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FRUITFUL & INNOVATIVE PARTNERSHIPS TEXT SOFIA LUN
DGREN ILLUSTRATION SHUTTERSTOCK MATCH MAKING in business PROCTER AND GAMBLE When candle maker William Procter met soap maker James Gamble, they had a lot in common. Not only had both of them emigrated from Ireland to Ohio, they had also married sisters. It was, in fact, their father-in-law who persuaded them to become business partners and in 1837, Procter & Gamble was launched. Business reached new heights in the 1860s, when the Union army contracted the company as suppliers of soap and candles during the Civil War. Today, P&G is a multinational consumer goods corporation, owning brands such as Head & Shoulders, Pampers and Gillette – and the headquarters is still located in Ohio. Some partnerships might seem strange at first, but still work out great for both parties. This kind of unexpected match often proves not only to be productive – it may even result in true synergy. NEWCOMEN AND WATT Today, steam engines as we know them are no longer in use but the importance of steam itself is still great. Steam is a key player in a number of innovations, such as the combustion engines in cars as well as steam turbines in thermal power stations. None of this would be possible without a different kind of joint venture regarding inventing and fine-tuning, where two great minds partnered up, not just at the same time. When Englishman Thomas Newcomen constructed his steam engine in 1712, its main use was to pump water out of deep mines. No small feat, but years later, when James Watt refined Newcomen’s engine by introducing a separate condenser, it made a world of difference. This new contraption was much more powerful and energy-efficient than Newcomen’s version, and when Watt further adapted the engine to produce rotary motion, its field of application grew far beyond pumping. It could now be used in machinery, and as such would go on to run factories, ships and locomotives. 26 OUR WAY PARTNERSHIPS