In 2025, Metromont celebrated its 100th anniversary of business in South Carolina and the Southeast. In 1925, South Carolina native and USC graduate Captain James Roy Pennell founded Pennell and Harley Construction Engineers, a highway engineering company focused on DOT work that would eventually grow and evolve over three generations to become Metromont, one of the largest precast concrete manufacturers on the East Coast.
Across the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic, Metromont has helped to transform city skylines, provide building systems for the data center industry, update college student housing options, and build new NFL and MLB stadiums. Metromont’s history of significant projects includes professional and collegiate sports stadiums, the Honeywell headquarters in Charlotte, The Shepherd Hotel in Clemson, the SC Children’s Theatre in Greenville, and the new USC Foundation Gateway 737 student housing facility in Columbia.
As part of its centennial anniversary, Metromont celebrated a century of service with projects that support the local communities across its six locations. Associates at each of the company’s locations participated in service projects with local organizations, such as Meals on Wheels Greenville, Habitat for Humanity, the American Red Cross, and Flight to Honor. From blood drives to packing meals to building homes, Metromont gave back to the communities that have shared in the company’s history and contributed to its success.
Captain Pennell’s enterprising spirit and commitment to the values of faith, honor, and passion have served as the blueprints for Metromont’s mission and vision throughout its 100-year history. From construction engineering to ready-mix concrete to precast concrete manufacturing and construction, the company’s family leadership has strengthened its evolution and growth. In 1946, Captain Pennell’s son, Dick Pennell, joined the company, and in 1949, the company began producing its first precast concrete products. Captain Pennell’s grandson, Rick Pennell, joined the company in 1981, and in 1998, he assumed the roles of President and Chief Operating Officer. In 2004, Rick Pennell became President and CEO of Metromont.
Through Rick Pennell’s leadership, Metromont has experienced significant growth during the past two decades. The company expanded its operations over the years and now operates six manufacturing facilities in South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and Virginia. In 2018, Metromont purchased The Shockey Precast Group, a 60-year-old, family-owned precast concrete manufacturer based in Winchester, Virginia. The acquisition enabled Metromont to expand its customer market to the Mid-Atlantic and as far north as upstate New York. Metromont has also expanded its market sectors and today produces structural and architectural precast concrete for parking structures, schools, multi-family housing, warehouses, data centers, office buildings, and stadiums for customers throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast.
As Metromont celebrates a century of service, its culture of innovation and stewardship continues to drive the company’s vision for the future. We are grateful for our customers, partners, suppliers, associates, and communities and look forward to the next one hundred years and continued growth through continued investment, new offerings, expanded geographies, and new market segments.
View Metromont’s 100th Anniversary Video: https://youtu.be/-X2KYwmazNQ
