April 2008 Industry Leader:

George Lacker Speaks to High and Lows in Decorative Concrete Industry

By Juliet Farmer, ConcreteNetwork.com Columnist

George Lacker GLC3 Concrete Plantation, FL

George Lacker started GLC3 Concrete in 1999, but he's been around the block a time or two before that. In fact, Lacker says he got his start in the industry when he was 16 years old, and by the time he was 20, he was working with one of the largest concrete companies in Ohio. While under the employ of Baker Concrete, Lacker honed his skills, and has since gone on to not only own his own decorative concrete company in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, but also work with the likes of big names such as the Hard Rock Café in Hollywood, the Ritz-Carlton in Palm Beach & St. Thomas, the Ocean Reef Club, Cheeca Lodge, and Sloppy Joe's in the Florida Keys.

Lacker took a break from his work as an installer, teacher, and creator of his own mixes, to talk to The Concrete Network. Here's what he had to say.

Q: Can you bring us up to speed with how you got to where you are now?

A: Well, I started at 16 pouring concrete, and when I was 20, went to work for Baker Concrete. This was back before the super-flat floors we see nowadays. Back then everything was done by hand or vibrating screed. I used to run the hose—there weren't boom pumps back then either—everyone started on the ground level pumping, pouring, raking and eventually finishing. I grew up trying to get concrete as flat as possible.

Q: What's changed in the industry over the years?

A: I think the laser screed came in and caused people to get a little lazy, before the laser screed all we had was true craftsmen. That's not to say that the laser screed isn't great for projects like tilt-ups where they need incredibly flat floors, but the art of concrete finishing is losing out and the craftsmanship is fading.

Technology just keeps getting better and better. Flatter floors, concrete additives, plasticizers, reducers and accelerators. It's evolving and changing, and we are very interested in the "greening" of the industry.

Q: Why did you start making your own mixes?

A: I was fortunate to be playing with concrete in the 70s. Learning about the mixes and working with them, seeing what worked and what didn't. That's when I started mixing my own ½-inch topping. Ours is the only company that I am aware of that pours 1/8- to ¾-inch concrete on slabs to create a new surface.

It's becoming my trademark—pouring concrete ½-inch thick. It's a niche and it helps get the jobs where the flooring is not acceptable or the old flooring was torn out.

You have to be a bit visionary, think about the end result and get creative. It all comes down to training/experience, learning from mistakes, and having a real need for the product.

Q: What was the process like getting to the mix you currently use?

A: The majority of mixes out there are kind of like milk: it all comes from the same place, but there's, two percent, fat free, whole, skim, etc. The real question is: what is the end product?

I was going through a number of different bonding agents, tried water reducers, and finally got it down now where I feel really comfortable with the mix. But it was a lot of trial and error. Having done my own version of micro-topping mixes for 30 years, we have only had one job that needed to be taken out because it didn't perform.

Q: How has the industry changed for your business?

A: The biggest problem I see is that I am out having to fix bad work, where a topping came off or an epoxy was placed wrong. I used to get 90 percent of what I bid on, and the remaining 10 percent were jobs I didn't want. Now, there are cheap competitors popping up everywhere, but the old adage rings true "you get what you pay for".

Q: How do you see that philosophy affecting the industry?

A: Recently, poor quality and craftsmanship has become more acceptable in decorative concrete, because of the lack of public knowledge to know the difference.

Q: How do you think consumers play into the future of the industry?

A: Consumers want what they see in magazines. But we need to educate consumers and other trades that there are a variety of ways to achieve a look. You can create the look of acid stain without acid stain, by using ½" or micro toppings with integral color.

This is where samples come in to play, because that's the best way to create a look and be able to recreate it later, even if the situation is different.

Maintenance is equally important to maintain the look of a product. Many times in commercial situations, the wrong cleaning products are used on decorative concrete floors or countertops, and the work is compromised.

Q: What's coming up for you?

A: As you can imagine with the number of years put into concrete toppings, we have joined with Superstone to produce a micro topping to be introduced this year. I will be conducting seminars to show the diversity of the product, how to apply it, and with any luck, raising the bar for decorative concrete by bringing back the craftsmanship.

Q: Anything else you'd care to add?

A: Just that you can do whatever you want with concrete now. By aligning your company with the manufacturers and knowing their products' strengths and weakness, the decorative concrete industry will create better end products and ultimately propel itself forward. When you know and can control the product, that's when you get the work.

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