About Us

LFSMD (Lead Free Soldering Materials Development) was founded in 2005 in order to take over the development of lead free soldering materials, a project that was started in 1999 within the framework of IKA Industrial Consulting Ltd., Israel’s leading metallurgic consultants and metallurgic testing laboratory. IKA was at that time owned and managed by Dr. Alberto Kaufman. Dr. Kaufman is LFSMD’s President and also its main shareholder. LFSMD is privately owned and is financed by Dr. Kaufman and private investors. The project has obtained the support of Israel’s Chief Scientist.

LFSMD’s laboratories are situated in Nesher, a suburb of Haifa.

Key executives:

Dr. Alberto Kaufman, President and CTO
DSc. in Materials Science (Technion, Israel Institute of Technology). VP Engineering at Iscar Blades for 13 years. In 1983, established IKA Industrial Consulting Materials Engineering Ltd which became Israel’s leading consulting company in its field and also a leading developer of alloys. Dr. Kaufman sold IKA to a financial group in 2006.

Dr. Baruch Kopeliovich, Chief Scientist
DSc. in Physics of Materials (Moscow’s Institute of Physical Engineering). He is a senior researcher who registered more than 40 patents. Dr. Kopeliovich moved to Israel in 1994 and has been working with Dr. Kaufman since 1996.

Yaron Mann, COO
BSc. in Metallurgical Engineering (Beer Sheba University). Before joining LFSMD, Yaron was a manager at IKA Laboratories for over 10 years.

Ehud Kedar, Process Engineering
Ehud has worked in high tech companies for over 25 years, especially in the design of production processes and in the integration of mechanical, electronic, optical and computerized systems. Ehud studied mechanical engineering and also has a B.Sc. in Business Management.

Arie Dolev, Business Development
BSc. Electronics from the Tel Aviv University. CEO of Solcon, a manufacturer of electrical motors controllers. Prior to that, Arie held a number of senior positions at Elisra Electronics Systems Ltd., a leading manufacturer of electronic defence equipment

Board of Directors

Reuven Ashkenazy
Founder and senior partner of the CPA firm Ashkenazy & Co. He has a BA in Accounting from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and an MBA from INSEAD.

Arie Dolev
BSc. Electronics from the Tel Aviv University. CEO of Solcon, a manufacturer of electrical motors controllers. Prior to that, Arie held a number of senior positions at Elisra Electronics Systems Ltd., a leading manufacturer of electronic defence equipment

Daniel Furman, Chairman
CEO and Founder of Arba Finance Company, a boutique investment banking firm. Daniel has a BA in Economics and Statistics from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and an MBA from INSEAD. Daniel is a Director of the First International Bank of Israel, Orad High-Tech Ltd. and Pricer AB.

Robert Nobel
President of Chemlube International, a company active in the production of finished lubricants and the international trade and distribution of base oils. Robert has a BA from Rutgers University and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Gad Propper
Managing Director of Osem International Ltd and Chairman of L’Oreal-Israel Ltd. He is New Zealand’s Honorary Consul in Israel and an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) and a Chevalier of France’s Legion d’Honneur. Gad has a BA in Economics from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and an MBA from the Tel Aviv University.

Dr. Alberto Kaufman
DSc. in Materials Science (Technion, Israel Institute of Technology). VP Engineering at Iscar Blades for 13 years. In 1983, established IKA Industrial Consulting Materials Engineering Ltd which became Israel’s leading consulting company in its field and also a leading developer of alloys. Dr. Kaufman sold IKA to a financial group in 2006.