December 18, 2024
Recently, I visited the Morton Arboretum located nearby in Lisle, IL. As I hiked through the oak forest, I was thinking how each one of these magnificent, giant oak trees started from a tiny acorn. Much like the acorn to oak tree story, ideas transform into actions which become great accomplishments over time. As Elite’s 70th year in business comes to close in 2024, I am proud of our own acorn to mighty oak story. Elite started in 1954 by one man, James C. Klouda, in a small storefront in Chicago. His wife, Marilyn, sold off her AT&T stock to finance their first equipment purchase (NF-105 Receiver) and the acorn was planted. Seventy years later, Elite has grown into one of the world’s most trusted and capable independent testing laboratories.
At Elite, we promote new ideas and forward thinking. Our growth is driven by our customers. By focusing on our customers’ concerns, we continuously look for ways to improve and grow our services. For example, we have expanded into Electric Vehicle (EV) testing technology in both our EMC and Environmental capabilities to meet the growing customer demand. We have made significant investment in equipment and people to support new Vibration and High Voltage test requirements.
Our engineers developed “Spark Tank” to encourage new ideas and to make improvements to our laboratory. Individuals submit their ideas and action plans, then the ideas are reviewed by their peers for implementation. This process has driven numerous improvements in lab efficiency, software automation, and report quality.
In November, we embarked on a grand idea to create a new modern Environmental Stress and Vibration Testing laboratory. The new laboratory is 46,000 sq ft and located adjacent to our current laboratory. The new lab will include our new IMV K350 Vibration Test System. This giant of a vibration system, with its maximum load capacity of 3000 kg, is for testing very large products at high accelerations. Also, included in the new lab will be a new Photometric Testing facility with expanded capabilities.
This move will free up space in our main laboratory to expand our EMI/EMC Testing services that include expanding our High Voltage Testing laboratory. Our new 500kW (1500Vdc/1000A) Ametek PowerWave Sources and Ripple Tester for ISO 7637-4 and ISO 21498 Testing and our new 7in1 1000A Artificial Network for the HV Ripple Emissions Measurements will have a new home.
I look forward to our future growth when our ideas of today transform into our test services of tomorrow. I look forward to what our next generation of test engineers have in store for our industry as we continue to transform acorns into oak trees.
Join Elite’s monthly newsletter for the latest on standards, test procedures, fascinating facts, profiles of Elite engineers, and more. Fill out the form below to become part of our global community!