Lloyd Reese

Lloyd Reese

As Director of Engineering and Development at PlayPower, Inc. and former president of International Play Equipment Manufacturers Association (IPEMA), Lloyd Reese believes that “The first decade of this century has also seen a society that is slowly but steadily realizing that benefits of play are far reaching.”1

Lloyd began his education at Mineral Area College, a community college south of St. Louis in Park Hills, Missouri, and then transferred to the University of Missouri-Rolla, now the Missouri University of Science and Technology located southeast of St. Louis.2 He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1985 and began working as a project engineer for Cooper Crouse-Hinds, an international company designing and manufacturing electronics for harsh and hazardous situations. After a year there, Lloyd began working for Littelfuse, an electronic circuit protection designer and manufacturer, where he was a project engineer for over six years.

In 1992 Lloyd became a project engineer at Iron Mountain Forge in Farmington, Missouri, where he began his long career in the play industry. The following year, the company was acquired by Rubbermaid and became Little Tikes Commercial.3 That same year he was promoted to be a Senior Product Engineer and nearly eight years later in 2001, he became the Senior Manager of Research and Development.4 After two years of overseeing research and development at Little Tikes Commercial, they produced the climber, Infinity, which won the International Design Excellence Award (IDEA) in 2003.

The company had a fire in 1998 that completely destroyed the rotational molding area and they built a new re-engineered manufacturing facility.5 Then in 2004 PlayPower, Inc. acquired the company and Lloyd continued as Senior Manager of Research and Development. With his leadership, innovations continued at PlayPower, such as integrating musical sounds into platforms and decks on playgrounds.  In December 2012, Lloyd became the Director of Engineering and Development at PlayPower.6

In 2009, as Chairman of the Equipment Certification Committee, Lloyd became President-Elect of IPEMA. During his time as President (2010-2012) he commented on the play industry, “The growth of modern play and natural play are a refreshing expansion to the post and deck play systems that ruled the '80s and '90s. The focus on inclusive play opportunities confirms that our industry understands that play is an important part of all children's development.”7

  • 1. Reese, Lloyd. “Message from the President.” International Play Equipment Manufacturers Association. E-Newsletter, Winter 2010. < http://www.ipema.org/newsletters/2010/IPEMA_Newsletter_Winter2010.pdf > 25 May 2013.
  • 2. “Lloyd Reese.” LinkedIn. < http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=161631530&authType=NAME_SEARCH&authToken=VKL-&locale=en_US&srchid=1114384371370101023707&srchindex=4&srchtotal=39&trk=vsrp_people_res_name&trkInfo=VSRPsearchId%3A1114384371370101023707%2CVSRPtargetId%3A161631530%2CVSRPcmpt%3Aprimary > 1 June 2013.
  • 3. “History – Our Legacy.” Little Tikes Commercial. < http://www.littletikescommercial.com/company/history.aspx > 1 June 2013.
  • 4. Op.cit., “Lloyd Reese” LinkedIn.
  • 5. Op.cit., “History – Our Legacy.”
  • 6. Op.cit., “Lloyd Reese” LinkedIn.
  • 7. Op.cit., Reese.

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