How to Add Microcement to Your Contracting Business
Microcement is growing in the US construction market, increasingly specified across residential and commercial projects for floors, walls, bathrooms, exteriors, and architectural features.
For contractors already experienced in surface preparation, trowel-applied finishes, decorative concrete, plastering, coatings, or remodeling, becoming a microcement installer can open the door to an entirely new category of projects.
But adding microcement to your contracting business involves more than skill with a trowel. Here's what to consider before offering it to your clients.
Read Next: Check out our Microcement Hub for more product information.
1. Understand Where Microcement Fits Into Your Existing Services
One of the first questions to ask is whether microcement complements the work you're already doing. Microcement can be particularly relevant for:
Decorative concrete contractors
Remodelers and renovation contractors
Flooring professionals
Surface coating professionals
Plaster and specialty finish applicators
Tile and bathroom ontractors
General contractors looking to expand their finishing capabilities
For these professionals, microcement can be a natural extension of an existing service offering because it combines characteristics of several familiar surface materials while opening up new possibilities.
SEMCO X-Bond is a thin, polymer-modified cementitious finish applied at approximately 1/8 inch, but its minimal thickness doesn’t mean compromising on performance. The polymer technology provides greater flexibility and durability than traditional cement-based plasters, allowing the system to perform across floors, walls, wet areas, exteriors, and other demanding applications. It can also be applied over a wide range of correctly prepared existing substrates, giving contractors the opportunity to take on resurfacing projects without the weight, thickness, or demolition requirements associated with many traditional materials.
2. Learn the System, Not Just the Finish
Beneath the surface, there’s an entire system working together to ensure a microcement finish is strong, durable, and performs long-term.
Successful microcement installation depends on understanding the entire system, from assessing the substrate and completing the correct preparation through to application and sealing.
Depending on the project, this can involve:
Assessing substrate suitability and stability
Correctly preparing the existing surface
Addressing cracks, movement or other substrate issues
Incorporating waterproofing or anti-fracture systems where required
Mixing and applying the microcement correctly
Developing the required trowel technique
Working around edges, transitions and architectural details
Applying the appropriate sealer system
The quality of a microcement project starts well before the decorative finish is applied. That's why familiarity with the complete surfacing process is important when adding the service to your business. This brings us to…
3. Learn How to Assess Existing Surfaces
Not every project starts with a fresh cement board or pristine concrete surface.
In remodeling, you're often dealing with existing tile, concrete, drywall, masonry and other previously finished surfaces. Knowing whether those surfaces can be resurfaced — and what preparation they require — is an important part of offering microcement professionally.
The condition and stability of the substrate matter.
Microcement should not be treated as a way to disguise structural problems underneath a surface. Existing movement, moisture issues, unstable substrates and significant cracking need to be properly assessed and addressed before the decorative system is installed.
You need to be able to identify when a project is suitable for resurfacing, when additional preparation is required, and how to perform these works.
Read More: Microcement Resurfacing
4. Understand the Range of Projects You Can Take On
One of the biggest advantages of adding microcement to your contracting business is its versatility.
Rather than being limited to one application, X-Bond Microcement can be used across a wide variety of interior and exterior surfaces.
Potential projects include:
Residential and commercial floors
Interior and exterior walls
Bathrooms and showers
Kitchen surfaces and architectural features
Staircases
Fireplace surrounds
Retail and hospitality spaces
Built-in furniture and joinery
Existing tile and concrete resurfacing
Exterior surfaces e.g. facades, patios, and pools
Its thin application also makes it possible to finish forms and surfaces that would be difficult to achieve using poured concrete or fabricated stone.
For tilers, painters, and concreters in particular, that versatility means you gain access to a broader range of potential projects.
5. Don't Underestimate the Design Side
Installing microcement isn't purely technical. Because the finish is created by hand, clients can make decisions around color, texture and the amount of tonal variation they want to see.
This gives contractors an opportunity to offer something more artisanal that sits somewhere between construction and craftsmanship.
Instead of simply choosing a manufactured tile or slab, clients are commissioning a finish created specifically for their space. Understanding how to communicate the natural variation of a hand-troweled material — and set expectations before installation — is an important part of delivering a successful project.
Read Next: A Guide to the X-Bond Microcement Finishes
6. Consider the Business Opportunity, Not Just the Product
Before adding any new service, contractors should consider how it fits into the wider business.
Ask:
Who are your existing clients?
Could you offer microcement to customers already coming to you for remodeling, flooring, decorative concrete or surface finishing?
What types of projects are common in your market?
Areas with high levels of remodeling, custom residential construction, hospitality development or design-led commercial work may offer particularly strong opportunities.
Can it increase the scope of projects you already win?
Adding a specialist finish can allow you to capture work that would otherwise need to be subcontracted or referred elsewhere.
How will you show clients what is possible?
Samples, previous projects, color selections and a strong understanding of the system can all make it easier to introduce a less familiar material to clients.
The goal isn't simply to add another product to your list. It's to develop a service you can confidently specify, quote and install.
Is Microcement a Good Addition to Your Contracting Business?
For the right contractor, it can be. Microcement offers a way to expand into high-end and scientifically advanced decorative surfaces without being restricted to a single room, substrate or project type. The same system can take you from a residential remodel to a retail floor, custom fireplace, exterior surface or seamless bathroom.
More importantly, it can build on capabilities you already have.
If you're experienced in construction, remodeling, decorative concrete or specialist surface finishes and want to expand the types of projects you can offer your clients, X-Bond Microcement is a skill worth adding to your toolkit.
Interested in becoming an X-Bond applicator? Contact SEMCO to learn more about contractor support, products and trade opportunities in the USA.