When you hear the phrase “asphalt repair,” the environment is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. ?Eric Goldstein would beg to differ.
The principal of Hartsdale-based Black Shield Infrared Seamless Asphalt Repair worked in finance at Morgan Stanley for eight years before starting his own business last fall.
He touts a 25-minute, environmentally friendly asphalt repair as the company”™s crown jewel.
“The truck is completely self-contained,” he said. “An infrared heater is lowered to the ground and between six to 10 minutes, the asphalt warms up to 350 degrees. We rake it, take out the old asphalt and put down the fresh asphalt.”
A roller is used to meld old with new.
“The old fashioned way was cutting it out and carting it to the dump, but the new repair kind of mashes and repairs existing asphalt so there”™s no seam,” he said. “The reason a pothole happens is because water gets under it. So this is a permanent repair.”
Traditionally, spring is the busiest season for Goldstein because of the freezing cycle during the winter.
“The environmental aspect is the fact that you don”™t need four pieces of heavy machinery blocking off a parking lot with asphalt going to landfills,” he said. “We reuse 80 percent of the asphalt that”™s there.”
Goldstein found 95 percent of business stems from commercial landlords of shopping centers and office buildings.
“I had originally priced this to be consistent with the conventional way, but the more I”™m in business, I”™m finding it”™s more cost effective,” he said. “No landlord wants to spend money on a parking lot, they want to put money into their elevators and interiors.”
He charges per job at a daily rate, which varies.
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Tips from The Top
Drastic difference between finance and asphalt repair? “The physical labor. I went from wearing a suit, sitting behind a desk talking on the phone all day to buying a pair of work boots and shoveling asphalt. Part of being a financial adviser is marketing yourself. People who meet me tend to like me and trust me and it”™s a matter of transition from selling a stock or bond to selling a service. I”™m in the process of hiring salespeople.”
Any shock and awe when beginning your startup? “The paperwork and the regulation. The back office stuff. And starting up a company is much more time consuming than I ever thought. Getting your vehicle, the sales tax license, the terminology and the red tape ”¦ it all takes up time.”
