As natural stone is becoming more scarce and prices are going up, cast stone is quickly becoming the material of choice for many builders and masons.

If you are looking for a way to get a piece of the huge construction market, consider manufacturing cast stone.

Not familiar with this product? Cast stone is a very lightweight, very durable concrete product that is cast in molds taken from natural stone. It's used in landscaping and as an interior or exterior wall covering as a substitute for natural stone or brick..

Cast stone, also known as artificial stone or manufactured stone, has several advantages over natural stone or brick as a wall covering.

1. It's more eco-friendly. Even though some environmentalists have issues with cement production, I have a bigger issue with the destruction caused by natural stone collection. As a former natural stone wholesaler, I know firsthand about the destruction caused by those activities.

2. The light weight and uniformity of cast stone give several advantages in time and direct costs. Because of the light weight, there is no need for a footer or base support as there is with natural stone or brick. Cast stone is light enough to stick to the wall with just a coat of mortar on the back! And because this product has a uniformly flat back, installation goes quickly and easily, saving substantially on labor costs and cutting installation times in half or more.

3. Because cast stone is a manufactured product, there are more options available to the consumer. If the desired color isn't already available, the business-savvy manufacturer can custom create any color desired.

While cast stone often costs a bit more than brick or natural stone, the savings is usually realized in reduced labor costs and shorter installation times.

One last advantage of cast stone: even if new home construction drops off drastically, there will always be room for the small scale cast stone manufacturer. When people can't afford new homes, they often remodel and upgrade existing homes. This product is perfect for remodeling since it allows the homeowner to add fireplaces, stone-covered interior walls, etc without having to upgrade the supporting structures.

Making cast stone is one of the few manufacturing operations that is still feasible for the small-scale entrepreneur. Two people can easily make 300-500 square feet of "stone" each day, at a "materials cost" of around 53 cents per square foot. A complete setup can cost less than $50,000, and only needs about 300 square feet of shop space.

When you consider that cast stone retails for $6-11 per square foot, and can go as high as $17 per square foot including installation, you can see that there is an enormous profit potential.

It's also easy to compete with the "big boys" on quality AND price! Creating a more natural looking product takes about 30 seconds more of your time and uses about 3 cents worth of extra material, but it's something that the larger companies don't generally do. Add it to your process, and you won't be able to keep up with the demand.

If you're looking for a high-profit product with long-term growth potential, you could do worse than look at cast stone!

Copyright 2006 by Dave Sharpe Permission to use this article is freely given as long as it remains unchanged and the resource box remains attached.