September-October 2020 Coverings

Coverings CANADA’S FLOORCOVERING MAGAZINE

September/October 2020

Make customer service GOLDEN again THEN-AND-NOW

Montreal bar is all about ambience Page 28

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Coverings CANADA’S FLOORCOVERING MAGAZINE

September/October 2020

Make customer service GOLDEN again

Feature 6 Do customers crave respect?

How abusive “customer service” may spell opportunity.

4 Commentary

THEN-AND-NOW

From the basement, the next rung on the ladder always points up.

Montreal bar is all about ambience Page 28

10 News Lumber Liquidators now LL Flooring; Mohawks adds CEUs; DriTac Flooring has new president; LG Hausys announces flooring division; New dates for CFI convention and expo.

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Sep-Oct 2020 Coverings

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2020-08-20 11:34 AM

September/October 2020 Vol. 45, No. 5 www.coveringscanada.ca Kerry Knudsen Editor and Publisher kknudsen@wimediainc.ca

15 Design Politicians and the pandemic: caught with their pants down.

18

National Floor Covering Association The Quality Assurance Program can keep mistakes at bay.

Mike Edwards Contributing Editor

19 Letters 20 Canadian Flooring, Cleaning and Restoration Association

Lee Ann Knudsen Art Director

21 Law

647-274-0507

medwards@wimediainc.ca

lak@wimediainc.ca

nsGraphic Design Graphics nspence@wimediainc.ca

Omni Data Services Circulation circulation@wimediainc.ca www.omnidataservices.com Cover photo: Atelier Welldone

Flooring quotes trending away from carpeting.

Pay attention to your employment contracts with periodic reviews.

22 Installation Troubleshooting means examining more than the flooring.

24 Products Large slab quartz collections; waterborne wood floor sealers; cordless drill; rigid vinyl flooring; stone antibacterial treatment; decorative epoxy line.

27 Bullets 28 Then-and-now 30 Events and Advertisers 2012

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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 subscriptions@wimediainc.ca or fax 1-866-698-9061 Published by W.I. Media Inc., Box 84 Cheltenham, Caledon, ON L7C 3L7 © 2020 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.

Canada’s floorcovering magazine

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COMMENTARY Business owners get starting at the bottom

The next rung

MY KIDS GOT ROYALLY SICK of my “when I was young” stories.

To them, I never was, so why not just read a fairy tale by a professional, like Walt Disney. Of course, when I was young, Walt Disney owned a cartoon company that was mainly famous for ripping off Hans Christian Andersen. Ripping off is not an art. You can, however, make money and impress kids.

One story I told, maybe one time too many, was about when I worked in the basement of an abattoir.

Ideally, you should never work in the basement of an abattoir.

My job was to trim hides. For the uninitiated, an abattoir’s heart is its chain speed. The cattle, pigs or Kerry Knudsen whatever come in the loading chute and match up with the chain, coming at the same pace from, in this case, the left. The animal is slaughtered and hooked to the chain, split and attached to a mechanical device that pops off the hide and drops it in a chute to the basement while the rest of the beast proceeds along at chain speed to be separated into edible and offal, cut and packed.

Down below, the hides slide down the chute and go through the flaying machine, where three workers stand at a steel table with three knives and a steel each: one knife in-hand and two plus the steel in an aluminum scabbard hanging from the waist.

The flaying machine screams, the chain groans, heat and humidity thick as mucous well up from the flayer and everything smells of death and innards.

Workers on each side grab the hide, hoist it up and let it flap on the table, then slice off the forehock, pecker fat, nipples and back hock and hook the hide to another chain running at chain speed off to the tanning vats.

The chain does not slow down, and does not forgive.

If the knives are not sharp — if it takes two cuts instead of one — then you lose speed, drop behind and a new hide comes sliding while the old one is still in-hand. That means you have to “drag the hide” to do the new one.

And that means the hides behind pile up and you lose your break, trying to catch up. Both the main and basement chains stop for break and start when it’s over, but 4

September/October 2020 September/October 2020

if you’re behind you can hang hides on the stopped chain.

If you’re a hide trimmer, you learn two things: you learn to sharpen a knife, and you learn to keep them that way. If you check my knives at home, you will find they all can slice paper without dragging, over 40 years on.

Nobody in his right mind would do that, right? Nobody should ever hear about, let alone experience, the hell of an abattoir basement. But when you’re in graduate school with kids, you do what you need to do. Or so it was.

In retrospect, owning a business is not unlike the hot, smelly purgatory of the hide room. On a good day, of course, there is no comparison, but on the bad ones …. Sometimes it’s even worse.

At least in the abattoir the whistle blows at 4:30 and you can always quit. Sometimes a business owner is up at 3:00 a.m., still from the day before. Sometimes a business owner is up at 3:00 a.m. to start.

We in the flooring industry are lucky. Many of us have had some stresses during the Covid-19 shutdown. Some of us have gone bust. We know of a few distributors in the Toronto area that have done so. But for most, building permits are raging, housing starts are at records and real estate sales are through the roof.

Housing means flooring, whether new or reno, and Lee Senter’s CFCRA column on page 20 may point to a supply chain fiasco that still points to future prosperity. Home Depot ran out of carpet.

I guess the thing that keeps business owners going is not a high threshold of pain, but a strong vision of tomorrow.

I did not last long as a hide trimmer. I lacked the skill set.

One day the foreman was barking at me for not having all the hides trimmed up before the break ended. I took off the knife scabbard, handed it to him and said, “Here. You show me how.”

He glared and snarled, mucously. “If you do this, you’ll never work here again.”

I smiled and said, “I’m counting on it.” Years later, having been on the receiving end of a worker quitting on deadline, I have another take. But that was then.

As it turns out, he was prescient. I never did. An abattoir is the best place on earth to learn to move on, and I moved on. I guess that’s a note for the kids. I may have been below bottom, but there’s always a rung on the ladder. You can put your foot on it at any time, or you can whine for somebody to baby you.

They hate that.

Comment at www.coveringscanada.ca

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Have you seen it?

Mega-vendors treat you — and your customers — as expendable commodities

Do customers crave respect?

Many years ago, I worked with a publisher that always confused anecdote with antidote. “Let me give you an amusing antidote,” he would say. I never said it out loud, but I always agreed. Any anecdote that ends up being an antidote is amusing in its bones. If you are interested, the rule in publishing these days is that publishers are from the sales side and may have very little formal education, while editors tend to be fairly well educated but lack judgement. It’s a marriage made in hell, and is largely responsible for the current condition of media. That said, if you view every anecdote as a potential antidote, you will find your life enriched.

By way of anecdote, my wife this month threw

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September/October 2020

away a nearly new Cuisinart food processor. Last February, well in advance of the pandemic, we were sitting in the living room, talking one night, and a groaning, chewing, mechanical noise came from the kitchen, followed by the stench of burning electrical contacts and rubber. We went into the kitchen, and the food processor had turned itself on and lit on fire. Smoke, anyway. No visible flames, but smoke and stink. Nobody had been near it, and we had not used it for at least a day or two. It was just sitting there, alone.

Naturally, we pulled the plug. This was clearly not a “normal” case of appliance failure. It was nearly bedtime, we could easily have been upstairs and there was no apparent trigger or

reason the failure decided to happen as it did, unsupervised, alone and off.

It seemed to be an imminent safety threat we had dodged, but somebody else may not, so we tried to contact Cuisinart right away. Predictably, Customer Service was not available at that time, so we left a detailed, written description.

It was ignored, as were subsequent attempts. I am not an “enforcer.” On the other hand, I get irked when I am ignored — particularly on safety issues — so after a month or so I contacted Ontario’s consumer safety division and left a report. Crickets.

More contact attempts with Cuisinart failed, so, more irked, I left a review on Amazon, where we had purchased the unit. More crickets.

Finally, after more calls to Cuisinart, we got instructions to call them on FaceTime so they could watch us cut the power cord off at the base before they would send a new one. Then a new machine showed up on our doorstep and that was that.

Customers increasingly ignored The point of this long story is because it is indicative of a general level of customer service that has gone from a long history of diminishing service to an uptick once Amazon started offering no-questions-asked refunds to a sudden drop to neglect. Each one of us has become too insignificant to warrant a reply in the ever-so-important, yet virtual, digital world. We have yet to hear back from Consumer Safety or Amazon.

Another antidote (sic). I subscribe to the digital blasts of another publication in our sector. I have to; you don’t. We com-

petitors like to keep an eye on each other. In case you have unsubscribed, which many have, I get up to four emails a day, and most have zero original, editorial content. They are just repurposed product releases from preferred advertisers. Legally, that makes them an ad, not editorial. The easiest way to see this is in Canada Post’s regulations for Publication Mail. I get it; digital is not postal. On the other hand, regulations are regulations, and a publication that contains more than 70 percent ads is a catalog.

We polled you about sending emails every day, and you said don’t do it. If you like definitions, that would be a definition of abuse. You say don’t do it; they do it, anyway. So we move from customer neglect to customer abuse.

This deal with magazines did not used to be this way.

Wonder why? There are two reasons. First, to include the postal regulations, a publisher would not pester you with direct mail on a daily basis because it would cost too much. Digital is not “free,” as many believe. However, once he has invested in the infrastructure, got hooked into the software “subscriptions” and hired a stable of kids that can talk slang, a publisher can diminish the cost-per-impression by beating his lists to death.

Second, very few publishers own anything. They are employees of megacorp communications companies and they run by committee. Once a list stops providing ROI, it’s killed, the publication is dead, the Gucci-shoes publishers explain to the shareholders that it’s the internet’s fault and they move on to video.

Or Instagram. Or Snapchat. Or Twitter. Or whatever is not yet on life support. This applies equally to adverting, editorial and every bastard, inbred iteration of the two.

Continued on next page

Canada’s floorcovering magazine

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Clearly, there is a disconnect between Big Advertising and the consumer. We are forced to “accept” terms that allow for cautiously worded, yet malignant, privacy invasion, so-called searches that both reveal only sponsored content and ignore most of which happened before 1980 and, recently, identify, label and suppress ideas and arguments that are deemed not to meet some undefined level of propriety. We assume it is not long before any merchant that is not Amazon, Walmart or Nike will be canceled.

The Supreme Courts of both Canada and the U.S. in the 1980s decided to “find” a “limited right to commercial speech.” At the moment, we seem to know that “commercial speech” applies not only to merchandise and services, but also to special interests and social movements. What is not so clear is what “limited” means. At the moment, it appears the limits are well out there beyond Uranus.

line with their hands out, begging through some starving-artists guild or pandering to YouTube for a chance to be heard through TV speakers or $100 ear buds.

You have heard it all. The travel industry is hurt, as are airlines, auto parts, gaming and the Olympics.

The oil and gas industry was hit, but here’s an interesting bit. Even in advance of Covid, the price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia had driven oil prices down, yielding a probability of default in that industry moving from 9.1 percent on March 1, to 22.5 percent on March 31. Housing starts and building permits, however, are on an opposite trend.

International trade also was affected heavily before Covid — particularly in the areas surrounding our industry. Imports from China were heavily influenced by negotiations and tariffs in China’s dealings with the U.S., and those had either reciprocal or opposing effects in Canada, depending on where you’re looking, but there was an effect. You will note in the CFCRA’s column in Family businesses become prey this issue on page 20 that Lee Senter reports Home Depot being This change in relationship between the governors and the out of carpet, adhesive, underlayment and other flooring supgoverned, between the consumer and the provider, cannot be plies. Not expected. overestimated. It has affected the way we sell, the way we Canada is investigating Amazon Canada for its pricing prepare the market for sales and the practices. Google is being investigated way we serve the customer after in the U.S. and sanctioned in Europe. Et the sale. And the relationship has cetera. The fact is, the consumer is fed Expedience is king. become predator/prey, with the up with being pushed around. The dol“We need Googles and Twitters of the world as lar is still king, and until the consumer to move on,” predators, and family owned busiswaps that dollar for a good or service, is the new mantra. nesses as the prey. he or she has the cards.

How do we respond? There, What can we conclude from as Shakespeare famously penned, these facts? It appears that maybe best is the rub. To be honest, the triedpractices set in place a dozen-or-so and-true policy of putting the cusmillennia ago may have been there for tomer first has not worked. Not in a reason, after all. In our Readers’ Sura competitive sense. Nor has safety veys over the years, our own customor quality. Not when you cannot get ers (you) have told us repeatedly you a reply in two months for a kitchen do not want people spamming your appliance that lights itself on fire, alone at night in the kitchen.

InBoxes, just because they harvested your addresses. You do not Expedience is king. “We need to move on,” is the new mantra. want outside special interests messing around with the content But is it? The Covid-19 pandemic has ground society nearof your information. You do not want big corporations thumbly to a standstill. This has had interesting, sometimes amusing, ing their noses at rules and regulations designed to protect your results, such as back-ordering toilet paper and selling out of personal and financial information. flour. If only we had bought shares in Plexiglas last January.

One of the older Best Practices is a thing called the Golden However, a sinister underbelly is being revealed. It is esRule. It says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto timated that 14 percent of restaurants closed during the past you.” You can’t argue that Zuckerberg, Apple, Zucker or Alphabet five months will not reopen. As family businesses, these are not are doing unto you what they want you to do to them. Not unjust numbers for StatCan. They are careers and fortunes. Family less they are all closet porn stars. owned businesses rarely start up with excess cash or overflow From the perspective of today, maybe old is the new new. from maxed-out RRSPs. As we peek out from under the shroud of Covid, your new cusEntertainers are foundering. It was already tough when tomers may just want to do business with somebody they can the digital world started stealing all the means of distribution trust. If you try it, it might make an interesting antidote. and left the artists with a guitar and their shoes. Before the pandemic, there was still money in events. Now, many are sitting on- Comment at www.coveringscanada.ca 8

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NEWS Lumber Liquidators announces name change Richmond, Va.-based Lumber Liquidators has officially changed its name to LL Flooring and named Charles Tyson president and c.e.o. The name change has come after the Lumber Liquidators stocks slipped earlier this year, prompting Charles Tyson financial analysts to suggest the company would benefit from a rebrand in the wake of the 2015 television news story about heightened formaldehyde levels in its laminate imports from China. In April, as a result of reduced demand and the changes in operating models due to Covid-19, it temporarily furloughed a number of store associates and reduced operating hours in its distribution centres, the company says. As demand returned through the quarter, it recalled associates, and as of late June, had invited all furloughed employees back to work and had returned to normal operations in its distribution centres.

Mohawk adds CEUs to digital learning series

Calhoun, Ga.-based Mohawk Group has announced the addition of three new dates as 10

September/October 2020

part of the second half of its Resourceful CEU series, which established the digital program specifically to provide outlets for the contract design community while many professionals are still working remotely. Each CEU will be offered twice to accommodate larger groups and guests tuning in across different time zones. All continuing education courses take place on Wednesday afternoons from 12–1 p.m.

EST and 3–4 p.m. EST. Each CEU is free to attend virtually, but attendees must register to view and receive credit.

Mohawk has also debuted Personal Studio, styled p.s., an interactive visualization platform that allows designers to

is used to fund these carbon mitigation projects around the world. The UPS carbon neutral program has been third-party certified by Natural Capital Partners and verified

by SGS, a recognized third-party certifier.

Last year, UPS says it achieved 110,814 metric tons of carbon dioxide reduction or offset worldwide (according to the company’s GRI Content Index).

FCEF expands board of directors The Floor Covering Education Foundation (FCEF) of Dalton, Ga., has announced

Bill Gaddis

create custom flooring solutions for carpet projects. The system is said to be the first of its kind as a single, consolidated carpet personalization design tool that can seamlessly handle every soft surface construction type. The digital assets produced through the platform can be used in standard CAD drawings and other 3D visualization software.

Teknoflor commits to carbon-neutral shipping Milwaukee, Wisc.-based Teknoflor has partnered with logistics provider UPS of Atlanta, Ga., in efforts to reduce the company’s carbon footprint with carbon-neutral parcel shipments. To continuously improve the company’s sustainability programs, all domestic Teknoflor samples and collateral will be shipped via UPS carbon neutral shipping. UPS is said to use a carbon calculator to measure a customer’s carbon footprint, and the additional shipping expense paid to UPS for carbon neutral shipping

Mike Beavers

the appointment of two new members to serve on its board of directors. Mike Beavers of The Woodlands, Tex.-based Flaherty’s Flooring America, and Bill Gaddis of Calhoun, Ga.-based Mohawk Industries will be joining the board. With these additions, the foundation’s board expands to fourteen directors. In addition, the FCEF board of directors nominated and elected Jeff Honkenon of Engineered Floors of Dalton, Ga., as the new board secretary. The board will support FCEF in its mission to bring awareness to the opportunities that exist in the flooring industry through the recruitment, scholarship and placement of professional floorcovering installers.

Alberta legislature building to get $22.5 million restoration Alberta Infrastructure has announced a project to restore the 106-year-old Alberta legislature building in Edmonton, Alta. The project scope includes the restoration and repair of the sandstone

cladding and windows. The project will begin in the southwest corner, followed by the southeast corner, and finishing off with the north portion of the building.

The project is estimated to take three years. Project contractor Scorpio Masonry of Edmonton previously restored the east stairs leading into the legislature (shown) during the summer of 2011. Scorpio also has offices in Vancouver, B.C., and Saskatoon, Sask.

DriTac names Clarkson president DriTac Flooring Products of Clifton, N.J., has named David Clarkson its president.

Clarkson has held numerous positions with DriTac since 2003, most recently as senior vice-president of sales. He has also held positions in the David Clarkson flooring industry for the past 30 years including field sales, sales management and marketing. Yale and Myrna Block (formerly company president and vice president, respectively) remain as chairman and vice-chairman of the board of directors.

and gh3* have recently received two awards for the restaurant project, the Gold 2020 Shop! Design Awards for Restaurant Fine Dining and the Silver for A’Design Award and Competition Interior Space and Exhibition Design Category Award. The design has also been shortlisted for the International Hotel and Property Awards. The restaurant features an intimate lounge and bar area in addition to the main dining room that features an octagon ceiling with a centre dome as the main focal point.

LG Hausys America establishes flooring division Atlanta, Ga.-based LG Hausys America has officially established its LG Hausys Flooring Division to serve the North American market. The division has launched with a lineup of products that include luxury vinyl tile, SPC, sports flooring and commercial sheet. The products will serve commercial and residential end-use applications. LG Hausys flooring products are designed, tested and manufactured at LG Hausys’ manufactur-

MORE INSPIRED MOMENTS ARE MADE ON MOHAWK PRODUCT FEATURED: SOFT INTRIGUE II COLOR: NEW LIGHT

Restaurant design attracts international awards

Opened in 2019, Arthur’s Restaurant of Toronto, Ont., was designed by Torontobased gh3* and fabricated by Unique Store Fixtures of Vaughan, Ont. Unique

When we were little, we thought we could change the world. We still can. Answering the call of growing consumer demand for eco-friendly products, Mohawk is committed to making a positive impact on the earth through innovative products. Our Continuum process has diverted more than 40 billion plastic bottles from waterways and landfills to become the fiber for EverStrand carpet. Your customers will love knowing that each square yard of our EverStrand carpet contains about 63 reclaimed plastic bottles – and will be inspired to help make the world a better place.

Learn how you can inspire customers and sell more EverStrand through its sustainability story.

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Canada’s floorcovering magazine

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NEWS ing facilities in South Korea. The company’s distribution warehouse in Atlanta serves as a backup inventory facility for its distributor partners, as well as for serving North American customers.

New dates for CFI convention and expo The Forney, Tex.-based International Certified Flooring Installation Association (CFI) 27th Annual Convention & Expo, which was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has been rescheduled to December 9-11, 2020 at Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Fla. Robert Varden, CFI executive director, notes that the association is committed to taking strong, proactive meaRobert Varden sures to help ensure the health and safety of its employees, members and partners, as well as attending floor covering professionals, during the event.

Ontario to invest $500 million on new schools

Dezeen Awards 2020 studio longlist announced

The longlist for the London, U.K.-based Dezeen Awards 2020 studio categories has been revealed, with 131 studios selected across six categories. Three firms in Canada have been recognized — Ste Marie Art + Design of Vancouver, B.C., for Emerging interior designer of the year, and Cecconi Simone and dkstudio architects, both of Toronto, Ont., for Interior designer of the year. Cecconi Simone (project shown above) is a multidisciplinary interior design practice in Toronto with over 50 staff. The practice was established by Elaine Cecconi and Anna Simone in 1982. A design firm founded in 2007 by Dmytriy Pereklita and Karen Mak, dk studio architects has offices in Toronto, Vancouver and Hong Kong. Ste Marie is a multidisciplinary design studio that focuses on experiential, strategy-lead spaces within the mixed-use development, multifamily and hospitality industries.

York University receives approval to build its Markham Centre Campus

The Government of Ontario government announced it is investing over $500 million to build 30 new schools and make upgrades to 15 existing facilities. The investment will also generate nearly 900 new licensed childcare spaces. The funding could be used to replace aging heating or air conditioning systems, repair roofs and windows, and install accessibility features like elevators and ramps.

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September/October 2020

York University of Toronto, Ont., has commenced construction on its $275.5 million Markham Centre Campus (MCC).

The campus is expected to be completed

in the fall of 2023. The MCC will accommodate up to 4,200 students with the flexibility to respond to future growth demands. The capital funding for the campus includes financial commitments from York Region, the City of Markham and donor contributions, as well as the University’s existing capital funds.

WFCA growth in membership sets record The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) of Dalton, Ga., says that it now has a record 10,000 members. The boost in membership figures can partly be attributed to the association’s decision on January 1 to offer free membership to all primary members (professional flooring dealers, inspectors, cleaners, designers).

It also offers a tiered-membership format for others that is more conducive to their individual business needs (manufacturers, suppliers, distributors). Since the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic impact, the WFCA shifted its efforts to focus on the emergent needs of its members, and the industry as a whole, it says, and has led the way in providing a crisis-communications effort offering guidance and resources on how to best navigate the complicated terrain. Membership growth has come from all sectors of the industry, largely fueled by manufacturing and industry groups.

NALFA announces new water resistant test The North American Laminate Flooring Association (NALFA) of Washington, D.C., has approved a new test method to determine if assembled laminate flooring planks can be considered moisture resistant. The test method will be an addition to the existing LF-01 Testing Standard.

Laminate flooring manufacturers will have the opportunity to certify for Moisture Resistance in addition to the other factors currently contained in the NALFA Certified product standard. The current certification includes minimum requirements for multiple attributes including Fade Resistance, Stain Resistance, Impact Resistance, Surface Wear Resistance and VOCs. Products that pass the LF-01 Standards as well as the new Moisture Resistance test will be able to show an enhanced NALFA Certified Logo on pack-

aging and in marketing materials. Being certified will be said to help consumers easily identify manufacturers and products that adhere to the strictest standard for water resistance in laminate flooring.

OAQ reveals 2020 architecture winners

The Ordre des architectes du Québec (OAQ) of Montreal, Que., has unveiled the winners of its awards of excellence and distinctions for 2020. This year’s Prix d’excellence en architecture were announced online, during a live, interactive gathering. A total of 15 projects were recognized from among 73 entries received. This year’s Grand Prix d’excellence

went to the Espace Paddock, designed by Montreal-based Les architectes FABG. The project, on the site of the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve racetrack in Montréal’s Parc Jean-Drapeau, also received the Ordre’s mention for Innovation. For more information about this year’s winners, visit the Ordre’s Prix d’excellence web page (in French): www.oaq.com/prix.

Install floorcovering network adds members Install Warranty Contractors (IWCs) and Install Alliance Partners recently welcomed three new IWCs, including National Decor of Ottawa, Ont., and one new Alliance Partner, Coesfeld, Germany-based flooring manufacturer Parador. Becoming an IWC is the highest level of certification offered by Install and each company had to be nominated and complete a rigorous review to achieve this status. Alliance Partners work side by side with Install to bring technical expertise and product training to the flooring industry. Install, The International Standards and Training Alliance, is based in Washington, D.C.

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Wajax to distribute PowerBoss floor cleaning equipment Mississauga, Ont.-based Wajax is now the exclusive Canadian distributor of Power

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Canada’s floorcovering magazine

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NEWS

IDS21 will be an important platform for the pressing conversations that society is facing through groundbreaking products, keynotes and conference tracks.

Bruce hardwood flooring gets nod at Architizer A+Awards

TISE moves to June

Show management of The International Surface Event (TISE) has decided to postpone the show, traditionally held each January in Las Vegas, to June 15-21, 2021. Virtual programming will be presented during the original show week starting Jan. 25, 2020, and educational sessions held in conjunction with the postponed June show kick off on June 15, 2021. For more information visit www. www.intlsurfaceevent.com.

IDS Toronto Announces New Dates

Hydropel, the Bruce waterproof hardwood flooring brand from Mountville, Penn.based AHF Products, has been selected as a Special Mention in the 2020 Architizer A+Awards for the Flooring category. As an Architizer A+Award Special Mention honoree, AHF Products has been identified as an industry leader for architecture and design worldwide. The awards program based in New York, N.Y., is focused on promoting and celebrating the year’s best architecture and products. With entries received from over 100 countries, the Special Mention distinction is awarded to work entered that exhibits remarkable achievement and that scored in the top five percent of entrants.

NSI presents 2020 Tucker Design Awards

IDS Toronto (IDS21), will move its annual event to May 13 - 16, 2021 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. New this year is a virtual component that will sit alongside the physical event. This virtual piece will become part of the overall event offering allowing IDS21 to be more inclusive and connect with a larger audience.

The reinvented IDS21 will bring the latest and most innovative ideas, products and trends to market. A hub for changemakers, design experts and visionaries, IDS has always focused on highlighting diverse voices and points of view to its audience and this year will be no different. With its ear to the ground, 14

September/October 2020

The Oberlin, Ohio-based Natural Stone Institute (NSI) has presented the twelve winning projects of the 2020 Tucker Design Awards. Included among the awards were two Canadian firms, Lemay of Montreal, Que., for its Place Vauquelin project and Edmonton, Alta.-based Dialog for its Royal Alberta Museum project. The biennial Tucker Design Awards competition, which began in 1977, honours members of the design community who exhibit innovation and excellence in the use of natural stone.

The NSI recognizes the 2020 Tucker Design Awards sponsors as KEPCO+, Laticrete, Mapei, Cleveland Marble Mosaic, Coldspring, Lurvey, Picture This On Granite, Connecticut Stone, Dee Brown Inc., Tompkins Bluestone, Northern Stone Supply and Bybee Stone Company.

Swiff-Train welcomes Cole Hood as sales director Houston, Tex.based Swiff-Train Company has appointed Cole Hood director of sales for SwiffTrain Distribution.

Hood joins Swiff-Train with Cole Hood over 20 years in the industry, including over 15 years in multiple capacities at Mohawk Industries of Calhoun, Ga., and most recently at Dalton, Ga.-based Dream Weaver Carpet. Previous positions held include district manager, regional sales operations manager and director of national accounts, among others. SwiffTrain is a full line flooring distributor, as well as parent company and headquarters to EarthWerks, Pinnacle and Ground Control Surfaces flooring brands.

Neolith announces James Amendola as vice president Almazora, Spain-based Neolith has announced the appointment of James Amendola as its vice president of North America.

The appointment follows that of Jose Luis Ramon Moreno as c.e.o. in March and Sagi Cohen as advisory James Amendola board member in November 2019.

Amendola brings experience from over three decades in the stone surfacing industry. Most recently, he held the position of director of sales and marketing US at SapienStone of Chicago, Ill. Previously, he was general manager at Coral Gables, Fla.-based Cosentino.

DESIGN Designers think ahead. Why can’t politicians?

Hindsight and foresight I have been thinking about foresight, especially as it seems so lacking in these unusual times. And hindsight. They seem to be linked. Hindsight is the parent of foresight, isn’t it? Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it is how the philosopher George Santayana put it.

Unfortunately, hindsight doesn’t necessarily lead to foresight. It seems to be a separate condition. We rely on our political leaders to supply the necessary foresight for our political, economic and other forms of wellbeing, and I think that’s a structural problem right there. They have not been proven to be very good at it, so why do we keep expecting them to accomplish it? It seems that the most common training Paul Epp obtained by politicians has been in law, and my sense of that is that its more about hindsight than foresight. Judicial precedent is what most rulings are based on. Training for teachers isn’t much better as far as foresight is concerned. Real estate development might be an improvement but that’s not certain either. Turning hindsight to foresight seems to require a deliberate intention.

When I set out to be a designer, I basically just wanted to make beautiful things. I was very naïve, of course, but that changed as I went along. One critical insight was that if I didn’t want my designing to be only for myself (which would limit it to being a hobby), I would need to take others into account. I would have to accept that to design is to serve. And, not only would I need to take others into account as they appeared in the immediate present, in some cases I would need to anticipate what they might require in the future. I would need to practice some foresight. Fortunately, the discipline of design recognizes this and there are educational opportunities to further competence in

that asset. It’s a skill and it can be acquired, although, as is usually the case, skill is most readily developed by those that have some applicable talent.

In fact, (strategic) foresight has emerged as its own discipline and is often associated with the parallel field of design thinking, so they can occupy the same toolbox, now broadly used not only by designers but also by a wide array of business and organizational leaders.

How about politicians? Might they not dip into this same toolset? I’d be surprised to see it happen, but I’d certainly welcome it. It seems so obvious that a careful attention to the plausible future is critical to proper management of our current affairs. There have been plenty of pandemics before, so why were we caught (seemingly) unaware?

I suspect that in fact, there were plenty of voices in our governments’ ears, reminding us of the past, but those words were drowned out by the louder voices of political expedience.

The present was dealt with, not the alarmist predictions of those that were trying to turn their hindsight into foresight.

Can’t we insist on better? I don’t know how we would go about that, but it seems like a worthwhile objective. Maybe our governments could hire some designers expressly for this purpose. These advisors could utilize their training and experience into looking both to the past and the future (and remind our leaders that they are there to serve). However, there needs to be a strong proviso. As noted by that insightful Canadian, John Kenneth Galbraith, “There are two kinds of forecasters: those who don’t know, and those who don’t know they don’t know.” Well said and worth keeping in mind. But that hardly lets us of the hook of attending to the past so that we don’t repeat the bad parts. We ought to do better.

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

Canada’s floorcovering magazine

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NFCA An exercise in best practices

QAP

The quality assurance program (QAP) continues to build momentum in the commercial sector of the floor covering industry here in Canada.

QAP is now being specified more frequently by consultants, building owners and even general contractors in multiple provinces. This is a step forward in the battle for the floor covering industry to convey the importance of providing acceptable site conditions (prior to the floor covering installer arriving on site) to the larger construction industry. Securing these conditions is key to maximizing efficiency, avoiding delays, delivering quality, reducing claims and leaving clients with a warranty.

Chris Maskell, For this article, I thought I would NFCA c.e.o. help shed some light on how the program works by sharing details of a recent project where QAP was specified.

Like an early warning system First, it’s not uncommon for a construction manager and/or flooring contractor to see the QAP as a barrier to efficiency — an unnecessary spotlight demanding perfection in an imperfect construction world. Maybe they think, “it’s hard enough in this business without someone looking over my shoulder,” and that’s understandable. But the reality is that QAP is not there to pick apart workmanship. It’s more of an early warning system than a score card for an installer’s skill level. It enables the construction team to get on the same page, navigate obstacles together, trust recommendations that may require extra money and, most importantly, manages site conditions ahead of time. Yes, workmanship is also reported on, but independently and from an industry perspective.

The project In 2018, the Clayton Heights Community Centre build got underway. This state-of-the-art “passive house design” community recreational centre was built in the city of Surrey, B.C.

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Sheet linoleum, recycled rubber sports flooring and fitness synthetic turf were scheduled for installation during 2019.

The general contractor (GC) was Ellis Don, the flooring contractor, Atmosphere Flooring, architect HCMA Architecture, and the floor covering product manufacturers included Dinoflex, Edgewood Group and Forbo.

There are numerous examples of how the QAP inspector brought attention to aspects of the preparation and installation process that helped both the general contractor and installer work better together. I asked Clayton Shull, the assigned independent inspector on the project, to share an example or two.

I issued six reports over the course of several months for this project — a fascinating build which had my interest right from the start. This project being a passive house-driven build, had minimal fly-ash in the concrete, 12-inch thick walls, three-pane windows, Q Deck for roofing, metal exterior siding and special insulation inbetween. The building’s HVAC system is used only when needed as the passive structure minimizes its need for use.

For example, one of my site visits revealed that the container-sized dehumidifier they had been using on site was making the air too dry. Useful equipment in some applications but not needed in this case. Once it was shut off and disconnected from the building, it would save both rental and power supply costs. This also improved productivity (for all trades) as the overly dry air was dehydrating the workers.

I liked how, as a third party, I was consulted early on in the process at the time slabs were poured. This allowed me to share key pieces of information with the construction team that helped ensure acceptance of the slabs by the floor covering contractor later on. Concrete dry times understood, moisture testing understood, flatness, surface profile and porosity understood and so on.

As installation started, I visited the site to check conditions, trowel size, adhesives, etc. In addition, I needed to ensure that the installers on site were on the list submitted by the contractor in advance and that their trade (or product) qualifications met QAP requirements. Meetings with installers are usually very positive. In one case, I recall the lead installer saying that he’d never had to show his ticket before and appreciated having to do so. He also mentioned he had received a copy of a QAP inspection report from the general contractor and agreed with its conclusions, both positive and negative.

LETTERS Readers weighed in on the August Coverings e-letter, “Sixteen tons.” Read it, or subscribe, at www.coveringscanada.ca.

The QAP process is simple Once the project is awarded and an inspector assigned, a pre-installation site meeting is arranged. Note: These meetings have been held up to a year in advance of the floor covering installation starting. They review the QAP specification and identify who is responsible for what (such as slab flatness, preparation and moisture testing).

Next, the GC must bring the building to lock-up stage and provide service conditions.

Then ASTM moisture testing starts.

The GC provides the testing and results to the team for review.

Once these tests pass, a Mat Bond Test is performed, video-taped by the flooring contractor and shared with the group.

Once the Mat Bond Test passes, the next stage is to install a mock-up (usually one small room), which the architect must approve. This sets the bar for installation quality. Once accepted the installation can move ahead.

As always, the challenge for construction is in getting trusted, timely, accurate information to everyone so it can be quickly shared, understood and put to work. This way, everyone’s goals can be met.

I encourage anyone interested in understanding the step-by-step process of a QAP to watch this video: https://bit.ly/2WrL8OR. The National Floor Covering Association (NFCA) promotes industry standards for resilient, carpet, hardwood, laminate, cork and bamboo floor covering installations. www.nfca.ca

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Hi Kerry I don’t normally reply or comment on Editor’s notes or commentaries but I after reading your commentary I was compelled to write to you. Thank you for such an insightful article. In the current times when we are bombarded by “black lives matter” issues (not that these are not important issues), we get distracted from other underlining issues that affect our lives and our future. Very few have come out and pointed out all the wrongs that all cultures have participated in. I stand corrected, lots of people have come out and pointed out the wrongs that our governments have participated in our history. However those behaviors were culturally the norm at the time and culturally acceptable at the time. Yes, we have come a long way since but it is unfortunate that we can’t see the parallels of some of the events in modern day. Just like the Americans did not learn from the mistakes of the Spanish Flu to prevent the spread of Covid 19. I am now rambling, don’t get me started on Trump.

I wish your perspective is discussed more in the mainstream media to get people thinking and question more about what our leaders are doing. Simply giving away money is not sustainable. My 20 year old son is on the receiving end as he is getting his $2000/month for the last few months so yeah, its great. He is among the lucky ones that live at home and are supported by his parents for school and shelter. However the government doesn’t discriminate so he benefits now but what will be his price in his future? Also I like your point about the unsuspecting victims (young kids) with credit cards who are not taught the devastating toll of credit card debt. As adults, we tend to forget how naïve kids are or uneducated they are about credit. Talking to my son, who is in 2nd year university, how apparently unexposed they are to financial education. They are not taught this in school sufficiently

September/October 2020

and most just stumble and learn as they go through life if they don’t have parents who teach them.

Again thank you. I used to work in the Tile industry which is why I subscribed to your magazine. Now I am in the wallcovering industry. Moving up in the world. Lol. — Melody Sum Your racist and shouldn’t be putting your own racist opinion on a publication for flooring I could debate your ideas if they were published in your magazine — Bob Sinden Hi Bob, Thanks for your time and your interest in Coverings magazine.

From my perspective, there is quite a bit to talk about in a very short space. First, to be accurate, I am definably not a racist.

Of course, we are all entitled to our opinions, but the term “racist” is what they call in debate an ad hominem (at the man) assault and in a formal setting you would lose, as it’s a fallacy.

We have spoken many times on the importance of open discussion on current social issues in a business magazine. Business cannot function in an asocial environment, and politics determines how much you can make and how much you can keep.

Books have been written….

That said, our policy of long standing is to provide an open forum for discussion, and an open chance for anybody that has a different take on what we cover in the magazine or newsletters.

The floor is yours, and it is probable we can get your response in the current issue if it’s posted today or tomorrow. We go to press on Wednesday, so I will have to tear up a page to get you in, but I can try, or I can propose an alternative.

Please note, you said “debate” and “ideas.” I cannot promise to publish emotional name-calling.

Over to you.

— Kerry Knudsen

Canada’s floorcovering magazine

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CFCRA Challenges come in unexpected ways

The world is changing I have had the opportunity to perform some flooring quotes over the last month. I seem to run into exceptionally nice people who seem to have done some homework on choosing their replacement floor covering.

You have to wonder where these seemingly intelligent people are doing their research. I am being asked, almost by everyone, to quote on putting a floating floor on a basement concrete slab that has no subfloor and no vapour barrier.

I try and explain to the clients that the floating floor they are looking at must be on a flat, level surface and they always say the same thing — Lee Senter, “why did the last two companies not CFCRA President say it’s a problem?” Now, we are talking about a flooring substrate that you can see with your naked eye is nowhere near being flat.

Next, we look at the issue of moisture coming out of the concrete and what products are affected poorly by moisture in concrete. Again, the clients seemingly criticize me for bringing up a subject that the other quotes did not take into consideration.

One of the quotes I went to see was for an obviously wet concrete substrate. When we asked to perform an in-situ relative humidity test by installing three probes and come back the next day the client thought I was crazy. I guess even their “Googling” could not reveal why this was necessary.

Now I know many of these situations are on slab on grade, or below grade but there are also inherent issues with flooring installations on the upper floors as well. For example, I am watching products fail in sun all the time.

So, while I was covering for my employees who are on vacation, I was doing these sales calls and covering operations issues as well. At one of the reinstalls we were doing, my guys ran out of rebond underlay. I told them to run down to Home Depot and get some. They called me from Home Depot and told me that there

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September/October 2020

was no underpad there. They went on to say that, as a matter of fact, this Home Depot no longer carried carpet at all. They did not even have display boards. They went to another Home Depot with the same results.

I was incredulous. How could one of the largest retailers of carpet not be selling it anymore? I went to a larger Home Depot here in Toronto to see for myself. Well lo and behold, no rolls of carpet or underpad! I asked the sales associate and they told me carpet is all special order and would take two to four weeks to arrive.

Going back to the ideas presented at the beginning of this column, what if we discover that the only real choice for this basement is ceramics or carpet if I do not want to put in a sub floor?

What if the ability for DIYers to install a builder’s-grade carpet in a basement is going away for many?

I asked industry experts what was going on here and they were all as surprised as me about this absence of carpet. I googled the subject and saw that in September 2019, Home Depot banned all carpets that contained PFAS chemistries. Lowe’s followed suit at the end of October 2019.

But, according to the large carpet manufacturers, their products are PFAS-free. Yes, the world is changing, but it appears to be ruled more than ever by — style and colour.

We as an industry have to stop being so greedy that we sell flooring that is doomed to fail in places like basements. Carpet may not be the favourite choice of many. But there are circumstances where carpet is a great choice and for some reason, this choice is slowly but surely being harder to find.

If your group or company would like to offer free informational webinars on proper installation of flooring products, please contact us at the CFCRA and we will help spread the word. If we do not set the record straight, who will?

Please visit us on our Facebook page.

The Canadian Flooring Cleaning and Restoration Association (CFCRA) was preceded by the Flooring Institute of Ontario (FIO), a not-for-profit organization which proudly served the needs of flooring industry professionals in Ontario since 1962. www.cfcra.ca

LAW Pay attention to employment contracts

Review or regret

Many employers rely upon standard form employment contracts, believing that they are sufficient to meet their specific hiring needs. However, employers should have experienced employment law lawyers regularly review their employment contracts, to ensure that the terms are valid and enforceable. The recent Court of Appeal for Ontario decision, Waksdale 2020 ONCA 391, is an example of how employers would be wise to revisit their standard form employment contracts.

The employee in Waksdale was terminated on a “without cause” basis, this means that the employer did not allege cause justifying its decision to end the employment relationship. Most Junaid J. Malik employees who are terminated without cause have entitlements under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the “ESA”). Those entitlements include termination pay, and depending upon their length of service, severance pay, among other things. Employers are not permitted to contract out of the terms of the ESA. An employee who is terminated on a without cause basis is also “presumptively” entitled to common law “reasonable notice.” Reasonable notice is determined by judges on a case-by-case basis, and it tends to be a much more generous form of entitlement compared to entitlements under the ESA. Reasonable notice is a “presumptive” entitlement in the sense that the parties can contract out of it, in writing. This is a major reason why

employers rely upon employment agreements. Properly drafted employment agreements allow employers an opportunity to limit reasonable notice exposure when the employment relationship comes to an end by waiving the employee’s right to claim reasonable notice entitlements.

The issue in Waksdale was that the employment agreement contained a with cause termination provision which attempted to contract out of the ESA. The employee in Waksdale argued that the termination provisions, read as a whole, were unenforceable since the with cause provisions offended the ESA. Indeed, the employer in Waksdale conceded that the with cause termination provisions were invalid. Though, the employer argued that the illegal with cause provisions were irrelevant because the employee was dismissed on a without cause basis. The employer added that the employee received all of his ESA entitlements, and that he was not entitled to any reasonable notice because of the written waiver in the employment contract.

Ontario’s Court of Appeal sided with the employee and held that it did not matter that the employee was terminated on a without cause basis and received all of his ESA entitlements. The fact that the with cause terms were invalid was enough to invalidate all of the termination provisions in the employment contract. Consequently, this meant that the reasonable notice waiver was invalid, thus entitling the employee to his common law reasonable notice.

Waksdale demonstrates how employment law in Ontario is not a static area of law, and that employers should periodically review and update their employment contracts.

Junaid J. Malik is a litigation associate with Brampton, Ont.-based Lawrences.

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INSTALLATION Sometimes it’s more than the flooring

Trouble shooting As I have done before, I’d like to share photos of some recent flooring installations I visited, and hopefully the problems I saw can help our readers to avoid these types of situations and help their customers avoid them as well. In some cases, troubleshooting goes beyond just the floor covering material and installation.

There can be other circumstances.

Curling resilient seams (photo 1) In this photograph, a rubber tile was installed in a medical facility over a new concrete slab. The installation happened back in the spring, and at that time the facility did not have any climate control. Initially everything Christopher was fine, until a few months later when Capobianco the project had progressed to the point that the HVAC system was activated. Within a week, all of the tile was curling like what you see in the photo. A flooring contractor was called in to investigate and do some moisture testing. The relative humidity test results (as per ASTMF 2170) were above 95 percent, which is way too high, which explains the condition.

Prior to the HVAC going on, the slab and the air were somewhat in equilibrium. However, with the HVAC on, the humidity level in the air came down, so the moisture in the slab naturally moved toward the drier air above, affecting the adhesive at the seams first.

They removed all of the tile in one of the rooms to allow the floor to dry out. I got there a week later and, in that room, observed a pattern of lighter gray lines approximately ½-inch wide, which appeared to follow the seams of the tile that was installed previously. This would indicate that the slab was drying at the seams of the tile where the moisture was able to pass upwards and into the air. F2170 tests were repeated in the same locations, had come down from the week before but were still above the allowable limits for the adhesive that was used. Since the facility was almost ready to open, they were embarking on an unusual plan to lift the affected tile and re-apply adhesive to get the edges to go flat.

The lesson here is one that I have mentioned several times, and that is the importance of proper site con22

September/October 2020

ditions. Construction sites being what they are, we are often asked to install floor covering when the area is not yet at “in service” temperature and humidity as recommended. However, projects like this show the risk of doing so. The fact that the concrete was well above the flooring manufacturer and the adhesive manufacturers recommendations meant that there was no warranty on this floor.

Wood floor buckling (photo 2) I was asked to look at a an eight-month-old, wood-floor installation that was warping. An engineered walnut plank floor had been installed in the employee lounge and pantry area of a corporate office space. There were two areas where the floor is cupping, meaning that the planks appear to be higher on the edges compared to the center of the board, a condition caused by moisture that causes the wood to swell.

The first area was against an exterior door and I was told that there had been some water intrusion here. Caulking had been applied on the outside of the metal door saddle, and a thin strip of rubber weather stripping had been screwed to the bottom of the door on the outside. I reached underneath the door itself and found that there was no weather seal attached to bottom of the door.

Some doors have this feature, which can serve like a gasket to help seal the door. I suggested that the door manufacturer be consulted to see if this is available on these doors.

I did not have a level to check the grade of the patio outside the door, so I am not sure if it is level, pitched toward the building, or pitched away from the building. This is

1

worth investigating as a way of determining if water is flowing toward the door.

The area shown in photo 2 was near an under-counter icemaker. Again, it appears that water is the likely cause of the wood being distressed. The owner wanted to know if the flooring product was appropriate for this type of area and asked if the installer was at fault. The answers were yes and no, and I suggested that the first area of examination should be the ice machine. If there if is a leak, that could be causing this problem.

Some appliances have available drip pans that are placed underneath to catch small amounts of moisture or condensation. I suggested a consultation with the appliance installer might be in order.

Once the water intrusions are corrected for this floor, the damaged flooring can be removed, and hopefully the floor can be given some time to dry out before new planks are installed, using a “high moisture tolerance” adhesive.

Outdoor rubber tile curling (photo 3) I was asked to look at a rooftop playground where a 2½-inchthick, footed rubber tile was installed. I’ve done a fair amount of

this type of work, so I was called in to make some recommendations on repairing or replacing this material. In this area, not all of the tile appears to be lying flat — some of the corners are curling and there appear to be low spots in the center of some tiles. To investigate, I lifted two or three of the tiles — luckily the installer had not used any adhesive on the corners, as recommended. This would appear to be a part of the problem. However, that mistake made it easier to get to the cause and allowed me to see what the tiles looked like on the back. I found that they are in good shape, the feet are intact with no breakage. The unevenness appears to be coming from the substrate — the tiles are installed over a foam panel of some kind. On further examination, it appears to be foam insulation that’s used on vertical surfaces on building exteriors. It’s soft enough to compress under the weight of the rubber tile, so the rubber feet on the back of the tile are sinking into the foam panels. This is contributing to the low spots and also to the curling at the corners of the tile. The substrate is not completely supporting the center of the tiles, so the edges are lifting up. Because they are not adhered, this condition is made worse.

In order to remedy this condition, the entire system needs to be removed so that the condition of the roof can be corrected. Hopefully, once a solid substrate is established, the tiles can be re-installed using the correct procedure and the playground can be put back into service.

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 christopher@ SpartanSurfaces.com.

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3 Canada’s floorcovering magazine

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size patterning. Also available in broadloom and carpet tile, Harmonious features small scale, abstract texture. Influence carpet tile is a medium scale grid, which is suitable for colour blocking, while Restored carpet tile features a multi-directional cross hatch pattern. www.patcraft.com

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Two quartz collections in large slabs

Carpet collection covers tile and broadloom

Commercial flooring manufacturer Patcraft has introduced Inspired Connection, a colourpoint carpet tile and broadloom collection designed to create connected and cohesive spaces. Featuring bold visuals with textural luxe and warm colorways, the company says, the collection inspires creative design to enhance connectivity and enliven the spaces that surround us. Offered in four 18 x 36 carpet tiles and two broadloom styles, the collection includes Enliven, available in broadloom and carpet tile, features a mixture of large and medium 24

September/October 2020

Daltile has introduced two quartz collections, Historic and National Marble.

The quartz products are said to be the largest quartz slab products in the world at 136 x 79 in. The Historic collection features four marble designs, each one inspired by one of America’s famous landmarks. Niagara has subtle veining reminiscent of foaming water at the bottom of a cascading waterfall, while Arches, inspired by the St. Louis Arch, has more distinct veining. Rocky Mountain evokes a mountain range and Golden Gate provides subtle veining and West Coast design. The National Marble collection offers four different white marble looks. The series is made up of Freedom Calacatta, Liberty Calacatta, Rushmore and Washington. All of the slabs are available in 2- and 3-cm thicknesses, are waterproof, scratch resistant, stain resistant and heat resistant, and can be used on walls and countertops. www.daltile.com Carpet collection in tile and broadloom The Influunt hospitality carpet collection from Durkan is based on traditional textile art and employs advanced design techniques. The collection is featured in

Definity, the company’s exclusive manufacturing technology said to surpass traditional luxury carpet by offering multi-level textures in terms of definition, performance and sustainability, the company says. The collection is also offered in Durkan’s Synthesis, Pattern Perfect, PDI carpet tile and tufted broadloom. www.durkan.com Waterborne wood floor sealers

Waterborne sealers from Bona are composed of two different-sized particles — small particles that penetrate and seal the wood floor surface and larger particles sit on top to add build and depth. The chemistry of the sealers is said to provide the maximum adhesion to the company’s waterborne wood floor finishes for better overall system performance and protection.

Sealer product features include reduction of side-bonding, minimization of tannin pull from acidic flooring species, addition of durability and protection, excellent abrasion performance and 2 to 3 hour drying times.

Greenguard Certified for indoor air quality, the sealers come in a range of five colourations that all have different characteristics. www.bona.com

Surfaces blend glass, quartz and porcelain

The Dekton Chromica series from Cosentino is comprised of Baltic and Feroe, two deeply saturated hues in matte finishes. Aesthetically, the Baltic colour was inspired by sea depths to capture the struggle between light and darkness to master the nuances of the ocean, the company says. Feroe, it adds, is inspired by the hidden and unexplored corners of nature, resulting in a unique dark green hue. Created with a blend of raw materials from glass, quartz and porcelain, Dekton is said to have a high resistance to UV rays, stains, scratches and thermal shock. It is available in large format slabs and a variety of thicknesses, for both residential and commercial projects. www.cosentino.com Jobsite paper protection products

NAC Products has added five paper protection products and three tape options to help provide protection during the construction process. NAC Board is said to be an easy-to-use painter board that lays flat when rolled out and features a liquid repellent technology to prevent paint, mud or water penetration. Red Rosin Paper is a regular weight paper that provides a moisture barrier. 50-pound

Flooring Paper is a lighter alternative paper for large scale paint and construction projects. Brown Builder’s Paper is a kraft construction paper for use as a runner or paint drop cloth. White Top Construction Paper provides protection over a variety of floor surfaces like carpet, tile and hardwood, avoids tears and keeps moisture out. Three tape offerings are NAC Board Tape, Red Polyethylene Tape and Blue Painting Tape, designed to provide the appropriate adhesion for each job. www.nacproducts.com Antibacterial treatment for natural stone

Natural stone producer Antolini has announced a treatment process that creates an antibacterial surface on materials and prevents the formation and spread of bacteria. The patented Azerobact Plus process can increase the performance of all natural stones, the company says, making them more hygienic. The process is suitable for all applications, whether residential, hospitality or corporate, in kitchens and bathrooms. www.antolini.com Flooring with safe distance indicators Tarkett has announced a variety of surfaces designed to guide individuals safely around interiors and remind everyone to maintain a safe distance from each other. Die-cut shapes are available through the company’s Imaginations program in a wide variety of materials from modular soft surface to heterogeneous

sheet vinyl. Designs include 24 x 24 in. arrow or footprint tiles that can be dropped into an existing floor to integrate clear distancing markers. Modular 18 in. circles are another way to mark appropriate distancing, while larger 6-foot diameter circles help delineate individual workspaces or zones. Custom Powerbond area rugs offer provide another opportunity to add iconography and messaging onto the floor. For LVT, 18 x 18 in. tiles printed with “Stand Here” messaging integrate distancing markers into an existing space with the switch of a few tiles.

Also, arranging 6 x 36 in. LVT planks into arrow patterns provide subtle wayfinding, the company says. www.tarkettna.com Rigid vinyl flooring features wood looks

The Pergo Extreme rigid vinyl flooring line from Mohawk has expanded with the debut of the Wood Fundamentals collection. The collection features 10 realistic wood looks in 5 mil thick and 7.5 x 48 in. planks. A dent-free technology provides extreme protection against scratching, denting and gouging, the company says. The collection is constructed with a solid stone-polymer composite and layered with an enhanced lacquer

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Sintered stone slab collection

PRODUCTS finish that is also said to be waterproof.

The product has a no acclimation guarantee, and the company’s Uniclic Locking System to simplify installation. www.pergo.com Roll-apply vinyl flooring adhesive

A solvent-free acrylic polymer-based adhesive designed for fast-track installations in both commercial and residential settings has been announced by Ardex Americas. Roller-applied, the Henry 647 PlumPro adhesive achieves a dry-to-thetouch state (ready to receive flooring), in as soon as 10 minutes. The product quickly begins developing permanent bonding strength, permitting traffic on the new floor immediately, the company says. The adhesive can be installed with luxury vinyl tile and plank, vinyl composition tile, vinyl enhanced tile and fibreglass encapsulated (cushion-backed) sheet vinyl. The product bonds to concrete, cementitious underlayments, APA-grade underlayment plywood (untreated), properly primed gypsum underlayment (above grade only), certain metals and epoxy coatings, existing terrazzo and ceramic tile (clean and residue-free), existing resilient flooring (fully adhered, non-cushion backed) and radiant-heated subfloors that do not to exceed 29°C. www.ardexamericas.com Decorative epoxy flooring line Florock Polymer Flooring has launched the latest addition to its institutional and commercial facility hygienic decorative epoxy flooring line, the FloroStone Cove System. The integral cove base option is 26

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said to create a seamless transition from floor-to-wall and eliminating hard-toreach ninety-degree angles along the edges of the floor. The system is said to help limit places for germs to hide — making the surface easier to thoroughly clean and disinfect. The system’s unique slurry formula cuts turnaround time by almost half when compared to traditional double broadcast floors, the company says, and allows for nearly undetectable repair of minor damage, if needed. www.florock.net Resilient floor

The LG Hausys Flooring Division has announced five LVT collections and two sheet vinyl collections. Highly durable, scratch resistant and available in 76 different visuals, the products are suitable for healthcare, education, hospitality and multifamily end-use, the company says.

Choices range from natural wood, stone and concrete looks to solid, woven and other modern designs. Multiple sizes in tile and plank formats, along with thickness and mil wear layer options, are available. For example, the PrestG Collection is said to be a durable 20 mil SPC and features the company’s patentpending C-EIR (Continued Embossed-inRegister) surface technology. www.lghausysusa.com

Sintered stone slab maker Neolith has launched its ‘Six-S’ collection. The collection has six model designs, including Himalaya Crystal and Layla. Himalaya Crystal is offered in two finishes: Décor Polished finish gains in depth and elegance and reflects the colours in Neolith’s existing Classtone Collection, while the second finish, Ultrasoft, allows for texture with a greater degree of softness and depth, the company says.

Layla is also offered in two finishes: Décor Polished and Slate finish, which goes further to evoke the texture and relief of the natural material, it adds. Both models are available in 6, 12 and 20 mm thicknesses and in 3,200 x 1,600 mm and 3,200 x 1,500 mm formats. www.neolith.com Installation clips for grooved deck boards

Camo Fasteners has added the Edgexmetal clip for fastening grooved deck boards on metal substructure to its line of decking assembly components and tools.

The clips are one-pass fasteners that use the same technology as the company’s Edgex clips for wood framing. The wings of the clip fit into the groove of the board, securing it before fastening, and the 304 Stainless Steel gusset holds the boards down. The key difference between the two clips is the screw, the company says — the new clip features a drill point screw that engages in less than two seconds, rather than a self-tapping screw for wood. www.camofasteners.com

BULLETS Current business highlights The value of residential permits in Canada was up 7.0 percent in June over May to $5.3 billion, with gains posted in six provinces. The total value of all building permits over the same period increased 6.2 percent to $8.1 billion.

—Statistics Canada Total investment in building construction in Canada increased 60.1 percent to $13.4 billion in May, partially rebounding from large declines in April. —Statistics Canada Total spending on video game hardware, software, accessories and game cards amounted to $1.2 billion US in June 2020, the highest June figure since 2009, when Nintendo’s Wii console was flying off the shelves. —Statista Use of private vehicles in Canada declined from 75 to 67 percent in June. The decrease in the proportion of workers using public transit fell from 13 percent to 3 percent — half the rate of those who walked or bicycled to work (6 percent). In June, 22 percent of Canadians were working from home and slightly less than 2 percent were using another mode of transportation. —Statistics Canada U.S. imports of assembled flooring panels grew by 20 percent in May but were still at a level nearly 30 percent down from May 2019. Imports from China are barely half that of 2019 year-to-date, imports from Canada are even with last year, and imports from Vietnam are up 10 percent through May. —ITTO While June’s Interior Design Billing Index (IDBI) of 49.2 still remains in contractionary territory, it did add 7.9 points to May’s performance of 42.3 (any score above 50 represents expansion and below 50 represents contraction in billings).

There has also been a 30-point gain since April’s all-time IDBI low of 18.7. —ASID The Hispanic population of the U.S. as of July 1, 2019 was 60.6 million, making people of this origin the nation’s largest ethnic or racial minority. Hispanics constituted 18.5 percent of that nation’s total population. —Vintage 2019 Population Estimates A poll conducted between July 20 and August 2 found that 35 percent of American adults would avoid a free, FDA-approved Covid-19 vaccine. According to poll demographics, middle-aged Republicans were the most reluctant to take the vaccine. —Gallup

In the first quarter of 2020, e-commerce accounted for 11.5 percent of total retail sales in the U.S. (excluding food services sales), the second highest share ever and the highest for a non-holiday quarter. The first quarter of 2019 was 10.4 percent and only 0.8 percent in the same period of 2000. —U.S. Census Bureau Employment in Canada rose by 419,000 (2.4 percent) in July, compared with 953,000 (5.8 percent) in June. Combined with gains of 290,000 in May, this brought employment to within 1.3 million (-7.0 percent) of its pre-Covid-19 February level. —Statistics Canada The U.S. Architecture Billings Index (ABI) score for June was 40.0 compared to 32.0 in May. The May ABI score indicates that a significant share of architecture firms still saw their billings decline from May to June, however the share reporting declines slowed significantly. Index scores for new project inquiries and new design contracts also showed signs of stabilizing, posting scores of 49.3 and 44.0 respectively. —American Institute of Architects U.S. imports of hardwood flooring continued to slide, falling by 3 percent in May. Imports from China and Malaysia were up 51 percent and 90 percent in May, while imports from Indonesia were down by 72 percent. Still, year-to-date imports from China are down 58 percent and imports from Malaysia trail by 67 percent, while imports from Indonesia are up by 13 percent through May. —ITTO Year-on-year value of May imports of wooden assembled flooring in Japan dropped 30 percent and month-onmonth imports were down 19 percent. —Japan Ministry of Finance According to a recent internet security threat report, 55 percent of emails received by employees in 2018 were categorized as spam and 1 in 412 emails was considered malicious, i.e. potentially harmful. The top subject line descriptions were “Bill” (15.7 percent), “email delivery failure” (13.3 percent), “package delivery” (2.4 percent) and “legal/ law enforcement” (1. percent). —Symantec Payroll employment in the U.S. increased by 1.8 million in July over the previous month. —U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

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THEN-AND-NOW

The Minéral bar lighting design takes patrons from daylight to an after-hours ambience depending on the time of day.

Nightclub lifts Montreal neighbourhood

Music drives design Writing about music is like dancing about architecture.

— Martin Mull, 1979

USING ONE ARTFORM to describe another is a curious business. Design inspiration can come from anywhere, and Montreal, Que.-based architect Patrick Blanchette, turned to playing an electronic dance music track repeatedly to zero in on ideas for the interiors of the new Minéral bar/nightclub in Montreal.

The starting point was simple for his firm Blanchette Architectes: a musical idea for each of the three distinct ambiances that succeed each other as the night goes on. Based on that idea, the design team imagined a space whose atmosphere could change radically from its late-afternoon opening to its latenight peak.

“As they emanate from the architecture, light and colours become raw materials that fill the space,” says Patrick Blanchette, the firm’s founder. Working 28

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in close collaboration with the client, the architect imagined an evolving scenic design where “sound vibrations translate to waves of colour, staying with the guest from their first after-work cocktail until late at night.”

Architecture, light and the soundscape were all handled as raw materials to frame the bar’s atmosphere at different times of day. The “warmly glacial” space plays on the warm-cool duality of colours, materials and light. Soothing light is projected onto wall-mounted canvases, reminiscent of art installations like those of American artist James Turrell.

Blanchette notes “before we reimagined it, the space was particularly dark and poorly lit. We had to work with luminous walls and facing mirrors to let the space breathe. The idea was to take control of the lighting.”

Minéral is the latest bar project from entrepreneurs and restaurateurs Mathieu Ménard and Steve Grenier. Since Ménard is not only an entrepreneur, but a talented cabinetmaker, the space is organized around impressive woodwork: the bar countertop in black-lacquered Quebec oak and the imposing, Japa-

Existing appliances were repurposed to stay on budget and food is prepared off-site so the old kitchen footprint (shown) remained the same.

nese-inspired wooden ceiling structure that provides a nod to wine cellars. The elements are infused with light, showcasing the woodwork, while the bathrooms are tiled in 4 x 4 in. black ceramic tile. Besides wood and tile, other simple materials such as metal, leather and polycarbonate were used as the backdrop for the dramatic lighting.

The project is the first time Blanchette had collaborated with Ménard and Grenier. “Matthew and Steve are friends of mine,” says Blanchette. When he started his own practice two years ago, he discovered Ménard was one of the bar owners close to Blanchette’s office.

“Sometimes after work I would have a drink with him there and talk about the realities of his next new project.

“He said about a year ago that when he opens his next bar ‘you will be the designer of that space.’”

At the beginning of the project disco balls in the space were a top priority for the client “to make sure that everyone has fun.”

Later, Ménard told Blanchette, “the only constraint you have concerning the bar design is that I want to hear that song (Mazlum

by Ali Kuru) at 11 o’clock each night and feel the space that is in that track. “He wanted a bar that had a connection with that kind of ambience.”

Blanchette remembers enjoying a glass of wine at his place one night playing the track as many as 20 times. “I imagined myself on a warm, rainy Tokyo street, with the colour of

blue light everywhere.” This became the scene description that he took to his design team.

The project was complex due to the changing ambience required by the client — two entirely different experiences for customers, Blanchette explains. “One is for after work, with natural warm, white lighting, similar to sunlight. By night it becomes really colourful and more like the experience of a nightclub in the wine bar.”

Ménard calls his bar “a place for experiences, where light transforms the space and becomes a material. Minéral appeals to all the senses: we are bathed in light that shifts with the changing sound environment, while we sip organic and natural wines, enjoy cocktails and savour Mediterranean-style shared dishes.”

According to Blanchette, all of the comments from his two clients “are really, really good — the sales are amazing.” In a walk around the neighbourhood, he noticed several people talking about the Minéral Bar. “It has become one of the coolest places in the Gay Village area.”

Blanchette points out that the establishment is not a gay bar only for men, but for everyone.

“That is a big difference — 30 percent of the customers are female.

“Everyone seems happy now.”

The finished Then-and-Now project is featured on each issue’s cover.

Please submit project suggestions to news@wimediainc.ca.

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ADVERTISERS Custom Building Products

EVENTS Proma www.proma.ca. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16, 17

www. custombuildingproducts.com. . . . . . . . . . 9

Schluter Systems Canada www.schluter.ca. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Mapei www.mapei.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Melmart Distributors, Inc.

Tarkett USA Inc. www.tarkettna.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

www.melmart.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Mohawk www.mohawkflooring.com. . . . . . . . . . 11 NAC Products Inc. www.nacproducts.com.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Sept. 16 – 17 BSIA/BCFCA Look & Learn Online Event www.bcfca.com Dec. 2 – 4 The Buildings Show Toronto, Ont. www.thebuildingsshow.com Dec. 9 – 11 CFI Convention and Expo Orlando, Fla. http://cfiinstallers.org/events/ Jan. 15 – 18 Domotex Hanover, Germany www.domotex.de/en/ Feb. 9 – 11 Kitchen and Bath Industry Show Orlando, Fla. www.kbis.com Apr. 28 – 30 NWFA Expo Baltimore, Md. www.nwfaexpo.org/ NWFA2021/Public/Enter.aspx May 13 – 16 Interior Design Show Toronto, Ont. www.interiordesignshow.com June 14 – 16 Neocon Chicago, Ill. www.neocon.com

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Our lights are ON Kerry Knudsen | 647-274-0507 | kknudsen@wimediainc.ca

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June 15 – 18 TISE: The International Surface Event Las Vegas, Nev. www.intlsurfaceevent.com Oct. 12 – 15 SICAM Pordenone, Italy www.exposicam.it/en/

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