1. Volume 4 • Issue 4 • sIngle Issue $14.95
Solid Surface on Wheels Page 16
Understanding ADA Page 20
Is Your Shop Safe
and Compliant? Page 31
NEW Rules of Selling
in the NEW Economy Page 32
A Look at
soapstone
for surfacing
Page 24

2. CREDITS
Letters to the Editor Photography
Countertops & Architectural Surfaces welcomes Letters to the Editor. Photos in this publication may not depict proper safety procedures for
If you have questions about the magazine, or would like to make a creative purposes. ISFA and Countertops & Architectural Surfaces support
comment, or voice an opinion about the magazine, ISFA, or the industry in the use of proper safety procedures in all cases and urge readers to take
general, please feel free to write to us. steps to institute such procedures.
Please send letters to editor@isfanow.org or to Letters, ISFA, 165 N 1330 Photography/graphics provided by: Rosskopf & Partner, Chuck Sawyer,
W Unit A3, Orem, UT 84057 or fax to (801) 341-7361 attention: Editor. the U.S. Access Board, The Artisan Group and J&M Lifestyles.
Include a telephone number and address (preferable email address).
Letters may be edited for clarity or space. Because of the high volume of Magazine Credits
mail we receive, we cannot respond to all letters. Send queries about
Countertops & Architectural Surfaces to editor@isfanow.org or mail to Publisher & Editor: Kevin Cole
ISFA, 165 N 1330 W Unit A3, Orem, UT 84057 or fax to (801) 341-7361 Proofreader: Nancy Mueller-Truax
attention: Editor. Contributing Editor: Russ Lee
Design: Velasco & Associates
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About this Magazine ISFA Directors
Countertops & Architectural Surfaces is published quarterly by the
Mike Nolan, Director
International Surface Fabricators Association (ISFA), with a fifth “Buyers
Martin Funck, Director
Guide” issue publishing in August. Individual copies of Countertops &
Jon Blasius, Director
Architectural Surfaces are available at the non-member “newsstand” price
Christina Humiston, Director
of $14.95. Countertops & Architectural Surfaces is also available by
Michael Bustin, Director
individual subscription at the following rates: ISFA non-members, one
Mark Anderson, Associate Member Rep.
year (five issues) $30.00; ISFA members, one year free with every
Michael Astill, Associate Member Rep.
membership renewal.
Special rates and charges apply for orders outside of the United States. ISFA Staff
Call for details. To subscribe, call (877) 464-7732. Printed in the United Kevin Cole, Communications Director
States of America. Copyright © International Surface Fabricators Paul Wisnefski, Sales Associate
Association 2011. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be Meg Pettingill, Administrative Assistant
reprinted or otherwise reproduced without publisher’s written permission.
Countertops & Architectural Surfaces and The International Surface
Fabricators Association assumes no responsibility for unsolicited Cover Photo
manuscripts or photographs. While not the most common stone for surfacing applications, soapstone
makes for beautiful and functional countertops, as is witnessed by this
Materials will be returned only if accompanied by a stamped, self- photo provided by The Artisan Group. Read the full story on Page 24.
addressed envelope. For change of address, please include old label with
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Postmaster: Send address change to Countertops & Architectural
Surfaces magazine, 165 N. 1330 W., Unit A3, Orem, UT 84057.
4 • Vol. 4 / Issue 4 • International Surface Fabricators Association

3. CONTENTS
Features
16 Solid Surface on Wheels
German fabricator Rosskopf & Partner has done it again with the help of
design firm Linie Zweii in giving a beautiful solid surface makeover to a
Heilbronn-based bookmobile.
20 Understanding ADA
An overview of the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act
as it pertains to decorative surfacing.
24 A Look at Soapstone for Surfacing
While soapstone is not for everyone or for every design, this natural
stone possesses several advantages that make it a viable competitor
of more traditional countertop materials.
28 J&M Lifestyles Profile
16 New Jersey-based J&M Lifestyles is a maker of concrete surfacing
products that breaks all the molds.
31 Is Your Shop Safe and Compliant?
If you are ignoring your legal requirement to have a Safety/HAZCOM
program, be sure you know the costs before you make such a potentially
costly decision.
32 NEW Rules of Selling in
the NEW Economy
20 Let’s face it — selling in the new economy is tough. All the rules have
changed. Those who won’t adapt and become better at sales will most
likely not survive.
Departments
8 From the Editor
10 President’s Letter
11 Calendar Of Events
24 12 Industry News
14 Education Connection
15 Shop Management Matters
34 ISFA Fabricator Directory
40 ISFA News
44 Product News
49 Reader Service Form
50 Classifieds/Ad Index
28 31
6 • Vol. 4 / Issue 4 • International Surface Fabricators Association

4. ISFA MEMBERSHIP
It s more than just learning how to be more profitable,
saving money on the bottom line
and getting great referrals and discounts.
Call ISFA today and find out how
to make your world a better place.
Toll Free: (877) 464-7732
www.ISFAnow.org

5. Shop Management Matters
From the desk of Jon Olson
What’s next for Social Media?
In a previous customers, not a venue for spam. You want to let have a 3G phone, you should get a Foursquare
article, folks know you’re out there and ready to do their account. You’ll be glad you did.
“Using Social work, but you need to bring something that will
Pinterest
Networking to be fresh, so people will want to follow you. Look
This is a very new site. It’s kind of like Flickr (a
your advantage,” I encouraged folks to at some of the more successful business pages.
photo sharing site) on steroids. The company
get onboard with social media. The results They have pictures, blogs and interaction. Many
describes it as:
have been outstanding! Many have made YouTube successful sites run contests giving away items
potential customers will value. You’ll have a better “Pinterest lets you organize and share all the
videos, started a Facebook page and learned how
chance for sales if you run your site that way. beautiful things you find on the Web. People
to tweet. It takes some effort, but when you think
When a salesman goes out and visits potential use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate
about it, what choice do you have? This is how
customers, what do they do? They show their homes and organize their favorite recipes.
businesses are getting messages out, so if you’re
pictures, talk about their company and engage Best of all, you can browse pinboards created by
not in, you’re going to be out.
other people. Browsing pinboards is a fun way
their clients in conversation. That’s what FB is for.
Social media is more like a salesperson than ever. to discover new things and get inspiration from
Instead of beating the pavement, you’re beating
Here’s a little experiment. Go to a job-seeking site people who share your interests.”
your keyboard.
like indeed.com and type in the job description
This site serves many purposes. You can search
“social media manager.” It seems like everyone is Let’s look at some up-and-coming sites:
for inspiration, but you can also post your work
looking for one. Why? Social media brings in sales. Google+ in the hopes someone will contact you. Photos
So the old excuse “I don’t have time for this” Google is trying to get into the social media really drive this site, and I can’t stress enough just
just doesn’t hold water. You need social media. scene. Currently it’s not on the same level as how important good images are.
If managed correctly, it will play a key role within other places, but there are a few reasons you
your company for years to come. should be part of it: Photography
Let’s look at some current sites more closely: n Most of us have a Google e-mail account One of the best ways to get your message out is
Twitter (gmail.com). Starting with your gmail account, having outstanding photos of your work. Pictures
I love Twitter; I can’t get enough of it. In fact, Google+ is free and easy to set up. sell products. On a typical countertop website, the
I have a separate monitor on my desk that runs n Why are we doing any of this social media most viewed section is the photo gallery. Photos are
an app called Tweetdeck all day. I can watch stuff? The big reason is the interacting. You want a great way to make a splash in your social media
posts of those I follow and monitor the solid to be found and Google has primarily been a efforts.
surface world. Being informed enables me to help search engine. It stands to reason that Google is I know for many the challenge is the cost of
my company succeed. You can do the same. going to promote those using their stuff. photography, but as we change to a more Internet-
n Google is loaded and they don’t like to lose, based way of doing business, it has to be part of your
Using Twitter helps build up your networking.
so no doubt Google+ will become a key site to be business plan. I encourage you to set aside money in
Twitter has helped me establish contacts all across
on in the future. your budget for this. At the least, make sure you have
the United States and the world. I’m not only
gaining experience from others, but building the There are some things I like about Google+. a good camera that someone on your staff knows
company brand and finding leads, tweet by tweet. You can arrange your contacts very cleanly how to use, and you take photos of all of your work.
using their “circle” app. I also like the way I hope you will take an honest look at how social
Something really cool has developed from Twitter
pictures look when uploaded. media can help your company. While it’s true that
called Tweet chats (tweetchat.com). Using
hashtags you can find specific topics to connect Foursquare what works for one company may not be perfect
with people talking about the same thing. One for you, see what aspects of social media will be
Foursquare is a marketing tool made for those
that I particularly like is held every Wednesday of value to your particular business.
that have smart phones. At first it was a way to
from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. EST called Kitchen&Bath
inform friends where your location around town
About the Author
Chat (#kbtribechat). Each week kitchen and bath Jon Olson is the online marketing and sales, social media,
was, or to leave reviews of restaurants, etc.,
trends are discussed. Come see for yourself. market development and communications manager at
but now companies are finding ways to use it Sterling Surfaces/Kitchen Associates. A solid surface
Facebook as a promotional tool. I haven’t used it yet for fabricator since 1982, he has gained experience in all
What value does a Facebook (FB) page have? promotions, but it has been a great way to make phases of fabrication, specializing in 3-D solid surface
thermoforming. Jon is a past recipient of the ISFA
I’m not going to guarantee sales from a FB it into Google searches. I’m not stopping, as Fabricator of the Year award and the ISFA Innovator of the
page. It’s a way to educate and inform potential I want Google to find my companies. If you Year. He can be reached at jon@sterlingsurfaces.com.
International Surface Fabricators Association • Vol. 4 / Issue 4 • 15