Harry Wesley Coover, Jr. A chemist working for Eastman Kodak, he accidentally discovered a substance first marketed as “Eastman 910,” now commonly known as Super Glue.
Coover was a prolific inventor holding 460 patents, but was proudest of the organizational system that he developed and oversaw at Kodak. “programmed innovation,” a management methodology emphasizing research and development, which resulted in the introduction of 320 new products and sales growth from $1.8 billion to $2.5 billion.
In 2004, he was inducted into the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame; then in 2010, received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.
tw will be along to tell how it all went down the toilet.
