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In 1971, Charles Beaird (see inset)
set Poulan on a new era of growth
with the move to new manufacturing
facilities. The new plant had
117,000 square feet compared to the
old plant’s 54,000 square feet.
In 1959, Louisiana industrialist, Charles
T. Beaird, who had been an executive with
a Shreveport steel fabricating company,
sought new investment opportunities in the
Red River city. He found the Poulan Saw
Company a solid investment, and pur-
chased the firm from the Poulan family.
Beaird assumed presidency of the compa-
ny and renamed it Beaird-Poulan Compa-
ny.
He began an extensive program of
expansion, increasing the Shreveport plant
by 18,000 square feet and introducing sev-
eral new models. Also, Beaird branched
out into the manufacturing of go-cart
engines and other related products.
Streamlining saw models, Beaird felt
would move the Beaird-Poulan Company
even further into the rapidly growing chain
saw market. And he was right. They
revised the basic product and streamlined
the old open carburetion and crude-look-
ing housings. this led to the introduction
of the FD100 direct drive and its compan-
ion, the F3100 reduction drive in 1960.
Both were extremely sophisticated for the
time and well-received in the marketplace.
Beard, in realizing the need for a more
versatile and complete line of chain saws,
expanded the Poulan line to six models,
ranging in cost from $200 to $500. The
company instituted new sales promotion
techniques including advertising and
descriptive literature which appealed to a
broader market. Beaird-Poulan’s customer
was no longer just the rough woodcutter
of the United States forest lands, but the
general public as well.
To appeal to the new consumer market,
Beaird-Poulan also completely changed
the appearance of their saws with new
paint selections, making them more color-
ful.
Through superior design and aggressive
marketing, Beaird-Poulan set the pace for
the industry, and new models increased
penetration into the farm segment, casual
user segment and lightweight professional
segment. In 1965, Poulan passed another
milestone with the construction of a series
Charles Beaird
The company gains a new leader