For-Shor Company

For-Shor Company (FSC) has been in business for 43 years, servicing as a complete provider of concrete forming and shoring systems, chemicals, power tools and accessories. Jim Snarr, president of FSC, has been with the business for 40 years, hired by the original owners back when FSC was a smaller, family-owned business. He leads a team of 50 employees who serve general contractors and specialty subcontractors with innovative and complete systems for concrete construction.

FSC’s niche is in the sale and lease of heavy formwork and shoring systems, although rentals make up a majority of revenue. The business thrives on repeat business and Snarr takes great pride in his team’s long-term relationships with customers.

With a headquarters in Salt Lake City, FSC serves projects throughout the western United States. With a strong inventory and fulfillment system, the business is able to serve a large geographic footprint. The team is currently involved in projects in seven states throughout the region.

Strong service

Contractors have come to rely on FSC for the team’s expertise and knack for innovation when it comes to supplying complex heavy concrete projects. Over the years, the business has contributed to hundreds of challenging builds, digging in alongside customers and working together to resolve structural challenges.

Customers also utilize FSC as a strong point along the supply chain. The business offers everything but concrete, including liquid and powder chemicals, such as epoxy, cures, grout, hardeners, seals and strippers. The business also offers a range of hand tools, as well as insulated concrete blankets and ground heaters.

FSC was recently involved in a project at Camp Williams in Utah, where a client was constructing a new data center for the National Security Administration. “We provided a large portion of the formwork for this project,” explains Warren Raines, sales manager. “As far as performance goes, there were not many challenges with the project. The most difficult part was working with a customer in a high security area.” Raines’ team has worked with contractors on several government projects and was well prepared to address these challenges.

Another project the company was recently involved with included the replacement of several Interstate 15 bridge structures. “Our client’s contracts included 132 bridge replacements,” Snarr says. “The entire project took two and half years. We worked very closely with the customer and the entire contract was design-build between the general contractor and UDOT. We worked closely with the designer to furnish equipment for those structures.”

The team is currently involved in the construction of the Terminal Reservoir Replacement Project for Salt Lake City. The project was featured in the Deseret News and featured FSC equipment in the paper’s cover photo.

“They have a massive structure going up,” details Scott Mahoney, account representative. “The job wasn’t particularly difficult, but shoring heights were pretty high. In the pictures, the structure completely dwarfs the workers on-site.”

Collaboration is key

Business has been steady for FSC over the last few years. Rental businesses as a whole fared better than other suppliers throughout the recession. As public and private projects pick up again, Snarr and his team have a lot of opportunities coming in. While the crew is optimistic about growth, Snarr says expansion will not do much to change the nature of the business.

“We are not in a high-tech industry,” he explains. “There are not a lot of new developments or products. The biggest thing for us is up keeping equipment. That is our largest expense and we invest $2 million annually in our fleet to keep projects running smoothly for our clients.”

The coming years will consist of business as usual for FSC, which is a little different from what competitors offer. “We have dealt with many of our customers for 40 years, the same people over and over again and again,” Snarr notes. “They come back to us because we have an excellent design team that works very closely, one-on-one, with contractors. Our team does not hand off projects the way other companies do. Our designers sit down with our customers to determine their needs. Step by step, we determine together how the workflow is going to progress. We have a very capable hands-on team, which is a huge point of pride for our organization.”

Over the next few years, the FSC team is looking forward to new projects with repeat customers. “Future projects include the expansion of the Salt Lake City International Airport, which we are designing at present,” Snarr says.

The business has a strong and growing backlog of complex, high-design concrete work. As his team’s portfolio grows, Snarr remains committed to a simple philosophy: For-Shor Company provides comprehensive solutions with reliable expertise and expedient professional service.