We are pleased to feature Monarch Precast Concrete Corp. as part of our Meet a Precaster blog series. Answers were provided by Eric Lasko, quality control manager.
Don’t forget to check out all of our Meet a Precaster blog posts and if you’re an NPCA Producer Member and would like to be featured in a future Meet a Precaster post, please send an email to Sara Geer, NPCA’s internal communication and web manager.
1. Where are you located?
We are located in Allentown, Pa., and service Pennsylvania and the surrounding states (New York, New Jersey and Delaware) and as far south as Maryland and Virginia.
2. How did your company get its start?
Monarch Precast was founded in 1949 by Paul Stein Sr. and is currently in its second generation of ownership led by Paul Stein Jr.
We primarily started manufacturing septic tanks and through the years have expanded our product lines to include catch basins, manholes, utility vaults, residential sewage treatment plants, pre-piped pump stations and meter pits.
Aerial photo of Monarch Precast’s storage yard. Photo courtesy of Monarch Precast Concrete Corp.
3. What value does NPCA bring to your company and the industry?
As an NPCA Certified Plant, we can assure our customers that the products they receive are manufactured to the highest quality standards.
NPCA not only provides guidelines for our products, but offers education courses through Precast University and the NPCA Leadership Academy. With these courses, we can properly train our staff, whether on the plant floor or in the office, with the knowledge to fabricate our products efficiently and safely and give them guidance to become industry leaders of tomorrow.
4. How have the relationships you’ve developed through NPCA membership impacted your business?
The networking aspects through NPCA events are valuable resources that not only aid Monarch Precast, but aid and assist fellow precasters with challenges they may encounter in day-to-day operations. Together, we can shape the growth of our industry and rebuild failing infrastructure.
5. What are the top advantages of precast concrete products?
With precast concrete, we can provide structures that are ready to install, meeting the demands of any project and allowing our customers to complete projects in a timely manner.
6. What is the most interesting or unique project you’ve worked on?
One of the most unique and intricate projects we had the privilege of supplying was a packaged sewage pump station for the Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown, Pa. The station consists of a 10-foot-diameter wet well and a 12-foot-by-12-foot, climate-controlled valve vault complete with 8-inch pumps, electrical control panels and transformers, hydraulic controls and components for the hydraulic grinder, and communication equipment. All these components were installed at our facility prior to job-site delivery and installation.
Monarch Precast manufactured a 10-foot-diameter wet well and a 12-foot-by-12-foot, climate-controlled valve vault for Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown, Pa. Photo courtesy of Monarch Precast Concrete Corp.
7. What drives you and your employees to produce quality precast concrete products?
What drives us is the pride our employees feel when we see our products on a job site and knowing that we are contributing to building a better infrastructure.
8. Tell us about a time when you changed a spec to precast on a project and why that change was made.
Fiberglass pump stations and septic tanks are often specified on projects. As a manufacturer of precast concrete structures and a fabricator of packaged pump stations, we have successfully supplied precast in lieu of fiberglass units.
9. What makes precast concrete an even better product today than it has ever been in the past?
Technology and education are the two most important factors that have evolved precast concrete products. The development of new processes and materials (and alternative materials) are leading the way, creating efficient products and offering rapid, durable return to the end user.
Photo courtesy of Monarch Precast Concrete Corp.
10. How do you see the precast concrete industry – and your company in particular – evolving in the future?
Monarch Precast intends to remain an active NPCA member and will adapt to meet the demands of the ever-changing industry and environment. We are always searching for new methods to be sustainable and friendly to the environment.
The opinions expressed in this blog post are solely those of the member, and not of NPCA or any of its employees.
do you know who makes precast tree ring?/
Thank you for the comment Brian. The best way to search for suppliers who manufacture precast tree rings is to visit our “Find Precast Products & Supplies” online search feature. There, you can search “precaster,” the product “Tree Grates, Rings,” and location to receive a list of NPCA members to contact near you. All of our members would be more than happy to help answer your questions and provide you with what you need. If you have any other questions, please let me know.