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Foster Yeoman
Foster Yeoman Limited, based near Frome, Somerset, England, was one of Europe's largest independent quarrying and asphalt companies. It was sold to Aggregate Industries in 2006.
The company was founded by Foster Yeoman, from Hartlepool, at Dulcote, near Wells, in 1923. He was a former ship owner and had worked in the iron and steel business.
After the conflict, with Foster Yeoman ailing, business declined and the company came full circle, returning to a £20,000 turnover it had enjoyed in 1923. During 1949, Foster died and his son, John Foster Yeoman, became a managing director at the age of 21. Educated at Monkton Combe School, Millfield and the University of Bristol, he set about turning the company around, despite his youth and inexperience. John employed Ron Torr to redevelop the plant and, within four years, the company had returned to profit.
Dulcote was not the best location and, with an eye to rising costs, competition and the need for future expansion, John Yeoman bought the under-exploited Merehead Quarry at East Cranmore in Somerset in 1958. Significant development of the site was undertaken; at John Yeoman's behest, the branch line between Merehead and Westbury was re-opened to permit trains to serve the quarry. The use of rail transport to deliver materials proved to be effective, permitting annual production to be raised as high as five million tonnes during the early 1970s. By the 1980s, around eight million tonnes of material was being extracted each year from Merehead alone.
The stone had been carried to its destination by lorry since 1949, but now Foster Yeoman reverted to rail transport. The Merehead Stone Terminal was established in 1970 to handle the transfer of aggregate onto high capacity freight trains. This development was followed by the building of the railhead depot and coating plant at Botley, Hampshire, in 1973. On its 75th anniversary, the company published a colorful pictorial history of the company with a focus on its use of railway transport to move the aggregate.
The 1980s proved to be a time of substantial change and growth for the company; between 1982 and 1989, sales more than doubled to reach £87.1 million while the business' net assets trebled in valued to £28.3 million. During 1984, Foster Yeoman bought the derelict Marston House, a Grade II* listed building near Frome.
When John Foster Yeoman suddenly died in 1987 he was succeeded by his widow, Angela Yeoman, who decided against selling the company despite numerous parties indicating their interest in purchasing Foster Yeoman.
Foster Yeoman was responsible for the supply of aggregate in the construction of multiple landmark civil engineering schemes, including the Thames Barrier, M25 motorway and the Channel Tunnel. The company was a major supplier of coated stone products used for projects as diverse as motorways, airports and tennis courts.
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Foster Yeoman
Foster Yeoman Limited, based near Frome, Somerset, England, was one of Europe's largest independent quarrying and asphalt companies. It was sold to Aggregate Industries in 2006.
The company was founded by Foster Yeoman, from Hartlepool, at Dulcote, near Wells, in 1923. He was a former ship owner and had worked in the iron and steel business.
After the conflict, with Foster Yeoman ailing, business declined and the company came full circle, returning to a £20,000 turnover it had enjoyed in 1923. During 1949, Foster died and his son, John Foster Yeoman, became a managing director at the age of 21. Educated at Monkton Combe School, Millfield and the University of Bristol, he set about turning the company around, despite his youth and inexperience. John employed Ron Torr to redevelop the plant and, within four years, the company had returned to profit.
Dulcote was not the best location and, with an eye to rising costs, competition and the need for future expansion, John Yeoman bought the under-exploited Merehead Quarry at East Cranmore in Somerset in 1958. Significant development of the site was undertaken; at John Yeoman's behest, the branch line between Merehead and Westbury was re-opened to permit trains to serve the quarry. The use of rail transport to deliver materials proved to be effective, permitting annual production to be raised as high as five million tonnes during the early 1970s. By the 1980s, around eight million tonnes of material was being extracted each year from Merehead alone.
The stone had been carried to its destination by lorry since 1949, but now Foster Yeoman reverted to rail transport. The Merehead Stone Terminal was established in 1970 to handle the transfer of aggregate onto high capacity freight trains. This development was followed by the building of the railhead depot and coating plant at Botley, Hampshire, in 1973. On its 75th anniversary, the company published a colorful pictorial history of the company with a focus on its use of railway transport to move the aggregate.
The 1980s proved to be a time of substantial change and growth for the company; between 1982 and 1989, sales more than doubled to reach £87.1 million while the business' net assets trebled in valued to £28.3 million. During 1984, Foster Yeoman bought the derelict Marston House, a Grade II* listed building near Frome.
When John Foster Yeoman suddenly died in 1987 he was succeeded by his widow, Angela Yeoman, who decided against selling the company despite numerous parties indicating their interest in purchasing Foster Yeoman.
Foster Yeoman was responsible for the supply of aggregate in the construction of multiple landmark civil engineering schemes, including the Thames Barrier, M25 motorway and the Channel Tunnel. The company was a major supplier of coated stone products used for projects as diverse as motorways, airports and tennis courts.