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True Colours
Wood floor staining: What you see isn’t always what you get! Terry Guilford, of the Ultimate Floor Sanding Co, discusses the rights and wrongs of wood floor staining and the importance of managing customer expectations: THERE is nothing guaranteed to cause more aggravation to a floor sanding contractor than staining a floor. Despite my more than 15 years on in this business, I still groan when I am involved with a job that requires staining. So what’s the problem? Surely the client picks a colour, you whack it down on the floor,...
read moreBrand Loyalty
‘Push out low cost unbranded manufacturers’ Alex Davidson, business development manager, Kährs (UK), discusses brand equity in the hardwood flooring industry and what suppliers can do to boost brand loyalty.: THE last decade has been a challenging time for hardwood flooring brands operating within the UK. Brand equity has slowly decreased and it’s become more difficult to add brand value, due to the narrowing gap in quality and service offered by Asian and Eastern European low-cost producers. In the past, quality and service...
read moreThe Nitty Gritty Of Maintaining Wooden Floors
An expert viewpoint from the timber floor specialist at BM TRADA, the organisation that provides independent certification, testing, inspection, training and technical services Peter Kaczmar, wood floor specialist at BM TRADA, discusses maintenance options to keep timber flooring looking as good as the day it was installed: YOU don’t have to be a Time Team fanatic to realise that timber has been used as a flooring material for centuries. Its combination of flexibility, sustainability and aesthetics has pushed it up the shortlist of...
read moreGoing With The Grain
The suppliers of wood and laminate flooring offer an enormous choice: Atkinson & Kirby has introduced a range of classic white oak. The Contemporary range comprises 10 colours, all 189mm x 15/4mm x 1860mm with click profile. Whitewashed Oak, a product in the Contemporary range, was recently selected by the television presenter and property expert Catherine Gee. She commented: ‘I absolutely love the natural beauty of wood: it looks lovely, it’s warm, and practical, and was the obvious choice of flooring for my new kitchen. ‘I am...
read moreSeamless Resin Cooks Up A Banquet
Seamless resin flooring continues to have a successful track record as the flooring choice in food preparation areas, says Helen McGachie, ceo of FeRFA: THIS is a big plus for seamless resin flooring when you remember that the food sector is the most demanding of environments in terms of floor selection, where the hygienic properties of the floor are the most important factor, followed by slip resistance and its ability to be regularly cleaned and maintained. Health & safety in any workplace environment is of paramount importance, but...
read moreFood For Thought On Flooring For Kitchens
Choosing flooring for food preparation areas can be easy as pie, says Kevin Cook, from Altro’s technical contracting team: THE food production industry rightly has some of the most stringent legislation concerning flooring and other surfaces. Hygiene is obviously a massive consideration, but so too is durability to avoid costly down-time for replacement. The ability of the flooring to withstand the thermal and chemical attack from food processing is another key factor, as well as slip resistance to assist safe working...
read moreFloors Finding Flavour
There are extreme demands on flooring in kitchens and food processing areas: ACC Flooring was involved in part of a £500,000 refurbishment of the original Harry Ramsdens on White Cross Guiseley, after it was bought by the Wetherby Whaler Group. ACC Flooring was required to upgrade the kitchen floor with the installation of a heavy duty polyurethane screed system. The country’s most famous and iconic fish and chip emporium had been closed for some time after it was taken over, but the dream of family business came to fruition when...
read moreWhy The Mobile Age Calls For Flexible Flooring
Flooring in offices can be designed for the occupants: Abby Chandler, marketing manager at Heckmondwike, looks at how flooring is increasingly being used to create flexible office workspaces: THE trend for open plan design in new office developments looks set to continue with partitions and barriers rapidly becoming a thing of the past and new layouts aimed at encouraging greater team-working and flexible working. Love it or hate it, hot-desking looks set to stay and the growing use of laptops and mobile devices means that there is...
read moreLines Of Work
Flooring in offices can be designed for the occupants: Burmatex states that it is continuing to enhance the potential of commercial carpeting with its harmonious and flexible product ranges producing innovative design finishes. A recent relocation project with Ibbotson Architects showcases the application of these product ranges through forming a tailored design, which uses BREEAM A+ rated, tufted balance atomic and the product range of lateral, zip and code. The product includes Burmatex’s structure bonded manufacturing technology with a...
read moreTurn For The Better In 2014
THE mood of UK distributors includes both cautious and enthusiastic optimism, depending on who you speak to, writes Iona Walton. Perhaps it’s all down to the effects of the heady days of the London 2012 Olympic Games; maybe it’s a sign that the economy has turned a corner. Either way, companies are striving to move forward with more of a spring in their step than has been seen in recent years. ‘We have experienced more optimism in the last 12 months partly due to a successful summer seeing schools spending again,’ says Ron Birkett ,...
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