Vol. 15 No. 4 - May/June 2015

In 2001, Colorado Hardscapes made a move that forever changed its approach to sales and marketing. The company moved into a new concrete design center, the first of its kind in Colorado.

After 100 years in the decorative concrete industry, L. M. Scofield Co. knows a thing or two about beautiful, standout projects. As it marks its centennial, the company also marks its seventh annual Decorative Concrete Awards, given to contractors, architects or designers doing exceptional work using Scofield systems.

Growing up in the mountains on a remote piece of property near Spokane, Washington, was just the setting needed to instill a limitless imagination, work ethic and determination into Roch (pronounced Rock) Fautch.

ConScape Inc., a commercial, architectural and decorative concrete firm in Fort Worth, Texas, seemed like a godsend to the parishioners. With decorative concrete as its intervention, the company transformed part of the church’s landscape from a tired terrain into a radiant and peaceful panorama.

By my estimation, nearly 80 percent of all decorative concrete businesses fail to reach full earning potential, thanks to some form of mismanagement. Don’t feel bad. This percentage elevates when we combine all other construction trades into the equation.

Decorative concrete has become increasingly popular with every passing year, and has evolved from primarily flooring products to use in walls, showers and countertops. Because of the increased popularity in decorative concrete, the used of overlays has grown as well and they have a lot of advantages.

Today, most slabs are finished using mechanical trowels for the body of the slab and hand trowels for the edges. There are two basic types of mechanical trowels: walk-behinds and ride-ons.

Situated in an industrial zone on Munich, Germany’s north side, an eye-catching building hosts production, showroom and office spaces for textile print and embroidery. Known as The Textilmacher, this three-story building has a precast concrete facade reminiscent of creased fabric.

There is a famous paperback called "The Elements of Style" by Strunk and White. Many writers treasure it as a guide to writing clearly and succinctly while avoiding common grammatical errors. The handbook itself is a model of clarity.