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Jerome I. “Jerry” Paulson, founder of Pelletron Corp., Lancaster, Pa, passed away recently following a brief illness. He was 81. 

Paulson, familiar to many in the bulk material handling industry, founded the company in 1986 after recognizing the need for a dust-removal system in plastics processing. The concept, developed and nurtured in his garage, was based on kinetic energy and its effect on products as they pass through pneumatic conveying systems. Paulson’s solution, the Kinetic Gravity DeDuster, uses a magnetic flux field to disrupt the electrostatic charge between contaminants and pellets and a patented air wash deck to separate and remove the contaminants.

Under Paulson’s guidance and vision, Pelletron grew from a startup to a multi-million dollar international company in fewer than 10 years. In 2003, the company was sold to Heinz Schneider and Paul Wagner, under whose leadership it continues to expand its presence in the industry. Today the Pelletron DeDuster is recognized world-wide as the solution-of-choice for dedusting materials from plastics and minerals to food and pharmaceuticals.

Prior to founding Pelletron, Paulson designed, developed and patented other products used in pneumatic conveying of bulk materials, and earned industry-wide recognition when he was granted a Ben Franklin Partnership Award for Technical Development from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1985. Prior to that, Paulson served as Director of Research and Development for Flotronics, Allied Industries Division of Brown & Root Corp., Houston, 

His work at Flotronics resulted in two U.S. patents, the publication of a technical paper for the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) and earned him the John C. Vaalar Award from Chemical Processing Magazine in 1980. Paulson earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota in 1962.