Grantham, Mel

Rest in Peace. Mel passed away on September 2009.

Mel Grantham first began pumping concrete in 1969. As an inspector for the city of Los Angeles, he saw the need for concrete to be pumped so Mel purchased his first Thompson A-4 Pea gravel pump. He worked part time doing tunnel work in Los Angeles County but soon pumping was in such demand that he quit his job as an inspector and went into pumping concrete full time.

His business quickly outgrew the space at home and an office and shop were purchased in Orange County. At this time there were few mix designs for pea gravel, so Mel worked with the ready-mix plants and helped develop mixes that could be easily pumped.

One of Mel’s first promotions for his company was that he would pump the first ten yards for $35.00 and $3.00 for each yard after that. This was the going price at the time and he comments today that he probably made more money back in those days.

With much hard work and many hours, he owned and operated one of the largest pea gravel pump companies in Southern California throughout the 1970’s. He also became a Mayco concrete pump dealer and had good relationships with all of the manufacturers.

After years in the pumping industry he ventured out and started working on his own projects as a general contractor and homebuilder. In 1981, Mel sold his business in California and moved to Texas. After a short retirement he again saw a need for concrete pumping and started over with one line pump and quickly grew the company to include a fleet of pumps in all sizes.

One redi-mix company in particular was having difficulty in developing a pumpable mix for three-inch hose, and just like in the beginning Mel worked with the plant to develop a smooth mix. This is still referred to as “Mel’s Mix” when requested by contractors in the area today.