Allen Engineering Corp. is celebrating its 50th anniversary this month. Started in January 1964 by Dewayne and Mary Ann Allen, AEC has become a worldwide leader in the concrete industry — doing business in more than 60 countries internationally.
Based in Paragould, Ark., Allen sells equipment for every phase of construction from compaction equipment to a laser-guided screed.
The company began when Dewayne Allen and a friend started a Redi-Mix Concrete company in Piggott, Ark., in 1964. The transition from Redi-Mix to concrete equipment began in 1969 when a pour in Paragould was in need of truss screed. Allen was one of the pioneers of truss screeds and it became what the company was known for in the late 1970s. In the 1980s, AEC began designing, engineering, and manufacturing riding trowels for the concrete market. In the past 20 years, Allen has added a host of new products including hydraulic riding trowels, bridge deck finishers, and power buggies.
“We’ve seen the concrete pouring business go from a non-professional approach in the 1960s to where it’s very much professional with high standards in quality and flatness today,” Allen said. “It’s been a very nice journey to see all of this.”
AEC plans to introduce 19 new models of concrete and related equipment at the World of Concrete, the Rental Show, and ConExpo/ConAgg in the first quarter of 2014.
