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QC Construction Products, Madera, California
QC Construction began life as a regional supplier of decorative concrete raw materials -- colors, hardeners, release powders
by John Chandler

“Acid stains are available in basically eight colors. CemTint is derived from a proprietary blend of reactive, UV-stable chemicals. You can now get any tint under the sun — purples, blues, shades of green. The palette is now endless. There are other companies that have what they call water-based stains, but nothing that is actually a true reactive or penetrating stain like this product.”

Sullivan also proudly points to a new one-part modified epoxy called QC Perma Seal. “It’s had great results in durability, both inside and outside, and it’s a simple application. It’s good for people imprinting concrete outside who want more of a matte or satin look. It’s also excellent for people working inside with stain or overlay who are looking for durability but who don’t have the time to wait for a two-part urethane to cure out. You can walk on this product in about an hour.”

QC also has new sealers and overlay products in various stages of production. Sealers in particular, Sullivan says, continue to create a lot of questions for applicators. QC’s solution was to create an entire operating system for its distributors.

“We target training and education with our products and getting the word out to the applicators through our distribution network,” Sullivan says. “We have a training program called the QC Color Tour that travels around the country to our big distributors and offers either free or low-cost training with our products. It’s a whole system from nuts to bolts: service, training and backup within a product family.

“Take acid staining for example: We have all the products from beginning to end. We have the prep products, the cleaners, the stains. We have the neutralizing and washing products. We have the base-coat sealers, the finish and maintenance sealers. We have accessory products and additives. And we’ll show you how to use them.”

Apparently, QC made all the right moves at crunch time. The company is enjoying considerable growth and currently has about 60 employees. QC also recently opened a second plant in Knoxville, Tenn., to service the expanding Northeast market.

“These trends tend to go from west to east,” Sullivan says. “Decorative concrete, while it continues to grow nicely everywhere, is getting hot on the East Coast. It’s a huge market with huge potential. I expect substantial growth in the next five to 10 years.”

Sullivan says that he sees more and more concrete contractors everywhere looking for training in decorative applications.

“I’ve been in this industry for about 12 years,” he says. “When I first started, there were a lot of applicators and ready-mix suppliers who wanted nothing to do with color. It was a pain, it was a bother, it was messy. Now, because of financial gain, sales and demand, we’re seeing very few places where that attitude prevails.

“We’re finding more and more applicators are becoming savvy to the products and actually becoming artisans.”