Robert Abplanalp

Robert Henry "Bob" Abplanalp (April 4, 1922 – August 30, 2003) was an American inventor who invented the aerosol valve, the founder of Precision Valve Corporation and a political activist.

Born to Swiss immigrant parents in the Bronx, New York, Abplanalp graduated from Fordham Preparatory School in 1939 (he would rescue the school from financial distress many years later in 1978) and studied mechanical engineering at Villanova University. He ran his own small machine shop prior to entering the United States Army in 1943. After serving in World War II he worked in his machine shop where he invented the first workable aerosol valve which could be mass-produced inexpensively. He began the Precision Valve Corporation in 1949, and, by 1950, 15,000,000 valves had been produced, marking the beginning of his business empire. In 1956, he married Josephine Sloboda; the couple had two children.

Later in life he became a Republican and supported many conservative causes. Abplanalp was a close friend and supporter of former U.S. President Richard M. Nixon, Nixon's immediate family, and Nixon's long-time confidant, Charles "Bebe" Rebozo.

Abplanalp and his wife were staunch donors to Catholic charities. In recognition, they were inducted in 1971 into two charitable orders: the Order of Malta and the Order of the Holy Sepulchre.

Death

At the time of Abplanalp's death in Bronxville, New York from lung cancer on August 30, 2003, aged 81, he held more than 300 aerosol-related patents.

Sources

• Goliath
• New York Times obituary for Bob Ablanalp, September 2, 2003

External links

• Robert Abplanalp at Find a Grave