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 Volume: 4 |  Issue: 5 |  Download

Patterned carpet now accounts for over 90% of commercial carpet installations, especially in high profile locations. The broad array of available styles and customized treatments defies description. Designers and facility managers know that patterned carpet has practical and aesthetic benefits.

 Volume: 4 |  Issue: 4 |  Download

Imagine being one of the unlucky millions of people caught in the great blackout of 2003 in New York City. While many of you watched the evening news with interest, those experiencing the power outage faced emotional panic, plus the risk of personal injury in pitch-black hallways and elevators.

Considering that slip and fall injuries in the workplace alone are responsible for almost $5 billion dollars in wage replacement and medical payments, the additional costs for injuries in mercantile centers, hotels, and entertainment complexes caused by natural and unatural disasters makes one pause to think.

 Volume: 4 |  Issue: 3 |  Download

Wood has been a favored interior finish for generations. In commercial environments, this has been a love/hate relationship. Love the look — hate the maintenance and moisture issues. Those concerns can be put to rest, thanks to innovations in hardwood construction plus the introduction of laminate flooring. These products feature great aesthetics with superior physical performance and easy maintenance.

 Volume: 2 |  Issue: 4 |  Download

A Floor For The Ages

Visit ancient Rome and you'll see ceramic tile in ruins ranging from servant homes to noble estates. Natural ceramic tile was the flooring medium used for the ordinary to the extraordinary. For centuries, ceramic tile floors played the dual roles of design and durability. Amazingly, many of these floors still retain their color and designs, even though the rest of the building has deteriorated. Today, aesthetics and functional benefits are still the key reasons behind ceramic's popularity. Ceramic tile is the floor for you if you're looking for style that never goes out of fashion, versatile colors and designs, installation pattern options, unsurpassed durability and easy maintenance.

 Volume: 4 |  Issue: 2 |  Download

Without a doubt, it is simpler, faster and more cost effective to install new flooring under office systems using a professional lift system than to do the same job by dismantling and reassembling furniture, using jerry rigged tools not designed for the job and employing extra labor. And yet, a surprising number of facility managers either don't know about, or don't take advantage of flooring companies that use today's professional lift systems.

 Volume: 1 |  Issue: 6 |  Download

Confused About "Green?" — You're Not Alone!

One of the hottest topics, if not THE topic of the new millennium for the design and build industry is "green." Specifiers, facility managers, building owners and building occupants are demanding green buildings, green products, green construction methods, and green renovation and demolition. A heightened sense of environmental awareness for future generations is driving this desire to reduce the impact of man-made buildings on the natural environment.

 Volume: 4 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

The Grand Ballroom at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Cancun, Mexico, was aglow under thousands of twinkling starlights as StarNet® members, vendors and guests gathered for their annual celebratory banquet this past April. The dinner marked an occasion the attendees look forward to every year — the Design Competition Awards.

The evening capped days of business sessions, a trade fair and socializing that were as relaxed and friendly as Cancun's beaches.

 Volume: 2 |  Issue: 3 |  Download

Here's a subject that is as relevant and topical today as it was when StarNet first covered it in "Carpeting Without A Professional" in StarLog Volume 1, Issue 4, published in 1999. StarNet members consistently rank that newsletter as one of the most requested of all StarLogs. We've received many requests to revise the original newsletter with updates on the costs and complications. So, we'd like to take this opportunity to reintroduce this important topic to StarNet member customers.

 Volume: 2 |  Issue: 2 |  Download

No matter what floorcovering you select, the key to a great installation lies beneath the surface.

Proper substrate preparation creates the foundation for floors that look great and perform well. Taking short cuts with patches that repair substrate damage and imperfections, and with levelers that create smooth, flat surfaces, invites costly and unsightly installation issues and failures.

 Volume: 2 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

[b]One Size Does Not Fit All[/b]

The majority of commercial floor coverings are designed to meet the general needs of the floored space. They are styled and manufactured to be aesthetically pleasing, durable and easy to maintain. But the very nature of commercial interiors, and the activities that happen in these spaces, has given rise to a new category of floor coverings — specialty floors. These products have enhanced physical characteristics and unique properties to fulfill the needs of special spaces and niche areas. Specialty floors offer value-added features and benefits for spaces where general floor coverings fall short on required or desired performance.

 Volume: 1 |  Issue: 5 |  Download

A Fluid Situation
Moisture in concrete substrates is a leading cause of flooring failure, costing billions of dollars annually in damage, downtime, repair and replacement. You might think this problem occurs primarily in humid climates, or in geographies with a high water table.

But moisture problems are much more widespread–and the problem is growing.

 Volume: 1 |  Issue: 4 |  Download

It may seem logical that purchasing carpet by itself, as opposed to through a qualified flooring professional, would result in a lower cost. However, carpet is not a stand-alone product. There are many additional services and expenses required to complete an installation project properly. A lower price does not necessarily mean a lower cost.

A recent national survey confirmed the increased expense of carpet as an exclusive purchase and explored the origins of these costs. The survey examined several components of carpet installation ranging from material price to management time to simple cost per square yard. The following table details these elements based on an average installation of 1, 000 square yards. The resulting cost increase was between $3. 55 and $7. 21 per square yard.