Decorative Streetscapes: The Durability Challenge

Companies start for multiple reasons:

• A founder with an innovative vision to bring something new to the world.

• Somebody has a "chip on their shoulder" or an entrepreneurial itch.

• Desperation: Somebody's job gets eliminated and bills need to be paid, so they take matters into their own hands.

  
  

The PAVERART origin story is pretty special and captures a few of these areas:

22+ years ago multiple decorative intersections (streetscapes) in Wildwood NJ were installed, with decorative concrete. They lasted less than 2 years before the town leadership said "enough" lets find something that would stand the test of time. And that was the problem that gave birth to PAVERART. The founding team went to work, developed the procedures, methods and capabilities that still exist today. And we can share the results that prove PAVERART is "Built to Last."

Wildwood NJ PAVERART Streetscape

Nearly every conversation we have with a client, some form of the following comes up:

How do you do it, are you painting the pavers? Is the color through the paver?

The question behind the question has nothing to do with manufacturing technology or process. But it has EVERYTHING to do with "Will this last a year? Longer? How good will it look in the future?"

One of the things we don't like to do at PAVERART is SPECULATE, make predictions without factual proof. We DO however point to our body of work and let our clients draw their own conclusions. If we have experience in alternate methods to create "ART" we are happy to share them.

Over the past few weeks, while engaging on another intersection project the client asked a question: What's your experience with past intersection projects? We answered the question fully, but as often happens, we go home, get a good nights sleep and regroup the next day. And Brian & I said "it's nice out, lets go take a road trip to Wildwood, birthplace of our first project. Rather then tell them, why not SHOW them?"

We shot multiple videos, here is the first intersection:

Now for the second intersection:

So 2 these 2 intersections we are thrilled with. In 22 years, is there a product on the market comparable to PAVERART that can claim "BUILT TO LAST?" We have not seen one.

CRITICAL POINT:

PAVERART can not take all of the credit for a successful intersection (or ANY installation). Contractors install 100% of PAVERART designs. This is a highly skilled profession, a proper base needs to be constructed, material fully level set, with proper spacing for joint sand in between all pavers needs to happen for project success. Our friends at Tough Turf certainly set a VERY HIGH Bar on this project and we are proud to continue our relationship after 2+ decades.

Wildwood provides a real-world case study:

• 4 intersections (decorative concrete) broke down in a major way, after LESS THAN 2 years installed. So a rough start for the town!

• PAVERART became the solution, replacing all 4 intersections, and the results are captured above

• An UN-EXPECTED development, less than 3 years ago major roadway construction took place on 2 intersections that were previous PAVERART installations. When they decided how to replace them post-construction they opted for a NEW technology, essentially decorative ASPHALT. These were installed less than 100 yards away from the PAVERART intersections.

• So a NEW decision was injected into the project, and we can learn from that too.

So with less than 3 years installed on decorative asphalt, we can observe the real-world results and draw some rational conclusions.

This is a frustrating outcome for any business, when a major municipality opts for the "least cost" option to accomplish a certain goal. But is it TRULY lower cost? IF one project fails in less than 3 years while another project looks great after 22 years? How do you compare the cost? Simple

Simple. Take the less expensive, shorter-lasting technology and project how many times it will need to be replaced. So if the replacement life is 5 years and you want to compare it to something (as an example) that may realistically last 40 years, and multiply the cheaper option by 8. Compare those two numbers and you are now comparing apples to apples. Also, consider other INTANGIBLE factors that are also real, disruption, road closures, etc.

But in our experience, is this "customary" for landscape architects, municipal planners and town council members to "equivalize costs for durability?" It is not.

And what else is very common in Municipal applications? A bidding process for contracting projects that go to the LOWEST BIDDER.

So 2 challenging factors we contend with: Lack of equivalized pricing that accounts for quality/longevity, and potential contractor challenges that can impact the end state of an install. So collaboration, information sharing and full transparency are needed for successful outcomes. Thankfully, this is how we are built, and we wear ZOOM out!

Side story:

In a prior life-time I owned a food manufacturing company. One of the major pieces of equipment was called a "bowl cutter." Picture a 5,000 lb. stainless steel mixing bowl powered by a massive engine, large chopping blades and a computer interface that controls time, mixing speed, etc. Like any responsible owner, I "went to market" and brought in all the relevant equipment suppliers. There are 2 main country's that stand out: Germany & China.

The German Model was north of $375k installed.

The China Model? $125k.

The sales representative from the more expensive brand said something I'll never forget: There's nothing wrong with the China model, but we would recomend buying at least 2-3 of them, the websites come and go VERY frequently so do your home-work and try to see them in action and talk to their clients. And if you'd like to visit OUR models in any factory within 100 miles just let me know, I'd be happy to set up those visits."

No surprise, I purchased the German-made model, and went on to purchase multiple other pieces of equipment from the same US Based rep. The piece of mind of a state side human being, transparency and obvious quality difference meant more than the price point/short-term savings. I rationalized it a number of ways.......one being what I can DO with the new equipment/investment, and that far exceeded 6 figures worth of low cost "savings."

There are a couple of quotes I always take comfort in as it relates to low price vs Quality:

"The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten." Benjamin Franklin

"The quality will remain long after the price is forgotten." Rose Kennedy

Manufacturing in America is in the news lately! That makes us happy. We are also realists about the feasibility of bringing back manufacturing to the states.

As I've just outlined, decisions continue to be made across the USA that make it difficult to establish Manufacturing in the USA. I do not believe the answer is "cheap labor" to compete with overseas manufacturing, although that is certainly a challenge. It STARTS with HUMANS. A desire to follow up on long, multiple zoom calls and a desire to get on the road, take a road trip, and pull out the phone for SHOWING, not just TELLING.

Every day at PAVERART we are faced with new and different challenges, some easier than others.

But it's a relief to know when we show up in the morning, 90 minutes down the road we have job#1 telling a nice story. The challenge for ANY small business is letting those stories, their victories and losses be clearly understood.