Placing precast products in 1958

(Picture from Record-Eagle - January 10, 1958)

Using a $30,000 lattice crane, Ambrous Schaub Excavating placed a 30,000 pound precast support frame for the then new Traverse City Eastern Grade School gymnasium in the winter of 1958.

This marked the first time a precast structure was used in the area, which allowed the crews to work through the cold winter season. Pouring the large concrete structure in place would have required a large heated enclosure to ensure the integrity of the frame remained intact. 

At the time, the crane used by Ambrose Schaub Excavating was the only one in Northern Michigan capable of handling this type of load. Ambrose Schaub, the brother of Team Elmer's founder, Elmer Schaub, sold his company to Team Elmer's nearly 30 years ago in 1988.

What is Precast Concrete?

Precast concrete structures are used for all sorts of applications, such as underground pipe, manhole structures, bridge beams, and so on. If you have the right form, you can make anything out of concrete, even a canoe!

In fact, Team Elmer's precast production facility specializes in underground structures, such as varying sizes of manhole structures and catch basins, as well as residential septic tanks at many of our outlying concrete plants around the state. 

Tune into this episode for an in-depth look at how precast structures are made, and why they are vital to our success in the field!

Team Elmer's Update - Episode 13: Precast Production

Our precast production facilities can create a number of different items, most of which aid with the completion of a variety of municiple projects around the state. Although, occasionally we are given the opportunity to create something a little more interesting, such as the Veteran's Memorial Statue at Thirlby Field in Traverse City. 

The monument base was created in our precast production facility and placed at the eastern endzone of the Traverse City shared gridiron in September of 2015.
 

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