In Memoriam: Paul DeLorenzo, Founder of Delfield And Randell

Foodservice industry entrepreneur Paul DeLorenzo passed away June 7 at the age of 87.

Born in Lorenzago, Italy, DeLorenzo moved to Detroit at age 18. Seven years later, in 1953, he founded The Delfield Company. After selling Delfield to Clark Equipment in 1969 (it’s now a brand of Manitowoc Foodservice), he went on in 1975 to create Randell Mfg. with his brothers Omero and Bruno and long-time business partner Lou Rastelli. Randell was sold to Dover in 1986 and is now a product line within Unified Brands, a Dover company.

“Paul was a private man and relatively unknown to most in our industry,” commented nephew Art DeLorenzo, product line director for Randell/Unified Brands. “Yet to those who knew him, he was a mechanical genius, an entrepreneur and a giver. Most people are unaware that between his Delfield days and the starting of Randell, Paul returned to his beloved village in Italy to create a company which built all the machinery he used to outfit the Randell facility, including the industry’s first (known) automated turret punch system.”

DeLorenzo noted that his uncle worked with his close friend Michael Ilitch, founder of Little Caesars, to design and manufacture what is believed to have been one of the first conveyor pizza ovens in the industry (the Pizza Pride). “I will forever be in his debt for providing me the opportunity to be part of this wonderful industry. He will be missed by many people who found a career in the foodservice industry because of Paul.”

A private burial with family members was held in Lorenzago, where DeLorenzo was laid to rest aside his wife, Bice, and father, Orindo.