Robert J. "Bob" Brinkman

Robert J. “Bob” Brinkman, 81, of Charleston, South Carolina, passed away September 27, 2026, three days before his 82nd birthday, with his wife of 41 years, Christina, at his side. Son of the late Earl (William Charles) Brinkman and Hildagunda (Augusta Beikirch) Brinkman, Bob was born in Rochester, New York and grew up on the family’s small farm in Gates alongside his sister Ellie Hawthorne.

A very talented man who lived life to the fullest, Bob often said he led a charmed existence. He was fearless, and a keen judge of character. As a young man in the 1960s, Bob placed in several New York State junior skeet-shooting competitions. After earning a business degree from the University of Denver, Bob was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Vietnam era. He was sent to Korea, with his guitar in tow. A senior officer noticed the guitar, asked Bob to play, and decided he was so good that he should help boost troop morale as part of a traveling entertainment troupe.

After returning to the United States, Bob earned his pilot’s license, became an avid skier and a member of the ski patrol at Bristol Mountain and Hunt Hollow in winter, and spent his summers sailing as a longtime member of the Rochester Yacht Club. Bob’s greatest accomplishments, however, revolved around his employees and businesses.

In 1970, at age 26, Bob purchased C.J. Winter Machine Works, a Rochester company specializing in manufacturing thread rolls and thread-rolling attachments. There he turned a prototype attachment into a full product line, and he was later named as an inventor on company patents. From this foundation, Bob acquired Gates Albert, a screw machine company his father had once owned; formed Brinkman International Group; acquired MSK Precision Products; and developed Brinkman Precision into an aerospace machining business. In 2003, he purchased the assets of Davenport Machine during its bankruptcy proceedings. The purchase carried special meaning: Davenport was where his father, Earl, had spent 54 years, rising from a young mechanic to president and retiring in 1979 as “Mr. Davenport.”

Although Bob’s business successes, including the turnaround he engineered at Davenport Machine, are well known, what many may not know is the degree to which Bob was committed to his employees. His philosophy was simple: take care of your employees, and they will take care of your customers. Long before it became fashionable, Bob provided his employees first-rate tools and equipment, superior benefits and wages, excellent working conditions, and the drive to always make things better. He practiced what he called “management by wandering around,” spending his time on the shop floor rather than behind a desk. The many long-term employees today at Bob’s companies are a testament to his leadership, and to his companies’ commitment to them.

Bob’s commitment extended well beyond his own companies. A member of the Precision Machined Products Association since the 1970s, he helped establish the Precision Machining Technology Show, and was awarded the Gold Micrometer Award for his long and outstanding service to the precision turning industry. At Rochester Institute of Technology, he founded the Earl W. Brinkman Machine Tools and Manufacturing Laboratory, named for his father, and established the Brinkman Professorship in Industrial and Systems Engineering. RIT later inducted him into its Industrial and Systems Engineering Academy in recognition of his support for engineering education.

After stepping back from day-to-day leadership of his companies in 2009, Bob and Christina traveled extensively, visiting each of the seven continents. Their love of southern charm, walkable, historic neighborhoods, and a vibrant art community led them to re-locate to Charleston, making it their home.

Bob is survived by his loving wife, Christina, and by his sister, Ellie Hawthorne, son Brendan Cory Brinkman, grandson Hayden Brinkman, nieces Danielle Noel Hawthorne, Michelle Janine Hawthorne Carlquist, and several great nieces and nephews. Bob is predeceased by his nephew, Kevin Scott Hawthorne.

A memorial service for Bob will take place in the spring in Rochester, New York; details will be announced by J. Henry Stuhr, Inc. Downtown Chapel, www.jhenrystuhr.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Tunnels to Towers Foundation, www.t2t.org.