Robert E. Heeks is a native of Rochester, NY. He graduated from Charlotte High School in 1948 and from the University of Rochester in 1952 with a BA in Chemistry. At that time he was also a Naval Reservist. In 1954 Bob received an MS in Chemical Engineering, also at the U of R studying under Prof G. Broughton. His thesis was "A Study of the Chain Length Distribution of Some Chemical Celluloses". Under the guidance of Dr. G.J.Su and a fellowship from the Ferro Corp. Bob received his PhD in Chemical Engineering in 1957. The title of his thesis was "A Study of Dilatancy in Frit-Water Suspensions. Bob was the first recipient of a Ph. D. degree from the Department of Chemical Engineering at the UofR and was also elected to Sigma Xi. Bob met Shirley Stam at the Uof R coed and they were married in 1955.After graduation Bob joined the Haloid Co. in Rochester as manager of a group investigating silver halide emulsions and their application to form photosensitive coatings. After Halide became Xerox he transferred to the Webster manufacturing operations in the early 70's. Bob assumed responsibility for manufacturing engineering of all aspects of photoreceptor production, including the alloy raw materials, drum and belt substrates, coating of photosensitive material, and reclaim of alloys and substrates. Bob was responsible for taking these innovations from the product development departments and making them manufacturable. By the early 1980's selenium alloy photoreceptors began to be replaced by organic belt photoreceptors. Bob then assumed a leading role in setting up belt coating operations for the complex layered organic material at a plant in Oklahoma City. Today one of the most lucrative profit centers for Xerox is the sale of "supplies", an area to which Bob contributed during most of his professional career.
Following early retirement he returned to Xerox to supervise chemical cleanup activities in Webster, and after 40 years of service, 7 patents and numerous publications, Bob finally retired to his and Shirley's home on Canandaigua Lake.
On the lake Bob raced Star boats, a Holiday Sloop, and a Catalina while serving two terms on the Canandaigua Yacht Club Board of Governors. Also, during several terms as Membership chairman. membership in the club flourished. Bob and Shirley raised five children; Leslie, Bob(Kathy), Kathy(Kevin), Mark, and Liz(Jim) and they are currently the proud grandparents of eight grangchildren.
