< PreviousProfessional contractors, remodelers, manufacturing and industrial companies throughout the New York Metropolitan Area know that when it comes to building materials, Feldman Lumber is the right choice. We offer the largest selection of quality lumber, drywall, board products, building supplies and specialty products and we deliver them with personal, dependable service. With convenient locations to serve you, Feldman Lumber has been a respected name in the industry for over 100 years. Our ability to satisfy our customers is evidenced by the fact that the bulk of our business comes from repeat customers, who call upon us year after year. We’ve Got You Covered! THE FIRST CHOICE FOR ALL YOUR BUILDING MATERIAL NEEDS feldmanlumber.com BROOKLYN, NY 1281 Metropolitan Ave. Brooklyn, NY 11237 718.786.7777 LONG ISLAND, NY 251 East Shore Rd. Great Neck, NY 11023 516.487.1400 PATERSON, NJ 100 Dale Ave. Paterson, NJ 07501 973.910.2600 QUEENS, NY 58-30 57 th Street Maspeth, NY 11378 718.418.7777 In terms of the professional partners that Highbury collabo- rates with, Oswald is keen to point out that the relationships the company build are vitally important. For Highbury, their business partners carry huge importance as this is about upholding its brand image and being consistent. Relation- ships with the likes of general contractors are handled with utmost care so that outside parties can witness first-hand the meticulous and efficient way in which Highbury gets the job done. If every site that Highbury works on upholds the exact same safety standards and guarantees the same work ethic, then these kinds of professional relationships with repeat customers are forged naturally. For Oswald, this hap- pens quite simply; by showing up, staying safe, and delivering on promises. While success and relationships are valuable, for Highbury it is just as important to foster a sense of safety in its company culture. Oswald credits Darren Timmons, who is predom- inantly responsible for Healthy and Safety out ‘on the field’ while Oswald himself manages it more from an office setting. It is this balance and understanding between the two of them that contributes to the sense of safety across the board. On the field, Timmons can deal with the Concrete Safety Manag- ers face to face, while from the office Oswald can access the | 20 FEBRUARY 2023reports that the Concrete Safety Managers submit from any given day. With this combination of safety data and safety precautions on site, the company adopts a streamlined and efficient network of communication that makes Highbury’s team feel supported and informed. This speaks to a significant core value of Highbury’s that came up time and time again over the course of our inter- view, teamwork. It is evident that Highbury is inherently a collaborative company. With collaboration and relationships embedded in the company ethos, it benefits massively. Not only this, but it is also a company that invests in training to just a large scale because it trusts its staff to be able to upskill and constantly improve. When I asked Oswald about how much Highbury values its staff, he cited this Richard Branson quote ‘Train your employees well enough so they can leave. Treat them well enough so they don’t want to.’ Finally, regarding what the future holds for Highbury, Oswald is less forthcoming. As all good business minds will attest to; aside from concrete itself, nothing is ever set in stone. Oswald simply believes that the future is bright for the com- pany. “We’ve done forty buildings in the boroughs here, and we look forward to doing forty more.” For Highbury, the goal is a modest one. “Being part of the skyline is what we do, and every building we do is a standing work of art.” So, while expansion into Florida, and possibly even the East Coast, forms most Highbury’s plans for the next ten years, it is clear that the buildings themselves will always be Highbury Con- crete’s true priority. | 21 APEIRON CONSTRUCTIONWRITTEN BY DAVID O’NEILL A s funding becomes available to modernize the infra- structure network across the United States, the public needs to sit up and take note. Every taxpayer’s dollar will, quite rightly, be made to go as far as it can and that is why project managers across the country will look to sustain- able practices and materials. Infrastructure, as we are well aware, can be a resource heavy sector. Given that it, by its very nature, needs to be updated and replaced over time, it | 22 FEBRUARY 2023makes sense that it may not be the most sustainable type of construction work. When public money is being spent, however, the onus is on the industry to go as far as it can. From green practices to environmentally sound materials, much is already being done in the sector. Innovation and effort are combining impressively, and it feels as though genuine change is happening. For one sector of the industry, there are questions, however. Roadways and asphalt have a bad reputation. The material conjures up images of work that is messy, hot, and not exactly the most environmentally friendly. So, what if there was a way to lower the impact of asphalt and to change the narrative in a positive way? | 23 APEIRON CONSTRUCTIONIn the U.S. alone, there is approximately 160,000 miles of roadway. This is a staggering number and that is before we include local streets, roads, and parking lots. Basically, this makes for a lot of asphalt. On a positive note, and some- thing that is even more shocking than this, however, is the fact that asphalt pavement is the most recycled material in the United States. According to the Federal Highway Administration, 73 million tons, which is more than 80% of the reclaimed asphalt pavement removed each year during widening and resurfacing projects is reused in pavement. By comparison, this figure is substantially higher than the percentages for recycled newspaper, glass, plastic, and aluminum cans and magazines. Remarkably, this mixture of stone, gravel, or sand and viscous liquid tar is, when extracted from worn-down city streets, both sustainable and recyclable. In New York City, the roadway resurfacing program works to use recycled asphalt pavement and repur- pose it throughout the five boroughs. In an effort to reach the mayor’s goals to become a sustainable city, it seems as though recycled asphalt could be a game changer. According to the Department of Design and Construction NYC, recycled asphalt is of huge importance in the city’s sus- tainability goals. The Department sees the material as a huge benefit from both an environmental and financial standpoint. “Recycled asphalt is another method DDC employs to meet Mayor de Blasio’s goals for a more sustainable City, reducing landfill use and helping to meet the City’s target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by the year 2050. With thousands of miles of streets in the five boroughs, there’s great potential for this to have a substantial effect on the environment while reducing infrastructure costs.” In terms of maintenance and upkeep, asphalt is used to resur- face New York City’s 6,000 miles of roadway. The process is both technical and wonderfully simplistic. “We first mill the streets using razor-sharp claws that dig up the surface layer of the asphalt. That layer is then filtered, ground to a specific gradation, and mixed with a glue-like rejuvenating agent – perfect for making the new mix stick together in the streets.” So, with this amount of asphalt usage in NYC alone, how can the industry use the most recycled material in the country to benefit end users, providers, and taxpayers? The answer is simple. Recycled asphalt benefits a project on a number of levels. From eliminating the need for fur- ther quarry excavation or transportation, to lower usage of petroleum and heat, it is clear that this material has a very long life expectancy. Currently, NYC uses a minimum of 30% recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) to create new asphalt but, according to a Long Island producer, this figure can be increased dramatically. Green Asphalt is a provider of asphalt pavement materials. What makes this particular company stand out, however, is that every square inch of asphalt it produces is recycled. By using ‘Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP)’ the company is the first 100% green asphalt provider in the country and the only one currently in New York City. According to those at the company, the benefits of 100% recycled asphalt are immeasurable. Tested to extreme temperatures and with the ability to be recycled numerous times, the product can be of enormous value to the public sector. ““We call it black gold. All the money in asphalt is in rocks, bitumen, and liquid asphalt – or petroleum, which is the most expensive part of the mixture. Our material is completely green, cost effective, and locally sourced.” “From eliminating the need for further quarry excavation or transportation, to lower usage of petroleum and heat, it is clear that this material has a very long life expectancy.” | 24 FEBRUARY 2023Financial considerations aside, the material also has huge benefits environmentally. At every step of the process, CO2 gases are being emitted. By removing these processes, the outcome is a net positive. According to Nima Roohi Sefid- mazgi, Ph.D., Quality Control Manager at Green Asphalt, 100% recycled asphalt is clearly the most environmentally profitable choice. “The whole process of making asphalt pavement – the excavating, trucking, crushing, refining – all of this makes a lot of CO and CO2 gases. Thirty percent is good, but we can do better. By making 100% recycled asphalt, we are saving lots of units of pollution. We have an unlimited source of material in the city streets. This means we have so much RAP and we need to use it. The best part is you’re not damaging the envi- ronment; you’re not putting excess material in the landfill.” With such potential to be recycled, it will come as no surprise that the industry itself is doing much of the heavy lifting when it comes to recycling. Obviously, extraction and production can be an expensive endeavor and it makes perfect sense that reusing existing materials is a much most cost-effective strategy. The asphalt industry recycles almost 100 million tons of its own product each year. This saves the U.S. taxpayer an incredible $1.8 billion annually. According to Green Asphalt and DDC, New York City alone could save around $5M in annual costs by migrating to 100% RAP. With an ever increasing need to think smart both financially and sustainably, it is always a good thing when ready-made solutions are found. By creating a circular economy, the asphalt industry is doing what it can to change the narrative. Asphalt can be seen as something that creates mess, heat, and waste. The facts tell a different story though. If we scratch the sur- face, it turns out that asphalt is a remarkably effective material over long periods of time. We are in a place where every dollar counts and, with an infrastructure network in bad need of repair, Green Asphalt could be the solution. “When choosing recycled asphalt, there are many environmental benefits, such as preventing valuable materials from going into landfills and reducing the transport of materials in and out of the city. By using RAP, both our company and customers are protecting the future of our environment by reducing the carbon footprint one ton at a time.” gogreenasphalt.com | 25 APEIRON CONSTRUCTIONWRITTEN BY MANUELA ARMINI T his story begins in a Moxies restaurant in Ontario. That's where two men and a woman, who barely knew each other, decided to start a restoration business with nothing but enthusiasm, respect for each other, and a short-term plan on the table. The year was 2013, and that leap of faith marked the start of a journey called Edge Group. The company provides General Contracting and performs Building Restoration Services, focusing on building envelope and parking structures. Notably, Edge Group specializes in large gen- eral contracting projects, window and railing replacement, curtain wall, masonry, stone, concrete, balconies, sealants, waterproofing, asphalt, generator replacement, watermain repairs, etc. for the commercial, industrial, institutional, and multi-residential sectors. In February, Tania Stalteri, Franco Di Giacomi, Ward Stevens, and their team celebrate ten years of business success, partnership, and, most importantly, friendship. This business relationship was, and still is, founded on a straightforward rule: whatever the project, they would pursue it only if all three partners are in agreement. "Ten years later, we are friends. We are business partners. We own a recreational prop- erty together, which, I think, speaks to the magnitude of the family that | 26 FEBRUARY 2023we've created here at Edge Group," says Tania Stalteri, one of the company's founders. But let's get to know the Edge Group's trio a little bit better. Coming from the property management industry, Stal- teri jokes about initially being the "black sheep" of the group. However, after managing repair and restoration projects for high-end condominiums in downtown Toronto for almost 15 years she was far from a novice in the field. Through the property management com- pany, she owned with her business partner, Stalteri met Franco Di Giacomi, who today acts as the company’s President. Di Giacomi has over 25 years of experience in the restoration industry as an estimator, and it was his involvement that brought Ward Stevens into this new venture. The potential within the group was evident from the beginning and for Stevens, the third partner of Edge Group, it made perfect sense for him to bring his 30 years of project management experience to the table. Edge Group takes its name after Edgemore Drive in Toronto, the road where Stalteri grew up. When the com- pany opened its doors in Vaughan in 2013, it didn't have any clients. The three partners started tendering jobs, with Di Giacomi doing estimates and bringing in new tenders, Ward looking after the project management side, and Stalteri dealing with business development, financial and marketing. This hard work paid off and, only a short time later, while sitting in their tiny office on Whitmore Road, the three received a game-changing call. They had been awarded a project at the University of Toronto. "It was a big project, and we were all excited. We had one employee, so we were scrambling to get a workforce. This job became our baby," says Di Giacomi. "So, the three of us would check down there; one time, I called Tania, said, I need a wheelbarrow and material down here. So she went into the warehouse, backed her little SUV, made a ramp with a 2’x4’ and wheeled the wheelbarrow into the trunk, loaded the material and drove to site, when she arrived the site foreman said, how did you get that in your car? We all laughed”.The first year was a tremendous reputational success for Edge Group, also recognized by its competitors, who subcontracted work to the company. Year on year, Edge Group continued to grow, and it now counts between 30 and 80 people at any given time, including staff and subcontractors. Stalteri, Di Gia- comi, and Stevens created a great company culture based on mutual respect and a strong commitment to safety, encom- passing staff, subcontractors, partners, and customers. One of the most remarkable projects carried out by Edge Group is the restoration of a 1960s chapel in Ontario. The work included, but was not limited to, the removal of the exist- ing roof and the installation of a new one, the restoration of the steeple, stone and mortar repairs including the cleaning of the steel and the coating and recladding of the wood com- ponents around the windows and dormers with new copper. Another outstanding project is the multi-scope restoration of a building, to be completed in 2023. This work includes the modernization of the elevators, the replacement of windows and doors, the installation of split heat/air conditioning units in each suite including drywall and painting repairs, and the re-waterproofing of the garage roof deck, etc. For this spe- cific project, Edge Group is responsible for the administrative work, most importantly maintaining its schedule, site safety, project communication, and exceptional execution of all components for the occupied property. It marks a consider- able step forward for the company. In 2019 the three partners took yet another leap of faith by setting up an office in Burnaby, BC, Edge Group WEST. Com- ing from Ontario, the company did not have the same level of contacts and community. This posed a very real challenge, and the team were very aware of that, but they knew they could count on the support of at least one local client to ten- der for projects. However, what they didn't know when they signed the lease agreement for the office was that Covid-19 was just around the corner. "We signed our lease in October of 2019. We got our keys three days before March the first. We went in there in three days and did a whirlwind of that office and opened on the first and shut down on the 13th because of COVID. It was unprecedented times." says Stevens. The British Columbia office reopened its doors on the 22nd of June 2020, and against all odds, those first few months were a huge success. The future is looking bright and eventful for Edge Group, whose founders are constantly on the lookout for new ventures. | 28 FEBRUARY 2023 Below grade curtain wall injection with KÖSTER Injection Gel G 4 Water-based acrylate gel with low initial viscosity and elastic end state More information at www.kosterusa.com In October 2022, they launched another company called Tru- Seal Injection, which will operate across Canada and in Flor- ida. The company offers negative-side waterproofing, which consist of injecting underground building structures, whereby the exterior membrane has failed. This is particularly efficient when buildings are in proximity and/or overburden cannot be removed. The waterproofing system allows for the repairs to occur when traditional membrane installation is not a viable option. Edge Group was already providing this service to inject the University of Toronto’s tunnels, during this time, KÖster’s representative approached Stalteri, Di Giacomi and Stevens with the proposal of contracting work in Florida. "We were so grateful for the opportunity, and I believe that's a testament to who we are as people," says Stalteri. So, Edge Team took yet another leap of faith and is formally launching in Florida this April 2023! "The waterproofing system allows for the repairs to occur when traditional membrane installation is not a viable option." | 29 APEIRON CONSTRUCTIONNext >