____________________________________________________________________________________________ King
Industries
King Industries balances family ownership, specialty-chemistry innovation, global growth, and workforce-development strategies
When Robert Joshua King co-founded King Industries in 1932, the world was deep in the Great Depression. Commercial aviation was just starting out, the semiconductor hadn’ t been invented yet, and the markets that would shape modern manufacturing, such as electronics and advanced coatings, were years from emerging.
Now, after nearly a century in business, the Connecticut-based specialty chemicals manufacturer is gearing up for its fourth generation of leadership. King Industries is still family-owned and has grown far beyond its rubber chemistry roots. Today, the company serves customers in lubricants, coatings, adhesives, sealants, elastomers, foam, composites, and specialty electronics. Over four generations, King Industries has weathered wars, globalization, industry shifts, new regulations, and rapidly evolving technologies. Through it all, the company keeps building on its core strengths: chemistry, technical expertise, and long-term safety and environmental stewardship.
Shenton King, Vice President of Commercial Operations and part of the fourth generation, feels that strong sense of continuity. When he thinks about what the founders might say if they saw the business now, culture and innovation- not market share or expansion- is top of mind.“ I think they would be speechless,” Shenton says.“ They would be so proud of where the third generation, my father, Dick King has taken the company and how it’ s positioned for further growth. I know they’ d be happy to see that the business and the King name remain in good hands with my brothers, Robert and Chris, and me. Most of all, they’ d be proud of the values that guide our operation, like extreme care for employees, the environment, our community, and the notion that nothing can stop a good idea.”
These values continue to shape King Industries as it invests in manufacturing capacity, expands globally, and develops
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