Coverings · To restore life to your floor, you have another option besides sanding, replacing or just covering the wood. Try MAPEI’s new Ultracoat® ReNewIt™ products, which

CoveringsCANADA’S FLOORCOVERING MAGAZINE November/December 2016

YOUR NIGHT AT TISE: CANADA NIGHT

SAFEGUARDS FOR BUYING COMMERCIAL CONDO SPACE

INSTALLATION Q&A ROUNDUP

THEN-AND-NOW Montreal heritage bank updatePage 34

Large Format Tile migrates from floors to walls and countertops, bringing a whole new array of challenges and opportunities

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YOUR FLOORING, STONE & TILE INDUSTRY EVENTGLOBAL

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4 November/December 2016

ISSN 0848-8339PUBLICATIONS MAIL SALES AGREEMENT #41203050 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO:Coverings C/O 365 EVANS AVENUE, STE #L10 TORONTO, ON M8Z 1K2

Coverings is published six times annually, Jan./Feb., Mar./Apr., May/June, July/Aug., Sept./Oct. and Nov./Dec., for Canada’s floorcovering industry. Subscriptions are free to qualified participants in Canada’s floorcovering industry. Subscribe at www.coveringscanada.ca. Readers from outside Canada may purchase subscriptons for $55 Cdn. For subscription inquiries, e-mail [email protected] or fax 1-866-698-9061

Published by W.I. Media Inc., Box 84 Cheltenham, Caledon, ON L7C 3L7

© 2016 by W.I. Media Inc. All rights reserved. W. I. Media Inc. and Coverings disclaim any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or currency of the contents of this publication and disclaims all liability in respect to the results of any action taken or not taken in reliance upon information in this publication. The opinions of the columnists and writers are their own and are in no way influenced by or representative of the opinions of Coverings or W.I. Media Inc.

Kerry Knudsen Editor and [email protected]

Steve King Associate [email protected]

Mike Edwards Contributing [email protected]

Lee Ann Knudsen Art [email protected]

nsGraphic Design [email protected]

Omni Data Services [email protected]

Cover: Adrien Williams

November/December 2016 Vol. 41, No. 6www.coveringscanada.ca

CoveringsCANADA’S FLOORCOVERING MAGAZINE November/December 2016

YOUR NIGHT AT TISE: CANADA NIGHT

SAFEGUARDS FOR BUYING COMMERCIAL CONDO SPACE

INSTALLATION Q&A ROUNDUP

THEN-AND-NOW Montreal heritage bank updatePage 34

Large Format Tile migrates from floors to walls and countertops, bringing a whole new array of challenges and opportunities

LeverageLFTLarge Format Tile migrates from floors to walls and countertops, bringing a whole new array of challenges and opportunities


2012

Features 8 Large format tile renaissance

LFTs are migrating from floors to walls and countertops, bringing a whole new array of challenges and opportunities.

31 Viva Las VegasThe International Surface Event will have its second annual Canada Night networking event in January — just for us Canadians.

6 CommentaryOffended? You may want to go take a long walk (hike).

12 NewsMohawk countertops expansion; second GTA showroom for M S International; Promotions at Stevens Omni; Beauflor adds eastern Canada distribution.

20 DesignLike crops, the fall is a time to harvest new design ideas.

21 LawPurchasing tips for commercial or industrial condos.

24 InstallationQ&A survey tackles lauan plywood underlayment, hollow sounds coming from tile floors, carpet seam gaps and moisture measurement when gluing LVT.

26 ShowsPut on your design hats and see IIDEX 2016 in Toronto.

27 ProductsDry-cut tile saw introduced; stone and tile uncoupling membrane system; geometric tile with carpet patterns; snappy one-piece edge leveler; ceramic tiles evoke two-tone carpet; no-wire embedded in-floor warming.

32 Bullets 33 Events and Advertisers 34 Then-and-now

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AS I WRITE THIS TODAY, THE SUN is shining and the leaves are glowing in the river valley. Too nice a day to work, but I’m addicted.

19.2 million hits can’t be wrong...

Right to offend

COMMENTARY

come from, anyway, and what is its effect on business?I think the first point that needs addressing is that it comes

from nowhere, exactly. If you read such things as our Charter of Rights and Freedoms, you will not find it. There is, of course, a right to freedom for the press (which has proven dangerous). Interestingly, the only reason the press needs its rights memori-alized in Law is to protect its right to give offence. If it does not offend, no protection is needed. Nobody needs protection from a whipped puppy (no offence to whipped puppies intended).

Another question is about Levant. I don’t read The Rebel. Never have. However, doesn’t it seem weird that Canada would allow the UN to bar the Canadian press (not the CP Canadian Press: the small-p Canadian press) from covering UN activities? After all, the UN seems to be falling all over itself to give free-doms to trees and rocks….

Speaking of rights, the UN’s Human Rights Council includes as members China, Congo, Cuba, Ecuador, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Ara-bia, Venezuela, Vietnam and so on…. Is there anybody on earth that does not know Saudi Arabia’s record on human rights? If not, you don’t need me or the press. Just type in Human Rights Saudi Arabia and read any of the 19.2 million results.

I’m offended. So who cares? Nobody. Maybe I could get some attention if I point out that both the Red and Green lines discriminate against people with hemorrhoids with their hard seats and against people with spinal stenosis with their hand rails. Then there are those people that have both.

Business consequences for offendedness? Sure. They are showing up increasingly in costs of compliance, indirectly, and in boycotts, demonstrations and vandalism, directly.

Actually, I can tell you exactly who is behind the offended-ness movement, but it will take a few more words and this space is used up. I will set up the whole article in the next issue of the Coverings e-letter, coming up in three weeks. If you aren’t signed up, you can do so at www.coveringscanada.ca. The e-letter, btw, is international, while the magazine is not. I think you will like it. The perpetrators of offendedness may not.

Comment at www.coveringscanada.ca

By the time this hits your mailbox, the last presi-dential debate and the World Series will all be over, and

the Americans will be stewing over polls and scandals. C’est la vie.

Some (most?) of you received your monthly Coverings e-letter last (to me) week. It always is mailed on the second Tuesday or Wednesday of each month. If you don’t receive it, you should consider it. We never sell or dis-tribute your contact information, and we only send it once a month with the reservation that we may send an inter-im letter if something big needs to be

reported. I think we have done that once. It’s another way to stay in touch with your peers.

In the October e-letter, we talked a bit about Canadians, the smaller world, marketing and The Inter-national Surfaces Event (TISE), coming up in Las Vegas next January.

Coverings magazine and TISE, along with spon-sors including Laticrete and Lackmond, are repeating last year’s successful Canada Night event. We discuss that project a bit more in this issue on page 31.

I read in the paper today that it is now “offensive” to designate Toronto’s transit lines as red and green lines. The offended group is colour-blind people. Same pa-per; same day: Ezra Levant is complaining that the UN has banned reporters from his publication, The Rebel. Reason for the UN’s decision? It’s offensive. Same pa-per; same day: Ontario judge rules Cleveland Indians can use their team name and trademark “Chief Wahoo” logo. Reason for the complaint? Offensive.

And so it goes….I’m not going to defend Levant, Cleveland or

transit, but it’s time somebody got an answer to a sim-ple question: Where does this right to not be offended

Kerry Knudsen


DON’T SAND IT. DON’T REPLACE IT. DON’T HIDE IT.

Re ItFoot traffic, pet scratches, sunlight, routine maintenance and other damaging influences gradually reduce the overall

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AT THE CERSAIE 2016 TRADE SHOW recently held in Bologna, Italy, the Tile of Spain branch of the Spanish Ceramic Tile Manu-facturer’s Association identified large format tiles as one of the

top 10 trends at the show. The organization observes that ceramic tile sales are continuing to grow year after year and in parallel, bring new possibilities for design.

These thin, very large ceramic tiles can be used to cover large surfaces and achieve continuity when in-stalled properly — and not just on floors and walls, but countertops as well. The trend has been ramping up for a while in the tile industry as taste pressures from both residential and commercial applications take hold.

In a 2014 survey of U.S. countertop fabricators/installer members of online communities Counter-topIQ, WoodIQ and FinishIQ prepared for Stouton, Wisc.-based NueMedia, by Sankheki Analytics & Re-

search of Bengalura, India, 25.9 percent of all members/users were involved in the countertop business (up from 15 percent in 2012). The same survey revealed that the surface type percent-age rise in the countertop industry went from 10 percent to 18 percent (2012 to 2014) for all tiles, including large format styles.

According to NueMedia president and founder Ross Scovotti, the potential for large format tiles (LFTs) encroaching on the countertop market is there, but feels it may be a while before it makes a big impact. For both traditional countertop installers and hard surface flooring businesses, “you need a dif-ferent set of expertise,” says Scovotti. “Grout line technique im-provements are also helping, and not just for LFTs.”

The technical challenges of working with LFTs has not been lost on Mark Meriaux, accreditation and technical manager, MIA+BSI: The Natural Stone Institute based in Oberlin, Ohio. He has 14 years of stone industry experience and was most recently

LeverageLFTLarge Format Tile provides an opening ... Countertops come calling


Canada’s floorcovering magazine 9

a commercial sales manager with VT Industries in Holstein, Iowa. The institute serves more than 1900 members in 55 countries, including Canada.

“What I’m hearing from my side is that there is whole dif-ferent set of tooling and a little more patience required to work with LFTs — the tiles are a little less forgiving that natural stone,” says Meriaux. “They tend to act more like glass.” Suddenly a small chip or imperfection that you might have with stone that is easi-ly repairable becomes waste material, he adds.

THE COST OF ENTRY for flooring establishments to add coun-tertops to their list of customer services is daunting, according to Sergio Buccieri, project manager at Majestic Marble Import, Concord, Ont. The company is family owned and operated, with over 25 years in the business of importing, fabrication and instal-lation of dimensional stone.

“For a start-up that wants to do porcelain and ceramic there’s not much cost at all,” says Buccieri. “But when you are deal-ing with natural stone and slabs then you’re talking big dollars.”

For natural stone and the type of work that Majestic Mar-ble does on the commercial side for countertops, the investment has been enormous.

“Considering one CNC can cost $260,000 and we’ve got six of these things,” says Buccieri. “But a guy just starting on tile might spend $3,000 or $4,000 to start his first small residential kitchen project.”

COUNTERTOPS ARE TYPICALLY DOMINATED by natural stone suppliers and their network of retailers and installers, who in turn work with partners from other industries, such as kitchen and bath cabinet makers and floorcovering specialists.

“I find most of the flooring and tile companies would call or subcontract from a company like ours — a marble shop — to do countertops,” says Buccieri. “It’s too big an investment for them to start doing countertops. But for companies that do countertops like we do, it’s a lot easier for us to get into the tile industry because of the machinery and the know-how that we already have. The other way around it’s harder.”

To do top notch domestic fabrication, Meriaux says, you need $250,000 to $500,000 to invest in the proper digitized CNC equipment. “And that doesn’t include all the handling equip-ment such as forklifts and overhead cranes.”

Meriaux estimates that one-third of his Natural Stone Institute members do flooring directly, while another third use a mutual alliance with flooring contractors, with the last third “sticking with what they know.”

To become a countertop service provider “the smaller guys that are looking to get into that market are buying some-thing prefabricated or cut down pieces that are already coun-tertop depth,” says Meriaux. “These pieces are used on predom-inantly multi-unit or multi-family projects, commercial projects like hospitals, hotels, motels, condominiums because those require a minimum of fabrication.” Because there’s less equip-ment needed — such as fan tools or small shaping tool ma-chines, routers — you could get into the business for $50,000 to $60,000, he adds.

What Meriaux has seen more prevalently, however, are floor-ing companies working in partnership with other local fabricators because of the large investment to do the jobs properly and safely. “As well you’ll find local flooring operations that want to partner with countertop guys. So it’s a win-win for both sides there.”

According to Mariangela Muia, business development



Canada’s floorcovering magazine 9Canada’s floorcovering magazine 9

a commercial sales manager with VT Industries in Holstein, Iowa. The institute serves more than 1900 members in 55 countries, including Canada.

“What I’m hearing from my side is that there is whole dif-ferent set of tooling and a little more patience required to work with LFTs — the tiles are a little less forgiving that natural stone,” says Meriaux. “They tend to act more like glass.” Suddenly a small chip or imperfection that you might have with stone that is easi-ly repairable becomes waste material, he adds.

THE COST OF ENTRY for flooring establishments to add coun-tertops to their list of customer services is daunting, according to Sergio Buccieri, project manager at Majestic Marble Import, Concord, Ont. The company is family owned and operated, with over 25 years in the business of importing, fabrication and instal-lation of dimensional stone.

“For a start-up that wants to do porcelain and ceramic there’s not much cost at all,” says Buccieri. “But when you are deal-ing with natural stone and slabs then you’re talking big dollars.”

For natural stone and the type of work that Majestic Mar-ble does on the commercial side for countertops, the investment has been enormous.

“Considering one CNC can cost $260,000 and we’ve got six of these things,” says Buccieri. “But a guy just starting on tile might spend $3,000 or $4,000 to start his first small residential kitchen project.”

COUNTERTOPS ARE TYPICALLY DOMINATED by natural stone suppliers and their network of retailers and installers, who in turn work with partners from other industries, such as kitchen and bath cabinet makers and floorcovering specialists.

“I find most of the flooring and tile companies would call or subcontract from a company like ours — a marble shop — to do countertops,” says Buccieri. “It’s too big an investment for them to start doing countertops. But for companies that do countertops like we do, it’s a lot easier for us to get into the tile industry because of the machinery and the know-how that we already have. The other way around it’s harder.”

To do top notch domestic fabrication, Meriaux says, you need $250,000 to $500,000 to invest in the proper digitized CNC equipment. “And that doesn’t include all the handling equip-ment such as forklifts and overhead cranes.”

Meriaux estimates that one-third of his Natural Stone Institute members do flooring directly, while another third use a mutual alliance with flooring contractors, with the last third “sticking with what they know.”

To become a countertop service provider “the smaller guys that are looking to get into that market are buying some-thing prefabricated or cut down pieces that are already coun-tertop depth,” says Meriaux. “These pieces are used on predom-inantly multi-unit or multi-family projects, commercial projects like hospitals, hotels, motels, condominiums because those require a minimum of fabrication.” Because there’s less equip-ment needed — such as fan tools or small shaping tool ma-chines, routers — you could get into the business for $50,000 to $60,000, he adds.

What Meriaux has seen more prevalently, however, are floor-ing companies working in partnership with other local fabricators because of the large investment to do the jobs properly and safely. “As well you’ll find local flooring operations that want to partner with countertop guys. So it’s a win-win for both sides there.”

According to Mariangela Muia, business development




director, Majestic Marble Import, “this business, our industry, is all about building relationships —there are so many distributors out there, there are so many suppliers — who do you pick to work with? Sometimes the scope of the work is so large that it requires us to pull in partners and that’s when we reach out to other suppli-ers or other partners outside of Canada to help us.”

MUIA SAYS THAT MAJESTIC Marble has been dedicated to pro-viding its customers with superior service along with the best qual-ity materials. “We strive to create a long lasting relationship with all of our customers,” she says. “Homeowners, decorators, builders and commercial clients may come to our warehouse and select from

our impressive selection of slabs that will be purchased for their home or project.” A knowledgeable staff is in place to so that customers can feel confident about their selection, along with skilled craftsman-ship that can be viewed in various kitch-en, bath and fireplace showroom displays.

Stone slabs come to Majestic Mar-ble in containers and are cut to whatever size the customer prefers: 12 x 12 in. and 36 x 36 in., according to Buccieri. “There are large format tiles that are popular now — 48 x 48 in. — that people are in-stalling in their homes. The thickness that we deal with is ¾ in. natural stone materi-als. Porcelain and ceramic tiles are 3/8 in. thickness.”

Buccieri adds, “right now we al-ready have projects on the commercial side that incorporate all the surface mate-rial elements, whether we create them in-house or with contractor partners.”

MERIAUX DOESN’T think that anyone has produced an easy-to-use large format tile product yet. “I know that the tooling manufacturers are trying to address this issue,” he says, “but I’m still hearing a lot of moans and groans from our membership.

“I do hear from some that there is a great opportunity for income with that product because it is challenging to work with. The guys who have chosen to learn to deal with it are commanding a premi-um for working with that product.”

Some are shying away from the challenges of LFTs, too. “Always order an extra slab or extra tile,” says Meriaux, “because when you least expect it, one of them is going to break.”

Comment at www.coveringscanada.ca

CheersC rssCanada Night

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Wednesday, January 185:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

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CheersCanada Night

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Wednesday, January 185:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

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USA founder Ulrich Emil “Rick” Meyer has died at 91. Meyer took a floor-covering store he established in Munster, Ind., according to the Chicago

Tribune, and grew it into a massive chain of Carpetland USA stores, with 103 locations in more than a dozen states. Under Meyer’s leadership, Carpetland USA was a mix of company-owned locations and franchise stores, the newspaper obituary reports. Meyer sold Carpetland USA to Shaw Industries in 1996.

Born in Hagen, Germany, Meyer fled the Nazis with his father when he was 13. After liv-ing for about a year in Holland, Meyer and his father moved to Chicago, and he spent the rest of his youth living on the North Side of Chicago, the Tribune reports. Meyer decided to start his own firm, his wife said, after receiving an offer from a retailer in Philadelphia. He borrowed $5,000 from his brother-in-law and struck off on his own. In 1960, he formed Carpetland USA, opening the first store in Munster. At its peak, Carpetland USA was one of the 10 largest carpet retailers in the U.S.A philanthropist, Meyer, along with his wife, also endowed a professorship in modern Euro-pean Jewish history at the Uni-versity of Chicago.

business of Dallas, Tex.-based Dal-Tile Corp., a Mohawk subsidiary. Kahny, who also will lead Dal-Tile’s home centre and independent distributor groups, will report to Dal-Tile president John Turner.

During this transition, Gary Lanser will become the president of Mohawk’s laminate and wood business, including the distribution of the Quick-Step and Columbia brands. Lanser will also be re-sponsible for completing the construc-tion and start-up of the company’s latest engineered wood and premium laminate plants. Lanser will report directly to Mo-hawk Flooring North America president Brian Carson.

M S International opens second location in Greater Toronto Area

Located in Vaughan, Ont., a second M S International (MSI) showroom and distribution centre has been opened to service customers in the northern and eastern regions of Greater Toronto Area. The building contains a 23,000 square foot slab selection showroom featuring an assortment of over 250 colors of granite, marble, quartzite and other natural stones — as well as MSI’s line of Q Premium Natural Quartz countertops. In addition, the showroom displays the company’s collections of flooring, decorative mosaics and wall tile, and hardscaping products made from natural stone, quartz, porcelain, ceramic and glass.

Carpetland USA founder Rick Meyer fled Nazis

Rick Meyer

Carpetland

NEWS

Fort McMurray homeowners receive mortgage reliefHomeowners in Fort McMurray, Alta., af-fected by the forest fires earlier this year, can defer payments of mortgages for up to six months beginning May 1, 2016, ac-cording to Ottawa, Ont.-based Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). CMHC encourages homeown-ers to contact their financial institution at the first sign of difficulty to discuss their individual situations and options. CMHC provides lenders with options for homeowners that may be impacted by these unfortunate events including: re-amortization of the loan, to result in lower payments; capitalization of outstanding interest arrears and other eligible expens-es; special payment arrangements; and, a combination of the above. Given the circumstances, CMHC says it has provided lenders with added flexibility to make these special arrangements quickly. The corporation has branch locations in both Edmonton and Calgary, Alta.

Mohawk announces countertops expansion

John Turner

Mohawk Industries of Calhoun, Ga., has announced a realignment of its counter-tops and laminate/hardwood businesses. Matt Kahny will guide Mo-

hawk’s expansion into the countertop market where the company will invest in porcelain slab and other surfaces. He will also manage and further develop the company’s natural stone slab operations, which will be exploited to distribute these new products. The countertop expansion will be leveraged from within the ceramic

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and contributions, innovative funding options will be available to proponents. These options may include: equity capital investments, minority ownership models, dividend payments or other innovative arrangements.

Karen Mendelsohn appointed to Mohawk executive position

Karen Mendelson

Marketing strat-egist Karen Mendelsohn has been appointed to senior vice president of marketing at Mohawk Industries. In this position, Mendelsohn

will be responsible for marketing strategies designed to grow Mohawk’s North America Flooring businesses. Under Mendelsohn, the company plans to further its digital strategy to drive increased traffic to Mohawk retailer locations. Mendelsohn is a 30-year veteran of the building products industry at Masco and Delta Faucet. She earned an MBA from Columbia University.

Phil Harmon takes helm at Universal Fibers

Marc Ammen

Universal Fiber Systems, LLC, has announced the appoint-ment of Phil Harmon as president of Universal Fibers, Inc. He will be based at its world headquarters in

Bristol, Va. Harmon will report directly to Marc Ammen, CEO of Universal Fiber

Systems, LLC. Harmon has over 20 years of experience in leading teams and businesses that are focused on the development, production and marketing of highly engineered fabrics. Harmon will assume the position formerly held by Ammen.

Beauflor adds distribution for eastern CanadaBeauflor of Cartersville, Ga., has ex-panded its Canadian distribution net-work by adding Matane, Que.,-based Distributions Jacques-Cartier (DJC). The distributor will offer Beauflor cush-ion vinyl flooring as well as click luxury vinyl tile and planks in eastern Cana-da. Customers in Ontario, Quebec and Maritimes will now be served by DJC for access to Beauflor products, includ-ing cushion vinyl rolls and Pure click vinyl planks. DJC has sold vinyl rolls in eastern Canada for 42 years and has dis-plays at over 300 retail outlets. Flowcrete opens new warehouse and distribution centre in B.C.Flowcrete Canada has opened a new warehouse and distribution centre lo-cated just outside of Vancouver in Pitt Meadows, B.C. This move is designed to meet the increasing demand for the company’s specialty resin flooring solutions and enable continued sales growth in the western Canada region, having outgrown the previous facility.

Ben Smith

The 4,000 square foot centre will serve as a regional hub for the distribution of Flowcrete Americas polymer flooring materials and

specialty coatings. Ben Smith, country manager for Flowcrete Canada, says that the centre will greatly improve the service by allowing the company to ship product quickly and more efficiently.

The company’s investment into improving infrastructure and logis-

$154 million earmarked for Toronto affordable housingThe Governments of Canada and Ontario have announced the City of Toronto will be receiving more than $154 million in social infrastructure funding. The amount doubles the city’s allocation of the Invest-ment in Affordable Housing Agreement and is said to provide targeted support to housing programs for those who need it most in the City of Toronto. The funding may be used for affordable housing for seniors, building and renovating shelters and transition houses for victims of family violence, addressing repairs and improv-ing energy and water efficiency of exist-ing social housing.

Fund to create up to 4,000 rental housing unitsThe Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has announced the Affordable Rental Innovation Fund, cre-ated to encourage new funding models and innovative building techniques in the rental housing sector. The CMHC says it is looking for unique ideas that will revolu-tionize the sector moving forward. In the process, the $200 million fund is expected to help create up to 4,000 new affordable units over 5 years and will reduce reliance on long-term government subsidies.

Funding is available to eligible in-dividuals, corporations and organizations that want to build affordable rental hous-ing in Canada in response to demonstrat-ed community need. Eligible applicants will include municipalities, private sector developers and builders and non-profit housing providers (including faith-based organizations).

Applicants must be able to sup-port the level of funding they require to ensure the project will be viable. The amount and type of funding will vary based on proposals received and CMHC may require security depending on the proposal. In addition to forgivable loans

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NEWS

tics in the region also sees a new hire to support the facility. As the new warehouse supervisor, Byron Laus is familiar with Flowcrete product, hav-ing previously worked with several of Flowcrete Canada’s applicator partners in the B.C. area.

Bill Manus of Ardex Canada to retire

Bill Manus

Ardex Ameri-cas has just marked a milestone occasion for Bill Manus of Ardex Canada. Joining Manus in Niagara Falls, Ont., to

celebrate and reflect on time with Ardex were: Jesse David, president Ardex Americas, U.S. and Canada division; Mike Crouch, president Ardex Americas, Latin America division; Al Rocheleau, Ardex regional sales manager, eastern Canada; and, Don Brletic, Ardex regional sales manager, western Canada. Manus’ career in the building construction industry spans over 44 years; 13 with Ardex. Five years ago, Manus and his family made the commitment to move their family from Poland to eastern Canada so he could focus on accelerating the development of Ardex Canada. During this time, Manus was able to build the team from four to 15, and was able to greatly expand Canada sales, the company says.

Training academy added to Ardex Canada headquarters

Ardex Canada has recently opened a new training academy at its Canadian headquarters in Mississauga, Ont. The new facility is approximately 5,000 square feet and has the capabilities to train 30 attendees at each program. Ardex Canada previously had a smaller facility for these purposes, however due to the expansive growth for Ardex in Canada, the company says, a new and larger venue was required. This new facility complements a western regional training academy located in Delta, B.C., as well as a mobile training trailer located in Calgary, Alta.

Kiesel North America Technical Department1.888.KIESEL1 (5437351) [email protected]


Laticrete unveils product specific EPDs and updated HPDsLaticrete, a manufacturer of construc-tion products for the building industry, has released three new product specific Environmental Product Declarations and updated Health Product Declarations. An EPD is created and verified in accordance with ISO 14025, and is based on a life-cycle assessment according to ISO 14040 and ISO 14044. The intent of an EPD is to sim-ply provide transparent information on the life-cycle impact of the product.A Health Product Declaration (HPD) is an open standard, which provides complete, transparent disclosure of the potential chemicals of concern by analyzing and comparing all product raw materials to authoritative chemical hazard lists from around the world. Health Product Declara-tions are governed by the Health Product Declaration Collaborative and are primar-ily used in North America. Laticrete will be offering three product-specific EPDs. These EPDs will be for cement grout, cement mortar, and cement self-leveling underlay-ments. These three product specific EPDs

will be valued at one full product each in fulfilling Option 1 (Environmental Product Declaration) of the LEED v4 Building Prod-uct Disclosure and Optimization - Environ-mental Product Declaration credit.

Stevens Omni continues to grow from within

Michel Bouchard

Flooring distributor Stevens Omni of Mississauga, Ont., has announced three changes within its organization. Five-year company veteran Alvin

Brown has been promoted to the position of controller and will oversee much of the financial aspects of the company. He started as an intern working on a freight project and the implementation of the warehouse management system. Michel Bouchard has been promoted to the

position of Quebec sales manager. He will work directly with the outside sales team in Quebec as well as maintain a territory of his own. Bouchard has been with the company for three years and has main-tained one of the top performing territories in the region and country.

Annie Gauthier

Annie Gauthier has been promoted to the position of Quebec regional manager. In her new role, Gauthier will become involved on the sales side of the

company working with Bouchard to assist in sales development, administration and communication. She will also continue to oversee the operations of the Montreal branch as well as all inside staff. Gauthier has been with Stevens Omni for almost 18 years, most recently as an assistant controller.

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Grout provides the accent to every tile installation; ‘a touch of color’ that can create subtle or dramatic contrasts that help shape the mood of a room. When trying to achieve a desired look, choosing the right grout color to accompany a tile can be just as important as the tile itself. This is why PROMA has formulated a selection of the most fashionable grout colors and all of the tools needed to help make your choice a successful one.

Contact PROMA toll-free at 1.866.51.PROMA (77662) or visit www.proma.ca to order a PROMA grout color card, kit or inquire about a countertop display.

The Colors of Success.

Grout provides the accent to every tile installation; ‘a touch of color’ that can create subtle or dramatic contrasts that help shape the mood of a room. When trying to achieve a desired look, choosing the right grout color to accompany a tile can be just as important as the tile itself. This is why PROMA has formulated a selection of the most fashionable grout colors and all of the tools needed to help make your choice a successful one.

Contact PROMA toll-free at 1.866.51.PROMA (77662) or visit www.proma.ca to order a PROMA grout color card, kit or inquire about a countertop display.

The Colors of Success.


Cultivate design ideas like crops

Harvest time

DESIGN

Paul Epp

Fall is a magical time of the year. The light is golden. The farm-ers’ fields are golden. The leaves change colours, to warmer and richer and even golden hues. There is something going on with-

in us that cause us to adjust our rhythms and outlook. We might slow down a bit and probably become a bit more reflective, anticipating the greater changes that

are on their way.If we are farmers though, we get

busier. It’s harvest time. All of our ef-forts for the previous many months are about to be paid off. It might be a good return or perhaps not. But we will likely get something and for that we are thankful. We want to be secured against the cold and fruitless months ahead and to be rewarded for the work we have put in. We acknowl-edge this in what used to be called

Harvest Thanksgiving. Now, the urbanites that we are will have mostly lost our connection to where this holiday originated.

I grew up on a farm and loved the harvest Thanks-giving celebration. I loved how the church would be decorated with sheaves of grain and baskets of vegeta-bles. Coloured leaves would grace the interior as well. What was typically an austere and almost penitent envi-ronment would be transformed into a festive display of the bounty of the fields and gardens. It was wonderful.

I sometimes ask my design students what their crop would be, if we were to compare their work to that of farmers. What will they bring to market?

What they produce is ideas. The analogy to farm-ing isn’t actually so farfetched. Both are based on a pro-cess with many incremental steps. Designers prepare themselves in many ways for their eventual harvest. One may be the formal training they get in school. They learn how to use their minds in flexible and inno-vative ways. They learn the importance of preparation. They learn how to be analytical and reasonable when they need to be, and to be unreasonable and creative when they should be that as well. They learn how, like farmers, to direct their efforts at an eventual outcome.

Beyond or instead of school, experience will also show them the way and reinforce their lessons.

So what is the harvest Thanksgiving festival for design-ers? I can’t speak for many of my colleagues, but in the world of furniture design, there are trade shows that typically act as the catalyst and schedule for new design work to be committed to and finally presented. They are a big deal, in a lot of ways and the excitement that they generate is palpable. They are a chance to see and be seen, to feel proud and accomplished. They celebrate the health of an industry and the many players in it. Sometimes, I’ve wondered if they make as much financial sense as the huge budgets suggest, and I know I’m not alone in that curiosity. But we seem to do them regardless. It may be because the needs they service go beyond the strictly mercantile. Celebrations re-main important to us.

Other ways we celebrate our design ‘harvest’ is through media exposure and awards programs. The media features may be very ephemeral and the awards don’t usually translate into tan-gible increases in business, but they are a validation just the same.

Producing something marketable, and taking it to market is a huge part of our professional, productive and economic lives. Our culture runs on this, despite the claims that we are now post-in-dustrial, post-agricultural or in a new world altogether. We can’t just have services. We need goods as well and we always will. They need to be produced and taken to market. We can even say that collectively, our lives depend on it. Whereas agriculture was once the most important and vital activity that we engaged in, now we have others of major importance as well.

I find it to be very gratifying that we, as designers, produce something. If we are the kind of designer that I am, our produce is products. These are based on the ideas we have generated, grown from those seeds, so to speak. They have been selected, nurtured, cultivated, weeded, fertilized and eventually harvested. While we may, within our various industries, celebrate our achievements, we lack a broader, public celebration of those accomplishments. Maybe, when we sit down to our turkey dinner, we ought to give thanks for all of the design efforts as well, along with our gratitude for the cranberries and mashed potatoes.

Paul Epp is a professor at OCAD University, and former chair of its Industrial Design department.


LAW

Agreement of Purchase and SaleIf you are purchasing a new Unit, the builder will usu-ally require you to sign the builder’s form of agree-ment of purchase and sale (the “Builder’s Agreement”). These Builder’s Agreements are lengthy and drafted strongly in the builder’s favour. As such, it is very im-portant to have a real estate lawyer review the Builder’s Agreement with you before the Builder’s Agreement becomes binding. You can make your purchase condi-tional on your solicitor’s review of all of the terms and conditions of the Builder’s Agreement or take advan-tage of the 10-day cooling off period pursuant to the Condominium Act. If you are purchasing a new Unit, you can rescind the Builder’s Agreement and receive a full refund of your deposit(s) within 10 days from the date you received copies of the accepted Builder’s Agreement and Disclosure Statement. The notice of re-scission must be in writing and received by the builder or the builder’s lawyer within the 10-day period.

There is no 10 day rescission period when pur-chasing a resale Unit. In these circumstances, your pur-chase should be conditional on your solicitor’s review and approval of all of the terms and conditions of the agreement of purchase and sale (the “Resale Agree-ment”) and Status Certificate.

Important datesThe Builder’s Agreement includes such critical dates as the occupancy date and unit transfer date. The oc-cupancy date is the date that the builder anticipates that the Unit will be ready for the buyer to occupy. The unit transfer date or closing date happens shortly after the condominium plan is registered and is the date that title to the Unit is transferred to the buyer. The buyer is responsible for paying occupancy fees from the occupancy date until the unit transfer date, which fees are similar to rent that the buyer must pay to the builder until ownership is transferred. Buyers need to pay close attention to the anticipated occupancy date

set out in the Builder’s Agreement and the builder’s right to ex-tend the occupancy date by months or even years. This could be a significant problem for a buyer who must occupy the Unit in order to commence its business by a certain date. A lengthy delay in the occupancy date could result in the buyer having to rent other premises or closing business. The timing of the unit transfer date is also important because the buyer is obligated to pay occupancy fees until title to the property is registered in the buyer’s name. The time period that a buyer pays such occupancy fees could be months or even years and the occupancy fees are not credited towards the purchase price payable on final closing. As such, the Builder’s Agreement should be carefully reviewed to determine critical dates and to limit the builder’s extension rights, and to provide a termination right for the buyer beyond a certain time period of delays.

Disclosure statementThe Disclosure Statement that you receive from a builder with the Builder’s Agreement includes important information about the condominium project, including the proposed declaration, the budget and monthly common expenses to be paid by each Unit, the by-laws, rules and regulations, management agree-ment and condominium plan that delineates the location of the units within the project. You should review these documents prior to your purchase becoming binding as there is important information in the Disclosure Statement that may affect your de-cision to purchase the Unit. The following is a list of some issues to keep in mind when reviewing the Disclosure Statement:• restrictions in the occupation and use of the Unit that could

prevent you from operating your business• the builder’s right to alter the design, style, size, layout and/or

configuration of the Unit and common elements comprised within the Condominium Corporation (the “Condominium”)

• restrictions on the type and location of signage permitted on the Unit

• whether any signage space on the pylon sign will be leased or owned by unit owners and the associated costs of owning or leasing space on the pylon sign and on the face of the Unit

• whether utilities will be separately metered in each Unit• whether Unit owners are responsible for paying for their own

waste and recycle removal• the builder is providing a shell Unit on occupancy (unlike

with residential units) and the buyer will be responsible for

Buying a new commercial or industrial condominium unit di-rectly from the builder or a resale condominium unit can be a confusing process, especially for first time buyers.

Purchase tips for commercial or industrial units

Buying a condo?By Maja Mitrovic


LAW

obtaining finishing permits and com-pleting fixturing the Unit for occupan-cy at the buyer’s cost and expense

• design plans for completing a Unit for occupancy must be approved by the builder at the cost of the buyer

• rules and regulations that restrict the permitted hours of business opera-tions and parking

• shared facilities agreement with an-other condominium or property that are part of the common expenses pay-

able by unit owners • the Units that have exclusive use of

common elements such as, loading docks, corridors and stairwells

If you are purchasing a Unit from the builder and the condominium plan has not yet been registered, then keep in mind that the documents included in the Disclosure Statement may change once the condominium plan is registered. For example, a new budget will be prepared for the one-year period immediately fol-lowing registration of the condominium plan. As such, the common expenses payable by each Unit may increase based on the budget that applies for the one year period after registration. In the event that there is a material change to any of the condominium documents provided as part of the Disclosure Statement, then the purchaser’s only remedy under the Condominium Act will be rescission of the Builder’s Agreement and the return of the deposits paid by the buyer.

Closing costs When purchasing a new Unit there are hidden extra costs payable on closing to the builder, such as fees for installing utility meters and connecting utility ser-vices, development charges, park levies, security deposit, fee for status certificate, seller’s legal fees for a delay in closing, architectural review fee, costs of an ap-praisal, contribution to any shared capital accounts and mortgage discharge fees. These closing costs are listed in the Build-er’s Agreement as adjustments to the pur-chase price and can amount to hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Further, the purchase price agreed to and included in the Builder’s Agreement is often subject to a proportionate gross-up calculation based on the addition of certain com-mon elements, which also results in an increase in the purchase price payable on closing by hundreds or even thousands of dollars. On reviewing the Builder’s Agree-

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ment, your solicitor can try to negotiate a cap on certain closing adjustments and seek to have others removed.

Harmonized Sales Tax (“HST”) The purchase price for a Unit will typi-cally be exclusive of the HST exigible with respect to the purchase and sale trans-action. As such, you should seek advice from your accountant and solicitor re-garding the HST that may be payable by you on a purchase of a Unit.

Status certificate If you are purchasing a resale Unit, the Re-sale Agreement should include a condi-tion to allow your solicitor time to review a Status Certificate for the Unit. The Status Certificate discloses very important infor-mation about the Condominium and the Unit and the current condominium docu-ments provided with a Disclosure State-ment as provided as part of the Status Cer-tificate. In addition to the issues that can be revealed by the Disclosure Statement as set out above, the Status Certificate may disclose issues such as, the amount of the common expenses payable by the Unit, lawsuits or judgments against the Condominium, an increase in the budget and common expenses payable by each Unit, special assessments and anticipated increases in the amounts contributed to the reserve fund. Any of the above-noted issues disclosed in a Status Certificate, will result in an increase in the common ex-penses payable by each Unit. For example, the Status Certificate may disclose that the board of directors has decided to levy a special assessment due to an unexpected expenditure that cannot be fully paid for by the money in the reserve fund. A special assessment is an additional payment that all unit owners will need to pay based on their proportion of common interest in the common elements of the Condominium. In addition to the increased cost for all unit owners, the concern with a special assess-ment is that it may be caused by the board of directors’ failure to have a reserve fund

study completed in a timely manner as required by the Condominium Act and/or mismanagement of reserve funds.

When purchasing a condominium unit seek the legal advice of a real estate law-yer before your purchase is binding.

Maja Mitrovic is an associate with Lawrences’ Real Estate Group.Comment at www.woodindustry.ca

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INSTALLATION

Answers to installation queries

Q&A 2016I haven’t done a Q&A column here in Coverings in over a year, and a few things came up on projects this month that I felt were worth sharing. Have questions? Please send them here to

Coverings, [email protected], and we will dig into the subject on a future column. In the meantime, here are some that came across my desk recently.

Q: Why do you (and many floor covering manufacturers) recommend against lauan plywood for underlayment? A: Lauan (pronounced lu-on and some-times spelled luan) was originally devel-oped for doors and comes from trees found in rainforest areas such as The Philippines. Lauan has become a generic

term for ¼-inch wood underlayment, but there are big differences between lauan and a true ¼-inch plywood underlayment. Back in the 1970s and 1980s when I started in the business, we used lauan underlayment for resilient flooring and it was good quality for a while. However, as supplies of mahogany, which made a good underlayment, became depleted, other types of woods started to be used in lauan and the qual-ity went down. We had boards with soft spots, voids and/or or inconsistent thickness that lead to denting and joint-telegraphing complaints. Before long, many flooring manufacturers issued specific warnings about the risks of using lauan.

Today, there are better alternatives for underlay-ment — you can specify a minimum of ¼-inch for residential use and 3/8-inch for commercial. Three-ply hardwood plywood underlayment from Canada and five- to seven-ply birch, (often known as Arctic, Baltic or Russian birch) are sold under a number of brand names. These branded products perform well and have a manufacturer’s warranty, which you will rarely see in lauan or standard plywood, even a good plywood like A/C grade. Regardless of what under-layment you use, make sure it’s recommended by the flooring manufacturer for the flooring you are in-stalling and make sure the underlayment manufac-turer recommends it for the end use of the finished floor: commercial versus residential.

Q: I have a customer complaint on tile because of a “hollow” sound in some of the tiles when they tap on the floor. Noth-ing has cracked and the floor looks good, but they are wor-ried about future cracking in the tile.

A: Sometimes with dips in a floor you can get a small void under tile that someone would hear if they tapped on the floor. Depend-ing on the tile and how much weight the floor may be subjected to, this could be a potential source of cracking. To prevent this, make sure your have a look at the substrate before starting the job. Use a metal straightedge to see if you have any dips. Check around the perimeter especially because sometimes a slab or a poured topping layer can “fall off” a little around the edge. Don’t take any chances — an extra hour or so to patch the floor will go a long way to preventing these types of problems. Don’t as-sume you can use thinset mortar to fill in these voids – that’s not always a workable solution. With commercial grade products like porcelain or epoxy terrazzo tile, I’d be surprised to see it crack in moderate commercial traffic unless there was heavy rolling traf-fic. However, to convince the owner there would not be a prob-lem in this case, the installer offered to give a longer installation warranty to avoid having to start replacing tiles.

Q: I have a carpet tile installation with gapping seams. The product is in a small retail store and was supposed to be able to be installed with no adhesive. Is the tile shrinking?

A: The installation of carpet tiles needs to be snug up against any walls or fixtures, especially with loose-lay or self-adhesive tiles.

How long a run of carpet tile you can install without adhesive varies — sometimes, locking-in the tile with a row that’s adhered is recommended.

I remember specifically two different projects that had gaps in the tile in some areas. In that retail store, it was a cushion-back carpet tile that was gapping in the centre of the room. I removed a few of the

baseboards and found that the tile was tight up against the wall. However, it was not installed that way originally; the installer left a gap around the edges and the tile shifted once it was exposed to traffic. It was repaired by using an adhesive in the last row against the wall so that the tile was locked in place. In another case, the job was being done in phases and the


installer was not able to finish the floor right up to one wall. Very soon after being exposed to traffic, the tile “walked” that created little gaps. Once they installed the last row up to the wall, everything stayed fine. A variety of carpet tile, resilient floor tile and engineered plank floors can be installed loose-lay. However, I try to ask questions about the traffic in the area before I recommend these systems for commercial use. Some-times adhesive is a better way to go for high-traffic areas. If you DO install loose-lay, pay attention to the manufacturer’s specifications regard-ing space around the perimeter and also how long a run you can install without adhesive. Sometimes, locking-in the tile with a row that’s adhered is recommended.

Q: I’m working on a glue-down, vinyl plank job. I used a moisture meter to test the concrete and got a four out of six. Is it all right to install the floor per the manufacturer’s instructions?

A: I often hear from flooring contractors or installers that use moisture meters to

A meter is as valuable as a spot-test for surface moisture at that spot in the slab at that point in time.

decide whether or not to install a new floor. There are a lot of easy-to-use electronic meters on the market that are valuable for various purposes, but one of those purposes is not to make a “go or no-go” decision on installing a floor. There are no manufacturers of resilient flooring or adhesive that recognize these results. Meters are valu-able as a spot-test for surface moisture at that spot in the slab at that point in time. Some use this as a way of deciding if further testing is needed. Meters used for testing moisture in wood floors do not correlate over to the moisture within the concrete.

Gypsum underlayment manufacturers may recommend meters as a way of determining if their product is dry enough to install floor coverings. Just remember that moisture meter testing on concrete is not a way to decide “go or no-go” for a flooring installation. The two recommended methods are ASTM F 1869 Calcium Chloride test and ASTM F 2170 Internal Relative Humidity probe test. These tests, especially F 2170, provide a much more scientific and accurate test result than a

hand-held meter and these results are recognized by manufacturers, where the hand-held meter is not.

Christopher Capobianco has been in the floor covering industry since the 1970s in various roles including retail and commercial sales, technical support, consulting, journalism, education and volunteer work. He currently is part of the sales team for Spartan Surfaces in New York City. You can reach him via [email protected].

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SHOWS

Now celebrating 32 years, IIDEXCanada focuses on all areas of design, including floorcovering in the context of the workplace, healthcare, hospitality, retail, residential, education, architecture,

IIDEXCanada 2016 comes to Toronto

Business and beauty

landscape architecture and sustainability. The annual show is Canada’s National Design plus Architecture Ex-position and Conference, and is co-presented by IDC, Interior Designers of Canada and RAIC, Royal Architec-tural Institute of Canada.

By bringing together the multidisciplinary inte-rior design and architecture communities, it provides

for a sourcing, networking and education event where new relationships are built, ideas are synthesized, and where creative collaborations begin.

Exhibitors this year include Formica, Mannington Commercial, Panasphere Premium Surfaces, Porcela-nosa, Shaw Contract, Stevens Omni, TTMAC and Upper Canada Forest Products. Coverings, a media sponsor of IIDEXCanada, will be there again this year, too. Be sure to stop by our booth.

IIDEXCanada is part of The Buildings Show which includes Construct Canada, PM Expo Toronto, World of Concrete Pavilion, HomeBuilder & Renovator Expo, and The Real Estate Forum Toronto. According to organiz-

ers, the Buildings Show is North America’s largest exposition, networking and education event for design, construction and real estate which attracts 1,600 exhibitors, world-class keynotes, 500 speakers, 350 seminars and tours, and 30,000 Canadian and International trade attendees including interior designers, archi-tects, property managers, landscape architects, facility manag-ers, builders, developers, real estate, suppliers, government, me-dia, creative thinkers and corporate clients.

IIDEXCanada takes place on Wednesday, November 30 and Thursday, December 1, 2016, in the North Building of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, in Toronto, Ont. Show hours are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thurs-day. Seminar hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days.


installations serving as an uncoupling and vapor management layer that accommo-dates moisture from beneath the tile covering. The system performs all these functions while still providing the requisite support/load distribution for the tile and stone covering, the company says. At 5/16 in. thick, the system helps to create an even transition between typical ¼ to 3/8 in. thick tile and ¾ in. thick hardwood flooring. The product will provide a faster drying of the mortar, the company says, allowing for a shorter time to grout when using both modified or unmodified. www.laticrete.com

Textured pattern carpet planks

Modular carpet planks from J+J Flooring Group have been introduced in an 18 x 36 in. size. The Etched line has a textured patterned loop and a standard backing of Nexus plank. The yarn dyed Encore BCF fibre has some recycled content. Specifi-cations include a face weight of 24 oz./sy, pile density of 6845 oz./y3, a 1/12 gauge and 12.00 stitches/in. The thickness (nominal average) is 0.25 in. Special treatments are Colorloc Plus with ProTex soil release.www.jjflooringgroup.com

Carpet patterns for geometric shapesSaid to offer architects, interior designers and contractors the ability to explore different patterns and shapes, Karndean has introduced the Kaleidoscope carpet

Dry-cut tile saw introduced

IQ Power Tools has introduced what is said to be the first dry-cut tile saw designed to cut ceramic, porcelain, marble and stone. The model iQTS244 is a 10 in. dry-cut tile saw designed for professional tile setters and contractors. The portable tool permits tile to be cut inside or outside with no water and no dust discharge. The saw uses a three-stage filtration system which captures up to 99.5 percent of the dust. All the dust from the cutting point passes through the system and is captured in the dust tray. The blades are air-cooled by the vacuum. The vacuum also removes the cutting debris so the blade is not regrinding the same material, a process that reduces friction and heat.www.iqpowertools.com

Uncoupling membrane for ceramic tile and stone

Strata_Mat XT from Laticrete is an uncoupling membrane system designed for ceramic tile and dimension stone

series. A collection of wood, stone and block colours are available in six geomet-ric designs including Cubix, Pennon and Apex. The series palette of wood, stone and solid colours can be cut in a number of shapes and patterns available in 2, 2.5 and 3 mm thicknesses.www.karndean.com

Dimensional ceramic wall tiles

Saloni Ceramica has announced the Up! series of dimensional ceramic wall tiles. The 6 x 6 in. tiles can be combined in different configurations to create new dimensional looks. Available in 4 shapes — Optic, Bend, Slide, Quick — and four colors — black, white, copper and silver. The four models are presented in neutral colors and matte finish to last over time and resist fashions, the company says. www.saloni.com/en/

PRODUCTS


PRODUCTS

One-piece edge levelling system

The Tuscan Levelling SeamClip is said to be an innovative, easy-to-use one-piece edge leveling product that will greatly assist in the installation of stone, ceramic, marble, granite and some large format tiles from 1/8 to 3/8 in. thicknesses. The design helps creates a virtual lippage-free installation when used on floors or walls, the company says. The product interlocks the tiles, virtually creating a single flat slab surface while the setting material is curing. The interlocking design reduces and in most cases eliminates settling from shrinkage, as well as minimizing the possibility of warping. The levelling product reduces the need to re-lift tiles to add more mud and/or the process of shimming tiles, the company adds.www.tuscanleveling.com

Porcelain tiles modeled after grid paper

Ornamenta has introduced Paper, a collection of porcelain tiles that, due to a special glaze, act like a chalkboard and elevates tile by giving it a utilitarian function meant to inspire creativity. With a design modeled after grid paper, the tile series is available in three colors: gray, white and black. The static coefficient of friction when DRY is 0.55 and 0.60 when

wet. Tiles are rated to DIN 51130, DIN 51097 and ASTM C1028.www.ornamenta.com

Stain-treated carpet 100 percent nylonShaw Floors has introduced stain-treated carpet that is 100 percent nylon. The Caress collection features a loop style and a Softbac Platinum backing. Roll widths are 12 ft and have a face weight of 39 oz/yd2. Caress by Shaw fibres are said to have

the latest in advanced extrusion technol-ogy that make these extraordinarily soft carpets possible. Because the fibres are so soft and plush, the total surface density is much higher, the company says. This density translates to a more complete seal for a vacuum cleaner head, increas-ing suction at the point of contact with the carpet surface, it adds.www.shawfloors.com

Tiles inspired by urban historic bricks

The Urban District BRX tile series from American Marazzi Tile is said to be inspired by Chicago’s historic bricks for an urban industrial. The glazed ceramic modules are available in 2 x 8 in. and 4 x 8 in. sizes. Combining rough and smooth effects, the modules are also said to easily accommodate basket weave, herring-

bone, stack and running bond patterns.www.marazziusa.com

Ceramic tiles evoke carpet in two tonalities

Ceramicas Aparici has introduced Carpet, a series of ceramic tiles that feature two tonalities – Vestige and Sand – said to be inspired by the influence warm and decorative rooms have on a room. The series of 2 x 4 in. and 4 x 4 in. tiles can be used as floor or wall surfacing in kitchen, bathroom and living rooms.www.aparici.com/en/

Porcelain tiles in natural or shiny finish

Copacabana porcelain tiles from La Fabbrica are inspired by the namesake Brazilian Copacabana seafront, the company says, drawing from winding basalt and calcite trails. Juxtapositions of dark and light featured in the stone create a bold look, which is suitable for sophisti-cated contemporary interiors, the company adds. The large format tiles come in either a natural or shiny finish. Sizes range from 6 mm thick at 160 x 320 cm to 10 mm thick at 60 x 60 cm.www.lafabbrica.it/en/


Make wood floors like new, without sanding

Mapei has introduced a new refinishing system as an addition to its Ultracoat product line. Ultracoat ReNewIt is a sanding‐free refinishing system for pre‐finished and site‐finished hardwood and bamboo floors. The product address-es foot traffic, pet scratches, sunlight, routine maintenance and other damag-ing influences that gradually reduce the overall gloss and appearance of a wood or bamboo floor. The system allows refinishers to recoat the floor in a 4‐step process: ReNewIt Remover removes all polishes and contaminants; ReNewIt Cleaner leaves the floor clean and ready to recoat; ReNewIt Primer strengthens the bond between the cleaned floor and the new coating; and, High Traffic (gloss) wood‐floor finish brings back the luster and gloss of the floor.www.mapei.com

Underlayment products improve handling, crack resistance

Custom Building Products has an-nounced formula upgrades for its LevelQuik Self-Leveling Underlayment series of products. This includes LevelQuik RS, for rapid setting applications and LevelQuik ES, with extended setting properties, as well as LevelQuik Primer. The LevelQuik formula is said to provide superior crack resistance, better handling and even greater coverage. Its Controlled Cure Technology regulates the rate at which water evaporates during the curing

process, prompting fast and consistent hydration, the company says. LevelQuik also helps eliminate installation problems including bond failure, crumbling and staining of resilient flooring caused by free moisture found in traditional underlayments. www.custombuildingproducts.com

Hand-printed stone hexagons

StoneImpressions has introduced the Alston Collection, hand-printed on Carrara 5 in. hexagon stones offered in four different designs and varying colors. Every design is printed on the highest quality of stone and the collection is customizable by color and layout, the company says. www.stoneimpressions.com

In-floor warming technology

The Tec In-Floor Heat panel floor warming system from Tec Specialty is customiz-able on-site and features no embedded heating wires that need to be patterned. The system is a low density heating device, recommended to cover the majority of open floor space and bring optimal warmth to commercial or residential settings. Control of the floor temperature is performed with an In-Floor Heat thermostat, which reads the floor temperature via a sensor built into the floor. The thin heat panel mat draws 13 W per square foot, providing even heating throughout each section, with less floor buildup than other systems due to a 1⁄64 in. thick profile.www.tecspecialty.com


Ceramic tile evokes memories

The Retro ceramic tile series from Colorker includes the Nature, Deep and Country variants. Mosaic, offset and standard plank-effect versions are available. Specifications include: 2600 N breaking strength; 6.3 x 10-6 coefficient of linear thermal expansion; and, 53 N/mm2 modulus of rupture. The series is complemented with a large variety of cut pieces that satisfy a broad range of needs, the company says.www.colorker.com

Three dimensional relief ceramic tiles

The Magical 3 collection of ceramic wall tiles from Equipe are available in 6 x 6 in. and 5 x 4 in. formats. Styles are comprised of the square Curve and Lance, as well as the hexagonal Umbrel-la and Star variations. Colours for each of the styles include black matt, white pearl, white matt and metallic. The Umbrella and Star styles also feature

PRODUCTS

colours that include cream, light grey, light grey, white and black.www.equipeceramicas.com

Luxury vinyl planks combine wood and stone mix

Stone Harbor is a 6 in. wood and stone mix luxury vinyl tile series from Manning-ton Residential in a plank layout. This floor’s unique combination is said to create a look that is modern, classic and so versatile that it can blend effortlessly with any home interior. The medium pattern scale planks have a 36 in. repeat length and 36 in. repeat width. Features include ScratchResist HP surface technol-ogy, Guardian Protection and Never Yellow. Installation type choices are permanent bond, releasable bond or loose lay.www.mannington.com

Solid hardwood random width plank

Hickory “Bark Brown” solid hardwood random width plank from the Armstrong

Artistic Timbers TimberCuts collection is available in 2-1/4, 3-1/4 and 5 in. widths. The planks have beveled edges and ends, and a distressed, low gloss appearance. The 3/4 in. thick planks come in varying lengths from 8-1/4 to 84 in. The product has an advanced DIY level, can be installed on or above ground level and uses the nail installation method.www.armstrong.com

Wet tile saw has large format capability

The Beast10 wet tile saw from Lackmond provides large format capability in a portable frame. The 10 in. saw has been manufactured with tight tolerances, stainless steel hardware, superior materials, and designed as a true professional level tile saw, the company says. The saw is said to have the largest cutting capacity in its class and is accurate to within 1/32 in. over a 24 in. cut. The saw is capable of performing a diagonal cut on a 24 x 24 in. tile and can execute a 34 in. rip cut (39 in. rip with plunge). The plunge cut feature is said to make it easy to perform operations such as V-Cap cuts and cut-outs for wall sockets. Each saw comes with a removable table extension for large format tiles and a snake pipe water nozzle which allows for water control and placement. An optional side plastic water tray will catch drip and divert water back to the water pan. www.lackmond.com

Canada’s floorcovering magazine 31Canada’s floorcovering magazine 31

CANADIANS CAN ALWAYS see themselves in a mirror in a for-eign place, but as anybody that has taken a selfie at a resort can attest, we fade into the woodwork in public. A kind of reverse vampire effect, if you will. If you check the footnotes of history, you will find we supplied the Confederacy during America’s Civil

War, we fought when the British won Vimy Ridge and Passchendaele, we were Japan’s first Western prisoners of war in WWII and we are among the top five agricul-tural exporters in the world. Not bad for a nation that shows up as a snow field on the world’s media weather maps. It’s like we are always there, but almost not.

This, of course, becomes problematic in commerce. It’s as if every conversation about Canadians producing

goods and services has to start with price as an attention-getter, just to advance to the quality and turnaround issues.

This trait is most pro-nounced at international trade shows. There, no matter what di-

verse cultural background you have as a Canadian, you walk the floor as a waif. A shadow. A spirit.

But there’s no money in that.North American marketers have a difficult task at

shows: how to identify their respective markets, both in breadth and depth. And they know their eyes will only do so much. However, when all they can do is look,

eyes are what they use, and, as noted, Canadians don’t do well in that analysis.

Last year, Coverings magazine and The International Surfac-es Event (TISE) sponsored our first-ever Canada Night, the idea of which is to convene as many Canadians as possible in one spot to fly the flag and be counted. So we rented a bar, paid for appetiz-ers and drinks, supplied Canadian beer (the Yanks have a right to know) brought our own music and had a great time.

This time, we are upping the ante. We have moved to the Border Grill, just down the concourse from the convention halls, and expanded the time, starting this year immediately after the show closes so you can stop by The Border Grill and still make it to other events scheduled that evening. We will have free food and drinks, Canadian beer, Canadian music and will try to get a scale model of The Bow so we fit in with Paris, New York, Bella-gio, Venice and any other scale-model cities currently lost in Las Vegas. Time and date are Wed., Jan 16 from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. Just enough time for two full albums of Jaymz Bee and the Royal Jelly Orchestra. On second thought, no Jaymz Bee.

There will be no cover charge, no food or drink prices and no hassling. There will also be a nice gift for all Canadian attendees at the event. We seriously want to tell the world we are there, we are in business, we are buying and we are selling.

All Canadian advance registrants to TISE will receive an invitation, or you can pick one up at the show if you can prove Canadian residence. Kind of like Canadian voting. We have to be alive and real to get a ballot. Just don’t mention that in the States.

Canada Night at TISE 2017 Las Vegas

Canada’s silver bullet

Coverings Canada NightTISE Las Vegas

Jan. 18, 5 - 6:30 p.m.Border Grill at

The Mandalay Bay



BULLETS

Current business highlights

Municipalities issued $7.3 billion worth of building per-mits in August, up 10.4 percent from July. This marked the second consecutive monthly increase. The gain in August was mainly attributable to higher construction intentions in Quebec, Ontario and B.C. The value of residential building permits was up 9.6 percent to $4.5 billion in August, follow-ing four consecutive monthly declines. —Statistics Canada

Twenty of the largest upcoming educational and medical construction projects in Canada have been identified by Constructconnect. Valued at $171 million, the University of Alberta dentistry/pharmacy building renewal project in Edmonton, Alta., tops the educational construction project list. Topping the medical construction project list is the $4.5 billion Royal Alexandra Hospital complex expansion, also in Edmonton. —Constructconnect

Indonesia shipped $743,332 US worth of assembled floor-ing in July, up 50 percent from June. Assembled flooring imports from Thailand continued growing (22 percent month-over-month). Vietnam has become a major supplier as well in 2016. In July Vietnam exported $456,689 US worth of assembled flooring panels to the U.S. —ITTO

U.S. demand for commercial roofing products is forecast to ad-vance 1.6 percent per year to 110 million squares in 2020, val-ued at $7.8 billion US, according to Commercial Roofing, a new study. Reroofing applications accounted for the larger share of demand and will continue to do so going forward, supported by the large stock of installed roofs. —Freedonia Group

Lumber production by Canadian sawmills fell 10.1 percent from June to 5,300.3 thousand cubic metres in July. Compared with July 2015, lumber production rose 1.3 percent. —Fordaq

After Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and Indonesia, Gabon has emerged as a new location for veneer production by Indian companies. A report from the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) says that three or four Indian plywood companies are considering setting up plants in the Gabon Special Economic Zone for the production of face veneer. The Indian plywood industry consumes approximately 1,400 containers of veneers every month. —ITTO

The New Housing Price Index (NHPI) rose 0.4 percent in July compared with the previous month, driven mainly by new housing prices in the combined region of Toronto and Os-hawa. Prices have increased at the national level for 16 con-secutive months. —Statistics Canada

Total U.S. construction activity for August 2016 of $1,142.2 billion US was 0.7 percent below July’s $1,150.6 billion US. —U.S. Census Bureau

In the first half of 2016, China’s imports of logs grew 3 per-cent year-on-year, however, imports of tropical logs rose by over twice that amount. Total sawnwood imports and imports of tropical sawnwood grew by 18 percent and 16 percent respectively. Tropical sawnwood comprises a much higher proportion of total China sawnwood imports than five years ago. —ITTO

In oil revenue-dependent Alberta, after declining 21 per cent in 2015 to 56,477 units, MLS real estate sales are on pace to decline for a second consecutive year by around 11 per cent in 2016. Saskatchewan is responding to low oil prices in a similar fashion, with resales on pace to decline for a second consecutive year. Conversely, Manitoba, with its more diverse economy, is on track for its third consecutive year of growth in MLS sales. —Canada Mortgage and Hous-ing Corporation

The value of investment in Canada’s new housing construc-tion totaled $4.5 billion in July, up 5.9 percent from the same month in 2015. The advance at the national level was attributable to higher spending on apartment and apart-ment-condominium building construction (13.1 percent to $1.6 billion), single-family dwelling construction (1.8 percent to $2.3 billion) and row house construction (8.8 per-cent to $425 million). —Statistics Canada

Global output growth may be showing some early signs of reviving. The volume of world trade increased a compara-tively solid 0.7 percent in June, with exports and imports ringing up equally impressive 0.7 percent gains. —Scotiabank Global Economics

The Canadian Machinery and Equipment Price Index (MEPI) decreased 5.4 percent in the second quarter, fol-lowing a 2.4 percent increase in the first quarter. The im-port component was down 6.5 percent over the period, while the domestic component decreased 1.9 percent. Computers and computer peripheral equipment (-9.2 per-cent) and logging, mining and construction machinery and equipment (-4.8 percent) were the commodities that contributed the most to the quarterly decline of the total MEPI. —Statistics Canada


ADVERTISERSEVENTS

Nov. 30 – Dec. 2 The Buildings Show Toronto, Ont. www.thebuildingsshow.com

Jan. 10 – 12 K/BIS Orlando, Fla. www.kbis.com

Jan. 14 – 17Domotex Hanover, Germany www.domotex.de

Jan. 17 – 20TISE (Surfaces)Las Vegas, Nev.www.tisewest.com

Jan. 18Coverings Canada NightTISE Las VegasBorder Grill at Mandalay Bay

Jan. 19 – 22 Interior Design Show Toronto, Ont. www.interiordesignshow.com

Jan. 16 – 22Imm CologneCologne, Germany www.imm-cologne.com

March 21 – 23 Domotex Asia ChinaFloorShanghai, China www.domotexasiachinafloor.com

April 4 – 7CoveringsOrlando, Fla. www.coverings.com

May 27 – 29 Canadian Furniture ShowToronto, Ont. www.canadianfurnitureshow.com

Ardex www.ardexamericas.com . . . . . . . . 5

Beaulieu www.beaulieuflooring.com . . . 36

Custom Building Products www. custombuildingproducts.com . . . . . 35

Fuzion Flooring www.fuzionflooring.com . . . . . 23

IIDEX www.iidexcanada.com . . . . . . . 13

Kiesel Bauchemie GmbH w.Co. KG www.kiesel.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Lackmond Products www.lackmond.com . . . . . . . . . 17

Mapei www.mapei.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Mohawk www. mohawkflooring.com/allpet . . . 25

Proma www.proma.ca . . . . . . . . . . . 18,19

RFMS www.rfms.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Schluter-Systems www.schluter.com . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Tarkett www.tarkettna.com . . . . . . . . . . 15

TISE (Surfaces) www.tisewest.com/register . . 2, 3

Contact:

Stephen King

905-703-6597 [email protected] and details available at: www.coveringscanada.ca

REAC

H TH

E T

OP BUYERS IN CANADA • WITH COVERINGS MAGAZINE •


LOCATED IN THE OLD Royal Bank space on St-Jacques street in Old Montreal, the Crew offices is a project defined by a 12,000 square foot office area for a tech start-up which would

Vintage Royal Bank branch revitalization

Old Montreal high tech

THEN-AND-NOW

to enhance architectural features while constructing boundaries between the various functional areas. Another challenge was simply to respect the context of a heritage building in an histori-cal neighbourhood.

Architect Henri Cleinge of Montreal, Que., who was in charge of the restoration and reconfiguration of the space, could see that past renovations had made a classic bank building a bit of an eyesore in places. “The teller stands were incredibly beau-tiful, but the actual Royal Bank offices just behind had 1970s-80s blue carpet and neon lighting that had to be removed,” says Cleinge. “So you had this reno that hadn’t aged very well.”

Cleinge notes that white oak was installed where the car-pet had been removed. “Underneath this carpet was just a con-crete slab.”

The 1926 building contained remarkably crafted elements: an inlay marble floor, an ornate painted plaster ceiling along with custom suspended brass light fixtures, as well as other brass el-ements including the teller stands. The white oak flooring was chosen to complement the warmth of the brass finishes.

One thing that had to be changed were the locations of the electrical outlets without disturbing the inlay marble floors in the front area where the café now sits. “We ended up repairing parts of it and put on a wax-like product to protect it.”

To drill holes safely to relocate the electrical outlets, the floor was scanned with a metal detector to determine the po-sition of the rebar in the concrete below the mortared mar-ble. They also had to go underneath the space to find where the ducts were run, Cleinge explains. The choice could then be made for the optimal placement of the new plugs that would not blemish the original inlay marble pattern.

The conference rooms which were divided and compart-mentalized with linear walls, covered with brass plated steel, and enclosed with glass partitions and a horizontal plane of a ceiling, by coincidence, ended up relating to the paper compartments within the existing free standing stands dating back to the paper days, when deposits were inscribed with pen onto paper.

Cleinge says he was serving the wishes of both the tenant, Crew, and the building owner, Gestion Georges Coulombe, one of the largest private developers in the City of Montreal. “They both love it. They are very happy with the results.”

The finished Then-and-Now project is featured on each issue’s cover. Please submit project suggestions to [email protected].

also include a café for freelance workers as well as for the public.

The project presented different design challeng-es originating from the client’s requirements — how

The Royal Bank wanted its corporate royal blue colour scheme in the carpets at all of its branches, and the lo-cation in Old Montreal was no exception when it was renovated in the 1970s-80s. For the latest restoration and new owner, it was replaced with white oak, adding to the warmth of accompanying refurbished brass fixtures throughout the office interiors.


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Documents

Coverings · To restore life to your floor, you have another option besides sanding, replacing or just covering the wood. Try MAPEI’s new Ultracoat® ReNewIt™ products, which