Although incorporated in 1977, the first business sign (designed and built by an employee) went up in 1978.
The first fleet lineup in 1978 included 3 pick-up trucks, 2 concrete form trucks, a 7 yard dump truck, a 12 yard dump truck, a ½ yard excavator, a small dozer and a skidsteer. This lineup which is known throughout southern Maine as the “Shaw Brothers lineup” is still being practiced today at the Shaw Brothers headquarters and all jobsites.
Our first track excavator was a 1972 Case 880. “All we did was work on it” says Jon Shaw. This experience helped form the current Shaw Brothers philosophy of “buy new or late model equipment to minimize your downtime” which we’ve done ever since.
In 1980, we purchased our first New Caterpillar machine which was a 215 Excavator. Since then, Shaw Brothers has been a significant Cat customer purchasing hundreds of their machines.
This New Cat 215 Excavator replaced the older Case 880 whose good years were long gone.
Doing their equipment homework which has become a serious hobby, Jon and Dan Shaw selected a John Deere 850 as their first large bulldozer. They sent their lowbed directly to the factory in Illinois to pick it up.
In 1982 Shaw Brothers purchased their first Cat 950B Bucket Loader to run a leased gravel pit. This was the start of providing aggregate materials not only to its own jobs but to other contractors, local cities and towns, and retail customers. This has become a significant part of our business today.
By 1984 Shaw Brothers had outgrown its original shop and its replacement. The new shop at 511 Maine Street was zoned industrial and was designed to allow for the late 1980’s construction boom.
During the early years, the 2nd generation was always around the business and all of them worked for Shaw Brothers at one time or another. Since then, all seven have grown up and all moved on to their own endeavors.