An interview with Brad Field
Canadian-based PRE Labs founder Brad Field has been involved in the security and defense industry for more than four decades.
The development of lighter and stronger materials, more effective coatings for repelling solids and liquids, and new materials has led to a strong demand for innovative, high-quality and higher-performing protective products. Almost 10 years ago, seasoned entrepreneur Field recognised an opportunity to use extensive knowledge and experience gained earlier in his career to create PRE Labs to take advantage of the continuing development of textiles.
“Virtually all our products are textile based in one way or another. This would include ballistic fabrics such as Kevlar® that we use in body armour applications, to advanced coated fabrics used in lightweight chemical/biological protective ensembles, to resin based fabrics such as UHMWPE used in hard armour applications.”
Other than recognizing a need and choosing to found a company to fulfill that need, Field recommends that an effective CEO must have, or be able to learn, a broad set of skills including effective leadership, financial acumen, strong communication and negotiation, and vision.
Brad Field, Founder & CEO of PRE Labs
This range of abilities and expertise will support a CEO’s varying duties that range from managing finances and recruiting new employees, to developing new products and technologies. Steps to being an effective CEO are: “Number one is the ability to surround yourself with people that are much smarter than you. Number two, you need an innate ability to take risks. And number three, you must be adaptable to change.”
“Things do not always go as expected!”
“Whatever industry you are involved in, a CEO needs to fully understand the technical challenges that industry faces and ensure that effective strategies are in place to address these challenges. Knowledge is power and the more you understand about your industry, its competitive environment, and developing industry trends will likely mean the difference between success and failure.”
Field’s advice to people interesting in a career in textiles is: “Choose wisely. Global trends have not been favourable to the North American textile industry, except in key strategic areas such as advanced materials where offshore competition is minimal. We chose the protective products industry specifically for this reason where our customers will only purchase products made in North America from ‘Made in America’ raw materials and that are certified for use by US and Canadian government agencies.”
Outside of working in the dynamic and demanding field of performance textiles, Field keeps busy with many hobbies and spending time with grandchildren.