Long Island Decking Inc.®, with showroom in Oceanside,  and office in West Hampton Beach on the way,  opened its doors for business in April of 1999, bringing owner Jay Oliver's vision to fruition. Oliver says from the get-go, he not only set out to be Long Island’s premier decking company, but also to bring a level of professionalism to the field that he felt was lacking.

Serving both Nassau and Suffolk Counties, Long Island Decking® keeps busy year round, producing about 125 decks annually, ranging from 400 square feet to well over 4000 square feet.

“We’re taking down a lot of existing decks and replacing them with composites,” Oliver explains. “when we remove existing decks, we often also expand them. A lot of people like what they have, they just want it low maintenance, and updated. So we take it out, expand, and put our finishing touches on it.”

Oliver says the jump in the use of composites has been consumer driven.

“The wood decks we’ve done in the last  few years, have all been high end, made of mahogany or ipe,” he explains. “Typically, our clients ask for composites. We mostly use Trex®, it’s what people are asking for.”

In fact, Oliver says Long Island Decking® is the largest Trex® installer on Long Island and fifth in the country.

Over the years, Oliver has listened carefully to customer requests and tailored his business to meet their needs.

Along the way, he has also expanded his repertoire to include architectural and design services, composite maintenance programs, lighting packages, complete outdoor kitchens, pergolas and gazebos, stone deck tiles, awning systems and deck drainage systems, all as well as the obvious--deck installations.

As a third-generation builder, Oliver grew up in the industry, working with his uncle as well as other contractors. While his family focused on general remodeling, Oliver says he was drawn to decking because of his passion for the outdoors and carpentry.

“I’ve watched decking become an industry in its own right, when it used to be an afterthought,” Oliver observes. “Now, there are associations and trade shows dedicated to decking, and it’s not lumped into other trades anymore. There’s more distinction—it’s recognized as a specialty.”

Long Island Decking® has also been recognized, after having been singled out by Sunset Publishing to be included in 2006 as one of only three contractors nationwide in the newest version of The Complete Deck Book.

And it’s no wonder.

Some of their noteworthy projects include a compass rose deck, created with Trex® materials, that includes inlays on a 1,300-square-foot deck on a property on 4.5 acres in Upper Brookville. Or the Woodbury Mack project, some 2,000 square feet of decking that replaced existing decks.

Long Island Decking® works with a team of drafters, designers and computer programmers that handle all aspects of design—even providing 3-D renderings of decks upon request.

It’s that attention to detail that has helped make Long Island Decking® the success it is.

In fact, Oliver says it’s all about the details, such as inlays, hidden fasteners, bull-nosing, multi-color and multi-level curved decks.

Because of those details, the quality of the work they produce and their customer service, Long Island Decking® receives referrals mostly from word of mouth, such as clients telling their friends and family.

Oliver says that Long Island Decking® currently sells more Trex® than three local lumber yards, which helps explain the large showroom facility he currently operates.

“We almost have a lumber yard ourselves,” he laughs.

With an eye toward the future, Oliver says his next move is into retail. Keeping Long Island Decking® as an installer, under the name CJLauren®, Bringing Fine Living Home™, Oliver will soon begin selling accessories—patio furniture, lighting, heaters, grills—basically anything to do with decks once the deck is built.

With excellent customer service and an eye for details, Oliver, Long Island Decking®, and now, CJLauren, are going the distance in the deck industry.