CIANBRO THE FIRST 50 YEARS
from laborer to crane operator to superintendent,” relates Bud.”He ran the Portland division for a while.” Bud explains that Lester quit once. When he came back, looking for work, the only thing available was a laborer’s job. Lester took it and then worked his way up the ladder. ■ Chuck adds four names of men who left the company but didn’t come back: Al Bancroft, Lou Neron, John Watson, and the aforementioned Hadley “Take-that-crane-to-Bangor” Moores. “They primarily worked for me. They were all high-quality superintendents for the company, but they each left and formed their own businesses.” But not before they made an impact.
Growing time: Snodgrass and Hornbrook are rolled into the company
AS IF THEY didn’t
have enough to do already, the brothers were about to acquire two new companies. By 1967, they were pushing ahead, growing at a rapid pace. They were building dams, bridges, treatment plants, roads, buildings — whatever came along.
They had a realty business with a variety of holdings. Their manufacturing division was turning out Ken’s pipe grabs and beam clamps that were being shipped as far way as Japan. They had made a chair lift for a local ski area and they were manufacturing equipment for wastewater treatment plants with orders headed to such spots as Bolivia and Puerto Rico. Cianchette Bros., Inc. was already pretty well diversified. And then Ellis C. Snodgrass, Inc. fell into their laps. Snodgrass, of Portland, was one of their competitors. His Southern Maine company had a solid reputation for quality workmanship. “He was a major bridge builder; he did a lot of work in paper mills and he was also doing marine work,” relates Bud, as he shakes his head almost in disbelief when he recalls the details of the acquisition. Ellis Snodgrass died unexpectedly and within a week of his death, Cianchette Bros. had purchased his company. He did not have a plan for management succession. Nor did he have a financial plan, explains Bud. “When he
their people
68
Bob Desjardins A gem picked up from Snodgrass.
died, he had the keys to the office in his pocket. There was no plan to carry on.” Bud adds that Snodgrass had quite a bit of work in progress: There were some bridge jobs, an 11-story apartment house with an attached three-story parking garage in Portland, work at S.D. Warren plant in Westbrook, and some active marine projects. The two companies had a common link that keyed the deal: Ellis Snodgrass had used Lincoln Adam as his accountant. Adam was also Cianchette Bros. accountant. He had been named co-executor of the estate along with Vincent McKusick, an attorney.