From designing the world\u2019s largest transducer; to lobster-like surf crawling robots to detect and destroy mines; to creating a new bowling score system; to designing, building and delivering sonar systems used by the most powerful navy on the planet, Massa Products Corporation represents nearly eight decades of invention and innovation. Dawn Massa Stancavish shares her insights and experience as a female, third generation leader of this innovative sonar and ultrasonic products engineering company.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Following in the footsteps of an invention and engineering pioneer is neither straight nor easy. Following in the footsteps of your grandfather and father, taking the helm of a 77-year-old iconic company in the midst of a global pandemic, as a female leader in a male-dominated business, makes the path a bit more perilous.<\/p>\n But through it all, Dawn Massa Stancavish has fallen back on her broad business acumen, as well as her long-tenured experience in and love of the family business to prepare Massa for another generation of growth.<\/p>\n Massa Products Corporation is self-proclaimed as \u201cthe eyes and ears for naval ships and submarines,\u201d founded by Frank Massa, who pioneered the field of electroacoustics. Today Massa engineers and manufactures sonar and ultrasonic products for use in the water and air, selling to commercial, industrial and military markets.<\/p>\n At a glance, Massa is an engineering and invention company to its core. But once you dig deeper, it is far more, with the ability to discuss, design and manufacture products for disparate industries, cradle to grave, all centered on using an electroacoustical solution. Massa designs, develops, and manufactures new and modified products, hundreds of transducers and systems that operate in fluid and gas at different frequencies spanning from 5 Hz to 500 kHz; used in various environments and applications including anti-collision, measurement, liquid level (C1D1 Hazardous and not), flow, anti-theft, web break, bowling scoring systems, active and passive sonars, to name a few.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I was younger, I had a conception that to be in this family business, you had to be an engineer,\u201d said Stancavish. So when she entered college she took some engineering classes. \u201cI can do it, it takes a lot of work, I understand it; but I found that it really isn\u2019t my natural calling.\u201d \u201cI knew that I always wanted do something important, I always wanted to make sure that this company did well, but how I fit into it was discovered later on,\u201d said Stancavish.<\/p>\n Frank Massa, The Father of Modern Electroacoustics, was the founder of Massa Products Corporation. His list of innovations and achievements is long; with his son Don and granddaughter Dawn carrying on the company\u2019s mantra of engineering solution excellence, his legacy is longer. Photo courtesy Massa A Different Perspective<\/strong><\/p>\n Following in the footsteps of any legacy leader is difficult, following \u201cFrank Massa, \u2018the Father of Modern Electroacoustics\u2019 and her own technically accomplished father, Don, takes the challenge to the next level. At a young age, Stancavish became keenly aware that complex technology, albeit a major part, is still just one part of the equation, with the ability to clearly communicate that technology to both technical and non-technical audiences a distinct and important skill, too.<\/p>\n \u201cMy dad and my grandfather were very technical, but they both also understood how to communicate to people that aren\u2019t technical,\u201d said Stancavish. \u201cI was able to pick up because they always brought me into the conversations, even at a young age. I learned from them how important is to be clear in your communication. So I learned a lot about how things work and how to explain something that\u2019s a little more complicated to somebody who might not have that type of background.\u201d<\/p>\n Clear communication with Stancavish starts in-house. \u201cEveryone who\u2019s employed here is a person to us; it\u2019s not just a job, not just a title, not just a number,\u201d she said. \u201cWe care a lot about making sure that everyone is feeling satisfaction from their job, and that they understand how important each job here is.\u201d As a certified small, family business, that means everyone does lots of different things and everything that they do is important to the big picture.<\/p>\n While Stancavish is mindful of the company\u2019s legacy leadership, she aims to bring her skillset to the fore in the manner in which she leads. \u201cCommunicating internally is something that was important to both my father and my grandfather, but I think I do it a little bit differently, I just have a different nature,\u201d she said. \u201cThey were very technical leaders where I\u2019m more of a holistic leader.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe other piece that is really important is that I\u2019ve embraced fully the founder\u2019s mentality,\u201d said Stancavish. \u201cInnovation is critical in this business. A lot of businesses that do sonar in the ocean don\u2019t do the ultrasonics for air. And a lot of our competitors that do the ultrasonics in air don\u2019t have the underwater experience, longevity or capability that we have. Embracing all of that and embracing the science of sound itself has been very important. A lot of people focus more on the electronic or the signal processing side; we focus on design and the construction of the transducers.\u201d<\/p>\n Holistic is also an apt description for the way in which Massa helps to engineer solutions for its client\u2019s needs, as it\u2019s far more than simply developing technology for the sake of technology. \u201cWe also do the software and signal processing to different degrees and different applications. But understanding not just what the application is and what the desired results are, but to design the actual transducer to be able to achieve those results while minimizing the need for extra expensive or overly complicated electronics and software,\u201d said Stancavish. \u201cSo we have a design system for new products \u2013 from transducers through electronics through software \u2013 designed to do what the customer really wants.\u201d<\/p>\n This approach has helped Massa maintain its competitive technological edge while helping it expand its own footprint in industries and applications where electroacoustics is not traditionally applied. \u201cI haven\u2019t run into a lot of other companies that have focused on the electroacoustics and the science of sound to advance the products. And the fact that we design, engineer and manufacturer all in-house, we\u2019re not focused just on the innovation itself, but also how to make it so it\u2019s mass producible.\u201d<\/p>\n Women in Leadership<\/strong><\/p>\n Taking over your family high-tech business without a formal technical education is one challenge, taking leadership of a technical business as a woman in a male-dominated industry another challenge altogether.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve enjoyed over the last few months meeting a lot of other women in leadership. What I\u2019ve found is that for the pioneers, it\u2019s merit-based, everyone has earned their place,\u201d said Stancavish. \u201cI hope that it continues along that path where women are considered, but they\u2019re not given a job just because they\u2019re women. It\u2019s important that every job is considered based on qualifications, capability and merit.\u201d<\/p>\n The path for Stancavish has had its fair share of ups and downs, too. \u201cIt\u2019s been interesting going to different shows because I\u2019m received in different ways. I\u2019ve been in groups where I\u2019ve been with male colleagues and sometimes people automatically start speaking to the men instead of to me. One particular interaction stood out. \u201cWhen I introduced myself as being third-generation leader of this technical business, he said \u2018Geez, you must be disappointed, you could have been a dress maker or something like that. I bet you\u2019re really upset.\u201d While this interaction left her in disbelief, she said it\u2019s is more the exception than the rule.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of all, I\u2019ve found that (being a female leader) doesn\u2019t stand in the way of something that\u2019s important or worthwhile. There have been situations where I\u2019ve been underestimated, but that\u2019s also worked to my advantage. Most of the time it\u2019s just been normal, and that\u2019s the best. It\u2019s exciting to be the third generation here in a technical field, being the granddaughter that took it over.\u201d<\/p>\n Frank Massa (1906-1990), MIT Swope Fellow Graduate, began involvement in the sound industry since the early days of the Victrola, working for Victor Talking Machine, RCA Victor, and later Brush Development Company. He developed new designs and patents throughout his career. He worked on everything from the development of sound for motion pictures when silent films were being replaced by \u201ctalkies\u201d, to the perfection of the hydrophone. Some of Frank Massa\u2019s early designs even became iconic symbols, such as the ribbon microphone used for NBC. \u201c(My grandfather) trained all of his people with the idea of design through production,\u201d said Stancavish, with an eye always on designing, manufacturing and delivering a solution that is high-quality yet affordable. \u201cBeing that we\u2019re one facility, we have a strong engineering department. We have production engineers that work with the design engineers and a full-blown production line too, with quality control in-house.\u201d<\/p>\n So everything from design through products is monitored, ensuring the kinks are worked out at the prototype level, with an eye on making it both affordable and high-quality for mass production.<\/p>\n Working in such a proprietary field, with clients like the U.S. Navy, it\u2019s understandable that many current and future \u2013 and in some case past \u2013 technical innovations are kept under tight wraps<\/p>\n With more than 165 U.S. patents under its belt and more on the way, Massa is currently engaged in a number of projects and product development, both for itself and in partnership with outside organizations with the aim of delivering co-branded products.<\/p>\n Some of the product developments over the years have not been so secretive, and Stancavish remembers with a laugh one solution \u2013 a bowling score system developed in the late 1970s \u2013 that highlight Massa\u2019s out-of-the-box thinking in finding applications for its core competencies outside of the markets it normally serves.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve done everything over our history from innovations for the military to the bowling scoring systems for AMF,\u201d she said, noting that before the latter invention, the bowling leagues had to have a pin counter, an actual person who would count the pins tabulate the score. Massa came to the table with an air ultrasonics solution that spots the pins, counts them and gives the score automatically, which helped to speed up the rate of play and the ability to service more leagues in a shorter period.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was kind of funny, because I was a little girl when that was happening. I came in and I saw all the engineers bowling, because we made a small half lane and they were testing it,\u201d remembers Stancavish. \u201cAnd I said \u2018I thought you were working Dad. Can I have my birthday party here?\u2019\u201d What she also learned, in retrospect, was the importance of enjoying your work. \u201cI learned that this is a fun place to work. You can create amazing solutions and new products that make people happy, and you can have fun doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n With a solid history and present, Stancavish now has her eyes trained on the future of her family\u2019s company and the unique solutions it delivers. While unable to give explicit details of what\u2019s in the works, she said \u201cWhat I can say is that we\u2019re pushing the boundaries of what\u2019s possible with our technology. We\u2019re creating some new designs for use in water, for use in air and in new applications where our technology isn\u2019t currently seen. So over the next 10 to 20 years, it\u2019s my goal to continue to grow the markets where our technology is possible and considered. Because right now there are a few known spaces that everybody is in, but we\u2019ve been learning about some other spaces\u201d where Massa can introduce or further expand its solutions.<\/p>\n Part of the future is looking to the past; past innovations, some dating as much as 50 years ago, that were perhaps innovations before their time.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cTo be able to go back and revisit some of the older things that we started \u2013 but that might not have gone all the way through production \u2013 we\u2019ve been finding that some of those things are applicable today.\u201d<\/p>\n While she found it nearly impossible to select her favorite Massa innovation of all time, she noted two \u2013 both military products \u2013 that were featured nationally in TIME magazine.<\/p>\n The first was the design and manufacture of the world\u2019s largest transducer in the 1960s for the Mission Capistrano, Project Artemis. This was interesting because \u2013 despite not winning the contract to supply the transducer \u2013 Massa made the investment of time and resources to develop a prototype \u2026 just in case. As luck may have it the winning bidder\u2019s system failed to deliver according to Stancavish, so the Navy turned to Massa.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is such an important story for our business, even though it happened a long time ago, because that\u2019s what we still do today,\u201d said Stancavish. \u201cIf there is a need to do something well, to do it right, to apply our technology in a way that others might not be able to, we will do it if there\u2019s enough of a need. If we\u2019re sure of what the application is and what the solution is, we\u2019ll do it on our own to prove it and then negotiate.\u201d<\/p>\n The second feature in TIME \u2013 named one of the \u201cBest Inventions of 2003\u201d \u2013 was for Massa\u2019s Robo-Lobster (Invented by Don Massa and Joseph Ayers), a 7-lb., 2-ft.-long crustacean -like robot made of industrial-strength plastic, tasked with detecting and destroying mines buried in the surf zone. The prototype mimicked real lobster movements to negotiate all types of coastal terrain. The plastic antennas sensed obstacles; the eight legs propelled it in any direction; the two claws and tail kept it stable in turbulent water.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the same philosophies as with the Artemis story, and with the lobster story, and with the bowling alley story: we listen and understand the problem, we determine if there\u2019s enough of a business case for us to go for it, and then we can usually find a solution that\u2019s more affordable to our customer.\u201d<\/p>\n Watch the full MTR TV interview with Dawn Massa Stancavish here:<\/strong><\/p>\n
She ended with a Master\u2019s degree in Psychology and entered the workforce outside of the family business, brought into Massa at the board level, which gave her insight not only on the company, its processes and technologies, but also on how her specific talents were aligned with the company.<\/p>\n
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Frank\u2019s son, Don Massa, and Don\u2019s daughter, Dawn Massa Stancavish, have carried on and expanded the vision of the innovative founder. Today Massa employees design, develop, and manufacture new, and modified products. Hundreds of transducers and systems that operate in fluid and gas at different frequencies spanning from 5 Hz to 500 kHz have been designed and manufactured by Massa. Photo courtesy Massa<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/imagesedit.marinelink.com\/images\/storage\/w800h556\/lobsterrobot.jpg\"\/)
From designing the world\u2019s largest transducer; to lobster-like surf crawling robots to detect and destroy mines<\/strong>; to creating a new bowling score system; to designing, building and delivering sonar systems used by the most powerful navy on the planet, Massa Products Corporation represents nearly eight decades of invention and innovation. \u00a0Photo courtesy Massa
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Technology Development: Cradle to Grave<\/strong><\/p>\n
The legacy of Frank Massa\u2019s innovative spirit lives on in his namesake company today, as the company serves commercial and government clientele with a family of off-the-shelf products to original engineered solutions.<\/p>\n
But the experience left an indelible mark on the company\u2019s future leader. \u201cThe bowling scoring thing wasn\u2019t something that we went out and said, \u2018let\u2019s use our technology to score bowling.\u2019 They came to us with a problem and we were able to say, \u2018Let\u2019s see what we can do to solve that problem,\u2019\u201d said Stancavish.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/imagesedit.marinelink.com\/images\/storage\/w800h800\/geoffandjohnattradeshow.jpg\"\/)
Massa Employees<\/strong>
\u201cI learned that this is a fun place to work. You can create amazing solutions and new products that make people happy, and you can have fun doing it,\u201d said Dawn Massa Stancavish. Photo courtesy Massa<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n