies for electronic components .

Life

Childhood and youth

Felix Zandman grew up in his hometown Grodno, then in Poland. At the age of 14, he came to the ghetto in October 1941 with his parents, sister, two grandparent couples and many other relatives. He survived the Holocaust as a youth because a Polish family friend hid him for 17 months.

His hiding place consisted of a pit that was 170 cm long, 150 cm wide and only 120 cm high. Felix Zandman shared this hiding place with three other Jews. One of them was his uncle Sender, who taught him trigonometry and advanced math in the long hours of darkness.

The advanced Soviet Army brought them liberation in July 1944. He stayed in Poland for a short time with other survivors. In June 1946 he passed the Abitur. In the summer of 1946 he was able to travel legally to France.

education

From 1946 to 1949 he studied physics and mechanical engineering at the University of Nancy in France . At the same time he was enrolled at a grande école for engineering. He then did his doctorate at the Sorbonne as a physicist on the subject of stress optics . He was able to patent a certain research result as a measuring method.

Working life as an employee

Zandman initially worked for two years as a lecturer at the École de l'air, the French academy for aeronautics. He then worked as an engineer in his specialist area of ​​voltage measurement for a state-owned company that manufactured aircraft engines.

In 1956 he was able to present his methods and self-developed measuring devices for the first time in the USA. He was able to establish important contacts with leading professors in his field and well-known users. He ended up being employed as head of basic research at Tatnall Measuring Systems in Philadelphia.

In the beginning he concentrated on the further development of his method of measuring stresses through optical coatings. Then he developed a temperature- resistant electrical resistor . However, his employer had no interest in marketing this invention.

Professional life as an entrepreneur

Felix Zandman then implemented the potential of his invention as a freelancer. To this end, he founded the Vishay company in 1962. His relative Alfred Slaner took over a large part of the start-up financing. The company developed into a Fortune 1000 company with many subsidiaries and over 22,000 employees worldwide

In 1994 he also became an Israeli citizen. In 1998 he acquired the company TEMIC ( Telefunken microelectronic). He was married and had three children. He died on June 4, 2011 at the age of 84 in Philadelphia, USA.

Works

  • Never the last trip - From the Polish ghetto to Wall Street . Autobiography with co-author David Chanoff, Econ Verlag, Munich 1999. ISBN 3-430-19921-2 .
  • Resistor Theory and Technology: Revised Printing . With co-authors Paul René Simon and Joseph Szwarc, Scitech Pub Inc., location unknown, new edition from December 2002, ISBN 978-1-891121-12-8

Movies

  • The Final Victory - The Story of Dr. Felix Zandman . Biographical documentation by Haim Hecht (director and narrator), Lotan Elmalem (camera) and Roy Mandel (production).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Obituary , by Markus Aigner, in Jüdische Allgemeine, June 23, 2011. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
  2. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 68.
  3. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 129.
  4. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 146.
  5. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 156ff.
  6. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 197.
  7. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 205.
  8. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 209.
  9. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 227f.
  10. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 232.
  11. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 238.
  12. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 248ff.
  13. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 270ff.
  14. ↑ Felix Zandman, David Chanoff: Never the last journey ; Econ Verlag, Munich 1999, p. 277.
  15. ↑ money.cnn.com: Fortune500: Vishay Intertechnology . Retrieved June 13, 2009.
personal data
SURNAME Zandman, Felix
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Polish entrepreneur; Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Vishay Intertechnology, Inc
DATE OF BIRTH May 7, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH Grodno , Poland
DATE OF DEATH June 4, 2011
Place of death Philadelphia