Della Williams
President and Chief Executive Officer Williams-Pyro, Inc.
Once a one-woman manufacturing company, Williams made professional contacts; secured development contracts; handled sales, purchasing, and marketing; and manufactured parts in the shop. This firsthand knowledge of every aspect of the business helped build Williams-Pyro, Inc. into the successful company it is today. As president and CEO, Williams has been involved in a variety of professional organizations and legislative efforts. Ms. Williams serves as an Advisory Board Member on the President’s Council of the National Association of Manufacturers; the Chair of the Texas Manufacturing State Advisory Board; a Member on the DFW TMAC Advisory Board; and a Member of the National Defense Industrial Association and the North Texas Women’s Business Council. Williams has also lobbied extensively in Washington, D.C. for continued federal support of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, an initiative of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Williams-Pyro, Inc. (WPI) is a woman-owned small business founded in 1963. Located in the fast-growing Dallas/Fort Worth technology corridor, WPI has approximately 100 employees and produces more than 200 unique, profitable products, all designed and developed in-house. WPI specializes in customized connectors, adapters, and cable assemblies for the U.S. Air Force. Other products include StoveTop FireStop®, America’s leading automatic stovetop fire suppressor, and an automated, modular monitoring system called AccuTag™.
In late 1999, Williams founded a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization called the WPI Firefighters’ Fund to help families of firefighters killed or injured in the line of duty. Williams pledged to match donations to the organization with $2 for every $1 donated, with a $100,000 annual cap. In 2000, the WPI Firefighters’ Fund gave $35,000 to firefighters’ families in Texas. After September 11, 2001, Williams worked diligently to raise funds and distribute them quickly to the families of FDNY firefighters who died at the World Trade Center. Soon after the tragedy, Williams traveled to New York and presented donations totaling $489,429.31 to these families. This was the first help any of them had received, and it eased their financial burdens as they awaited their benefits from the city. The fund continues to assist families of fallen firefighters, having disbursed a total of $626,662 since 2001 to families in Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas, New York, and California.
