< PreviousWRIT TEN BY JAMES O’NO L AN Bladensburg, Maryland is a charming little town with a big personality. It has a population of just ten thousand inhabitants, located a stone’s throw away from the nation's capital. The towns claim to fame was a pivotal role in the War of 1812. A loss to the British army opened the door to the burning of Washington DC. Almost a century later in 1926, Bladensburg became the home to Ernest Maier. Ernest Maier, Sr. started Ernest Maier & Sons, a small block business. He was 26 at the time. An immigrant originally from Germany, Maier turned his attention to building blocks having been forced to sell his farm to the government. This proved fortuitous as he spotted a gap in the market and was soon churning out 72 blocks a day – by hand—with the help of a Sears block machine. Not long after this, the company expanded for the first, and certainly not the last, time. Ernest Maier quickly became an important fixture in the local business environment, surviving tough times and natural disasters along the way. | 40 JUNE 2023This period of sustained growth led to exciting developments. In 1995, a new era of leadership was heralded. Brendan Quinn assumed the role as interim CEO and brought with him an expertise in construction turnaround. Along with this, Mr. Quinn brought a can-do approach to the building sector. Unsur- prisingly, this proved successful, and Mr. Quinn subsequently bought the company. With a vision to turn Ernest Maier into a full-service company, incorporating production, sales and logistics, the company has grown in revenue at an incredible rate. Over this period, Ernest Maier has gone from strength to strength, adding services and products such as insulation, natural stone, pavers, steel, and brick masonry to its arsenal. Part of this success is down to a number of astute acquisi- tions along the way with companies such as Parker Block, Bay Ready Mix, and Concrete Building Systems now being part of the company’s portfolio. Concrete Building Systems, located on the Delaware / Mary- land border, is a company that has a deep knowledge in struc- tural precast and prestressed concrete. According to Ernest Maier’s Vice President of Development, Dr. Aaron Fisher, the acquisition of Concrete Building Systems was a logical step in the company’s growth. Ernest Maier had deep concrete technical knowledge in-house including direct precast expe- rience across its senior leadership. “The appeal of Concrete Building Systems was being able to truly be able to be an all- of-the-above concrete company by adding an organization that had carved out a nice niche around the Chesapeake Bay.” In a construction environment where escalating costs and labor shortages have now become the norm, the ability to utilize the faster construction times and reduced labor costs associated with precast concrete are a huge benefit. Clients now benefit from a manufacturing process that can proceed simultaneously with site preparation and other construction activities. Additionally, for Dr, Fisher and those at Ernest Maier, minimal waste and improved sustainability allow the company to work quickly and cleanly. The beauty with pre- cast is that buildings can be completed very quickly yet they don’t leave much of a footprint,” continued Dr. Fisher. | 41 APEIRON CO NSTRUC TIO NWhen bidding for a job the team at Ernest Maier offer pro- spective clients a bespoke experience. The project is broken down into precast elements. This approach allows the engi- neers and builders the opportunity to make decisions on how they want the finished product to come together. Dr. Fisher himself has worked in an array of industries, from driving buses to being involved in a start-up. His approach to busi- ness seems to mirror that of his employers. “If a job needs to be done, it is about finding a way to get that job done.” Another product embraced by the Ernest Maier team is Pave- Drain permeable pavement — a durable, sustainable, and a highly effective solution for addressing stormwater in urban areas. A big plus of PaveDrain, that as a heavy-duty product it is durable enough to withstand heavy vehicular traffic. While the benefits are clear, Dr. Fisher acknowledges implementation in a heavily regulated market is not always straightforward. Despite the obvious advantages, it can be a struggle to change traditional mindsets. “The guy who invented this product started with an erosion control system, and then turned it into a pavement. This is opposed to other market offerings, which began life as pavements and were forced into a marriage with water. It’s a refreshing take on a decades old problem of trying to get pavement and water to cooperate.” Despite headwinds, the company has a track record of over- coming challenges. The key to this success: perseverance. This means a dedication to bringing new products to its cli- ents. Perhaps the most innovative of these, is a replacement for steel reinforcement bars in concrete, fiberglass rebar. Fiberglass rebar is a lightweight, high-strength alternative to traditional steel rebar. Its advantages speak for themselves, and for Dr. Fisher, the benefit of one-to-one substitute to the tried and tested method is an exciting one. “Fiberglass rebar is two or three times stronger than a steel bar. Due to this, you can use smaller bars. It is 1/4 the weight which means you save on labor, it doesn’t corrode which is a huge problem with the steel bar, and it is actually cheaper.” Recent changes in the industry knowledge base, coupled with updated codes and guidelines, have meant that the product is gaining traction. However, Dr. Fisher believes that traditional and historical viewpoints are slowing its “Fiberglass rebar is a lightweight, high-strength alternative to traditional steel rebar.” | 42 JUNE 2023success. “Some potential clients will take a lesser product for a higher price because it was what their dad used, or maybe because that was the way things were always done. I am confident that will change over time and this product will breakthrough.” Ernest Maier was a man ahead of his time when it came to the world of concrete. That much is clear. Mr. Maier was known for pushing the boundaries and changing the narra- tive across the industry. The company has continued this tradition, and its commitment to progression and growth is a testament to this. The company continues to have ongoing successful relation- ships with a variety of loyal customers, as well as a growing collection of new ones. All this drives home the philosophy that there is nothing that cannot be done for the client. For Dr. Fisher, this outlook is simple, yet effective. “We look to address our clients’ challenges. If they stay in business, we stay in business.” While nothing is ever fully set in stone, the future looks good for Ernest Maier and Concrete Building Systems. By staying focused on our customers throughout the Mid-Atlantic, its legacy as an integral business in the local community is assured. | 43 APEIRON CO NSTRUC TIO NWRIT TEN BY M ANUEL A ARMINI both time and money. Little did he know that this seemingly simple precast concrete product would be the opening act of a successful legacy. The cattle guard performed so well that Smith and his son Rod- ney soon began selling them locally, and throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. The year was 1960, and the launch of their distinctive product marked the birth of the Smith-Midland company. Necessity is the mother of invention and it has never been more evident than in the case of David G. Smith. While working on his family farm in Midland, Virginia, Smith identified the need for a more efficient device to prevent livestock from roaming on local farms. This was the impetus for him to create a precast concrete cattle guard, an innovative solution that saved the local community | 44 JUNE 2023| 45 APEIRON CO NSTRUC TIO NSince its inception, the company has designed and patented multiple innovative products to address customers' needs and provide construction solutions for the transportation, education, military, high-rise, residential, medical, hospitality, parks, and the water and wastewater industries. For Matthew Smith, VP of Sales and Marketing, maintaining a connection with the ever-changing needs of the industry is vital to the company’s ongoing success. "We listen to our customers and are constantly working to create products or improvements that they ask for. We also seek out advancements that can take the market where it wants to go, because we know what the market is looking for." This is not merely lip service. Today, Smith-Midland is a corporation that employs 240 people and is comprised of five different companies which include; three manufacturing plants, Concrete Safety Systems, a precast concrete barrier rental company, and Easi-Set Industries, a precast products licensing company.. Through the latter, Smith-Midland has been licensing its proprietary products to precast manufacturers throughout the country and overseas since the 1970s. Smith-Midland's most popular products are SlenderWall, Easi-Set Buildings, and J-J Hooks. SlenderWall is a building envelope that sets itself apart from traditional precast walls because of its light weight. At less than one-third the weight of traditional architectural precast concrete walls, SlenderWall panels include advanced PVA fiber, welded-wire reinforce- ment, stainless steel anchors, galvanized steel studs, and closed-cell foam insulation, which acts as a moisture, vapor, and air barrier. Smith explains that the success of this product is its ability to meet, and exceed, expectations and deadlines. "It allows the customer to close the building in faster, with less labor resulting in bringing it to market faster." Another successful product, Easi-Set Buildings, is an economical and durable alternative to hand-built construction. It is designed to be both cost-effective and durable, and impressively, it can be installed in a matter of days. "Customers prefer our pre- cast concrete buildings because they're pre-engineered, fast and functional, yet they're durable and attractive." J-J Hooks are traffic and crowd control barriers that allow for fast installation thanks to its simplified connection system. Each barrier features identical steel J-shaped hooks at both ends that can be connected with minimal guidance and with- out the need for workers to insert their hands between barriers, ensuring a high level of safety during the connection process. With an innovative and intuitive line of products, the company also benefits immensely from sleek internal processes that have been developed through experience. For Smith, practic- ing a Lean manufacturing system is just one way that truly sets Smith-Midland apart from its competitors. "We looked at the Toyota Production system," he says, "and what it does is focuses on reducing waste and non-value-added inventory from processes across the entire company, not just in the plant but in the yard, the office, everywhere. We do this by studying and implementing improvements, checking the results, and making adjustments as necessary." “Customers prefer our precast concrete buildings because they’re pre-engineered, fast and functional, yet they’re durable and attractive.” | 46 JUNE 2023Smith-Midland produces precast products for projects located between New York City and Atlanta. The company recently completed one of its biggest projects contributing J-J Hooks barrier and SoftSound noise walls to the con- struction of two express lanes on a 22.5-mile-long stretch of the notoriously busy I-66 in Northern Virginia. They supplied 245,000 linear feet of J-J Hooks marking the largest barrier order in the company’s history. As Smith explains, this project showcased the positive effect Smith-Midland’s products has on the wider community. " Interstate 66 traffic in Northern Virginia has some of the worst traffic in the country, rivaling Los Angeles. These changes have resulted in an impressive improvement in travel times for both commuters and local residents. On that project, we provided over 1.2 million square feet of noise wall and over 60 miles of J-J Hooks precast concrete barrier." Continuing their expertise in transportation projects, was the supply of three Smith-Midland products for the widening of the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel in Hampton, the largest project VDOT has done in the state. "Anybody who travels down in that area knows how bad the tunnel traffic can get, especially during the summer weekends with beach traffic. This is the largest construction project for VDOT in the state of Virginia and we are proud to be a part of this historic under- taking," says Smith. Smith-Midland provided several miles of J-J Hook barriers for this project that aims to widen the stretch of I-64 in Norfolk and Hampton by approximately ten miles to shorten and avoid traffic bottlenecks. Smith-Midland is also producing custom noise walls and retaining walls for that corridor. While never one to take it slow, the company is currently involved in an exciting military project in Cherry Point, NC. Due to extensive damage caused by Hurricane Florence, significant improvements are necessary in the area, including rebuilding a large maintenance facility’s exterior and interior wall panel. The project is using architectural precast concrete with a thin brick finish which involves casting thin bricks directly onto the surface of the wall panels. Smith-Midland Corporation has grown exponentially over the years, and in view of its continuous development, it went public (SMID) in 1995, and has been listed on NASDAQ since 2020. Staying true to their roots, this growth has not changed the values inherent to the company since the beginning. Smith-Midland is a company that has remained focused on contributing to its employees' education and personal and professional development. Since since the early 1980s, the company has provided a tuition reimbursement program that assists employees in covering their college education costs as well as actively encouraging staff to attend personal and professional classes and training sessions. Besides supporting its employees, Smith-Midland has always invested in the local community and actively supported local charities, churches, and schools. Goals and priorities such as these emphasize its commitment to looking after the local community and staff. These form a vital tenet of the work Smith-Midland does, and has done, for decades. As Smith puts it, “a mutual respect runs through the company on all levels. We operate like a family business where we all know each other and where everybody treats each other as they want to be treated themselves, with respect," he says, “That is just the way that we have always run our business ever since my dad and granddad had the company." Still headquarted in Midland, Virgina and with these ideals still intact, the com- pany that began so many decades ago will never cease intro- ducing innovative new products or taking on new challenges, continuing the legacy of David. G. Smith. | 47 APEIRON CO NSTRUC TIO N| 48 JUNE 2023WRIT TEN BY EMM A KILCAWLEY HEM ANI Success in the construction industry hinges on a company’s reputation. Experience, skill, and history all contribute towards ensuring the customer base can place its trust in a company. Unsurprisingly, this trust is hard won and, once it has been achieved, a company rarely looks back. However, the reality is that a reputation comes with the most simple of things, a company name. Changing the name of a successful business is not something done lightly and, only when there is certainty will a company move forward. Concrete Construction Systems Inc. is an outlier in this regard. Formerly Concrete Safety Systems Inc., the company has been serving the industry for over 40 years. Its reputation, developed carefully over this time, is one of high-quality service and dependable professionalism. However, in business, change is inevitable. When the company was taken over, a name change was required to accurately reflect the broadening range of services it now offers. For Alex Gelsinger, Operations Manager at CCS, the name serves as a detailed description of all the company has to offer. “The name itself didn't change very much. It changed from Concrete Safety Systems to Concrete Construction Systems. The change is that now we don’t only fabricate pieces. Our parent company also owns MS Park Construction who then build the pieces themselves. Now, everything is done in-house. By adding the word ‘Construction’, we are expanding on the capa- bilities of this company, the parent companies, and the sister companies.” | 49 APEIRON CO NSTRUC TIO NNext >