Wishlist Careers Login Français E-CATALOG ABOUT US PRODUCTS DOCUMENTATION RESOURCES PROJECTS BLOG Home / Corporate News / Meet One of the Emergency Lighting Pioneers of Canada March 2021 MEET ONE OF THE EMERGENCY LIGHTING PIONEERS OF CANADA Share By Clémence Marseille Emergency lighting has been in existence in Canada for many decades. Originally, few companies manufactured or even distributed this product, given that guidelines regulating this industry were quite different from what they have become today; in fact, they were almost non-existent. A Montreal-based Canadian company by the name of Red Comet was one of the industry trendsetters. The founder-owner of that company was the father of Sam Rimoin, President of Stanpro. And Red Comet is where Roland Welman, an emergency lighting pioneer, began his career. FIRST JOB In 1968, at the age of 18, Roland Welman applied for a job in the production department of Red Comet where he met 15-year-old Sam Rimoin who was then working at a summer job in the family company. As the years went by, Roland remained with Red Comet, and climbed the corporate ladder in the process. From his original job as a production clerk, he rose to the position of manager, overseeing external repair services. Roland stayed with the company until it was sold to a British enterprise in 1972. Memorable encounters Roland Welman even met and married his wife Lise while working at Red Comet! Roland remained with Red Comet until 1975, when an exciting new project came about… A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY A new company specializing in the field of emergency lighting came into being in 1975. Emergi-Lite was founded by Bruce Kaufman, a businessman who had formerly owned shares in Red Comet. Roland was invited to start up the Emergi-Lite production department; he was the department’s sole employee at the time! Later on, his wife Lise joined him and worked alongside him. Over the years, Roland became the company’s Production Manager. A Daunting Challenge In light of the success Roland had achieved in his former appointments, the Kaufel Group (Emergi-Lite’s new corporate name) assigned him the task of creating production and assembly plants for the Group’s companies. Over time, Kaufel Group has become the largest emergency lighting institution in Canada. Both Roland Welman and his wife Lise headed production operations of the firm until its sale to Thomas & Betts in 1998. Lise chose to retire in 2000, leaving Roland to pursue his work with the company until 2001. BACK TO BASICS When Sam Rimoin launched Stanpro Lighting Systems in 2001, he called upon the expertise of Roland Welman, Canada’s emergency lighting pioneer, to open a manufacturing plant in Montreal dedicated to lighting and emergency lighting under the name of Stanpro, to which they later added Aimlite. Roland proceeded to build his umpteenth manufacturing installation from the ground up; his efforts are widely recognized as having contributed to establishing Stanpro as a Canadian leader in emergency lighting. Who would have guessed that Sam Rimoin and Roland Welman would begin their careers together and would still be working side by side today, 50 years later! Roland Welman has worked in the emergency lighting industry for 52 years. Today, he is the most experienced individual in this field. Throughout his career, he has created, developed and managed emergency lighting production installations for the three most prosperous lighting companies in Canada. Roland, the Stanpro team is proud to be associated with your pioneering spirit! Roland Welman a true emergency lighting pioneer in Canada Related Articles Western Canada Nominations By admin_stanpro February 2018 We are pleased to announce the promotion of Zane Yakiwchuk to Regional Sales Manager for Western Canada and the promotion of Greg Chapman to Assistant Regional Sales Manager for Western Canada. READ MORE Stanpro awards its annual excellence scholarship By Clémence Marseille October 2020 EFC encourages students to continue their education It is in a very special context that the EFC (Electro-Federation Canada) announced the maintaining of its scholarship program! This initiative, set up several years ago, supports college and university students who wish to develop a career in one of the following departments: electrical engineering, electrical technologist / [...] READ MORE Stanpro’s annual end-of-summer barbecue By admin_stanpro September 2018 Stanpro Lighting Systems held its annual end-of-summer barbecue on September 7th, 2018, after a presentation on the company's accomplishments to date as well as our plans for the coming year. What fun it was! Sun and heat were on display as we laughed, played and shared a large offering of barbecued burgers, hot dogs and [...] READ MORE LAWS AND REGULATIONS Building code Electrical code Fire code Generator room COMPANY Newsletter Resources Projects About Us Careers Warranty Terms & Conditions of Sales Terms & Conditions of Sales – USA After Sale Service Contact Us NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIPTION Subscribe to our newsletter to receive news and alerts, our latest bulletins and document additions. 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