Charles Henry Malpas (28 April 1899 – 1 January 1982) was an Australian inventor and businessman. Malpas was born in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

to toolmaker Charles Edward Malpas and Florence, ''née'' Merry. He served in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

from April 1918 to February 1919. He married the clerk Elsie Moore at

Sutton Coldfield Sutton Coldfield or the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield ( ), is a town and civil parish in the city of Birmingham, West Midlands County, West Midlands, England. The town lies around 8 miles northeast of Birmingham city centre, 9 miles south of L ...

on 31 July 1920, and the couple moved to

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

in March 1921. After the death of a daughter in 1924, Elsie returned to England and the two were divorced in 1935. Malpas remarried Betty Meryl Cutler at

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

on 14 September 1935. He had founded an iron foundry and engineering workshop in 1933 which became known as Victorian Diemoulders Pty Ltd, and he served on

Geelong City Council The City of Greater Geelong is a local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of and, had a population of 271,057 as of the 2021 Australian census. I ...

from 1944 to 1947 and from 1949 to 1956. Malpas' inventions included drum spouts, pourers for drinks and heating-oil gauges, although his most famous creation was the "Airlesflo" tap and seal for packaged liquids, which contributed to the development of wine casks for commercial sale. This was developed for

Penfolds Penfolds is an Australian wine producer that was founded in Adelaide in 1844 by Christopher Rawson Penfold, an English physician who emigrated to Australia, and his wife Mary Penfold. It is one of Australia's oldest wineries, and is currently ...

' "Tablecask" in 1967, and Malpas designed several prototypes, which he patented. The rights to the Airlesflo tap were bought by Wynn Winegrowers in 1970 and became the standard for bulk wine packaging. In 1980 he was one of the first winners of the

Advance Australia Award The Advance Australia Foundation (AAF) was established in 1980. The AAF recognised "individuals or groups who have made outstanding contributions to the growth and enhancement of Australia, the Australian people and the Australian way of life". I ...

. He retired in 1978 and died in 1982 at

Leopold, Victoria Leopold is a residential eastern suburb of Geelong and is a gateway to the Bellarine Peninsula in the Australian state of Victoria. At the 2016 census, Leopold had a population of 12,814. History The area was formerly known as Kensington, but ...

, survived by his wife, their daughter and two sons.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malpas, Charles 1899 births 1982 deaths 20th-century Australian inventors British emigrants to Australia People from Geelong