Henry Ford III, a member of Ford Motor Co.'s board of directors, has joined the board of a local startup.
Ford will serve as non-executive chairman of the board of Avadain Inc. The company's leadership has positioned Avadain as a graphene manufacturing technology licensing company.
“Graphene has the potential to spark transformational change across many industrial sectors,” Henry Ford III said in a statement. “I’ve followed Avadain’s progress for quite some time, and I’m excited to join the Avadain team and help Avadain democratize this critical material.”
High-quality graphene promises a potentially transformative light, strong, transparent, and heat- and electricity-conducting material, which is a layer of hexagonal carbon. And Avadain has developed a solution to the difficulty of manufacturing defect-free material that is of high quality, which the startup hopes to scale and then license to manufacturing firms.
Avadain CEO and co-founder Brad Larschan told MBJ that having Ford III on its board "puts wind in our sails." He said that Ford III brings expertise, validation, and a new perspective that Larschan said is already helping the company achieve its goals.
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Avadain is now planning its first pilot production run in Kansas City. Harcros Chemicals, which is based in Kansas City and has a manufacturing facility there, is working to provide the pilot production run before building out a full facility.
"[Harcros] can evaluate the technology, and assuming they like it and it works like they think it will, then we'll build a full-scale plant for them," Larschan said. "A year from now, it'll be hopefully ready."
Henry Ford III is the grandson of Henry Ford II. The third in the line of Henry Fords, Ford III worked as a Ford employee from 2006-21. At Ford, he notably was Ford Performance's global marketing manager during the launch of the Ford GT sports car.
Ford III joined Ford's board in May 2021. He currently serves on the finance committee and the sustainability, innovation, and policy committee of Ford's board.
Ford III won't be able to make direct connections to Ford Motor to avoid conflicts of interest. But the longtime startup investor looks to help Avadain hit its goals on time and on budget.
“Henry’s experience in all aspects of business will be invaluable to us,” Larschan said. “I’ve gotten to know him over the last 18 months, and I am excited that he will contribute to achieving Avadain’s milestones and exit strategy.”
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