WELCOME TO KENNETH P. SWANSON

Genius of innovation in the world of textile manufacturing

Ken Swanson revolutionized the textile industry in the US by introducing plastics to the manufacturing of parts used by the Textile mills on their machines. These mills supplied the fabric for our cotton sheets, shirts and towels plus a small wool spinning mill operation located in Taos New Mexico. He also designed a new drafting system and supplied 95 percent of the carpet mills with his products. His creative abilities devoted to the textile industry awarded him seventeen patents issued by the United States Government.

He established his own company in Rockland Massachusetts during the 1950’s naming it Progressive Engineering, Inc. This facility is where he manufactured top rolls and various other metal parts supplied to the textile mills throughout the country with a good portion shipped to the Canadian Mills. His plant was packed with screw machines.

Since the center of textile manufacturing was located primarily in the South, after developing his plastic parts division he purchased a building in Simpsonville, SC to accommodate the production of all his patented plastic parts leaving the more sophisticated operation of metal parts in the Rockland plant. There was an absence of skilled machine operators in the south which ignited his thoughts of creating a training program to fit his needs but timing was an issue which behooved him to leave that manufacturing process up North.

Although he had graduated from Wentworth Institute in Boston, MA, he did not have an engineer’s degree and without that piece of paper the Southerners would not accept the name of Progressive Engineering, Inc., so he had to change it to Progressive Equipment, Inc.

His company maintained a successful operation for 55 years, in the black as they say. It was listed on the Dun and Bradstreet reports for its high standards in the business world. This was indeed a unique accomplishment in the production of textiles for the USA. The parts he manufactured were recognized and utilized throughout Canada, Germany, South America, and Mexico.

Mr. Swanson, born in Brockton MA and raised by his mother Edith, a seamstress, was a colorful man indeed. He worked hard and played hard. His musical talents led him spots on radio shows and with his exceptional piano-playing skills he developed his own band while still in high school, performing both in Maine and Massachusetts. He was also an accomplished sailor, entering and winning races with his 36’ Hinckley Yawl named Charm anchored in Scituate Harbor. He served the military in the Coast Guard and developed the “Blackout Lamp”, the only light allowed to be used during WW2. Among other achievements he transformed a Studebaker auto into an amphibious vehicle plus constructed a sailing vessel for the fun of gliding over the frozen pond adjacent to his home: a winter’s entertainment.

He shared his musical talents with the Rotary socials and various school and entertaining events. In the work force he was likened to a General Patton by some of his business associates. He treated his employees with respect and generosity and was well liked in his more relaxed world of golf, sailing and playing the piano.

His company was eventually taken over by his daughter Valerie Swanson Grant who ran it for 18.5 years after which she wrote a book about how it began and how it met its much saddened and most undeserving demise. “Someday Honey This Will All Be Yours” available on Amazon books along with its sequel “Someday Honey This Will All be Over”.