In an effort to promote contractor creativity and construction innovation, Hardscape North America held its first ever Project Awards.

Decorative concrete installers, in effect, produce art, so they’re often held to a much higher standard than those placing plain gray concrete. The ability to provide high quality work, satisfy customers, and gain referrals depends to a great extent on steps taken before a project even starts. The author presents seven steps that can help decorative concrete installers establish a routine, work smarter, and set themselves up for success.

A group of products developed by Surface Gel Tek, LLC, make cleaning and stenciling surfaces for decorative concrete safer, easier, and more environmentally friendly. Three of these products are combined in a process the company calls "FlattooingTM" - the art of tattooing images and graphics into concrete surfaces. Sample projects and a step-by-step walk through of the Flattooing process are presented.