How many times have you been asked to bid on a very complex or intricate job, only to turn it down because you were not sure if you could actually "pull it off?"
Due to a higher degree of difficulty, or a particular quality that you have not seen before, many "complex" projects can be so intimidating to a small fabricator that many times we don't like to do projects outside of our comfort zones. We prefer to stick with what we know best and not challenge our creative sides and possibly risk the quid pro quo of doing something other that the run of the mill full bullnose (yawn) in 2 or 3CM.
Now, many of you know that I teach "Basic Countertop Training" at my shop in the greater Phoenix Arizona area, but when I'm not teaching, I'm fabricating kitchens as a regular Stone Fabricator. This is one of my latest projects that was done out of my shop in Gilbert - a suburb of Phoenix - using many products from Braxton-Bragg.
We recently completed a project where all of that "normal" stuff got thrown out the window, and produced with what has become a masterpiece (for me anyway) that I am really proud of, and has actually gotten me more work with higher profitability.
What? Higher profitability, you ask? Exactly - and this is entirely due to the "intimidation factor" that this kind of project had on many of my competitors. This project (a kitchen island that was fabricated out of two whole slabs of 2CM Calacatta Oro marble) scared a lot of guys off due to the edge detail and the requirements of the work. The Project called for book matched slabs, with a single seam, and an edge detail that required all of the laminations (2 layers) to be vein matched as well. This created an "illusion" that the island and its edge detail was carved out of a single slab of stone that was 2 1/4" thick.
I'll admit that the task was pretty daunting at first - the slabs were absolute crap - fissures, weak points, "sugar" throughout both slabs, and the customer was pretty demanding, but the end result was totally worth it!
The edge detail was a "double ogee with a square extension" with pop-outs and a Farm sink that we did on site. Because the stone was so weak, we did not want to risk doing the sink opening in the shop and transporting it to the jobsite only to break, so we opted to cut the sink out after the island was set and stabilized.
What compounded this project, as well, was the fact that I was very leery of rodding the pieces - as they were a semi-translucent marble, I was afraid of the rods "shadowing" through and being visible from the surface of the stone. After much deliberation, we decided to increase our stress levels until the top was set, and we opted to not rod the tops.
As it all turned out, the island went in without fracturing, although I, along with my crew, was holding a collective breath until the second piece was in place and set. The finished product is stunning, and a couple of last second changes to our initial game plan made the island even more attractive.
The stone was a polished Calacatta Oro marble - which is just a little harder than Onyx - which means all you have to do is "look at it" and it scratches! If you have read anything I have written about putting polished marble in a kitchen environment over the years, you'll know that I'd basically rather go home and hang myself than put in a polished marble like CO on a kitchen island, let alone in a multimillion dollar home in Paradise Valley, Arizona - with neighbors like Charles Barkley, Stevie Nicks and Alice Cooper.
As the install date approached, I "floated" the idea to the customer of "honing" the work surface of the island - in lieu of polished, as the honed surface would show less wear and actually "weather" much nicer in a kitchen that was going to be used on a daily basis. As it turned out, this was a very fortuitous decision on my part, as when I surface polished the seam line of the two book matched slabs, the honing step looked fabulous. The customer loved it and now we have a project that we will be submitting for an MIA Pinnacle award.
I'm not writing all of this to toot my own horn. OK... maybe just a little - but...the main reason why I'm writing about this project is to encourage guys reading this who may have opportunities to do really "trick" jobs like this, to not turn them away. When a really complex project presents itself to you, don't be afraid to consider doing it! Since I took this project on and completed it, I have received many new opportunities for jobs that have a greater degree of difficulty, along with a higher percentage of profitability. And at the end of the day, it's all about the "Benjamins."
When you successfully complete a project like this that has a higher degree of complexity to the overall assembly, it gives you the ability as a fabricator to command a higher price for your services, and the wilder the overall project and edge detail, the higher the dollar amount is that you can charge.
I don't have a CNC machine or a Bridge Saw, yet I was able to do this project with simple hand tools and supplies that are available from Braxton-Bragg. The point is, unless you challenge yourself and your resourcefulness, you'll be doing the "same old-same old." If that's cool with you, then God bless you, I say. But as for me, I'd rather push the envelope and do stuff my competitors say, "How'd he do that?" and have my potential clients say, "You're the one who did that? Can you do my Island too?"
Until next month - Best Regards and Happy Fabricating!
"Trick Jobs with Trick Edges" is a Fabrication Management topic that is taught each month by Kevin M. Padden at the AZ School of Rock in Gilbert, Arizona. Find out more by logging on to their web site: www.azschoolofrock.com . For more information about class schedules, contact Kevin at 480-309-9422.
")