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Custom Rock International
Broadening the Decorative
Concrete Market
by Bruce Hackett
Custom Rock is a major player in the creation and installation of unique rock formations used in both indoor and outdoor artificial landscapes. Zoos, theme parks, museums, aquariums, casinos, resorts and even upscale residential property across the country have all been enhanced by Custom Rock products. At the Mall of America in Minnesota, the nation’s largest indoor amusement park called Camp Snoopy features 65,000 square feet of GFRC castings and 35,000 square feet of cast-in-place rockwork. One of the company’s most striking achievements can be seen at Grand Wailea Resort on the island of Maui in Hawaii, where a simulated 50-foot volcano and other volcanic rock formations adorn the complex of pools, grottos, caves and water slides.
Custom Rock creates its rock formations using glass fiber reinforced concrete (GFRC). Once product has been delivered to the project site, individual rock panels are attached to a structural element. The panels are attached together with metal lath and a structural layer of concrete. Then a second and even a third layer of concrete (the textural coats) are placed over the structural layer. Finally, the newly installed rock feature receives a couple of coats of paint to match the actual color of the rock type being replicated.
Installation involves several trades and a keen artistic eye, according to Bob Wallace, Director of Sales. “Typically, we use a number of trades for each rock installation. A couple members of each crew on every project must have a real artistic eye and hand to perform these specialized tasks, especially when embossing or coloring.”
Contractors who might be new to this type of decorative concrete application can rest assured that Custom Rock personnel can offer assistance throughout the duration of the project. “As a specialty concrete contractor, Custom Rock is able to take on the difficult, often near-impossible task of coordinating the manufacturing with the installation to assure the project’s quality and timetable aren’t compromised,” said Wallace. “Because we are a contractor ourselves, we understand the difficulties of the construction process and can help coordinate several issues within a project. From concept to completion, we help contractors be more efficient with specialty items.”
Contractors who purchase GFRC product from Custom Rock can request assistance in installation requirements and other special instruction on an as-needed basis. Custom Rock also offers a variety of services through its sales staff or through national distribution, and educates architects, engineers and contractors through on-site presentations, literature and shop drawings.
Creating textured concrete surfaces that reinforce the vision of an owner, designer or architect is the specialty of Custom Rock’s Themed Construction services. From rainforests to ancient ruins, from lost cities to future worlds, Custom Rock has the services, experience and products that can make the imagined a reality. Notable projects range from facades and entryways for the chain of Rainforest Cafe restaurants to climbing walls at entertainment venues to interior mountain displays that replicate various wild habitats.
Custom Rock is still heavily involved in flatwork and architectural paving projects as well, offering a wide variety of colors, textures, stamps, stains, or the very latest in digital template imagery. Successful applications range from an elaborate pool deck at The Sahara in Las Vegas to a chemically stained retail showroom floor and a colored and stamped upscale residential driveway in Minnesota. Perhaps most notable is a unique plaza space outside the Cat House building at the Como Zoo in St. Paul. Silhouettes of various zoo animals were designed, digitized, enlarged and electronically cut out, and the end result looks like a huge animal jigsaw puzzle, which has proven to be a big hit with zoo visitors.
The Custom Rock team sees nothing but good things ahead for the specialty concrete business. “I believe the demand for high quality form liners will continue to grow as architects, engineers contractors and the general public discover the difference between a quality project and one that doesn’t have the natural look of materials like stone or brick,” said Bohrer.
Concludes Wallace, “With new products being developed each year, a greater appreciation by design professionals of the many uses, and increased acceptance by contractors, the future looks bright for the specialty concrete business in general, and Custom Rock in particular.”
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