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So it all started with an e-mail in February of 2007 from a woman who saw our "Rockview" floors on our Website. The concrete floors and walls she saw are in a house that overhangs the Monterey Bay on the California Coastline. She said that she had seen "veins" filled with aquarium sand, beach glass, and various seashells and she said that she "absolutely loved them." The catch was, she wanted our company to replicate this floor over 3800 miles away-- in Panama-- Bocas Del Toro to be exact which is on the Caribbean side of Panama. I was excited at the prospect thinking Tropical Island, great surf, unique and colorful floors...to a surfing concrete contractor from Santa Cruz, California this all sounded like a slice of heaven on earth to me.

Next came probably the hardest part of the venture: pricing and the logistics. What would it be like to work with the native Panamanians? How long would it take to construct our floors on a small island in a Third World Country? How difficult would it be to get the "hazardous" materials to Panama? I have had enough bouts in the United States with Hazardous Materials Agencies when it came to acid staining. We always make sure that we use baking soda or ammonia and copious amounts of fresh water to rinse with Acid Stains so that all of the tests will pass and come up neutral. How would we deal with shipping Hazardous Material to Panama? How much should we charge?

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