Manufacturing 2024: ASHLEY B. SMITH

Smith, the third generation of his family to lead the precast concrete company, became CEO in 2018 and board chairman in 2022. His grandfather, David G. Smith, started the company in 1960 as Smith-Cattleguard, a nod to the company’s concrete cattleguard innovation.

The publicly traded company now has manufacturing facilities in North and South Carolina, as well as subsidiaries Concrete Safety Systems, which rents concrete highway barriers, and Easi-Set Worldwide, which licenses Smith-Midland products. In January, Smith-Midland announced that it had begun construction to double the size of its plant in Reidsville, North Carolina. The nearly $2 million project will expand the facility to 30,000 square feet, including the addition of a 20-ton crane, and help the company grow its market share in the Southeast.

Smith previously served as vice president of sales for Smith-Midland in Virginia and managing director of Easi-Set Industries. He has also served as vice president of Smith-Midland in Delaware since 1990 and as a director since 1994. He was named president and chief operating officer in 2008.

Smith serves on Bridgewater College’s board of trustees and is past board chairman of National Precast Concrete Association.