Jim Gorman

Chairman of the Board / The Gorman-Rupp Company / 1925 / Inducted 2010

Jim Gorman's achievements include many roles that stretch across seven decades. His father co-founded the company, and he was on the road at age 15 promoting Gorman-Rupp products. Even today, as Chairman of the Board, he's one of the first at work each morning. Jim's mantra is, "If we don't take care of the customer, someone else will." His foresight to invest early in CAD/CAM design software helped his company lead the industry in construction pumps and water pollution control equipment.

Innovations include creating the first commercially available self-priming solids-handling trash pump. And thanks to his foresight, Gorman- Rupp became the first American manufacturer to offer a wide line of submersible pumps to meet the demanding conditions of mining environments.

Gorman initiated a number of socially responsible activities for the company. One example: the Adopt-A-School Program, through which employees spend time with students reading in the classroom, help with school maintenance and donate funds for necessary expenses.