Stanley R. Mullard

Stanley Robert Mullard, (1 November 1883 – 1 September 1979) was an English industrialist who founded the Mullard electronics company.

Early life

Stanley Mullard was born in Bermondsey, London in 1883, the son of Robert Mullard. He joined the Mackey Electric Lamp Company Ltd in 1899, and became a director of the company in 1906.

Mullard joined the IEE as a student member in 1903, became a full member in 1910, and a fellow of the IEE in 1928.

In 1909, following the bankruptcy of the Mackey company, Mullard went to work first for a lamp company in Paris, and then joined the Ediswan company in Ponders End, north London, where in 1913 he was put in charge of the lamp laboratory.^[1]

During World War I, Mullard was commissioned as a Captain in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve and served at HMS Vernon as a research engineer, helping to develop high power valves made from silica rather than glass.

Mullard Radio Valve Company

In September 1920, Mullard established the Mullard Radio Valve Company. The company moved to Hammersmith in 1921, followed by a move to Balham in 1923. Mullard ended up owning 6 factories. He said that all his money came from royalties from valves and other patents. In 1925, Mullard sold half the shares in the Mullard company to Philips, with the remainder of the company being acquired by Philips in 1927. Mullard remained as managing director of the Mullard company until his resignation in 1930. During the General Strike, workers in his Lancashire factory either walked or rode to work. None struck. Mullard was noted for spending a great deal of his working time on the factory floors, garnering information from his workers about improving methods of production. If workers were not performing well, they would receive two weeks holiday pay, and be expected to perform upon return. More senior management were give four weeks leave of absence.

Later life

Mullard never returned to the electronics industry, after the 1930s. His favourite music was Paul Robeson. In many ways he was a socialist, if not Fabian, in his political views. In later years, he jokingly said that he had made more money from growing carnations than he had in the electronics industry. He invented a tarmac tennis surface which was bought up and shelved, and he introduced mica into his potting mixes to hold water. He died at Brooklands Nursing Home, Paddockhall Road, Haywards Heath, Sussex, on 1 September 1979 and was survived by a son and three daughters. He was a champion amateur golfer, and a billiards player of some significance.

References

1. ↑ Lewis J.(2001), London's Lea Valley: More Secrets Revealed, Phillimore, ISBN 1-86077-190-4

• Oxford Dictionary of National Biography: Mullard, Stanley Robert by Rowland F. Pocock
• The Setmakers : by Keith Geddes and Gordon Bussey ISBN 0-9517042-0-6
• Daily Telegraph (3 Sept 1979)