Anything You Need

How 2 Houston friends founded the fitting industry's go-to company

Owners Houston Glover and Archie Lopez. Photo courtesy of TPC Industrial

If you're in the market for a specific kind of pipe, valve, fitting, flange, bolt, gasket, or hose, your first stop should be TPC Industrial.

The Pasadena-based company has been making a name for itself in the PVF/hose and fitting industry since 2017 as the go-to finders of anything a customer might need, at any time.

Owners Houston Glover and Archie Lopez decided to open TPC Industrial after each saw the need for a company that understood the urgency of time management when it came to supplies.

Glover had been working in project management and sales, while Lopez started in the distributorship end of the hose and fitting industry. He then moved on to Seal Fast Inc., a manufacturer and wholesaler, and worked there for 24 years, where he grew in knowledge and was fortunate enough to travel to 19 different countries.

In 2013, he went to Pelican Worldwide and focused on opening Superflow products, traveling to China, Korea, Singapore, and Malaysia to setting up manufacturer partnerships.

But between 2015 and 2017, Lopez began dreaming of starting his own company. He began working on a business plan, unaware that his friend Glover was doing the same.

TPC Industrial owners Houston Glover and Archie LopezThe pair became business partners in 2017. Photo courtesy of TPC Industrial

The two men came into each other's orbits by attending the same church, and Glover and Lopez's son, AJ, quickly became best friends. So in 2017, Glover presented Lopez with a presentation for business partnership and they made it official.

By January 2018, they were full funded. Two days later they bought their building, and less than two weeks after that they made their first sale.

Lopez says that praying on the decision is what moved him to partner with Glover. As their three-year anniversary approaches in January 2021, it's clearer than ever that the universe didn't steer him wrong.

Learn a bit more about TPC Industrial and its owners with this video:

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TPC Industrial is located at 2500 Pasadena Fwy. If you're searching for a particular part, call 346-226-3866, email info@tpcindustrial.com, or check out the website.

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With this new grant, UH has a new center for researching bioactive materials crystallization. Photo via UH.edu

A new hub at the University of Houston is being established with a crystal-clear mission — and fresh funding.

Thanks to funding from Houston-based organization The Welch Foundation, the University of Houston will be home to the Welch Center for Advanced Bioactive Materials Crystallization. The nonprofit doled out its inaugural $5 million Catalyst for Discovery Program Grant to the new initiative led by Jeffrey Rimer, Abraham E. Dukler Professor of Chemical Engineering, who is known internationally for his work with crystals that help treat malaria and kidney stones.

“Knowledge gaps in the nascent and rapidly developing field of nonclassical crystallization present a wide range of obstacles to design crystalline materials for applications that benefit humankind, spanning from medicine to energy and the environment,” says Rimer in a news release. “Success calls for a paradigm shift in the understanding of crystal nucleation mechanisms and structure selection that will be addressed in this center.”

The Welch Foundation, which was founded in 1954, has granted over $1.1 billion to scientists in Texas. This new grant program targets researchers focused on fundamental chemical solutions. Earlier this year, the organization announced nearly $28 million in grants to Texas institutions.

"Support from the Welch Foundation has led to important advances in the field of chemistry, not only within Texas, but also throughout the United States and the world as a whole,” says Randall Lee, Cullen Distinguished University Chair and professor of chemistry, in the release. “These advances extend beyond scientific discoveries and into the realm of education, where support from the Welch Foundation has played a significant role in building the technological workforce needed to solve ongoing and emerging problems in energy and health care.”

Rimer and Lee are joined by the following researchers on the newly announced center's team:

  • Peter Vekilov, Moores Professor, chemical and biomolecular engineering
  • Alamgir Karim, Dow Chair and Welch Foundation Professor, chemical and biomolecular engineering;
  • Jeremy Palmer, Ernest J. and Barbara M. Henley Associate Professor, chemical and biomolecular engineering
  • Gül Zerze, chemical and biomolecular engineering
  • Francisco Robles Hernandez, professor of engineering technology.

The University of Houston also received another grant from the Welch Foundation. Megan Robertson, UH professor of chemical engineering, received $4 million$4 million for her work with developing chemical processes to transform plastic waste into useful materials.

“For the University of Houston to be recognized with two highly-competitive Welch Foundation Catalyst Grants underscores the exceptional talent and dedication of our researchers and their commitment to making meaningful contributions to society through discovery,” Diane Chase, UH senior vice president for academic affairs and provost, says in the release.

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