Let's Blog Construction

Small Construction Business: Marketing in a Down Economy

So the busy season has gotten well underway, but the market is still struggling.  Have you thought about how you can set your business apart from others within the industry?  Well you should!  In an economy that continues to struggle, creating differences between you and your competitors (at least in the eyes of your customers) can be what keeps you making money and even growing.

First, focus on your brand.  Put your efforts into ramping up recognition and customer retention by associating everything you do best with your brand; in particular, highlight processes and skills you have that your competitors don't, this will give you an edge within your niche market.  Remember, you will benefit most from upholding your talk with your walk. Try not to promise your customers something that you cannot provide on a regular basis at a high quality.

Uphold your brand's position by encouraging employees to be involved in the molding and direction of your company.  There's nothing better for your brand than an employee that feels as strongly about the business as its owners.  By keeping them involved, they can become advocates to your brand and promote the business in more ways than traditional marketing is capable of.

Finally, don't be afraid to utilize online mediums.  At the very least, your business should have a website to allow customers to review your mission statement, find your location, see some of the projects you're working on, and to collect leads (either by phone or online form).  Use forums, blogs, and customer review websites to give your brand more credibility online.  

If you have any questions or ideas to add, please leave a comment below!

What You Need to Know about Concrete Stamps

Decorative concrete gives any pour the professional look you've been wanting, either for your customers or for yourself.  Concrete stamps and rollers have made creating this look a breeze.  Newer stamps and rollers allow you to complete decorative work 5 times faster and with half the labor costs.  Cleform Gilson makes a complete line of concrete decorative rollers called Rock N Rollers.  The Rock N Roller line of products is specially designed with the contract professional in mind.

From small to large jobs, Rock N Roller has a system that fits your needs.  Choose from touch up rollers a couple inches wide, to large concrete rollers 3 feet wide.  With the Rock N Roller system, you can start rolling decorative imprints long before mats can be laid, radii can be imprinted with ease, there is no special set up for borders, there is no plastic necessary when using spray release system, and when your job is complete the concrete is still wet!  With all this considered, how could it get any better?

So you want an ashlar slate look, or maybe brick?  Rock N Roller concrete rollers come in a number of styles and sizes to fit any job's requirements.  From cobblestone to rock salt textures and more, the Rock N Roller system has no limits.  Touch up mats and small rollers are designed to imprint all the hard to reach places as well.  

The process is easy.  I've outlined the 8 step process below:

1. Pour concrete and fill area.
2. Bull Float the area to ensure concrete is settled and ready to be imprinted. 
3. Spray a concrete release product on the rollers and concrete before you begin imprinting. 
4. If rolling borders, it's recommended you do this first. 
5. To start the body of your work, lay a straight chalk line on one end. After you roll the first pass, you can use the edge of each pass to line up the next. 
6. Start without any weights on the handles/bars and add weights according to how firm the concrete is.  It is highly recommended that you have an ample supply of weights in order to ensure a quality imprint. 
7. When the rollers reach the end of the imprinted area, have a technician pick up the unit and replace it on the other side with the edge of the roller in the outer joint of the last pass. 
8. Use smaller rollers and stamps to touch up areas that may need it.    

  

For those with little or no concrete imprinting experience, it may be best to test these tools before you apply them on the job.  For questions or to share your experience imprinting concrete, leave a comment below!

  

How to Choose the right Grout Pump

Grout Pumps are typically used to fill hollow door frames, level concrete slabs, and to fill cracks, but which grout pump is best for your application?  To start, there are a few important things to consider.  Your application, whether you need a manual or air-powered pump, and if you need a pump with a mixer attached, are all important factors that will help you determine which pump is best for you.

For smaller jobs like leveling small sidewalk slabs and filling cracks, manual grout pumps are most likely sufficient.  For larger jobs, especially where time is very important, larger pumps, with air-powered spraying or pumping, will be best.  Large jobs can also be sped up by purchasing a grout pump with an attached mixer.  The ChemGrout CG-550P is a great option for these larger jobs where having a mixer attached would be beneficial.  

For most grouting applications a hand operated grout pump will be plenty sufficient.  The great thing about using a manual grout pump is that you have ultimate control, and while leveling concrete slabs or filling cracks, this can be crucial.  We all know you can always add more grout, but taking grout out after it's been laid can be impossible.

Important specifications to check out before you purchase include: maximum hose size, maximum output pressure (usually psi), maximum output capacity (usually GPM), Hopper & mixer capacity (if included), Vertical limit (how far the pump can maintain pressure away from the pump itself), Material capabilities (cementitious grout, fiber, etc.), power source, and pressure control capabilities.  There is no set parameters for deciding how these specifications will relate to your job, but it will be important to do your research and find what is available in each range of specifications.

Popular Grout Pump Manufacturers:

• Airplaco Grout Pumps
• Kenrich Products Grout Pumps 
• IMER Grout Pumps 
• ChemGrout Grout Pumps   

Popular Grout Pump Models:

• Kenrich Products GP-2HD Grout Pump  
• Airplaco HG-5 Handy Grout Pump 
• IMER Mighty Small 50 Pump, Mixer, and Sprayer