Paul A. Wilks, Jr. Papers

Paul A. Wilks, Jr. was an engineer of scientific apparatuses and instruments for infrared spectroscopy. Wilks was born on June 16, 1923 in Springfield, Massachusetts. After graduating from Springfield Technical High School, Wilks went to Harvard University, where he majored in engineering. He graduated from Harvard University in 1944 with a bachelor’s degree and began working for Perkin-Elmer, Incorporated that same year. Wilks became the marketing director of Perkin-Elmer in 1952.

Wilks left Perkin-Elmer in 1957 and, along with Charles W. Warren, co-founded the Connecticut Instrument Company, which manufactured accessories for the infrared industry. Wilks and Warren sold their company to R. Bowling Barnes in 1962. Wilks worked at Barnes Engineering Company from 1962 to 1963 serving as commercial products manager. In 1963, Wilks founded the Wilks Scientific Corporation, which manufactured a variety of spectroscopy products. The company was sold to the Foxboro Company in 1977, and Wilks managed the Wilks Division of the company until 1979. After leaving Foxboro, Wilks founded the General Analysis Corporation to market products that monitored workspace environments. The company was unable to create a market in this area and changed its focus towards producing products for other industries, such as the beverage industry.

Wilks decided to retire in 1993 and General Analysis was eventually sold to OI Corporation. While still in retirement, Wilks started another company in the 1990s, Wilks Enterprise, Incorporated. This company continues Wilks' efforts to produce applicable products based on infrared spectroscopy and other technologies. He died in Lebanon, New Hampshire on October 11, 2008.

Sources

Paul A Wilks, Jr. Papers, Science History Institute Archives, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.