Wisconsin entrepreneur leaves gift for WARF

Warren Gilson, founder of the analytical instrument company Gilson Inc., left a gift of more than $2 million to the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) in his will.

Gilson, who passed away earlier this month, was a professor of medicine at UW–Madison before leaving to run Gilson, Inc. full time. The gift, he said in his will, is designed to express his appreciation for the help and camaraderie that he received from the university community throughout his lifetime.

“My father kept close ties to the UW–Madison and was deeply appreciative of the assistance he received from the many university scientists who were his friends, advisers and customers,” says Robert Gilson, president of Gilson, Inc.

The Gilson family has requested that WARF use a portion of the funds to support entrepreneurship and the exchange of ideas between the university and small businesses in Wisconsin.

“WARF is extremely honored to receive this gift from Dr. Gilson,” says Carl Gulbrandsen, managing director of WARF. “His life’s work exemplifies the connection between the university and industry that WARF fosters as part of its mission. As a business person, he continued to use ideas from the university to benefit university researchers, the local community and humankind.”

Headquartered in Middleton, Wis., Gilson Inc. is a leading manufacturer of specialized analytical instrumentation for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Since its founding in the early 1950s, the company has expanded to employ more than 500 people worldwide, with operations in several European countries in addition to Wisconsin.

“It’s my hope that this donation will help the university community support a new generation of Dr. Warren Gilsons – professors who will make important scientific discoveries, build new companies, grow Wisconsin’s economy and provide products that make the world a better place to live,” says Gulbrandsen.

WARF is a non-profit corporation that patents technology developed by UW–Madison researchers and licenses it to industry for commercialization. WARF then returns much of the royalty revenue to the university to fund further scientific discovery.