CCI offers the first ever class on advanced mix design and sealers - Press - News

Raleigh, NC The Concrete Countertop Institute has announced the first ever advanced class designed for experienced concrete countertop makers who are having technical difficulties with mixes and sealers. It teaches them scientific principles that will prevent problems and result in more satisfied customers.

Jeff Girard, P.E., President of The Concrete Countertop Institute (CCI) and instructor for the class explains, I believe that students should understand why to do something a certain way, not just be told how to do it without any real understanding. So all of my beginner classes explain the principles behind the methods I teach. But there are so many concrete countertop professionals out there who werent trained by CCI, and are doing a great job and trying to produce a quality product for their customers, but they have lots of problems that they dont understand how to fix. That results in a lot of re-dos and a lot of frustration. This new class is designed to help experienced concrete countertop makers truly understand why theyre doing what theyre doing with mixes and sealers and change it if necessary to make their business more productive and ultimately more fun. Girard, a licensed professional civil engineer, designed the new class to teach students not just rote formulas and procedures, but the engineering that goes into creating high-performance concrete countertop mixes from local materials and optimizing concrete countertop sealer performance. Girard will explain how he designed the from-scratch mixes he uses and the scientific testing procedures he uses to evaluate any new sealer. The 2-day class, titled Mixes & Sealers 301, covers concrete countertop mixes on day one: concrete fundamentals, strength development, curing, pozzolans, admixtures, aggregate gradation, fibers, all-sand mixes, lightweight concrete and self-consolidating concrete. It includes hands-on mixing, and students receive exact formulas for two different from-scratch concrete countertop mixes. On day two, students learn about concrete countertop sealers: types of penetrating and topical sealers such as densifiers, repellants, acrylics, epoxies and urethanes, how to test the performance properties of sealers, how to set customer expectations for sealers, application methods such as rolling or spraying, and hands on application of two different commercially available concrete countertop sealing systems. The inaugural class will be offered July 26 27, 2007 at The Concrete Countertop Institutes training facility in Raleigh, NC. The class Advanced Sinks & Molds 202 is offered immediately preceding, and has been expanded to include more mold-making techniques with various materials such as rubber, foam and fiberglass, plus more mold shapes such as vessel sinks and ramp sinks. Each student will take home a rubber sink mold that he or she makes during the class. Both classes are open only to concrete countertop professionals who have been making concrete countertops as a business for paying customers for at least one year. To speak with a representative about your experience and to register for these classes, call 888-386-7711 or email info@ConcreteCountertopInstitute.com.