Paul Andrews, who founded TTI, Inc., a leading distributor of electronic components he sold later to the Berkshire Hathaway holding company and then continued to lead, died over the weekend, the company said. He was 78.
Andrews, with his wife Judy, was among Fort Worth’s most active benefactors, supporting numerous charities such as Baylor All Saints Medical Center, Texas Wesleyan University, and Texas Christian University.
Andrews started his company in 1971, built it to a billion-dollar-a-year business with distribution worldwide, sold it to Berkshire Hathaway in 2007, and continued to lead it until his death. Today, TTI has more than 7,000 employees, and includes Mouser Electronics, Sager Electronics and the TTI Semiconductor Group. The company this year is celebrating its 50th birthday.
“TTI is run by a fellow named Paul Andrews, who's done an absolutely sensational job with us,” Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO, said in 2018. “He's a wonderful man. He's a wonderful manager.”
TTI serves industries including telecommunications, medical devices, computers and office equipment, military/aerospace, automotive and industrial electronics. Its core customers include high-volume businesses. The company’s Mouser unit serves a broader base of customers with lower-volume purchases through internet marketing.
In 2020, the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce awarded Andrews with its annual Susan Halsey Executive Leadership Award. In 2011, Andrews was inducted into the Fort Worth Business Hall of Fame. He served on the board of Trinity Valley School in Fort Worth. Andrews recently was awarded honorary doctorates by Texas Christian University and Texas Wesleyan University. The Andrewses also established the Paul and Judy Andrews Industrial Distribution Conference Center at Texas A&M University in 1996.
In 2005, Andrews and his wife became significant contributors to the Paul and Judy Andrews Women’s Hospital at Baylor All Saints Medical Center in Fort Worth.
Andrews grew up in Fort Worth and graduated from Arlington Heights High School and attended the University of Texas at Austin and TCU, according to a company history. In 1964, Andrews began working in the shipping department at Howell Instruments. In 1966, he moved to Arco Electronics in Arlington, and then to General Dynamics in 1968. In 1971, Andrews and 20,000 other employees were laid off from GD when the F-111 jet fighter/bomber project was grounded.
Andrews almost immediately started Tex-Tronics, thinking it would be a temporary source of income until he could find another job. He later changed the name to TTI. “As a buyer at General Dynamics, Andrews had difficulty procuring certain types of electronic components,” the company history says.“With that in mind, he started brokering those parts, providing better service and delivery than the large, established distributors.”
Andrews attributed the company’s success and organic growth to “doing what you say you’re going to do and providing exceptional service.”
In 2000, Andrews bought Mouser Electronics, in Mansfield. The purchase moved TTI into catalog distribution of components. Another 11 more acquisitions followed.
“Over the years, Andrews had numerous offers to sell his company to publicly owned companies and competitors,” the company’s history says. In 2006, he began to explore TTI’s options and was introduced to Buffett.
TTI, Inc. serves customers through 2 million square feet of warehouse space containing over 850,000 component part numbers, TTI says. TTI and Mouser over 133 locations throughout North America, Europe and Asia.
Andrews is survived by Judy Andrews, their three children, and eight grandchildren.
“The Paul E. Andrews, Jr. Foundation, created in 2007, will continue its focus on supporting education and health care initiatives in the Fort Worth community,” TTI said. The foundation focuses on improvements in education and healthcare, primarily within Fort Worth.
In lieu of flowers, charitable contributions in honor of Andrews’ memory may be directed to:
Andrews Women’s Hospital Endowment FundC/O Amy Adkins1400 8th Ave., Fort Worth 76104
Presbyterian Night ShelterC/O Brenda Rios2400 Cypress St., Fort Worth 76102