Robert Koelsch, CEO of Advanced Energy Machines, turns on one of his company’s zero-emissions refrigerated storage units at the unveiling of California’s Clean Off-Road Equipment Voucher Incentive Project, also known as CORE, at a news conference at the Port of San Diego on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. “California launches $44 million voucher program for clean energy freight equipment”.

(Photo by Rob Nikolewski of The San Diego Union-Tribune)

AEM understands that a successful business is more than the sum of its parts. We understand because our business is built on sound scientific and business practices backed by personal experience. Our founders began their careers in the burgeoning semiconductor industry of the 1960s and 70s, and have industrial experience in both computer chip and automotive production. They used this experience to develop patents, market innovative products, and succeed at business ownership in a competitive market. Deriving the correct concepts for generation of electric power and its conversion to mobile refrigeration required a solid scientific background. The result was an all-new product that is revolutionizing semi-trailer reefers.

Ron Koelsch is Chief Technical Officer for Advanced Energy Machines. Ron has a PhD in Solid State Physics, with a thesis on Phonon Theory of Disordered Ternary Noble-Metal Alloys. He holds a B.S. in Engineering, majoring in Physics and a minor in Electrical Engineering. Ron has spent 45 years in the automotive electronics/design manufacturing environment beginning his career in the 1960’s as a lead Engineer at Westinghouse and IBM where he participated in several patents. Ron was a Principal Engineer at Honeywell and Ford Motor Company during the era of electronics entering the automotive industry. He built the first semiconductor manufacturing facility for automotive sensors. Ron established the first company to combine the design of application specific semiconductors with advanced manufacturing processes at the big three automotive companies. Ron founded the company which built the circuitry for the first air bags deployed. He then helped introduce advanced technology in Atomic Layer Deposition and Advanced Hi Energy Ion Implantation machines at leading semiconductor chip manufacturing facilities around the world. This expertise and discipline has led to the next generation design in transport refrigeration machinery.

Robert Koelsch is a founder and Chief Executive Officer. Robert Koelsch transitioned from the semiconductor manufacturing industry to semi-trailers. Robert spent 25 years in leading edge technology developments including Light Emitting Diode Technology, and developing manufacturing processes for companies like Intel and Motorola using plasma physics to analyze efficient manufacturing techniques for products like the Pentium Chip. This has resulted in his involvement in several patents. These years of education and experience in engineering, science, marketing and business management allow him to develop patented technology, market innovative products, and succeed at business in a competitive market to provide customers with products that are reliable, cost-effective, and commercially viable. After watching manufacturing jobs move overseas, Robert analyzed the market for products at the heart of industry and the U.S. job market. He assessed electric refrigerated trailers and recognized an opportunity to revitalize a product that has been central to the U.S. economy since the dwindling years of the icebox. The result was an all-new product that is revolutionizing semi-trailer reefers. Robert was the President and Chief Operating Officer of Sputtered Films Inc., a company which invented the sputtering gun which allowed metal interconnects to be microscopically placed on silicon wafers to form circuitry in modern electronics. Before that Robert was the President of Wafer Standards where inventions were used in developing silicon sensors looking for everything from neutrinos to gaseous impurities. Robert formed his first venture capital funded start up in 1984 when the semiconductor industry was in its infancy.

Gary W. Cullen is Director of Sales and Marketing for Advanced Energy Machines. Gary spent the first 19 years of his career with Safeway Stores in Houston, Texas in both the Warehouse and Distribution area as Vice President of Distribution. Gary completed his next 19 years as Vice President of Operations for the Houston Sysco Operating Company and then as the Vice President of Distribution Services with the Sysco Corporation. Gary started Cullen Consulting Concepts in August of 2012 utilizing his 38 years of experience in both retail grocery and food service to help companies improve operations performance and reduce overall operating costs.

Dr. Harold Wong is Vice President of Investor Relations for Advanced Energy Machines. Dr. Wong earned his Ph.D. in Economics (UC Berkeley) in 1974 and passed the National CPA Exam in 1979. He is a tax consultant and financial educator and specializes in alternative (to Wall Street) investments. He is not an ivory tower professor. He started 11 businesses and has been involved in creative real estate and equipment leasing since the early 1980s. He owns part of a commercial real estate company that was designated an INC 5000 company (one of the 5000 fastest growing private companies in America) for the last 6 years in a row.

For 7 years, he wrote the only column on money for the community section of The AZ Republic, largest daily newspaper in AZ. He currently writes the monthly financial column for The Ahwatukee Foothills News and the San Tan Sun News. His research has been distributed to over 2,000 newspapers. He has been the guest expert on over 400 TV/Radio shows and has set audience response records on over 50 TV/Radio stations. Please click on the buttons below for a more detailed biography and his philosophy on the world of money and his personal history.