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Work Space: Concrete Carpenter |
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Written by Erin Frustaci
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Thursday, 24 May 2007 |
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 Gerhard Oehrlich’s Fort Collins home is filled with concrete everything — concrete bowls, concrete bookcases, concrete desks, concrete tables and concrete lamps.
“I first saw this kind of stuff accidentally during a visit to San Francisco,” Oehrlich said in a thick German accent. “I was so amazed by it. What I saw was pure counter tops. I wanted to move a step ahead — why not furniture, shelves, lights, tables and counter tops?”
The 48-year-old civil engineer designs artsy and functional pieces for residential projects all over the world.
Originally from Stuttgart, Germany, Oehrlich has deep roots embedded in concrete.
“My parents, grandparents and parents before them did concrete construction,” he said. “I grew up in the concrete business.”
It took him half a year to develop the perfect mixture. Instead of painting the ordinary gray concrete after it has hardened, Oehrlich mixes in color from the beginning. This way, the color will not chip away.
“Everything is precisely measured,” he said.
The price and maintenance of concrete is comparable to natural stones. However, unlike granite, concrete is not transported over thousands of miles. It’s basically clear water, sand and very fine limestone. In fact, concrete actually gets harder and more durable over the years.
“It’s a new product searching its way inside houses and homes,” Oehrlich said. “It’s still not common. People have to learn, feel and touch.”
Oehrlich’s work can be found in places like Vail, Aspen, Fort Collins, Austria and Germany, to name a few. One of his current projects is a concrete tile floor for a palace in Vienna. He was able to successfully match the color of the stone tub and will create tiles for the 1,500 square foot bathroom floor of the Villa Primavesi.
“You don’t get a chance like that every year,” he said with a smile.
His goal is to continue bringing concrete closer to people with the hope they will enjoy it.
“Concrete is for everybody who is open for something out of the box and a bit modern,” he said.
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VITAL STATS
Name: Gerhard Oehrlich, 46, Fort Collins
Company: Concrete Design, LLC
Title: Owner
How long have you worked there? Since 2003
———
IN HIS WORDS
What makes you get out of bed in the morning?
Concrete. And if you ever lived in southwest Germany, the beautiful weather here. There it is mostly gray and lots of rain. Standing up in the morning when the sun rises in the blue sky makes it really nice.
Did you ever think in a million years you’d work here?
I grew up in the concrete business. It still makes me proud to be a part of building homes for people where they can live and enjoy. That lasts longer than other things. To drive through town and say I was a part of that process is very satisfying.
If you weren’t doing this, what would you do?
Sometimes I’m a bit jealous of architects. I think I would like to become an architect sometimes. They are a step ahead in the design process.
What’s the one thing you wish you could do on the job that you can’t right now?
A big wish would be working without the need of money, just being creative and that money is just somewhere else. You just wouldn’t have to pay any bills. Sometimes money drives you in a direction you don’t want. To create without having the need to sell it — that is a wish. Some wishes never come true.
What’s the biggest payoff in your job?
The biggest benefit for me personally is if the things I deliver and install people like and if they really honestly give me positive feedback. That has more value for me than any money.
What do you do during your breaks?
Ask my wife because I have no breaks. I go either overseas or am searching for new forms and designs, but almost never just sit around or lay on the beach. I’m always doing some kind of activity.
Any interesting anecdotes?
A friend of mine who is a painting artist in Europe searched for a long time for a spot to make his paintings. He asked me, as a technical consultant, to go down to southern France with him to look for a place for him to move. I said, of course I would come with. In the end, he didn’t buy anything and I bought an old shepherd’s barn house with thick stone walls. I now have a little house (accidentally) in South France in Provonce.
What do you do when you’re not at work?
The classic things. I like to ride motorcycles and bicycles. Of course I do a few sporting activities like climbing and hiking. There’s plenty of that stuff here.
What’s one thing about your job you would do, even if you weren’t paid to do it?
I would do it anyway. That’s what I said already. Doing that stuff to see how far I can go with the challenge. There are so many things out there. I’d like to play with all those things. My other big wish is to open a winery and run concrete workshops on the side.
Name one thing in your life that really prepared you for your job.
I would say my dad. He gave me the skills and the patience, especially for the customers.
Are you the boss? Do you think you should be?
No, no, no. I’m not focused on that. Status things are not important. I like to impress myself more with the products.
What do you do when you’re not at work?
The classic things. I like to ride motorcycles and bicycles. Of course I do a few sporting activities like climbing and hiking. There’s plenty of that stuff here.
Pets?
I had one, but after all that traveling, it’s gone. It was a pain to ask for people to take care of it.
Family?
I’m married to my wife Evelyn. I have a daughter from my first relation and two step daughters with Evelyn.
Favorite TV shows.
I don’t watch TV. We don’t even have a TV in the house. It’s a TV free house here.
Movies.
It’s a French movie with Gérard Depardieu.
Books.
“Lord of The Rings”.
What Web sites do you have bookmarked?
A few German news sites like Spiegel.de and web sites about designs of course.
Where do you play?
Here, I enjoy going to Boulder or Denver if I’m in the mood to go to a city. I also go up in the mountains near Horsetooth.
Go out to eat?
I like good Italian food. What’s important is you guys have the best steaks in the world. Once in a while I like a good steak. I enjoy the quality of the steaks here.
Favorite spot?
I have two favorite spots— one spot is here. That’s the point where you drive down I-70 toward I-25 and come over the last hill. The view opens up over plains. You can see all the lights of the city. For most people it’s silly, but every time it impresses me. Besides that, my favorite spot is in Bagnols-en-Foret, where my house is.
What is it about this job that makes it challenging?
The most challenging thing is to bring the ideas of the customers or architects into reality.
How do young/new employees get ahead?
On the career side, if really good you can open your own shop or company and move on to bigger challenges.
What’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever done while at work?
I’m sure I would find something if I searched. You know how that is— you ignore it.
Smartest?
Doing concrete stuff because I like it. With the amount of time in a day invested in work, you should be satisfied with what you do. The smartest thing I’ve done is transformed that to be my own, being creative, making something that lasts and getting nice feedback from customers.
What’s the most unusual thing you’ve ever done to make money?
Nothing big or unusual, since all the stuff I do is usual for me. I was always in that process of building and constructing things.
Things that impress you?
I’m very much impressed by good architecture and design in general.
Things that don’t.
In general if people treat each other not correctly or if they ignore the environment, that makes me really sad.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Do you know of someone with an interesting job? Make him or her a Work Space star in NEXTnc. E-mail Erin Frustaci at
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