Our history

Our parent company, MBE Fabrications, was first established in 1973. Throughout the ‘70s and ‘80s, our core business became known for making large settling tanks and silos for effluent treatment works, along with vegetable harvesting equipment.

We’ve always prided ourselves on being able to step up to a challenge. We would make silos in our factory, before cutting them in half, and placing them on a lorry to drive to Scotland, before reassembling. They would then be craned into position, as part of large water treatment works.

However, it was in 1981 when we first installed a vehicle inspection for Fruitex International (a local haulage company – now owned by Turners of Soham). During the winter months, the mechanics would wear gloves, and hats; but more important to us, wellies.

It turned out this was because the pits they worked in were made of concrete, and would leak due to the rising water table in the area. Our managing director, Mel Burrell, approached their operations manager to try and provide a fix for the problem.

We managed to solve the issue by installing a prefabricated steel vehicle inspection pit, that had been manufactured in a clean, well-monitored off-site facility. This pit was the first of its kind installed in the UK – and the start of something big for us!

During the ‘90s, we began to transform the vehicle maintenance sector, by marketing and supplying nearly all new vehicle inspection workshops, along with replacing existing vehicle inspection pits within existing facilities, using our prefabricated steel method.

In 2004, we were approached by Northfield Construction to assist them on the new installation of a large substructure for British Gypsym, during a Christmas shutdown at their plant in Kent. They required a substructure to be installed in just 10 days.

The timescale was something that would have been near impossible with in situ poured concrete. However, our prefabricated steel approach allowed Northfield to complete the work in just five days, derisking the programme entirely.

This was the turning point where Premier Substructures, as a brand, came to life; providing bespoke commercial prefabricated substructures for all manner of below-ground construction needs and uses.