Family run business: Stockwell Elastomerics Inc.

Founder: Frederick E. Stockwell.

Headquarters: Philadelphia.

Key family members active in the company: William B. Stockwell, president.

What it does: Stockwell handles custom gaskets, seals and specialty components fabricated and molded from high performance elastomers.

Markets served: Technology sector, including analytical instrumentation, electrical and electronic devices, rugged equipment, aerospace and defense, medical diagnostic devices.

Number of generations involved in the business: Four.

What are the strengths of a family owned business? Privately held family businesses may choose to manage the balance sheet in a manner that allows for more inventory. Decision making is quick. The culture promotes sustainability and perpetuity; we can connect to our past—being mindful that we need to continue reinventing ourselves to compete and win.

What are the challenges of a family owned business? Succession planning is a big issue—something we are working on as an aspect of long-term sustainability as an independent company.

Do non-family members hold any executive or ownership roles? Our management team is non-family. We try to connect every day in the course of running the business.

How much does the younger generation of family members influence decisions? There are no family members coming up. However in the history of the business, succeeding generations were always brought into decision-making early on.

Something you may not know about the company: We are located in Philadelphia, and our staff is comprised of a blend of cultures. We take a holistic approach to work force development and education—building our people to build a better company for the long run.

What advice would you offer a young entrepreneur who wants to start a family run business? Be sure you have ground rules for family members set up. Family members should work at least as diligently as anyone else in the business. Have a statement of “What you Stand for” as the founder of the business. Make sure you understand your value proposition and keep improving on that.

And another thing: We will reach 100 years in 1919—but we are always changing to meet the needs of our customers in our strategic niche markets.