Frank Paul Tourville Sr. — who founded Zeus 54 years ago and built it into a major provider of advanced medical tubing products — recently passed away at age 87.

The Orangeburg, S.C.–based company in its announcement of Tourville’s March 16 death described him as a well-known and highly regarded visionary in the polymer extrusion industry.

Tourville led Zeus to become one of the first companies to provide polymer solutions for minimally invasive catheterization procedures. The company today has 11 facilities worldwide that employ over 1,800 people.

“Mr. Tourville made a tremendous impact in the advancement of polymer extrusions, but more importantly, on the countless lives saved through his work in advancing medical devices and procedures,” Zeus CEO Steve Peterson said in a news release.

“He was an intelligent, caring, driven, and determined leader, overcoming many challenges to solve real-world problems over the past 60 years. We are honored to work with the Tourville family in continuing his legacy of providing solutions that enable innovation and enhance lives.”

Tourville maintained a reputation for humility and personal integrity and always referred to his team members as his “Zeus family,” according to the company. He was also a community booster, purchasing and completely renovating the Orangeburg Country Club and golf course and financially supporting a new cardiac center and an advanced fetal care clinic at the Medical University of South Carolina.