30 Years of Waterjet Fabrication in Retail – Welcoming Customers in Retail Spaces

Posted by Jim Belilove on

WELCOMING RETAIL SPACES

The goal of retail design is to make customers feel welcome and inspired by surroundings that make it interesting, pleasant and convenient to shop.

Branded store entrances, nicely-designed plazas and store interiors that resonate with the merchandise are key advantages of waterjet-fabricated retail spaces.

For over 30 years, thousands of malls and stores coast-to-coast have been enhanced with floor patterns from Creative Edge Master Shop.

CLICK HERE to see AWESOME Retail Projects!

For help with your special project: quotes, design, sourcing, management or inspiration, feel free to contact us.

Jim and Ginger Bellilove
Principals
Cell: (641) 919-7386
Office: (641) 472-8145
SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Bostik’s Signature Spaces™ Series of Design Competitions: The Art of Stone Flooring™ Design Contest

Posted by Jim Belilove on

Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas Design Contest

This is a unique design opportunity to create a 10’ diameter marble floor medallion/mural for the lobby of the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. This floor sees over 20,000 visitors per day in one of the most famous hotels in the world. The winning design will be chosen by a panel of judges and celebrated at a special rewards ceremony and industry networking event inside a premier nightclub in the Bellagio. Bostik, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of adhesives for building construction is the sponsor of this competition. Bostik is partnering with MGM Resorts International (the owner of the Bellagio), Creative Edge Master Shop (the waterjet firm producing the winning design) and the NTCA (National Tile Contractors Assoc.)

Contest Guidelines:

This is a Request for Proposals. Artists should submit a design (or multiple designs) for a medallion/mural in a circular space, 10 feet in diameter. The winning design must fit into a 10’ diameter, marble, floor medallion/mural for the lobby of the Bellagio Hotel in Vegas.” pre-cut, 10’ diameter area which resides amidst a field of marble tile now. The material to be used will be marble. It will be cut using the waterjet process of Creative Edge Master Shop. The design must work within the space of the Bellagio lobby, an old world, classic Italian architecture and design.

Media: Marble will be used and will be waterjet cut. The color pallet will be provided soon after determination by MGM design staff.

Waterjet is incredibly versatile and can be used to cut almost any shape or design you can imagine. This is managed by tracing your design in CAD and converting it to vector line work that the machine can be programmed to follow. Then that program is given to the machine to cut any type of material to the tightest tolerances using 50,000 psi of a water/abrasive mixture.

Things to keep in mind while designing:

  • Define your lines clearly. Every line is a precise cut – sketchy lines may be difficult to interpret.
  • Avoid thin “feathery” design lines. Even though any material can be cut by waterjet – some materials do not hold up to a lot of thin internal cuts.
  • Keep in mind that your design will be “broken up” into roughly 3’ x 3’ sections to keep them manageable while installing. We will add “break up lines” where needed.Feel free to explore your creative side with this technology.
Examples of stone floors for the Art of Stone Flooring™ Design Contest
The Art of Stone Flooring™ Design Contest

If you have any questions about materials, mechanics or design, please call Travis Hunt at Creative Edge Master Shop: 641-233-7171.

How to enter and qualify:

During the contest period, entrants must:

  • Go to the contest page:bostik.com/us/ArtOfStone to download project renderings and specifications for stone floor entry to be submitted into the Contest.
  • Using supplied project renderings and specifications, design and specify a creative, one-of-a-kind stone mural floor.
  • Go to the Contest page: bostik.com/us/ArtOfStone and click-through page link taking the entrant directly to the sign up and submittal page.
  • Submit design in a PDF along with a valid email address and all of the required contact information. There is no limit to the number of entries per person, but each design must be submitted separately. By entering this Contest, entrants agree that they shall not be entitled to see any entry scores, and all scores and decisions relating to the Contest shall be determined in the sole and complete discretion of the judges and shall be final. All submissions and entries will not be returned and the winning submission will be come the sole and complete property of sponsors.
Contact: Codaworx
Deadline to submit: Feb. 28, 2018 3pm Central Standard time (-6 GMT)
SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Nachusa Grasslands Waterjet fabricated Corten Steel animals and plant life

Posted by Jim Belilove on

Working as a team with Signature Design and Engraphix,  Creative Edge fabricated all-metal animals and plants from corten steel and brass to enhance the newly built educational plaza for The Nature Conservancy. Corten is a self-oxidizing metal which weathers well and is ideal for outdoor projects. Brass was integrated into the design as a further enhancement. Our waterjet technology was programmed to cut holes in the corten steel and each piece of brass was fastened to the steel by using a stud and nut. The completed pieces of corten and brass were then welded to the stainless steel panels.

Bison

 

Eastern Cottontail (rabbit)

 

Eastern Cottontail (rabbit)

 

native bird – Nachusua Grasslands

 

Pale Purple Coneflower

 

Welcome Sign Nachusua Grassland

 

VISIT…

The Nachusa Grasslands tall grass prairie conservancy located near Franklin Grove in Lee County, Illinois. It is operated by the Nature Conservancy.The 3,600-acre Nachusa Grasslands preserve consists of large remnant prairie, woodlands, and wetlands being reconnected through habitat restoration to create one of the largest and most biologically diverse grasslands in Illinois.

Working hand–in–hand with Conservancy staff, a dynamic community of volunteer stewards collect and plant seeds, manage invasive species, repair wetlands, and conduct controlled burns in order to preserve, protect, and share this precious endangered ecosystem.

Construction on our new Nachusa Visitor Center has been completed (fall 2017) come out for a visit

Nachusua Grassland Conservancy visitors center
SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Canyon of Heroes in New York City, thermal granite pavers marking Ticker Tape Parades.

Posted by Jim Belilove on

A ticker tape parade down Broadway Avenue in New York City is one of the greatest honors that can be bestowed on a hero. Dale Travis & Associates have managed the project for at least 15 years for the Alliance of Downtown New York.  Creative Edge Master Shop manufactured durable granite strips to memorialize each Manhattan ticker tape parade. Installed along the ticker tape parade route in the financial district, this area is called the Canyon of Heroes. The artwork sustains the memory of these historical celebrations.

Granite Paver for Anders & Capt. James A. Lovell ticker tape Parade

 

The many parades since 1886 have honored returning armies, foreign heads of state, kings and queens, religious leaders, explorers, astronauts, artists and the New York Yankees just name a few. Together these parades and their stories represent a chronicle of our era.

canyon of heroes
New York City 150th anniversary

All along this four-mile route known as the Canyon of Heroes, embedded in the sidewalks, are 3 inch thick granite plaques inlaid with stainless steel letters. They show the name of the honoree, date and purpose of parade. Some examples of these 200+ inlays include:

The first ticker tape parade was held in 1886 following the dedication of the Statue of Liberty.
October 1, 1953 | Jose Antonio Remon, President of Panama
March 1, 1955 | New York Chapter of the American Red Cross to Kick -Off Their 1955 Fund-Raising Campaign
June 10, 1991 | Persian Gulf War Veterans
February 7, 2012 | New York Giants, SuperBowl XLVI Champions
A sampling of ticker tape parade honorees includes:
Buzz Aldrin returning from the dark side of the moon 1970
Fifth Army of the United States returning from Germany, 1945
Charles Lindbergh’s trans-Atlantic flight
Gertrude Ederle swimming the English Channel

For a complete list of the Ticker Tape Parades please visit this website: Ticker Tape Parades, New York City

 

Canyon of Heroes
Granite, Metal Pavers Ticker Tape Parade

 

 

SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Stone Interpretive Displays Along the Pacific Coast Highway A Durable, Permanent Solution

Posted by Jim Belilove on

You’re driving down the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), which hugs the dramatic California coastline near the Oregon border, to the sun-drenched beaches of San Diego.

And, as happens on any road trip with world-class views beckoning, you eventually stop at an overlook, in this case the Julia Pfeiffer Burns Vista Point in Monterey County near Big Sur. This is where your already awesome trip suddenly gets better. As you look up to gaze at a giant bird gliding far above, you look down and see a life-size, biologically correct stone mosaic of the iconic California condor at your feet. Suddenly you know you’ve just glimpsed the condor in its natural habitat.

A few steps away, you look down and see another life-size replica of a 50-foot gray whale with her baby, also rendered in subtle shades of natural granite, inlaid into the pavement. And if you’re lucky, as you turn to the sea you’ll spot one of hundreds of gray whales that swim along the shore in this area every year.

It doesn’t end there. As you keep driving down the Pacific Coast Highway between Santa Cruz and Santa Barbara, you will be treated to seven different vista points, each with multiple interpretive displays to inform and inspire you about the wildlife, natural landmarks, and history of the local area.

You never knew an overlook could be so inspiring. California Coast
How these beautiful interpretive displays of art and nature came about is a story of extraordinary vision and teamwork that involved the California DOT (Caltrans) landscape architects, field biologists, and a small but internationally renowned waterjet company based in Iowa, called Creative Edge.
Creative Edge Master Shop became involved when California DOT (Caltran) contracted them to create the design, artwork, and installation for the interpretive stone mosaics of four different native animals-a California condor, a gray whale, a sea otter and a California brown bear-in three different vista points along and near the Pacific Coast Highway.
SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail
20171026_221153

Fundidora Park , Monterrey Mexico

Posted by Jim Belilove on
Bostik, Inc., a world leader in specialty adhesives and installation systems for building construction, recently announced the winner of the Bostik Mexico Mural Competition/Pro Category in typical grand fashion. Ten of Mexico’s most well-known architectural designers were commissioned to design a unique stone mural, one of which to be selected as Grand Prize Winner by a panel of industry-specific judges. The winning design would be cut and fabricated by Creative Edge Master Shop, the firm that first harnessed the capabilities of high-pressure waterjet technology to cut, fabricate and deliver unique architectural projects. Stone material, provided by NuWa Stone, would consist of stunning marbles, granites, lava stones and basalts. Ultimately, this imposing 30′ x 30′ tour de force would be installed in Monterrey, Mexico’s Fundidora Park as a ventilated façade on the wall of a massive, defunct foundry.
Designed by competition winner, architect Tomás Güereña, the Grand Prize mural is an interpretation of the evolution/transformation of the former Steel and Foundry Company of Monterrey into Fundidora Park, a highly popular public venue and site of Latin America’s foremost Museum of Industrial Archeology.
“The mural was bonded and installed with Bostik’s high-performance technology, Panel Tack™, allowing us to quickly transform an old foundry wall into a modern, masterpiece-quality work of art,” exclaimed Daniel Sanchez, Bostik Mexicana’s National Sales Manager, Consumer & Construction Business Unit , who presided over the mural’s unveiling as Master of Ceremonies to the nearly 100 industry professionals who attended.
Creative Edge President/Founder Jim Belilove added, “Over 2,000 pieces of NuWa’s stone material were individually precision-cut by our computer-driven waterjet systems. Tolerances were extremely tight for a project of this magnitude. In most cases, joints were 1/16th of an inch or less! The entire mural was put together using Bostik installation materials. I cannot imagine a better product line to use for an undertaking such as our Monterrey mural.”
Gracie Morris, President/CEO of then stated, “NuWa Stone was proud to partner with Bostik and Creative Edge to co-sponsor this latest installation of the stone-art contest in the beautiful city of Monterrey. The entire experience was seamlessly delivered and successfully executed from beginning to end, thanks to the wonderful team at Bostik. The opportunity not only allowed NuWa Stone to engage with local designers and architects in Mexico, but also to be a part of the winning artist’s vision through the use of natural stone.”
After the unveiling presentation, all attendees were invited to an upscale, lavish hospitality event right inside the former Steel and Foundry Company of Monterrey, hosted by Bostik. “We’re highly focused on building our brand throughout the Americas,” declared Scott Banda, Bostik’s Director of Marketing and Business Development. “This is a very ‘hot’ construction region, which currently is burgeoning with both new construction and high-end renovation. Mexico’s construction industry is very focused on using the most updated, specialty installation materials. As a result of that, we’re establishing legions of new and mutually beneficial partnerships throughout this part of the world.”
About Bostik, Inc.
Bostik is a leading global adhesive specialist in industrial, construction and consumer markets. For more than a century, it has been developing innovative adhesive solutions that are smarter and more adaptive to the forces that shape daily lives. From cradle to grave, from home to office, Bostik’s smart adhesives can be found everywhere. With annual sales of €1.6 billion, the company employs 4,900 people and has a presence in more than 50 countries. Bostik is a company of Arkema.

 

SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail
20150829_113410_00002 _1_

LABYRINTHS by Creative Edge Master Shop

Posted by Jim Belilove on

Creative Edge fabricates Labyrinths from any floor covering material from thermal granite pavers to linoleum sheet goods. Interior and Exterior. Ancient and Modern designs.

Labyrinth – Grace Episcopal Church – Exact Replica of Chartres Cathedral, France

  • Client: Grace Episcopal Church
  • Location: St Helena California
  • Material: Granite Pavers
  • Date:  2015
Grace Episcopal Church – Labyrinth

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARPIjlP6BkQ

 

Labyrinth – VCT

In English, the term labyrinth is generally synonymous with maze. As a result of the long history of unicursal representation of the mythological Labyrinth, however, many contemporary scholars and enthusiasts observe a distinction between the two. In this specialized usage maze refers to a complex branching multicursal puzzle with choices of path and direction, While a Unicursal labyrinth has only a single path to the center. A labyrinth in this sense has an unambiguous route to the center and back and presents no navigational challenge.
Vinyl Labyrinth – factory Creative Edge Master Shop

.

Labyrinth, Vinyl – factory Jim & Ginger Belilove
SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail
20150803_170521_05404

Churches, Cathedrals & Temples

Posted by Jim Belilove on

Mary Queen of the Universe

Beautifully design medallions to enhance the main aisle and sanctuary of  Mary Queen of the Universe medallions are different, they have a special symbol and or a religious scripture.
Medallions are waterjet fabricated by Creative Edge Master Shop. The materials used are marble and are hand selected by our designers to give each piece a glorious completed look.Material used to complete these medallions are: inca gold, crema marfil, french vanilla, rosa laguna, grigio light, Jerusalem gold, emperador light and emperador dark.

20150803_170521_05404
TEMPLE – BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir
The size of mandirs vary from small, simple shrines to elaborate stone edifices. BAPS mandirs are traditionally categorized as either ‘shikharbadhha mandirs’ or ‘hari mandirs’. Shikharbadhha mandirs are built largely of stone and signature architectural pinnacles whereas hari mandirs are built using modern materials such as steel, concrete, cement.
Creative Edge Master shop was commissioned to complete 11 wall murals, the detailing on each piece is very complex, almost life like. A very large flooring mural/medallion as seen in the photos was designed and made out of marble and semi precious stones.
Saint Wenceslaus Church Dickinson North Dakota
The project encompassed ten medallions. Seven represent the Cardinal and eccesiatial virtues of the Catholic Church; Hope, Faith, Love, Charity, Fortitude, Prudence and Humility. Each medallion has a meaning to Msgr . Patrick A. Schumacher, STL and the St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church. He an the Artist spent time working with each other to make artwork and stone choices. Bronze was also used in the designs to accent the marble choices.
One medallion was for the official emblem of St. Wenceslaus, two medallions incorporate apiece of stone that Msgr. Schumacher brought back from the Vatican himself (white onyx) The piece was carefully sliced in half and polished. The artist designed a medallion to go around the pieces. Those two pieces are inscribed Basilica Vaticana e pavimento. (Meaning: Roman Vatican ground/floor tile). They were accented in bronze and emperador light and rosso laguna.
Testimony:
As a priest who had oversight of two church reconstruction projects within five years, I became fascinated with the work of Creative Edge during the planning of my latest project. The professionals at Creative Edge are extraordinary in what they do and tremendous people, as I built relationships with them. My fascination in their work lead me to personally visit their operations in Fairfield, Iowa. Their facility is amazing and their products everlasting. From initial design work to final installation, I couldn’t be more pleased in the success they brought to my efforts.
Msgr. Schumacher
St. Wenceslaus
SUFISM REORIENTATED
The 66,500 square foot Sanctuary is circular in nature.The center of the Sanctuary features a 25-foot symbolic emblem. Made by Creative Edge Master Shop from marble, brass, bronze and gold infused ceramic tile, the inlaid feature expresses the group’s spiritual ideals and shows symbols for religions worldwide. Made in 50 segments in Creative Edge Master Shop’s facility in Fairfield Iowa, the marble/metal work was transported to Walnut Creek and then installed by Cleveland Marble.
SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail
Frank-Lloyd-Wright-SpringsLyre-featured-image

Creative Edge Master Shop Announces Licensing Agreement with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation

Posted by Jim Belilove on

FAIRFIELD, IOWA (PRWEB) FEBRUARY 26, 2016

Creative Edge Master Shop, the largest and most experienced fabricator of architectural materials using waterjet technology, has announced a new licensing agreement with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. The agreement authorizes Creative Edge to interpret distinctive designs from the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation’s extensive archives in stone, terrazzo and metal materials for residential and commercial hard surface flooring

Creative Edge Master Shop Announces Licensing Agreement with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation

Frank-Lloyd-Wright-Designs-1600_0000_Ragtime Optics
Springs Lyre
Frank-Lloyd-Wright-Designs-1600_0004_March Balloons
Frank-Lloyd-Wright-Designs-1600_0001_Geneva Tulip
Hollywood Fleurette
SHARING
Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedinmail