E-Council member Jeff King, King Construction Company of Jax, is co-owner of a new company, Earthscapes Design Build.
Earthscapes is a pioneer in reducing the amount of waste transported to landfills from the production and installation of granite, marble and imported stone.
Reducing landfill waste is not a new idea. In fact, it is the goal of recycling, reclaiming and reuse programs. Environmentally aware and conscientious individuals and companies seek ways to do just that.
Earthscapes Design Build, co-owned by King and Mike Serig, was created and dedicated to reclaiming the stone and putting it to a different use.
“Valuable material was being thrown away,” Serig said. “And one man’s waste could be turned into another man’s paver or fire pit or landscape feature. Production companies had to pay someone to take the material away and pay to have it disposed at a landfill.”
Estimates suggest that about 24 percent of the imported stone is lost in production and sent to landfills.
King and Serig added Zac Savoy, Jamin Lee and Ransom Lee, all professional carpenters, to the team. Savor is the company’s operations manager and his experience in wood working is now applied to designing new products and cutting stone to bring the designs to life.
“Carpentry is the basis for all facets of construction,” Savoy said. “The only thing different is the material. We realized right away we had similar philosophies and goals, so this was a good fit.”
As the owner of King Construction Co., King has long been concerned with green building and is an active member of E-Council, a group dedicated to finding and applying environmentally friendly practices and materials in all phases of construction.
On May 30, 2013, the three principals began their year of testing theory and building prototypes. King, Serig and Savoy dedicated their business to God, and they all say that decision was the most important one they made.
“It was truly amazing how doors began to open and everything seemed to fall into place,” Savoy said. “None of us has ever seen anything quite like it.”
To get the material needed to start production, Serig researched the countertop manufacturers and retailers and began making contacts.
“It was a win-win,” Serig said. “The fabricators didn’t have to pay to have landfill costs and we had material to begin experimenting with. We remove the waste for a fee and the fee is no more than half the price they currently pay. So, they come out ahead and we are covering some of our costs, too.”
Creating pavers from granite is labor intensive. Each piece must be handled several times: it is cut, washed, shipped, installed and sealed. Even though the polished side of the stone is the underside of the paver, the paver surface is slippery and must be treated to be slip-resistant without covering the natural beauty of the stone. After the coating is applied, the paver is pressure washed to bring out the natural beauty of the stone.
King said use of the reclaimed stone product in commercial applications could eventually have an added benefit for companies interested in LEED certification. LEED, or Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design, is a green building certification program that recognizes best-in-class building strategies and practices.
Earthscapes’ primary goal is to reclaim all waste imported stone material in Northeast Florida.
Serig said the future looks good.
“As the residential construction market continues to pick up steam, there will be an increased demand for granite and other exotic stones,” he said. “We have a high-quality product that can be used as tiles, pavers, water features, landscape mulch, retaining walls, and bricks, and the possibilities are not limited by the material itself. We expect pricing to become more competitive as well. And, on top of that, we’re taking steps toward zero waste. We are in the right place, in the right business at just the right time.”
View a gallery of installations and products at earthscapesdesignbuild.com and call (904) 620-0626 for more information and estimates.