By Jack DeGange

Craftsmanship comes in many forms, especially for Trumbull-Nelson’s growing market of residential and small commercial customers. Need custom designed cabinets to fit a remodeled kitchen? T-N’s Millwork Shop produces them with timely attention to detail. Do those cabinets, or a set of restored chairs and tables, need an attractive, durable finish? T-N’s state-of-the-art Paint Shop is the solution.

Do you have a patio, porch or pool deck that needs a distinctive new surface? And you think the answer is several tons of expensive stone or brick that will require installation by an expert in jigsaw puzzles?

Have you heard about T-N’s division that’s the region’s leading specialist in decorative concrete, a new and economical alternative? And, do you want to be confident that this decorative concrete will survive many, many frosty winters without heaves and cracks because it’s been laid onto a properly prepared base by T-N’s Site Development Division? For decades, T-N has been well known for finish carpentry, painting services and general construction project management services.

“Decorative concrete is a virtual art form. Patterns come in varied sizes and shapes to permit virtually
infinite variations in design.”

But colorful concrete? And “dirt work”? Sure, prepping a site and pouring a foundation is pretty standard stuff. T-N has been doing it for years as part of too many large construction projects to count. Now, they’ve added a new dimension that sets the Company apart and serves a valued market.

T-N still has its fair share of big construction projects. But, in a region where the demand exceeds the supply of services for residential construction and renovation-expansion of existing properties, Trumbull-Nelson has created a team of specialty craftsmen (and women) who understand that quality, service, cost and attention to detail matters, especially for customers who expect and appreciate value.

Trumbull-Nelson’s millwork and painting divisions were featured in the Winter 2004 edition of Constructive Images. You can also learn about these services by checking the company’s web site (www.t-n.com).

Now, it’s time to learn about something new in the T-N portfolio of services. The Concrete Division, featuring concrete stamping, has been established to expanded on traditional services (foundations, retaining walls). Jon McKeon, who came to T-N as a job site superintendent in 1996, heads the division that is bringing a product line to the region that has been a standard among contractors in the south and west for many years.

McKeon knows concrete. At age 21, he started his own concrete business in the Keene area. The experience that McKeon and his team bring to T-N is an immeasurable asset.

“There’s a natural fear that decorative concrete won’t hold up in New England weather,”said McKeon. The answer to these concerns is to include an air-entrained process into concrete mixing. This introduces tiny air pockets into the mix that gives moisture a place to expand and dissipate while leaving the surface unaffected.

Area architects are recognizing that decorative concrete stamping is durable and economical.

Collaborating with Increte Systems of Tampa, Fla., and Carroll Concrete, a major regional producer of ready-mix concrete based in West Lebanon, N.H., T-N offers decorative concrete technology that includes 32 color options and virtually as many surface designs. It’s a technology that’s ideal for patios, courtyards and pool decks with a variety of colors appropriate to stamped surfaces that resemble brick, slate, field stone, tile and wood. “The customer can pick a color and pattern that’s distinctive and unique finish,” said McKeon. “For one customer, we created a swimming pool deck that matched an existing ledge.” Decorative concrete is a virtual art form. Patterns come in varied sizes and shapes to permit virtually infinite variations in design. Controlling the amount of release agent that creates color variation (especially for “joints” between “stones”) and applying proper pressure on the stamping form. It’s a labor intensive process since the depth of the pattern is created by “walking weight” on the form. It’s the ultimate measure of experience in using the product and, as McKeon said, “Experience pays off. “The finished product looks like many pieces but it’s actually a single pour of concrete,” said McKeon, who creates an intricate map of the entire project before proceeding. This ensures proper management of each pour for quality control. The beauty of decorative concrete is that it’s flexible while producing a unique finish. Equally important, it’s more economical than using natural materials like stone or brick. Decorative concrete costs $8-10 per square foot, about one-third the cost of natural material. Plus, it’s about one-tenth the maintenance cost. When the poured surface is dry, T-N applies a sealer to protect against bleaching. An additional T-N maintenance service includes periodic power washing and re-sealing.

Area architects are recognizing that decorative concrete stamping is durable and economical. And, said McKeon, “If thearea has been properly prepared, including drainage, it should last without cracking for many years.”

The beauty of decorative concrete is that it’s flexible while producing a unique finish. Equally important, it’s more economical than using natural materials like stone or brick.

Proper preparation: That’s where T-N’s Site Development Division, headed by Ed Buckman, comes in. “People rarely understand what’s in the ground,” said Buckman, a “dirt work” guy for many years, including more than five at Trumbull-Nelson. “We have to be prepared to handle ledge or unknowns, like a piece of conduit or an electrical line that’s not on the site plan. We have to expect the unexpected.”

T-N Site Development is geared especially for anything from landscape work to foundations, septic systems and prep work for projects like patios and pool decks produced by the Concrete Division. Understandably, Buckman’s team is frequently the first stage of a T-N project.

Buckman takes special pride in the Baker’s Crossing mini-park adjacent to the restored Packard Hill Covered Bridge over the Mascoma River in Lebanon, N.H. The park is one of the Lebanon Rotary Club’s “String of Pearls” sites along the river. The Site Development crew shaped the area, installed drainage, created a crushed stone parking area, prepped the foundations for two semi-circular stone walls that highlight the conservation area, then landscaped what is now an ideal venue for bridge viewing and family picnics.

T-N has a proper array of earth moving equipment to handle the needs of residential and small commercial customers. “My job is to keep this equipment busy,” said Buckman. “We have to be mobile, fast and know how control movement and use of our equipment.”

“Plus,” he added with a smile, “another part of my job is to understand how much good dirt will be needed on top to make the grass grow.”

Site Development, like Concrete, Millwork and Painting, is a division developed as part of Trumbull-Nelson’s strategy to provide a full range of quality services to customers with medium and small project needs.

After all, bigger isn’t always better.