Category: Commercial Flooring Report

 Volume: 53 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

Continuing on to Part II from our last issue of The Commercial Flooring Report on What to Include in a Flooring Specification with the next item, Product Testing. No product should ever be specified for any project without first undergoing a series of tests. The testing should mirror the tests the manufacturer states the product complies with on their samples and in their specifications. Additional tests should also be conducted to determine the performance levels of the products, the structural integrity and the ability of the product to realistically perform as expected for the application and the use it is going to be subjected to.

 Volume: 52 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

We've looked at hundreds of flooring specifications over the years and have found that the information contained in them is very often outdated, poorly researched, and irrelevant to many of the concerns that should be addressed. Not enough thought is given to the downside risks of the project or to the guidelines and pertinent information that should be contained. With the changes that have occurred in the flooring industry over the last few years, which continue at an increasing rate, it is imperative the spec writer be informed and up to date.

 Volume: 51 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

Vinyl flooring is being used and specified more and more. Schools, Hospitals and Health Care facilities are the biggest users of vinyl flooring products but it is also being used extensively in businesses, restaurants, and increasingly in mid-tier hotels and even multi-family housing. Vinyl flooring products have become more beautiful, lend themselves to elaborate design elements and, when properly specified, can perform like a Mack truck. Luxury vinyl tile is likely the hottest flooring material on the market right now. Some of the reasons for vinyl's increasing popularity should be obvious. It is extremely durable, when properly specified and cared for. It won't ugly out like carpet due to matting, crushing, soiling, or any of the other inherent performance factors carpet often experiences.

 Volume: 50 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

This has been a concern for as long as there has been floor covering.

Old materials consisted of dull and lifeless looking hard surface tiles or sheet goods. The old Battleship linoleums, mostly gray in color or hard surface tiles that were brown, reddish brown, black, gray or various shades of non-brilliant looking, unexciting and definitely not fashion forward flooring. Nothing mattered but the performance of the product and the products were so dull that nothing really affected them except for soil and that was hidden, for the most part, by how bland the product was.

 Volume: 49 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

Merchantability for service and fitness for intended purpose of use is a promise, arising by operation of law, that something that is sold will be merchantable and fit for the purpose for which it is sold. An item is deemed merchantable if it is reasonably fit for the ordinary purposes for which such products are manufactured and sold. This is relative in this case to flooring material. The biggest problem in the flooring industry is the wrong product specified or sold for use in the wrong place. All flooring material will not perform satisfactorily in all applications for any number of reasons. Manufacturers and reps don't always know enough about the products and particularly their installation because they don't always know the specific use it is going to be subjected to.

 Volume: 48 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

THE FLOORING DISASTERS: PREVENTION AND RECOVERY webinar, sponsored by Johnsonite, was broadcast on Wednesday, April 4, 2012. The subtitle was: Don't fall victim to a flooring disaster. Keep your floor in top condition with preventative maintenance and create a game plan in case the worst-case scenario strikes.
The Learning Objectives of the webinar were:
[list=1][*]Discover what factors lay the groundwork for an expensive flooring disaster
[*]Understand necessary maintenance
[*]Learn proactive strategies to prevent or mitigate potential problems
[*]Develop a recovery plan to minimize facility downtime if a flooring crisis strikes[/list]

 Volume: 47 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

We are running this article, with additional information, which was originally posted in April of 2011 because of the sheer number of complaints being received for curling and lifting edges on carpet tile. Too many of these problems are being blamed on everything but the carpet tile and we want to set that straight.

 Volume: 46 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

It is with great pride that LGM and Associates congratulates our concrete expert associate, Mr. Peter Craig. Peter is without question the preeminent expert on concrete surface and slab issues that compromise millions of yards of flooring materials and finishes yearly. He has devoted his life's work to testing, teaching and sharing his knowledge of this subject with both the concrete and flooring industries. Peter conducts the LGM Concrete and Moisture seminar and travels the country, nearly non-stop, testing and working on concrete and flooring issues. He is another reason why LGM and Associates are the flooring experts with the answers.

 Volume: 45 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

The topic of moisture in substrates may seem like beating a dead horse but I can assure you this horse is far from dead. As a matter of fact it would be better to think of this horse as a thoroughbred making a run at the Triple Crown.

 Volume: 44 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

The world isn't ending after all. Business in many parts of the country is picking up. The Boston and Washington, DC markets are seeing steady increases in building as are many other large and small cities in the country. Conversations with clients around the country whether, architects, general contractors or flooring contractors have them seeing a return to where they were before the down turn or up significantly. One general contractor has hired over 100 people in the last year, another over 15 in the last six months, another architectural firm has hired 30 new people. Another general contractor is trying to hire people but can't find any that want to work, which is another dilemma. What's accounting for this and why?

 Volume: 43 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

Having problems with flooring materials, sundries and substrates is an everyday occurrence. Some problems are easy to determine but others may be more complex than a simple cursory observation will reveal. For almost every problem that exists, with any flooring material, there is a test which will determine if who's being exhibited is a defect in the product or caused by some other influence. Sometimes it may be that a test will reveal the wrong product was used for a particular application or that, believe it or not, a product was incorrectly pulled and shipped. How are you to know?

 Volume: 42 |  Issue: 1 |  Download

In this article, when woven carpet is referred to, we are talking about Axminster and Wilton products. Woven Axminster and Wilton carpet is the Rolls Royce of the carpet industry. It is the oldest form of machine made broadloom carpet.