Beckwith Electric Founder, Robert “Bob” Beckwith Passes – “A Tribute”
Robert W. Beckwith: July 25, 1919 – October 25, 2009
Largo, Florida – October 25, 2009 – Robert W. Beckwith passed away peacefully on Sunday, October 25, 2009. Bob was an honored scientist, inventor, researcher and consultant, with over 50 years as a world leader in the electric power industry and founder of Beckwith Electric Co., Inc., in Largo, Florida.
Bob is survived by his wife, Evelyn Bortner-Beckwith; two children: Tom Beckwith and Barbara Anderson; three grandchildren: Joshua, Sean, and Tiffany Beckwith; two step-grandchildren: Tommy Sanchez and Gerlid Quinones; two stepchildren: Marty Orosz and Robert Bortner; and two step-grandchildren: Alex and Aaron Orosz.
Born in Kent Ohio, Bob received his BSEE from Western Reserve University and an MSEE from Syracuse University. He also held professional engineering licenses in New Jersey, New York and Florida, as well as a Life Fellow membership with the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers).
Bob was a very curious and driven man, who often thought “out of the box”, and had many and varied intellectual and humanitarian interests. He was a Master Mason-3rd Degree, an amateur radio (HAM) operator, an avid artist and art collector. Bob was a philanthropist with numerous contributions to charities, public broadcast stations and the Hopi Indians.
Bob worked for General Electric Power Line Carrier Section in Schenectady, NY. From 1955 to 1961, he was Manager of Computers and Communications at General Electric Company Electronics Research Laboratory in Syracuse, New York. From 1961 to 1967, he was Manager of Utility Systems at Gulton Industries. In 1967, he founded Beckwith Electric Company in Largo, Florida. In 2000, Mr. Beckwith founded Beckwith Electric Research (BER), a division of Beckwith Electric Co. that conducted research at the forefront of present-day engineering and physics.
Along with his consulting work, his career achievements included working with US Defense projects during WWII, developing new high frequency transducers for SONAR applications. In addition, he helped develop transmission lines to supply power for the Manhattan Project. He was awarded over 30 patents on various aspects of the utility industry from 1949-2004.
Bob Beckwith is recognized today for his life-long dedication to the electric power community and his significant scientific contributions and influence on society in general. He will be truly missed by his business associates and family.
The celebration of Bob’s life will begin with visitation on Sunday, November 1st, from 4:00-7:00 pm and funeral service on Monday, November 2nd, at 2:00 pm at Sylvan Abbey Memorial Park & Funeral Home, 2853 Sunset Point Road, Clearwater, FL 33759, 727-796-1992, www.sylvanabbey.com. An after services reception will be held in Bob’s honor at Beckwith Electric Co., 6190 118th Avenue North, Largo, FL 33773.
In lieu of flowers, Bob’s family asked that donations be made in Bob’s name to: The Hopi Foundation www.hopifoundation.org or P.O. Box 301, Kykotsmovi, AZ 86039.
About Beckwith Electric
Founded in 1967, Beckwith Electric introduced the first solid state tapchanger control in 1968, and was the first to develop the microprocessor protective relay in 1981. Today, Beckwith Electric has thousands of protection and control units in service worldwide, with a reputation for cutting-edge technology, defined by its customers and refined by Beckwith. This success starts with Beckwith Electric Employees and their commitment to quality in the products, all 100% designed and manufactured in Largo, Florida, U.S.A.
Beckwith’s field-proven smart distribution automation controls for transformers, regulators and capacitor banks incorporate unique control strategies, advanced microprocessor architecture and cyber security compliant communications. Power systems protection solutions include generator, transformer, feeder, recloser and distributed generation applications. Specialized synchronizing and motor bus transfer systems are also offered.
Beckwith Electric’s customers include power utilities, heavy industrial and large institutional markets, and their consultants.
Visit Beckwith Electric online at www.beckwithelectric.com, follow on Twitter at Twitter.com/beckwithcompany or connect on Facebook at Facebook.com/BeckwithElectric.