Know the limits. As of early Sep

K-Stone Co-Owner and Vice President, Rick Stone

Starting out in the janitorial business concrete or concrete that has flooring in 1997, Rick Stone and his wife, applications previously applied. Dana, moved from Phoenix to San “We used to get a lot of projects where Antonio, started K-Stone and quickly people who were remodeling wanted a landed H-E-B as one of their clients. The nice concrete floor and didn’t want the company then branched into a janitorial hassle of carpet and tile. We would rip it all distribution business. out and polish the concrete and turn old,

“We were cleaning 130 stores a night ugly concrete into something dazzling. for H-E-B and some other grocery chains There is a lot of character in concrete. Why here in town. Do you remember Handy cover up a perfectly good floor with carpet Andy? That is where the management side and tile? of our business comes from. We would “As for new construction, we like to get find the business and then we would find into a project at a particular point before contractors to do the work and we would sheetrock is installed. That way we can give manage the work,” says Stone. the owner a nice clean looking floor with

By 2003, the company evolved once sharp edges. With sheetrock, it is hard to again into the decorative concrete busiget the edges just right,” Stone continues. ness when one of their vendors who Stone adds that the company does made the buffing machines got into very little residential and has noticed the grinding machines. “We got interested in trend in commercial and industrial is that, brought in some of the grinders and leaning towards more matted-finished started doing polished concrete on the concrete. side. Now it has evolved into 80 percent K-Stone is a polished concrete conof our business. Distribution is the other tractor and janitorial supply distributor. 20 percent,” adds Stone. They are HUB, WBE certified and have

As a subcontractor, K-Stone brings been locally owned and operated since life to concrete whether it is freshly laid 1997. -cmw

Dalia and Chris Treviño, Better Bilt LLC owners at the One Twin Oaks Office Building (Photo taken 2010).

In 1992, after 15 years in the heavy strucThe company has built a reputation tural steel industry, Chris Treviño took in the restaurant market for their skills in advantage of a golden opportunity and creating vent hoods of all types, stainless started Better Bilt LLC. He started the steel counter tops and dish tables to company alongside his wife, Dalia. name a few, as well as, providing archi

Working 16-hour days, seven days a tectural design and consulting. week, Chris worked non-stop to move his As one might expect, being a sheet company forward. He worked out of his metal fabricator, Better Bilt LLC has found house with a few pieces of machinery una niche in commercial HVAC supplies til the company moved into its current which includes DX systems, package location with a fully furnished sheet metunits, split systems and chillers. al shop. In Better Bilt’s 28 years in business,

“We grew this company establishing Trevino still marvels the GSA East Travis a great client base. No advertising, just Street Parking Garage as his most memogrowing our client base and taking care rable project. “The size and decorativethat client base,” says Trevino. ness still just stands out to me. It is a

Better Bilt LLC specializes in a variety beautiful parking garage,” Trevino says. of areas. On the ornamental side, they The six-story parking garage was built to specialized in stainless steel, aluminum, complement the Hipolito Garcia Federal copper and brass handrail systems; wall Build and U.S. Courthouse. panels of all kinds and various architecTrevino and his team at Better Bilt tural designs as specified, and they proLLC serve San Antonio and its surroundvide light structural to decorative mild ing areas. Better Bilt LLC is HUB, SBE, MBE steel. and WBE certified. -cmw