MALVERN, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Vishay Precision Group, Inc. (“VPG”) (NYSE: VPG) announced today, with
great sadness, the passing of Dr. Felix Zandman, the inventor and
founder of the foil technology upon which the VPG business is based. Dr.
Zandman, who was 83 years old, was also the founder and Executive
Chairman of the Board of Vishay Intertechnology, Inc. (“Vishay”)
(NYSE:VSH). VPG was successfully spun of from Vishay in 2010 and Dr.
Zandman served as an R&D consultant to VPG after the spinoff.
Mr. Marc Zandman, the son of Dr. Zandman, is the non-executive Chairman
of the Board of VPG. Vishay announced today that its Board has elected
Marc Zandman as its Executive Chairman of the Board. Mr. Ziv Shoshani,
VPG’s President and Chief Executive Officer, is the nephew of Dr.
Zandman and also serves on the Board of Vishay. Mr. Steven Klausner, VPG
Vice President and Treasurer, is Dr. Zandman’s son-in law.
Marc Zandman said, “On behalf of VPG and the entire Zandman and Shoshani
families, I am deeply proud of the many contributions my father made to
Vishay, VPG, our industry and Israel, as well as the legacy he leaves
behind. My father’s high standards and values are embedded in VPG’s
culture and impact all that we do at VPG, across the globe, every day.
We fully intend to continue his ideals in both business and personal
matters.”
Ziv Shoshani said, “Dr. Zandman will never be forgotten as his legacy
will live on, around the world through the many people he touched,
including all VPG’s employees. VPG will continue to implement the
vision, strategy and culture articulated by Dr. Zandman.”
Dr. Zandman was born in 1928 in the Polish city of Grodno. In October
1941, he and his family were arrested by the Nazis and sent to the
Grodno ghetto. In 1943, Dr. Zandman survived the Holocaust by hiding
with his uncle and other people under the floor boards in the house of a
Polish family for 17 months. While hiding, Dr. Zandman’s uncle taught
him trigonometry and higher mathematics. Following the war, in 1946, Dr.
Zandman emigrated to France, where he earned a mechanical engineering
degree, an MS in physics from the University of Nancy (France), and a
PhD in physics from the University of Paris, Sorbonne.
In 1956, Dr. Zandman moved to the United States and began working for
Tatnall Measuring Systems, a division of the Budd Company of
Philadelphia, as director of basic research. During this time he
developed PhotoStress® measurement instruments and revolutionary,
temperature-resistant foil resistors, which enable manufacturers of a
wide assortment of precision electronics products to enhance their
performance. When Tatnall declined to market his high-end resistors, Dr.
Zandman, with financial support from his uncle Alfred P. Slaner, founded
Vishay. The Vishay name, after which Vishay Intertechnology and Vishay
Precision Group were named, is the name of the village in Lithuania
where relatives of Dr. Zandman perished during the Holocaust.
Dr. Zandman published numerous scientific papers, three textbooks, and
an autobiography (“Never the Last Journey”) and held over 70 patents. He
won numerous awards including the Best Strategic Investor Award from the
Israel Manufacturers Association (awarded by the President of Israel);
the Legion of Honor, France (awarded by the President of the Republic of
France); the Order of Merit for Research and Invention (France); the
Franklin Institute Medal for Science (USA); the Electronic Industries
Alliance Medal of Honor (presented at a ceremony attended by the
President of the United States); and the Lifetime Achievement Award from
the National Electronic Distributors Association. He was awarded the
title of Doctor Honoris Causa from the University of Beer Sheva (Israel)
and from the Israel Institute of Technology (Technion). In 1994, Dr.
Zandman also became a citizen of the State of Israel.
Dr. Zandman is survived by his wife Mrs. Ruta Zandman; his children, Dr.
Gisele Zandman Goddard and her husband Eli, Mrs. Ariele Zandman Klausner
and her husband Steven, and Mr. Marc Zandman and his wife Orit; and nine
grandchildren.
About Vishay Precision Group
Vishay Precision Group produces sensors based on resistive foil
technology, and sensor-based systems. VPG provides vertically integrated
products and solutions for multiple growing markets in the areas of
stress, force, weight, and pressure measurements. As a spin-off from
Vishay Intertechnology, the Company has a decades-long track record of
innovation in foil precision resistors, current sensors, and strain
gages, which serves as a foundation for its more recent expansion into
strain gage instrumentation, load cells and transducers, weighing
modules, and complete systems for process control and on-board weighing.
Vishay Precision Group may be found on the internet at www.vishaypg.com.
Source: Vishay Precision Group, Inc.
Contact:
Vishay Precision Group, Inc.
Michael Sheaffer, +1 484-321-5327
Sr.
Mgr. Investor Relations
[email protected]