Sources: Schwing America, White Bear Lake, Minn.; Association of Equipment Manufacturers, Milwaukee
Friedrich W. Schwing, Sr. (1909–1992), who founded a company synonymous with concrete placement and secured more than 1,200 patents relating to material handling and construction equipment innovation, is one of three 2013 AEM Hall of Fame inductees.
Most notable among his patents is an all-hydraulic, twin-cylinder pump design powering the majority of modern models. It established a new method for moving concrete through a pipeline, resulting in structures that could not have been built with alternative placing methods. His invention resulted in construction efficiency without the manual labor and unprecedented speed of placement. Schwing’s engineering expertise was aimed at equipment performance and operator safety. He helped establish the American Concrete Pumping Association, where safety remains a key focus, and instilled in Schwing GmbH corporate policy commitment to advancing safety guidelines, seminars, and materials.
Schwing America CEO Brian Hazelton accepted the Hall of Fame award during the AEM annual convention, held earlier this month in Orlando. The Schwing name joins a notable list of recipients, including Case, Barber, Deere, Grove, Harnishfeger, and Liebherr who, the association notes, “Individually and collectively represent some of the best, brightest and most influential minds in the history of the off-road equipment industry.”
AEM Hall of Fame inductees are evaluated by an independent panel of industry experts on five criteria vital to off-road equipment manufacturing: innovation, industry contributions, leadership, corporate citizenship/social responsibility, and sustainability. — www.aem.org/HallofFame.