Contemporary Looks at Classic Designs Can Spur New Life in Engineering

On this episode of Engineering Experience by Paragon Innovations, host Tyler Kern talked with Brewster Waddell, CEO of TH Waddell Designs, Bob Landers, VP of Engineering at TH Waddell Designs, and Mike Wilkinson, Founder and CEO of Paragon Innovations.

The group talked about an invention by Waddell’s father, Theodore. The table lamps designed by Theodore were unique and, today, go for thousands of dollars – but they didn’t come without problems.

Theodore’s career started on Wall Street in 1963, but he soon found that wasn’t the life for him. So, he got an architectural degree, moved his family to Italy while he pursued his degree and later his doctorate, and, after setting up a design firm, worked with several local designers and firms in Milan. During this time, he started working on several lamp designs.

A technical wonder at the time, his lamp features lamp rods that draw current from the cylindrical metal plate at the bottom. This illuminates the tiny bulbs in the lamp rods, which can be taken out and rearranged to fit the user’s wants.

While the lamp was unique for the time, Waddell struck a deal with Knoll International, and they decided to carry his line, which ended up in several big chain stores in the United States.

The lamps ran into a lot of problems in the retail market, mostly from shipping. The lights were breaking while shipping, and they didn’t hold up to the wear and tear from consumers.

But, his lamps were getting attention in the art world, where he exhibited at the Louvre and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

While they didn’t work out then, Brewster vowed to make his dad’s lamps popular when the time was right. Listen to learn more about the lamps, how Brewster brought them back to life and how Paragon Innovations played a part.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

Linda Shively
Turning Loss into Light: Linda Shively’s Mission to Help Others Heal
October 24, 2025

Sometimes life changes us in ways we never expected. Moments of loss, challenge, or transition can leave us wondering who we are now and what comes next. This episode of Crafted Journeys is about that quiet, powerful process of finding our way back to joy—one thoughtful step at a time. How do we begin again…

Read More
Bouvet Island
To the Edge of the World: The 3Y0K Bouvet Island DXpedition and Its Youngest Explorer
October 23, 2025

In February 2026, an international team of 24 amateur radio operators will embark on a bold mission to one of the most remote and inhospitable places on Earth—Bouvet Island. Among the world’s most isolated islands, Bouvet offers no harbor, no shelter, and no easy way in. Yet from this icy outpost in the South…

Read More
DXpedition
Icom Powers 3Y0K: Ham Radio’s Most Ambitious DXpedition to Remote Bouvet Island (Part 2)
October 23, 2025

Few places on Earth are as inaccessible—and as coveted by amateur radio operators—as Bouvet Island. Located in the South Atlantic, this uninhabitable rock has long been regarded as the “Mount Everest of DXpeditions.” According to the DXCC Most Wanted List, Bouvet ranks near the very top of sought-after contacts, making every attempt to activate…

Read More
DXpedition
Icom Powers 3Y0K: Ham Radio’s Most Ambitious DXpedition to Remote Bouvet Island (Part 1)
October 23, 2025

Bouvet Island sits at the edge of the world. It is frozen, uninhabited, and almost impossible to access. Fewer people have set foot there than in space. That level of remoteness is exactly what makes it so valuable to amateur radio operators. The island ranks tenth on ClubLog’s list of Most Wanted DXCC entities,…

Read More