Roy Patterson (1926 – 2015)
FLANDERS Co-founder and Chairman Emeritus
The patriarch of the family business, Roy spent his entire career in the electrical apparatus industry, beginning with mechanical training in high school. Upon joining the Navy, Roy was sent to Purdue University where he focused on electrical engineering. He then served several years during World War II as chief electrician on a repair ship in the South Pacific.
Upon returning home to Evansville, Indiana, he joined FLANDERS (then Flanders Electric Motor Service) in the late 1940s, bringing considerable experience in DC and AC electric motor repair, DC and AC rewinding, welding, machining, and troubleshooting. He and a partner, Bud Havens, eventually purchased the company from Frank Flanders in 1962, retaining the original name.
Roy and Bud knew that downtime on an industrial machine under repair could cost FLANDERS customers tens of thousands of dollars, so they created a straightforward business plan: “Do the best job humanly possible in the least amount of time; give customers excellent service around the clock; and never give up on solving a customer’s problem.”
To meet that pledge, Roy, Bud, and their one-man crew answered service calls around the clock, building strong customer relationships and growing rapidly through word of mouth. They also began developing better motors and power systems to increase productivity and improve safety in mining, metals, and other heavy industries.
FLANDERS continued to grow over the course of six decades, and in 2008, Roy transitioned to the role of chairman as his son, Dave Patterson, became president of FLANDERS. In the same year, Roy was awarded an Exceptional Achievement Award by the Electrical Apparatus Service Association (EASA), of which he was a proud long-time member.
Lauded by peers and clients alike for his leadership, technical knowledge, problem-solving abilities, and work ethic, Roy worked at FLANDERS until the age of 89 when he passed away, leaving a legacy that we honor and carry forward.
He was known for his unwavering desire to do the right thing always and his guiding principles of loving others and treating them as you would want to be treated. These remain at the heart of FLANDERS today.