Fostoria Concrete Products Marks 50 Years
July 14, 1996, article one

PIX#1 - The employees of Fostoria Concrete Products manufacture 2.4 million concrete masonry units each year. Fostoria Concrete has been producing concrete products for a half century.

Back in September 1945 three Wooster, Ohio businessmen ventured to realize a fundamental part of the American dream, to start their own business. Arthur Miller Sr., R.W. Rankin and H.R. Gerbrick launched Fostoria Concrete Products on Sandusky St. They would manufacture concrete blocks used in construction. Each year hopeful entrepreneurs inaugurate many thousands of new commercial enterprises. Most of them fail within a few years. Fostoria Concrete Products has beaten those odds and then some. On Saturday June 22, Fostoria Concrete celebrated its 50th anniversary.

According to President Fred Smith, the primary product of Fostoria Concrete is the concrete block, properly known as a concrete masonry unit. The company manufactures concrete masonry units in 150 different sizes, shapes and colors including architectural black for exteriors.

These units are used primarily for building load bearing walls. A block machine turns out three standard eight inch blocks at a time. In a typical year Fostoria Concrete produces 2.4 million concrete masonry units.

The blocks are made from a mix of water, cement and limestone. Color is added to the mix if necessary. A mixer control panel insures that each batch has the correct amount of each ingredient.

A typical batch of mix contains 400 lbs. Of cement, 4100 lbs of limestone and 25 gallons of water. Annually, Fostoria Concrete uses 3,500 tons of cement and 35,875 tons of limestone.

Operations commenced in April 17, 1946 with production of the very first concrete masonry unit. That first block was manufactured by Truman Carnicom who would later become plant superintendent.

By 1949 the company was blessed with such success that Richard Westenbarger’s sole responsibility was to handle the trucking of concrete products to destinations near and far. By 1960 Fostoria Contrete truck fleet included four large delivery trucks, six block hauling trucks and four raw material trucks.

In 1947 Mr. Rankin and Mr. Gerbrick sold their interests in the company to Arthur Miller’s sons, Art Jr. and Ralph, who were both honorably discharged from the Army Combat Engineers Corps. Arthur Sr. retired and Mr. Gerbrick remained with the company as secretary- treasurer.

In 1973 the company added employees to its second shift in anticipation of a 20% increase in sales. Fostoria Concrete products have been used in buildings of every type of description.

In the early 1970's much of the expansion over at Bowling Green University was built with concrete masonry units from Fostoria Concrete. Construction of two high rise dormitories and an expansion to McDonald Hall were made possible because of 250,000 units from 912 Sandusky Street.

In 1981 Fostoria Concrete had a contract with Honda to supply blocks for the construction of Honda’s Marysville plant. Forty-five thousand blocks were used in constructing the plant’s exterior and another 100,000 were used on the interior. Honda chose Fostoria Concrete Products because it was the only Ohio supplier whose blocks processed the required insulating properties.

In March 1976 the Miller family sold the company to Fred and Lois Smith, owners of L&F Construction. Throughout its history the company has manufactured products other than its trademark concrete masonry unit. Ready mix concrete, patio and decorative block, fireplace materials and other products have all ben manufactured at one time or another.

In early 1977, Fostoria Concrete added and built a new 150 ton ready mix concrete unit. The new unit was fed by a 185 ft. Conveyor system and could load 6 cubic yards of cement batch into mixing trucks. The new process allowed for improved quality control and speedier delivery to ready mix customers while enabling the block production operation to increase output.

The Focus would like to extend its congratulations to Fostoria Concrete on completing its 50th year of operation here in Fostoria. And we hope that there are many more years of success yet to be had.