Lakewood Man's Latest Invention Heating Up

Ed Spellman spent about 30 years of his career working for others.

But it was working in product design as a mechanical engineer for a medical device company where the Lakewood resident realized he could design his own products.

So, in 2003, with a dream to make life easier for others, he left Elyria-based Invacare and set out on his own.

“I don’t like the bureaucracy,” Spellman said. “I always wanted to go out on my own, and the opportunity came along to do it.”

He found immediate success with his invention of the DV-Grip, a backseat vehicle mount for portable DVD players. That product is sold at just about every major store in the US — from Radio Shack to Best Buy.

Looking for more space, Spellman left his Lake Avenue garage/workshop, and opened Sackso Enterprises in Westlake. Among other products, the company manufactures thermal plates for the computers in military vehicles and parts for medical devices.

Spellman’s latest effort is the Grilly Goat, a tool that combines long-reach tongs and a basting brush.

The basting tongs — with the brush on the bottom — resemble a goat.

“Stop spilling and start grilling,” Spellman said with a smile.

The idea came about in 2007, when he was grilling in his backyard and didn’t have a brush to baste. But he had tongs.

That night he invented the prototype.

“Whenever I work on a new product, I want to make sure it’s not a knock-off,” Spellman said, noting that no one else held a similar patent. “I want to make sure it’s unique.”

When the economy tanked in 2007, he “let the idea simmer on the back burner.”

Until now.

He’s bringing his invention to the Spring Fabulous Food Show at the I-X Center in Cleveland starting April 28.

Spellman hopes that his invention sparks the interest of some of the nation’s top grill-masters — including Bobby Flay, Emeril Lagasse and Steven Raichlen.

The Grilly Goat set — which fastens to all Weber grills — has all kinds of accessories, including a sauce pot and the sauce pot “caddy.”

There’s also a line of barbecue sauces coming.

You can find the Grilly Goat booth (No. 661) at the show, where Spellman will perform a couple demonstrations.

“The next step is finding some people who are interested in buying thousands at a time,” Spellman said. “This isn’t in the market as much as it should be.”