John Spencer MacDonald, (1936–2019) was a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
engineer, businessman, and academic. He was co-founder of
MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates
MDA Ltd. is a Canadian space technology company headquartered in Brampton, Ontario, Canada, that provides geointelligence, robotics & space operations, and satellite systems.
History
MDA (formerly MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates) was founde ...
(MDA), an
aerospace
Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astrona ...
,
information systems
An information system (IS) is a formal, sociotechnical, organizational system designed to collect, process, information storage, store, and information distribution, distribute information. From a sociotechnical perspective, information systems a ...
, and technology company. MacDonald served as the
chancellor
Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
at the
University of Northern British Columbia
The University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) is a small, research-intensive public university in British Columbia, Canada. The main campus is located in Prince George, with additional campuses located in Prince Rupert, Terrace, Quesnel, and ...
from 2010 through 2016.
Early life and education
MacDonald was born in
Prince Rupert, British Columbia
Prince Rupert is a port city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Its location is on Kaien Island near the Alaskan panhandle. It is the land, air, and water transportation hub of British Columbia's North Coast, and has a population of 12, ...
in 1936 to Neil and Alice MacDonald. His father was a Scottish immigrant and the captain of a BC Fisheries inspection vessel responsible for inspecting offshore fishing fleets throughout the north coast of BC. As a child, John was exposed to marine radio technologies at a neighbour's basement shop and discovered that he had a natural aptitude for the systems. By the age of 16 he was spending his summer months traveling up and down the coast fixing radios on the various fleets and tourist boats.
Upon graduation from high school he moved to
Vancouver, British Columbia
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
to attend the school of Applied Science at the
University of British Columbia (UBC), where he graduated with a bachelor's degree with honours in
electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...
in 1959. Following his program at UBC, he was accepted to the engineering program at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he earned a master's degree in 1961 and PhD in electrical engineering in 1964.
Career
As an undergraduate student at UBC, MacDonald spent his first three summers on a survey crew in Northern British Columbia. After his fourth and fifth years he worked as a student engineer at
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) is a Canadian federal Crown corporation and Canada's largest nuclear science and technology laboratory. AECL developed the CANDU reactor technology starting in the 1950s, and in October 2011 licensed thi ...
's
Chalk River Laboratories
Chalk River Laboratories (french: Laboratoires de Chalk River; also known as CRL, Chalk River Labs and formerly Chalk River Nuclear Laboratories, CRNL) is a Canadian nuclear research facility in Deep River, about north-west of Ottawa.
CRL is a ...
in Ontario, where he met his future wife, Alfredette, before moving to Boston to attend MIT.
Upon graduation from MIT, where he had worked as a teaching assistant and discovered an aptitude for teaching, MacDonald aspired to be a professor at the prestigious school. He was offered a position as an assistant professor at MIT and spent a year in this role when he was approached by UBC to join the staff of the electrical engineering department there, which he accepted. In 1965 he moved his young family back to Vancouver and started his career as a professor at UBC. By 1968 he was feeling the urge to try his hand at entrepreneurship and, with his friend and colleague, Vern Dettwiler, founded
MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates
MDA Ltd. is a Canadian space technology company headquartered in Brampton, Ontario, Canada, that provides geointelligence, robotics & space operations, and satellite systems.
History
MDA (formerly MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates) was founde ...
in the basement of his Vancouver home in 1969 while continuing to serve as a professor at UBC. By 1973, the demands of his role at MDA caused him to leave the university and work full time with the fledgling technology company. He served as president and CEO of MDA until 1982, and as chairman of the board from 1982 to 1998. In addition to professorships in electrical engineering at MIT and UBC, MacDonald has served in an advisory capacity to the government and on the board of directors of numerous companies.
In 2001, MacDonald co-founded Day4 Energy, a company that designed, manufactured and sold high performance
solar electric
A solar cell, or photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect, which is a physical and chemical phenomenon. modules. Day4 Energy went on to have one of the largest
IPOs
In demonology, Ipos is an Earl and powerful Prince of Hell (a Duke to some authors) who has thirty-six legions of demons under his command. He knows and can reveal all things, past, present and future (only the future to some authors, and past ...
in Canada in 2007, at over $100 million and grew to almost 300 employees.
In 2014, MacDonald retired from Day 4 Energy.
Honours
MacDonald was named an Officer of the
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with the ...
in November 1988 and invested in April 1989.
In 2008 MacDonald was awarded the
British Columbia Technology Industry Association (BCTIA) Impact Award for Person of the Year in recognition of his contributions to science and the BC High Technology Industry. Day4 Energy also won the Impact Award for Emerging Company of the Year.
He was a Fellow of the
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is a 501(c)(3) professional association for electronic engineering and electrical engineering (and associated disciplines) with its corporate office in New York City and its operation ...
(IEEE), founding Fellow of the
Canadian Academy of Engineering The Canadian Academy of Engineering (french: L'Académie canadienne du génie) is a national academy of distinguished professional engineers in all fields of engineering, who are elected on the basis of "their distinguished service and contribution ...
, and Fellow of the
Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute is a nonprofit organization for Canadians that are interested in the fields of space, aeronautics, and remote sensing. It seeks to further the cause of science and engineering among the population, and provi ...
MacDonald died on 26 December 2019 at the age of 83.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macdonald, John S.
1936 births
2019 deaths
Canadian chief executives
Canadian electrical engineers
Engineering educators
Canadian corporate directors
University of British Columbia alumni
MIT School of Engineering alumni
Officers of the Order of Canada
Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty
Academic staff of the University of British Columbia
Academic staff of the University of Northern British Columbia
People from Prince Rupert, British Columbia