As we celebrate 50 Years of Innovation at Power Adhesives, we are sitting down and talking with some of our brilliant team as part of our People of Power Adhesives Series.
Fifth up is Keith Hampson, Adhesives Operations Director. Keith joined Power Adhesives in its pre-Power Adhesives name days back in 1986 and was part of the company’s very first production run. During our chat, we discuss his early experiences, the company finding its feet, and his vision for the future.
How did your journey with Power Adhesives begin?
I joined the business in 1986 when it was still called Packaging Aids, a packing company with hot melt adhesives and applicators as part of its portfolio. Back then, we were mainly a distributor, sourcing most adhesives from a joint venture with Beardow & Adams in Milton Keynes, alongside some specialist products from Dexter Hysol in the US.
Then in 1989 an opportunity came up for Power Adhesives to purchase its own manufacturing line from Dexter Hysol, who were looking to shut down their plant in France.
This was an opportunity that we could not ignore, the deal was done. The plant was disassembled and transported back to the UK to a place called Barking in Essex, where we spent months putting it all together, with the help of hundreds of photographs and notes taken during the disassembly. This was the start of some scary but also very exciting times, as we had little or no experience in manufacturing hot melts.
What made you choose to stay with the company for so long?
2026 will be my 40th year, and whenever I’m asked why I stayed so long, I say there are many reasons. I loved going to work in the morning, learning something new every day, being part of a family business, who had become friends and not just work colleagues.
Being there for every part of the exciting journey that brought us to where we are today, not just as a world leader in shaped hotmelt adhesives but in applicators as well.
You worked on the first adhesive production run – a big day. What do you remember about it? What was the product being produced and did it go as smooth as hoped?
It was 1990, and the product was a packaging grade called 342-43, which we still make today some 35 years later. We had help from a Hysol technician from the US for the first two weeks, which was invaluable as we learned the process. That first run was exciting but intense. It wasn’t perfect, we made mistakes, but those early challenges were how we learned and improved.
How did things evolve after that initial run? What came next?
The next year was spent perfecting what we had learnt from every production run completed. Yes, we made mistakes along the way but that’s how we got better, and it wasn’t long before we actually knew what we were doing! We started to understand not only the process, but the adhesives themselves and how each of the formulations has its own unique way of being produced, depending on the viscosity and softening point.
My early years in this new venture were spent learning as much as possible from the people around me at that time, which included the then Production Manager and Plant Manager, who between them had a wealth of knowledge of manufacturing in different sectors. These two were instrumental in the early success of Power Adhesives, but none of this would have been possible without Steve Sweeney (then Technical Director), the eldest son of the Sweeney family, who had left university with a mechanical engineering degree, which would turn out to be invaluable to the business over the coming years.
Steve was the real brains behind the outfit, and in the coming years, had managed to teach himself basic chemistry and the understanding of what goes into not only making, but formulating a good shaped hot melt adhesive. Soon after, he became our acting Chemist. He always used to say, “I know enough about the chemistry to make me dangerous” and would laugh.
Do you have a personal favourite product or innovation from your time at Power Adhesives?
If I was to look back at my almost 40 year journey and had to pick a time or products that had a massive influence on the where we are today, it would be the handheld spray tool and formulations of the spray adhesives, which were a game changer for us and will still have a major part to play the in the continued growth of Power Adhesives.
Where do you see Power Adhesives in the next 5–10 years?
We have come a long way since we installed that first line 1989, and I’m looking forward to the next chapter in the continued growth of Power Adhesives, not just in the UK or Europe but also in America. Although we’ve recently changed ownership, our aim is still the same, to be the world leaders in shaped hot melt adhesives and applicators.
I do feel in the next decade, the adhesives industry will be heavily driven by sustainability, biodegradability and recyclable products, with the manufacturing processes also having to make many changes as we all work towards reducing our carbon footprint.
But if/when these challenges come Power Adhesives way, we will do what we have also done, face them, find a solution and move forward. This is what has gotten us to where we are today, and with the help of the fantastic team of people we have, from the long service, through to the new ones that have joined us, with years of experience in different sectors will help take Power to the next level. For me personally, I think the next level for us to increase sales of our adhesives and applicators in America by 100% over the next 5-10 years.
Keep your eye out for more People of Power Adhesives blogs in the future as we continue our 50 Years of Innovation celebrations.
