Nick Fowler graduated from Odessa High School in 1969. Following his graduation, Fowler attended Rice University, where he received a bachelor’s in science and a master’s degree in Civil Engineering. He then went on to pursue an MBA from the University of Texas of the Permian Basin.
Fowler is the principal owner of REXtac, LLC & Orrex Plastics Company, LLC., an Odessa based company that provides Amorphous Poly Alpha Olefin (APAO) adhesive and sealant solutions for clients worldwide, (REXtac) plus complex reactive extrusion compounding for all the global polymer manufacturers, (Orrex). These solutions are used in various products such as adhesives, lubricants, packaging, personal hygiene, and automotive interiors.
Prior to REXtac, Fowler served as an officer in the US Navy and worked as a drilling engineer in Midland. Unemployed in 1983, Fowler developed a process to recover waste polymer behind the then El Paso Products Company plant site. This process eventually developed into the company that would become REXtac, LLC.
“I had absolutely zero previous experience, training, or formal education in polymer chemistry or engineering,” said Fowler in his biographical information form. But that didn’t get in the way of Fowlers future success. In fact, despite Fowler and his employees’ inexperience in polymer industry, they are still the number one company within their market.
Fowler said that had it not been for the seed capital furnished by the Odessa’s Economic Development Corporation, REXtac and Orrex would have never successfully taken off. But it did. In fact, today REXtac and Orrex payroll and benefits now exceed $19,000,000 per annum, and the companies pay $600,000 in annual property taxes. Orrex is currently expanding with a 50% increase in capacity, and REXtac is working to add an additional 200,000,000 pounds per year of new polymer production to its Odessa facility.
In addition to running a successful business, Fowler still finds time to serve on the Permian Basin Petroleum Museum board, Safe Place of the Permian Basin, and the UTPB Development Board. Fowler has three daughters; Jennifer, Jessica and Julie, and seven grandchildren.