DFE Celebrates 40 Years in Business
- Published: July 11, 2014
ROCHESTER, NH | Dover Flexo Electronics is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. CEO and original founder Ken Ekola explains the company’s founding and how it got its name:
“DFE was born in 1974. Back then, there was only one tension equipment manufacturer, the Kidder Press Company in Dover, NH. Kidder was a wholly owned subsidiary of Moore Business Forms. Its mission was to manufacture printing presses, slitters, collators, and other equipment that Moore needed to operate its business. The Moore equipment was sold only to Moore's printing plants. Kidder also designed, built, and developed flexographic printing presses for sale to the general market. This kept the manufacturing and engineering groups busy during those times when Moore didn't need new equipment. A common requirement between the two product lines was the need for web tension control.
“The Kidder R&D department developed the first practical tension transducers in the late 1960s, and they were used with controllers and indicators on all Kidder machines that had a need for them. Kidder established a service group that installed and serviced the tension equipment in the field and did order entry and troubleshooting by telephone in Dover. In the early 1970s, Kidder sold the tension business and re-assigned the people involved in it. The new owner had no experience in tension measurement or control, so that left lots of customers without any support. That's when DFE stepped in and provided the necessary services.
“What to call the new company? We had a business advisor who had run an industrial manufacturing business for many years. He said the customers were already accustomed to calling ‘Dover’ NH for their needs, so Dover should be a part of the name. Most of the tension equipment was sold to customers in the flexographic printing market. So, ‘flexo’ should be included in the name to make people comfortable with the new company. And, of course, electronics was what we worked on. Hence, the name Dover Flexo Electronics.
“Incidentally, we have never been located in Dover, NH. We started in Somersworth, NH, and moved to Rochester, NH where we are today. And we have never had any connection with the Dover Corporation.”
The company adds that it is proud of the long years of service to its loyal and innovative customers in the converting, printing, and industrial processing industries, and it gives thanks to all who have contributed to its success throughout the years.
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