Addressing market shifts: NeoCon 2012 brings new concepts, designs

Noted Steve Arbaugh, vice president, Interface, "There is a movement to open up spaces for green and the environment. The question we're asking is, how do we bring those spaces into where we work and play?•bCrLf

The answer is a collection of carpet tile called Urban Retreat which extends the company's environmental commitment globally with global manufacturing across four continents.

The other notable trend is pattern and texturing where the company's Walk the Plank collection of carpet planks gives designers opportunities to create unique installations.

Suppliers that offer the A&D community a diverse product portfolio including both hard and soft surfaces are well positioned for growth.

"The market is still not all that robust. The fact that we're in so many different product categories helps,•bCrLf said Jack Ganley, president of Mannington Commercial. Mannington's offerings include resilient, luxury vinyl tile (LVT), carpet tile, porcelain, rubber and wood. Mannington's Vivendi Collection of carpet tile won this year's NeoCon Gold for the Healthcare Flooring category.

Mannington's recent purchase of Amtico gives the company domestic LVT manufacturing that will support its service. "LVT is just hot. We will be able to manufacture there in the next month or so — we'll get the top sellers in there first. We'll be able to better meet the customer's demand for quick lead times,•bCrLf said Russell Grizzle, CEO, Mannington Mills.

Mohawk also showed how its hard and soft surfaces mix well together to meet commercial needs. Bōlyü also acknowledges the advantages of bringing both hard and soft surface products to the A&D community, so much so that it partnered with Canadian LVT company LSI to provide its customer base both hard and soft surfaces under the Bōlyü brand.

"The breadth of the collection allows us to get into assisted living, retail and corporate, for example. It's a nice win for us,•bCrLf said Glenn King, vice president of marketing for Bōlyü.

Ralph Boe, president and CEO of Beaulieu America, noted that there have even been cases when an order has come in exclusively for the LVT product. He also noted that while the company's commercial business grew last year, it has remained flat this year.

Featuring products for retail, hospitality, multifamily and health care settings, Metroflor's offering is promoting luxury vinyl solutions for all applications, from fully adhered vinyl to floating systems. Engage, a click floating floor, is available nationally through its distribution network.

"This is the right next move for us to create more brand recognition with this audience,•bCrLf said Russell Rogg, president, Metroflor.

Flooring suppliers also made moves to bring more design flexibility, addressing cultural shifts or solving installation issues.

Mohawk's theme was State of Mind and addressed such trends and cultural shifts such as Rurban, bringing rural sensibilities to a city home, and DIY, which allows designers to customize their own look.

David Duncan, senior vice president of marketing at the Mohawk Group, said, "The idea is that Mohawk makes it work for you.•bCrLf

Shaw, which showcased its NeoCon Gold winning Dye Lab, offered flexibility in floor layout with its new Light Series that allows designers to mix different patterns and solids that have different degrees of color. Unearthed offers carpet tiles in 18 x 36, for example.

According to John Stephens, vice president of marketing for Shaw Contract Group, the company constantly challenges itself and asks, "How can we be a part of those design solutions? We style carpet to create edge, use color flow to design space.•bCrLf

The Lumber Liquidators booth also got a facelift doing away with the no-frills lumber yard look and bringing in beautiful photos of installations. According to Nate Poe, national commercial sales, "This booth is more conceptual and showcases all of the flooring trends.•bCrLf