Earl L. Morris died April 3 after spending more than 70 years in the plumbing industry.

Earl L. Morris, 89, chief executive officer and founder of Acorn Engineering Co., a stainless steel plumbing products manufacturer, and chairman and founder of Elmco Sales, a manufacturers representative/distributor of plumbing products, died April 3.

Morris spent more than 70 years in the plumbing industry. He founded and served as president/CEO of Acorn Engineering Co. in 1954 until 1985 when he became chairman. He remained active in the business until 2000.

Under his direction, Acorn and Elmco grew from a 20,000-sq.-ft. facility in Los Angeles with less than 100 employees in the 1950s to its current headquarters in City of Industry, Calif., with more than 1,000 employees and both domestic and international operations.