Does Your Vacuum Make CRI's Seal of Approval List?

CRI Seal of Approval Program: Does your vacuum make the list?

In his column titled "Finding Seal of Approval vaccums" in the April 9, 2012 edition of Dalton’s Daily-Citizen, Carpet and Rug Institute President Werner Braun discussed how to find a Seal of Approval-certified vacuum and why it’s important to choose a vacuum from the SOA list.

“Some machines do a pretty good job of sucking up the dust and dirt, but due to poor construction or filters they spew dust and particles back into the air. It’s important to use a vacuum cleaner that sucks up the dust, locks it into the machine, and keeps it out of the air.

Selecting a quality product is not easy, but CRI’s Seal of Approval program takes much of the guesswork out of choosing the right vacuum cleaner for your home. By following CRI’s suggestions, your carpet will not only look good, but your indoor air quality will improve. 

Under the Seal of Approval/Green Label program, manufacturers must meet the highest performance standards and are rewarded with Gold, Silver and Bronze ratings.  

In order to be certified, vacuums must pass several independent laboratory tests, tests that evaluate soil removal, dust containment and surface appearance change.

It’s no simple feat to earn the CRI Seal of Approval/Green Label certification, so you can feel pretty confident about the choice you’ve made when you buy a machine that’s earned that distinction.

To find out more about Seal of Approval vacuums, you can always go to the CRI website and click on Seal of Approval Products.”

Thanks, Werner!

Bethany

Carpet Recycling: People Are the Power

CARE's Sikorski says People Are the Power for Carpet Recycling on Natural Interiors.

Georgina Sikorski,  Executive Director of Carpet American Recovery Effort (CARE), says that for carpet recycling to continue to grow in the future, people need to step up – and ask for it.

In a March 26, 2012 article titled "An Outgoing Message" that appeared on the blog Natural Interiors, Ms. Sikorski told editor Nancy Kibbee that customers have an important role to play in order to move up to what she calls, “the next level of carpet recycling.”

Since CARE was founded in 2002, Ms. Sikorski says CARE and its members have diverted more than 2 billion pounds of waste carpet from landfills.  All of the non-profit recycling group’s efforts have been voluntary, and the solutions they have come up with have been financially sustainable. If you are looking to recycle your old carpet, Ms. Sikorski says you can check out the map on the CARE website where more than 100 CARE-certified U.S. carpet recycling centers are listed.

 “…if consumers would ask their retailer or installer to recycle their carpet when it gets replaced, that would make a great difference,”Ms. Sikorski said.

And retailers are getting involved in larger numbers. Says one retailer from Ohio, http://www.carpetlandcincinnati.com/ “We are making a point of telling customers in our proposals that we are removing existing carpet and pad and hauling it away to recycle it’”

Thanks, Georgina,

Bethany

Carpet and NASCAR: in it to win it.

In his March 23, 2012 column titled "Like NASCAR, we want to stay in the race" for Dalton’s Daily-Citizen Carpet and Rug Institute President Werner Braun discusses the excitement and pageantry of a NASCAR  Bristol 500 race and compares the experience to the carpet manufacturing industry’s competitive journey.

“Like the carpet industry, there’s a great deal of private development that goes on with NASCAR. In our business, we’re constantly coming up with new design options for carpets, rugs and all other types of flooring; they are constantly developing new and innovative designs for their race cars and engines.

Like any successful business, NASCAR has to come up with solid marketing strategies, they have to find sponsors, and they have to go out into the world and make their product successful.

And like us, they require the best from their people. To get ahead, successful businesses have to be competitive, faster than the competition and disciplined. NASCAR drivers have to be good, fast and disciplined as well.

I was reminded of how important those qualities are when one of the drivers was involved in a wreck around lap 30. His vehicle was towed into the garage where his pit crew removed the mangled front end. About a dozen laps later, his car rolled out of the garage, minus a front end, but ready to finish the race.

He had no chance of winning — and he knew that — but he wasn’t going to just give up.

That’s the same attitude I see in Dalton and Northwest Georgia when adverse things happen to our businesses and industries. The economy may slow, demand may wane, but we don’t give up.”

Thank you, Werner.

~Bethany

Who's Attending the 2012 CARE Annual Meeting?

CARE Update - Who’ll You’ll See at the Upcoming Carpet America Recovery Effort Annual Meeting

I scanned the agenda for the upcoming Annual Members Meeting of the Carpet America Recovery Effort set to take place in San Diego April 25-27th and there are some new faces I think you will find interesting. By the way, there is still time to register for the CARE Annual Meeting!)
  
One of my favorite parts of the CARE Annual meeting is the New Products and Technologies sessions, and the presentations on new things that can be made using post-consumer carpet content and new ways waste carpet can be effectively and profitably diverted from landfills.

On the agenda this year: Jeff Russell, with Kraton Performance Polymers, Inc. –  Jeff is Market Development Manager for the Advanced Materials Group at Kraton. His LinkedIn profile says he is, “Skilled in overall thermoplastics/elastomer resins selection, processing methods, compounding, part design, additives technology, and plastic performance comparisons. Educated in existing and emerging markets/applications for traditional petro-based thermoplastics, sustainable bio-resins, recycle resins, post-consumer carpet, and polyurethanes/polyurethane additives and systems.” He is going to talk about a new way to recover face fiber from carpet for recycling. 

Another speaker, David Murdock, is the director of business development at Fiberon LLC, which makes composite decking, railing and fencing. David has held a variety of technical and management positions in more than 25 years in the plastics extrusion industry. He will talk about recycling post-consumer carpet into wood polymer composite decking.

Also in the new technologies section, CARE veterans Frank Endrenyni and Ron Sherga will update the group. Frank will speak on current trends in the plastics industry and Ron will address advanced recycling issues.

Here’s a list of the companies who will be exhibiting at the CARE conference

• Thermo Scientific  
• Cumberland
• NGR and the NGR website  
• Lindner
• Sellers
• Weima 
• Herbold 
• Dupont 
• Axsun
• Republic Machine 

The CARE Annual Conference is the flagship event for learning about carpet recycling in the U.S. there will also be a representative from the Canadian carpet recycling group. Hope to see you there.

Bethany

Carpeting My Office: Where Do I Start?

Carpet Question Corner - Carpet Q and A - 23rd in a series

"I’m getting ready to carpet my new office. Where do I start?" is the twenty-third in a series of banner ads developed to run on the flooring news website Talkfloor.com. The banners ads contain great information for consumers, from choosing the right carpet, to safeguarding a home’s indoor air quality, to keeping carpet clean and beautiful as new. Today's is about whether to match carpet and carpet cushion.

Let’s go over the questions – and pay careful attention because there will be a quiz. ;-)

Carpet Question Corner #23: I’m getting ready to carpet my new office. Where do I start?

In order to make the best carpet choice for your facility’s specific needs, you need to arm yourself with the right information.

The first step is to clearly define the type of facility and specific requirements you have. Some things to consider include the following:

• Type of facility and specific area receiving new carpet
• How long the carpet will be used (life cycle)
• Level of foot traffic in your workplace
• Types and amount of dirt that may be tracked into the facility
• Whether the area is a remodeled or a new installation
• Whether access to the subfloor is required
• Whether there is modular furniture in the space

Of course, you can always turn to retailer for guidance and advice. Visit carpet-rug.org and criblog.org to learn more.

How do you answer consumers when they ask you about where to start when getting ready to carpet their new office? What resources do you use to help them?

Let me know in the comments!

~ Bethany

CRI Member, Mohawk, Supports Dalton Food Bank

Carpet and Rug Institute Member Supports Food Bank. Dalton, Georgia Food Bank Helped by Carpet Manufacturer Mohawk

In his March 16, 2012 column titled “Mohawk donates to area food bank”, for Dalton’s Daily-Citizen,  Carpet and Rug Institute President Werner Braun discusses how one CRI member manufacturer is giving back to a local community hit hard by the economic downturn. The article reads,

“Last October, in Whitfield County alone, the unemployment rate stood at 12.6 percent. At the time, it was well above the national average. It was also about that time that the Northwest Georgia Branch of the Chattanooga Area Food Bank opened its doors in Dalton.

 Just a few weeks ago, Mohawk Industries gave a generous grant of $25,000 to the Food Bank that will be used to purchase food for the branch. Their gift will also help the Food Bank purchase a refrigeration unit so that the types and varieties of food being offered here will increase.”

Chattanooga Area Food Bank CEO Clare Sawyer said the gift would, go a long way to help feed people in “one of the country’s hardest hit communities.”

A Mohawk spokesperson said the company made the gift in order to help others during challenging times and encouraged other local businesses and organizations to consider joining the effort to feed the hungry in the region.

Thank you, Werner.

~Bethany

Tips for Working with an Interior Designer

It never ceases to amaze me how interior designers on TV can walk into a wreck of a room and see the potential for fabulousness that lies just a redo away. Except for rare moments of inspiration, my efforts at interior design have left me frustrated. Working with a professional decorator can be frustrating, too – it’s important to communicate openly about what you as the client want and what your budget can bear.

A recent article from Fabulous Floors Magazine titled, It’s All About You! Working With a Professional Designer gives some great advice about working with a professional interior designer.  It addresses questions such as: how do designers charge for their services – by the hour, the job, or cost-plus commission on the items and services you buy from them? The article suggests you interview several designers before deciding and that you do your homework. Be prepared for your first meeting with your designer knowing things such as:

o Who is going to use the space?

o For how long will the space be used?

o How will you finance the project?

o What do you want to change most?

Have samples of things you like that will help your designer know more about your vision and taste.
A great gift of working with a professional is that they can get us to open our eyes and maybe even dare to try something new, but it’s important not to lose sight of what you know you will be happy with in the long run. What the designer says or does may be trendy and hip but don’t get lost in the hubbub.

You can find some excellent free home decorating advice on several Carpet and Rug Institute   members’ websites and social media. Check out Shaw Floors, Mohawk Flooring's ColorCenter, Bliss Flooring and Mannington's At Home Blog for ideas. 

What are your favorite tips for working with an interior designer? Let me know in the comments.
Bethany

CRI: Eliminate Energy Sales Tax for Georgia Manufacturers

The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) Says Eliminate Sales Tax on Energy for Manufacturers in Georgia

In his March 2, 2012 column titled "Repealing sales tax on energy will create new jobs in Georgia" for Dalton’s Daily-Citizen, Carpet and Rug Institute President Werner Braun  discusses repealing sales tax on energy and how it will create new jobs in Georgia.

“Creating new jobs in our state, particularly in manufacturing, is always a hot topic.

Unfortunately, Georgia lags behind many other states in manufacturing. Why is this the case?

A major reason is because of the sales tax we place on energy produced for manufacturing. Taxing that energy puts manufacturers at a disadvantage, and they can easily go across state lines and pay less to manufacture their goods.

We already have an unemployment rate that is among the highest in the entire country among Metropolitan Statistical Areas. 

The good news, though, is that there continues to be broad bipartisan support for the repeal of the sales tax on energy used in manufacturing.

Our manufacturing base has declined by about 36 percent over the past 10 years. The cost of delaying a decision to repeal the tax on energy will encourage more manufacturers to choose states other than Georgia in which to establish their businesses.

We in the carpet industry hope that the 2012 session of the General Assembly will act on the repeal of the sales tax on energy.”

Thank you, Werner.

~Bethany

Recycled Carpet Becomes Nyloboard Decks, Building Products

Need a New Deck?  Recycled Carpet Provides Material for Nyloboard Decks and Building Products

Manufacturer is member of Carpet America Recovery Effort

Here’s one of the coolest uses for recycled carpet I have ever run across - an innovative manufacturer in Covington, Georgia is taking the idea of indoor-outdoor carpet one step farther. Doug Morse, president and COO of Nyloboard, uses 100% recycled carpet fiber to make outdoor decks and building products like railings, soffits and door moldings.  His products look good, and, unlike similar products made out of wood, they won’t swell in water, fade and splinter in the sun or get gobbled by termites.

Here’s an excerpt from a story titled Nyloboard says 'no worries' with decking from recycled materials that ran in the Newton Citizen in Newton County, Georgia. According to the article, the company has been in Covington for seven years and employs 20 people.

“The decking is made using 100 percent recycled carpet fiber that is combined with a proprietary resin and encapsulated in a monolithic composite board. The board is then finished with edging, embossed and covered with an ultraviolet protectant.

The company is tight-lipped about its product and manufacturing process, but boasts that it is the only composite decking manufacturer to use 100 percent recycled carpet fiber. Nyloboard participates in the Carpet America Recovery Effort, or CARE, https://www.carpetrecovery.org/  which is a joint industry-government effort to reduce the amount of waste carpet going to landfills.

Morse says Nyloboard decking can be submerged in water or float on top of water and will not swell. “Because of its complete synthetic nature, it is not susceptible to mold, mildew or termites,” he adds. “Our motto is: no wood, no PVC, no worries.”

Cool, no?

~ Bethany