Ralph Sarich facts for kids

Ralph Tony Sarich AO (born 10 December 1938) is an Australian automotive engineer, inventor, and businessman. He is famous for creating the orbital engine and the orbital combustion process engine. Sarich started the Orbital Engine Company, which developed a special engine based on the two-stroke idea.

Early Life and Learning

Ralph Sarich was born in Baskerville, Western Australia. His parents came to Australia from Austria and Croatia before the Great Depression in the 1930s.

Ralph started learning to be a fitter and turner. This job involves making and fixing metal parts. He also studied high school subjects part-time. He did very well in his apprenticeship. After that, he continued to study engineering while working.

Ralph Sarich's Career Journey

Ralph worked for the Western Australian Government Railways from 1954 to 1963. He was a fitter and turner and also trained as an engineer. Later, he became a plant engineer for Thiess Brothers. He was in charge of a big railway project.

After that, he started his own business. It was an engineering and service station company. He also worked as a sales engineer and invested in machinery. Eventually, he became a regional general manager.

Inventing the Orbital Engine

Ralph Sarich spent a lot of time researching and developing new technologies. His main focus was the orbital engine. This engine was first started in 1972. Ralph showed his invention on an Australian TV show called The Inventors. He said his engine was small but powerful. It also produced less pollution and used less fuel.

In 1974, the Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia supported his invention. They said the engine could change how we use transport. They believed it could lead to cleaner engines for cars, boats, and planes.

The special way the engine burned fuel was called the orbital combustion process (OCP). This OCP technology could also be used on normal engines to make them better. This helped car companies use Ralph's ideas without changing their factories too much.

In the 1980s, experts from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratories (JPL) called the OCP "cutting edge." This means it was very advanced for its time. Tests showed it used 50% less fuel than some boat engines. It also used 20-25% less fuel in cars. Plus, it greatly reduced harmful gases from the engine.

Many car, boat, and motorcycle makers bought the rights to use Ralph's OCP technology. They used his ideas to improve their own engines. All these deals required the engines to meet strict pollution and fuel-saving rules. Ralph's company always met these rules.

However, some parts of Ralph's original orbital engine design had problems. They were hard to cool down and lubricate. This meant the engine could get too hot. Because of these challenges, the full orbital engine design was not widely used.

Orbital Engine in the United States

Ralph wanted the Australian government to invest A$100 million to build the engine in Australia. In 1989, the government offered less money, and Ralph decided to go to the United States.

In 1992, his company, Orbital Engine Corporation, sold shares to the public in the US. This raised A$113.8 million. The company's shares were traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

In 1998, Orbital made a deal with Ford. They worked together to test and develop the orbital engine. In 1992, General Motors showed a new concept car called the "Ultralite." It used Ralph's OCP technology. Another large car company also signed a deal to use OCP technology in 1992.

Orbital Engine Around the World

In 1991, Orbital Engine Corporation made a deal with Fiat, an Italian car company. Volkswagen also had an agreement with Orbital, but they ended it in 1993. This was because car sales in Europe were slow.

Other Cool Inventions

Besides the orbital engine, Ralph Sarich also invented other interesting things:

• A special machine for moving earth.
• An early Australian device to save water.
• A unique machine for farming orchards.
• A car transmission without gears.
• A powerful pump for spraying orchards.
• A "Security Cable Gate" sold across Australia.
• A "Linear Wind Generator" to make electricity from wind.
• The world's first two-speed fishing reel for catching large fish like Marlin.

Ralph's Success and Retirement

The Orbital Engine Corporation made money by selling its technology, not by building engines itself. The company was very successful financially. For example, in 1990, it earned A$23.5 million.

When Ralph retired as CEO in 1992, Orbital was worth over A$1 billion. The company had a lot of cash and investments. Ralph sold his shares for about A$100 million.

After retiring from Orbital, Ralph focused on his family investment company, Cape Bouvard Investments (CBI). His son Peter now helps run the company. CBI invests in many areas, like property, technology, and other businesses.

Personal Life

Ralph Sarich met Patricia in 1957, and they got married in 1962. Patricia's parents also moved to Australia from Britain. Ralph and Patricia have two children, Peter and Jennifer (who has passed away).

Ralph Sarich has given a lot of money from his success back to the community. He has donated about A$65 million to different charities. In 2008, he gave A$20 million to help fund medical research facilities in Perth that study the brain.

How Much is Ralph Sarich Worth?

Ralph Sarich is a very wealthy person. In 2015, his net worth was estimated at A$1.05 billion. As of May 2023, his net worth was estimated at A$1.57 billion.

Year	Financial Review Rich List		Forbes Australia's 50 Richest
	Rank	Net worth (A$)	Rank	Net worth (US$)
2015	&&&&&&&&&&&&&046.&&&&&046	$1.05 billion	&&&&&&&&&&&&&044.&&&&&044	$0.66 billion
2016			&&&&&&&&&&&&&040.&&&&&040	$0.66 billion
2017		$1.12 billion
2018	&&&&&&&&&&&&&063.&&&&&063	$1.23 billion
2019	&&&&&&&&&&&&&076.&&&&&076	$1.20 billion	&&&&&&&&&&&&&046.&&&&&046	$0.81 billion
2020	&&&&&&&&&&&&&094.&&&&&094	$1.08 billion
2022	&&&&&&&&&&&&&080.&&&&&080	$1.60 billion
2023	&&&&&&&&&&&&&086.&&&&&086	$1.57 billion

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Icon	Description
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Awards and Honors

Ralph Sarich has received many important awards for his engineering work and contributions to society:

• 1972: Australian Broadcasting Commission Inventor of the Year
• 1972: Citizen of the Year
• 1972: Sir Lawrence Hartnett Inventors Award – Science
• 1972: West Australian Citizen of the Year
• 1973: Jaycees Outstanding Young Australian
• 1986: Hartnett Medal of the Royal Society of Arts for his work in manufacturing and business
• 1987: Received a Doctor of Science degree from Murdoch University
• 1988: Awarded Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for his service to engineering. This is a high honor in Australia.
• 1987: Received The Churchill Medal from the Society of Engineers, becoming the first Australian to get this award.
• 1988: Became an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Engineers
• 1991: Received the Clunies Ross Award for automotive engineering from the National Academy of Science & Technology