For the past three years, decorative concrete artisan Jeff Kudrick has been developing his own sink and countertop molds and decorative concrete tools under the brand name Infinicrete, using them regularly in high-profile projects and distributing them through manufacturing companies Cheng Concrete and SureCrete Design Products.
Customers have been able to pick up Kudrick’s one-of-a-kind products in person at Infinicrete’s shop in Randolph, N.J. And now, Infinicrete materials are also available for direct purchase via a new online store at Infinicrete.com.
Infinicrete offers sink molds, edge detail molds for sinks and countertops, tools such as the versatile Drain Boom Jig, and fiber optics materials used to create lighting effects. All of these are designed in-house by Kudrick.
The company also sells precast concrete mixes by Cheng Concrete and SureCrete, as well as dyes, stains, release agents and sealers from a variety of other manufacturers. By launching the company’s online store, Kudrick has brought Infinicrete into the public eye, inviting new customers and setting the stage for company growth.
Kudrick, product manager at Randolph, N.J.-based decorative concrete studio J&M Lifestyles, has more than 20 years of construction experience and is best known for his artistic decorative concrete works, such as fireplace surrounds, kitchen and bath fixtures and molded furniture. His manufacturing background, which includes building machinery and molds in industrial applications, led him to experiment with product development that would eventually become his Infinicrete line.
Infinicrete’s mold products include edge detail molds and accessory molds such as knockouts and flanges, which can be used to change the shape of sink basin drains. Edge detail and accessory molds are sold individually and can be combined with Infinicrete sink molds, giving artisans many design options.
“We like to give people the ability to adapt their molds and get different looks with the edge details,” Kudrick says.
Sink molds are made from fiberglass, and the large, flat areas of the molds are core-reinforced. They’re manufactured with high-quality tooling resins and gel coats, and they come in designs classic and modern, such as the Tribeca Sink (a design that won a project Best of Show in Cheng Concrete’s 2010 Circle of Distinction Design Challenge), a square-shaped basin with four sharp creases that connect each sink corner to a small, square-shaped drain.
The edge detail molds and accessory molds are made from urethane rubber, and edge detail designs range from simple to intricate. For example, the Cove Edge Detail design allows artisans to form a single inverted scallop along a countertop edge, and the Deer Scene design lets customers adorn a 4-inch-high countertop edge with images of deer, trees and mountains. Many edge detail molds, including the Deer Scene, can be stacked with other molds to further design options. The edge detail molds are sold in 10-foot lengths, saving application time and resulting in fewer countertop edge seams.
Scott Reed, a Baton Rouge, La.-based decorative concrete artisan and owner of Cajun Concrete Concepts, recently began using Infinicrete molds for three projects: A horseshoe-shaped bar top at Extra Innings Sports Bar & Grill in Central, La., a Louisiana State University theme bar top at Baton Rouge restaurant Doe’s Eat Place, and an eight-sink bathroom vanity job.
Reed says that so far, he’s very impressed by the durability and design of Infinicrete molds. “I’ve had some experience with other sink molds, and the quality of these fiberglass molds is by far superior to anything I’ve seen,” he says. “The designs are good too, and reflect current market trends.”
Kudrick says the most unique tool offered by Infinicrete is the Drain Boom Jig, an adjustable aluminum support tool that holds drain pipes and fiber optic accessories in place during concrete sink and countertop fabrication, helping artisans achieve perfect alignment and leak-free pipe connections in their finished products.
Another Infinicrete highlight is its selection of fiber optics products, which J&M Lifestyles has incorporated into its projects for years, Kudrick says. The inventory includes illuminating cables, light sources, countertop lighting kits and other tools and accessories. The products can result in dramatic effects, such as with the 96-inch color countertop lighting kit that makes surfaces look like a colorful, twinkling, starry sky.
Infinicrete’s offerings of SureCrete and Cheng Concrete products are vast and include Cheng D-FRC and SureCrete Xtreme precast mixes, as well as SureCrete Chemical Stains and Eco-Stains.
Kudrick plans to make the Infinicrete website not just a store, but an educational resource and online destination for decorative concrete artisans. The site includes “How To” and “Design Ideas” sections, where Kudrick will post photo galleries, instructional videos and useful links.
One of the key selling points for the Infinicrete line is the valuable product-use information and support customers receive when they make a purchase, he says. “We’re not just making a product and then telling you to figure out how to use it. We’ve used these products extensively over the years and have a specific application method for them. The people supporting these products use them themselves, and that means customers will get more out of them.”
Product expansion is now on Kudrick’s mind, and he plans to grow Infinicrete’s inventory by adding new sink molds, more Cheng Concrete products, and concrete stamps, to name just three examples.
www.infinicrete.com
