“Always a Tinkerer”

While anyone can observe problems in the world, and some may even imagine ways to fix them, Michael Sylvester ’59 has made creating those solutions his way of life.

 

“I get intrigued with the path it leads you down, and I try all kinds of things to follow that path,” says Sylvester, who holds 10 patents and established six successful companies before his retirement two years ago at age 78. “It’s trial and error — and it’s fun.”

 

One of his most successful inventions is the special silicone that holds cameras to the back of smartphones. Sylvester developed a way to cure the silicone with UV light, rather than with moisture, the most common — and much slower — catalyst. Through Sylvester’s method, by the time the phone reaches the packaging on the assembly line, it’s completely cured.

 

Sylvester pitched his invention to Apple around the time the company developed the iPhone. It wasn’t easy getting an appointment with the engineers who work for the tech giant, but persistence — and Sylvester’s travel flexibility — paid off.

 

“I was in Chicago when someone from Apple called and said, ‘You have an appointment at 4 p.m.’” says Sylvester, whose company, Novagard Solutions, now makes the silicone for many brands of smartphones. “So, I hustled to O’Hare [International Airport] to get on a flight to the meeting in California.”

 

Sylvester has dozens of stories about his successful inventions, including his silicone grease, which is used on everything from bathroom sinks to airplane toilets. In frigid temperatures (think about the climate 35,000 feet in the sky), ordinary lubricants freeze. But not silicone grease, so the in-flight toilets still work even in that cold environment. (“It makes flying a lot better,” Sylvester jokes.)

 

Another of his inventions, cross-country skis with a no-wax fish scale base, generated about $300 million in sales for Sylvester’s Trak Ski Company, which was the world’s largest cross-country ski business back in the 1970s. But because the skis were such high quality, Sylvester laments, he put himself out of business. No one needed to buy a second pair, and eventually the company went bankrupt.

 

Other inventions have withstood the test of time. After Trak closed, Sylvester started Novagard Solutions in 1977, led by his foam tape adhesive invention. Today, the thriving company manufactures advanced silicone-based sealants, adhesives, lubricants, and PVC foams, which have a wide range of uses for everything from electronics to automobiles to windows to pools and spas.

 

Sylvester’s beaded silicone sealant makes up approximately 20% of Novagard’s $30 million annual revenue, making it hard to believe his first request for a patent was denied by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Convinced he had a brilliant idea, Sylvester traveled to Washington, D.C., and waited five hours to demonstrate the beneficial physical properties of beaded silicone, which was finally granted a patent by the USPTO sixth months later in 2008.

 

Sylvester stresses that, to be successful as an inventor and entrepreneur, persistence, patience, and perseverance are essential. While he was “always a tinkerer” growing up, it was his stick-to-itiveness that helped him find success.

 

“Never give up,” Sylvester advises. “Never, ever, ever give up.”