Martin Marietta Materials
A major American producer of construction aggregates and other heavy building materials used in roads, infrastructure, and buildings.
Last updated October 17, 2026
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Overview
Martin Marietta Materials is a United States-based producer and supplier of construction aggregates and heavy building materials. Its principal products include crushed stone, sand, and gravel, which are consumed in the construction and maintenance of roads, bridges, sidewalks, foundations, commercial developments, residential projects, and other infrastructure. The company also has activities involving cement, asphalt, and specialty magnesium-based materials. The business traces its origins to Superior Stone, an aggregates company established in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1939 by brothers Willam Trent Ragland and Edmond Ragland. Its corporate history later became connected with American-Marietta Corporation and the Glenn L. Martin Company. Those combinations produced Martin Marietta Corporation in 1961, creating a diversified industrial organization whose activities extended beyond construction materials into aerospace, defense, metals, and other manufacturing fields. The modern materials company emerged from that broader corporate lineage. Martin Marietta Corporation merged with Lockheed Corporation in 1995, forming Lockheed Martin. In 1996, the materials operations were separated as Martin Marietta Materials, an independent publicly traded company, while Lockheed Martin retained the aerospace, defense, and other businesses. This separation established the company’s contemporary identity as a focused building-materials producer rather than a diversified aerospace and industrial conglomerate. Martin Marietta’s core commercial model is based on operating quarries, mines, distribution facilities, and related production assets close to regional construction markets. Aggregates are relatively heavy and costly to transport over long distances, so the geographic position of extraction sites and the company’s distribution network are central to its competitiveness. The company serves contractors, ready-mix concrete producers, asphalt manufacturers, infrastructure developers, and public-sector transportation projects. The company expanded its position in cement and related heavy materials through the 2014 acquisition of Texas Industries for approximately $2 billion. The transaction broadened its geographic coverage and added cement, concrete, aggregates, and asphalt capabilities. Martin Marietta also operates Magnesia Specialties, whose product range includes magnesium oxide, magnesium hydroxide, and dolomitic lime for industrial and environmental applications. Martin Marietta reports operations across 26 U.S. states, Canada, and the Caribbean. Its market identity is primarily regional and infrastructure-oriented: unlike consumer-facing brands, it typically sells materials through business-to-business and project-supply relationships. Demand is tied to highway and public infrastructure spending, residential and commercial construction, industrial development, and broader economic activity. The company’s current profile is therefore that of a large North American building-materials supplier built on resource reserves, production capacity, logistics, and long-term regional market access.
History
Martin Marietta Materials developed from a North Carolina aggregates business and became independent after a series of major corporate combinations and separations. The earliest identified predecessor is Superior Stone, founded in Raleigh in 1939 by brothers Willam Trent Ragland and Edmond Ragland. The company supplied aggregates, a category of materials whose uses include road construction, concrete, foundations, sidewalks, and other forms of built infrastructure. In 1959, Superior Stone merged with American-Marietta Corporation. The combined organization subsequently became part of a larger industrial restructuring. American-Marietta merged with the Glenn L. Martin Company in 1961, creating Martin Marietta Corporation. This parent organization was significantly more diversified than the present-day materials company. It participated in materials and manufacturing activities, including aluminum-related operations, as well as aerospace and defense businesses. In 1971, Martin Marietta acquired Harvey Aluminum, which produced aluminum oxide, aluminum ingot, and aircraft-grade aluminum sheet. The transaction illustrates the breadth of the historical Martin Marietta corporation compared with the more specialized company that exists today. William Trent Ragland remained an important figure in the company’s leadership during the earlier period. He served as president and continued as chief executive until 1977, later becoming an emeritus senior vice president. His tenure linked the original aggregates enterprise with the larger Martin Marietta organization created through the 1959 and 1961 combinations. A decisive corporate change occurred in 1995, when Martin Marietta Corporation merged with Lockheed Corporation. The resulting company, Lockheed Martin, retained aerospace, defense, and other manufacturing operations. The materials activities were subsequently separated from the combined aerospace group. In 1996, Martin Marietta Materials was spun off as an independent company. The separation gave the aggregates and heavy building-materials business its own publicly traded corporate structure and allowed it to focus on construction-related markets rather than operating as one division within a diversified industrial and defense organization. Following independence, the company continued to build its position through internal operations and acquisitions. Its activities centered on aggregates, including crushed stone, sand, and gravel, while also encompassing cement, asphalt, and specialty materials. The geographic logic of the business is important: aggregates are heavy, and transportation costs can limit the practical distance between a quarry or mine and its customers. As a result, local reserves, strategically positioned facilities, logistics, and established customer relationships are central elements of the company’s operating model. In 2014, Martin Marietta acquired Texas Industries in a transaction valued at approximately $2 billion. The acquisition expanded the company’s materials platform and added or strengthened operations in cement, concrete, aggregates, and asphalt. It also increased the scale of the company’s regional presence in major construction markets. The transaction is one of the most significant documented turning points in the modern company’s expansion. Martin Marietta also maintains a specialty-materials business known as Magnesia Specialties. This operation supplies magnesium oxide, magnesium hydroxide, and dolomitic lime products. These materials complement the company’s core aggregates activities by serving industrial and other specialized applications. The company’s documented operating footprint spans 26 states in the United States, as well as Canada and the Caribbean. Its products support roads, sidewalks, foundations, and broader transportation and construction projects. Martin Marietta Materials is therefore best understood as a resource- and infrastructure-oriented materials company: its competitive position depends on access to mineral reserves, operating permits, production assets, distribution capabilities, and demand from construction and public works. The company remains active as an independent public corporation under the Martin Marietta Materials name.
- 2014
Texas Industries is acquired
[1]Martin Marietta acquires Texas Industries for approximately $2 billion, expanding its portfolio and geographic reach in cement, concrete, aggregates, and asphalt.
- 1996
Martin Marietta Materials becomes independent
[1]The materials business is spun off as Martin Marietta Materials, separating it from Lockheed Martin’s aerospace, defense, and other manufacturing activities.
- 1995
Martin Marietta merges with Lockheed
[1]Martin Marietta Corporation merges with Lockheed Corporation, forming Lockheed Martin and setting up the later separation of the materials operations.
- 1971
Harvey Aluminum is acquired
[1]Martin Marietta acquires Harvey Aluminum, adding aluminum oxide, aluminum ingot, and aircraft-grade aluminum sheet operations to the broader corporation.
- 1961
Martin Marietta Corporation is formed
[1]American-Marietta merges with the Glenn L. Martin Company, creating Martin Marietta Corporation.
- 1959
Superior Stone merges with American-Marietta
[1]The predecessor aggregates company combines with American-Marietta Corporation, beginning its integration into a larger industrial group.
- 1939
Superior Stone is founded
[1]Brothers Willam Trent Ragland and Edmond Ragland establish Superior Stone, the Raleigh, North Carolina, aggregates business from which the modern materials company descends.
Products and positioning
A large, infrastructure-oriented North American supplier of aggregates and heavy building materials, differentiated by regional quarry and mine assets, distribution reach, and exposure to transportation and construction demand.
Construction aggregates
Crushed stone
Crushed stone is a principal Martin Marietta product and is used in road bases, concrete, asphalt, drainage systems, foundations, and other civil-engineering applications. Production generally involves quarrying suitable rock, crushing it into specified sizes, and distributing it to construction and infrastructure customers.
Construction aggregates
Sand and gravel
Sand and gravel are bulk mineral materials used in concrete, asphalt, road construction, foundations, drainage, and general site development. Their value depends heavily on reserve quality, grading, location, and the ability to deliver economically to nearby construction markets.
Heavy building materials
Cement
Cement is used as a binding ingredient in concrete and other construction applications. Martin Marietta expanded its cement position materially through the acquisition of Texas Industries in 2014, adding cement capabilities to its established aggregates platform.
Road-building materials
Asphalt
Asphalt and asphalt-related materials support road paving, rehabilitation, transportation infrastructure, and commercial site construction. The company’s asphalt activities complement its aggregates and cement businesses and connect it more directly to roadway projects.
Specialty minerals
Magnesia Specialties
The Magnesia Specialties business supplies magnesium oxide, magnesium hydroxide, and dolomitic lime. These products serve specialized industrial and environmental uses and broaden Martin Marietta’s portfolio beyond conventional construction aggregates.
Brand decisions
2014
Acquisition of Texas IndustriesM&ABackground
Martin Marietta sought to expand its construction-materials platform and strengthen its presence in cement, concrete, aggregates, and asphalt.
Action taken
The company acquired Texas Industries in a transaction valued at approximately $2 billion.
Aftermath
The acquisition broadened Martin Marietta’s product portfolio and geographic footprint in heavy building materials.
Transaction value. Approximately $2 billion (2014)
1996
Spin-off from Lockheed MartinStrategyBackground
The 1995 merger of Martin Marietta Corporation and Lockheed Corporation created Lockheed Martin, whose principal businesses were aerospace, defense, and other manufacturing activities.
Action taken
The construction-materials operations were separated in 1996 as the independent public company Martin Marietta Materials.
Aftermath
The spin-off established the company’s modern identity as a focused aggregates and heavy building-materials supplier.
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