The panel will cover a range of tips on advocating for yourself in the workplace, including assertive negotiations, leadership development, and cultivating relationships with mentors. 

For the month of October, the talented crew of installers with Ballin Knows Best, the first-ever AI-driven flooring installation chatbot, contribute content written by installers for installers in this editorial takeover. 

The recent CFI FCICA Convention in Orlando challenged the industry to raise the bar on installer recruitment, expand high-quality training, and expand awareness of the latest installation techniques and technologies.

Domotex Asia/Chinafloor 2025 will return to Shanghai May 26-28, 2025, as part of the Build Asia Mega Show, a platform of co-located shows and activities established to foster the integration among construction, building materials and interior design sectors.

Smartlift's SL 609 Outdoor series is designed for mounting glass, marble, granite, and steel. 

Sherwin-Williams High Performance Flooring launched Accelera One is an advanced coating technology designed for decorative flake and quartz flooring systems that meet the rigorous demands of commercial and institutional environments, delivering a high level of performance, ease of application and chemical resistance.

Sherwin-Williams High Performance Flooring seamless flooring systems offers up durable, chemical resistant systems that cover a range of commercial applications, ranging from moderate to heavy use. The Resuflor systems integrate industrial-grade epoxy with flake or aggregate to create a decorative floor. 

Taylor Adhesives 710 is designed for a variety of applications, including: applying seaming tapes, joining padding, sealing raw edges, securing binding, patching carpet, replacing damaged nap and reinforcing seams and weak backings.

Schönox Moisture Blocking Leveler (MBL) is a two-part leveling compound used on concrete substrates to control moisture before the application of floor coverings. It is a moisture mitigation system and subfloor leveling in one step. 

Designed to allow for an easier install process for hardwood flooring contractors by mitigating moisture on concrete and wooden subfloor systems, Bona launches Bona RollGuard.

Sherwin-Williams High-Performance Flooring seamless flooring systems offers up durable, chemical resistant systems that cover a range of commercial applications, ranging from moderate to heavy use.

Laticrete introduces Hydro Ban Rapid Custom Shower System, a suite of niches, benches, seats, curbs, and other accessories.

Builder sentiment for new single-family homes increased in October, despite ongoing affordability challenges. The National Association of Home Builders reports optimism for 2025 market conditions, with builders anticipating easing inflation and moderating mortgage rates. The upcoming election remains a key factor in housing policy outlook.

To celebrate the 15th anniversary of its Color of the Year, Sherwin-Williams created its first-ever Color Capsule of the Year, a curated assortment of hues that encapsulate a variety of eras and aesthetics. 

With the Federal Reserve beginning an easing of monetary policy and builder sentiment improving, single-family starts posted a modest gain in September while multifamily construction continued to weaken because of tight financing and an ongoing rise in completed apartments.

Homeowners are shifting their approach to bathroom renovations with personal comfort and long-term usability increasingly prioritized over resale value considerations.

AHF said it continues to produce ways to grow the Do It Best partnership and drive sales, such as putting together pallet buy specials, creating a national drop-ship program and looking to get products into their distribution centers.

Flooring America welcomed four members to its Advisory Council. The Advisory Council convenes multiple times throughout the year to guide senior management and influence the strategic direction of our programs. 

Despite a slowdown in Q3 2024 construction sector activity, home renovation professionals express optimism for Q4, according to Houzz's latest Renovation Barometer. 

USA Flooring announced the launch of a Partner Rewards Loyalty program, designed by The Incentive Group for Pro Customers, with support from Shaw Industries. 

Flooring franchise Floor Coverings International continues its expansion in Arizona with a new mobile showroom in Sunrise. As the real estate market booms and demand for its services grows, the franchise actively seeks partners in several Arizona cities.

In a recent Floor Talk podcast, we spoke with Grogan about his goals for 2024, how his past roles at Bentley and Parterre will help him grow connections and market share within the architecture and design community, and what he anticipates for the adhesives and commercial flooring markets for the next year.

Starnet President and CEO Mark Bischoff reveals the evolutionary and revolutionary changes taking place in the commercial market today—and what commercial flooring contractors need to do to shift their perspective to prepare for the future.

Mannington Commercial's Shane Totten, AIA, director of sustainability, offers insights into the manufacturer's recent sustainability announcements. 

Bona’s Matt Casey, director of professional marketing and the Bona Certified Craftsman Program, has been with the company for nearly two decades. During that time, he has witnessed a multitude of contractor challenges as well as the evolution of new product solutions. He details the current state of sustainability in the wood products industry, offering a few tips on how to work smarter not harder. 

Frank Chiera, senior VP of marketing and advertising, CCA Global Partners, and Terri Daniels, VP of public relations, offer guidance on marketing strategy for flooring retailers in 2024. 

Roland Thompson, owner, Thompson Flooring & Installation and CFI member, was recently appointed to CFI Board Chair to help revamp the association’s chapter program. Here, he talks about his new position and CFI’s plans to grow the program. 

The INSTALL Warranty Contractor designation is a unique offering in the flooring industry because it guarantees that the installation work is of the highest quality and stands behind that guarantee with a free extended warranty on labor.

Ned Monroe, president and CEO of the Vinyl Institute, offers insight into the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announcement that vinyl chloride will be one of the next five chemicals selected for prioritization under the Toxic Substances Control Act.

Leslie Del Pozo, vice president of marketing content & communications, QEP/Roberts has been supporting the installation community in a variety of ways for several years now, including sponsoring our Installation Awards for the second year in a row. Here, we dive more into her flooring journey, what supporting the installation community means to her and the importance of just showing up.

Resilient Floor Covering Institute President and CEO Bill Blackstock offers an update on the association's key initiatives for the second half of 2024 and provides an outlook for the resilient category of flooring. 

Fishman Flooring’s new president Shane Richmond discusses the benefit of Employee Stock Ownership Plans, succession planning and the future of flooring distribution. 

At NeoCon 2024, Floor Trends & Installation met up with AHF Products Chief Commercial Officer Jennifer Zimmerman and Vice President of Commercial Fred Reitz to learn more about the company’s commercial channel strategy, incorporating AHF Contract, Armstrong Flooring, Crossville Tile and Parterre brands.

SCI Floor Covering, backed by Ranier Capital, is expanding through strategic acquisitions in the Midwest. Despite some market softness, SCI President and CEO Dave Elberson remains optimistic about the flooring industry's outlook. Learn about his acquisition strategy, business outlook and SCI's career path for installers. 

The Belknap White Group recently announced the brand merger of Belknap White, JJ Haines and Swiff Train under the UCX umbrella. Here, UCX CEO Ray Mancini discusses the merger and the future of distribution.   

No doubt, artificial intelligence (AI) is here to stay, but how is it being utilized in flooring installation? App developer and installer Jason Potts walks us through the newest features of AI bot Ballin Knows Best and what it means for the future of installation.

Learn how Showroom Pricing, founded by Kristen Stensby, offers QR code-driven solutions for flooring retailers, enabling real-time pricing updates and comprehensive data reports. 

FDA has initiated an onsite inspection at the Austrofoods facility located in Ecuador.

QR codes and a graphic element are being offered to communicate the status of participants in TPP and LAAF and to promote awareness of the programs.

FDA advises restaurants and retailers not to serve or sell and consumers not to eat chopped clams illegally harvested in Massachusetts and distributed by Red’s Best.

While the feds have been slow to clamp down on PFAS in packaging materials, states and consumer groups are taking their own legal actions.

This new requirement was established following a months-long infant formula shortage sparked by insanitary conditions at one of the nation’s largest infant formula facilities. 

D-tagatose must be declared as an added sugar on the Nutrition Facts label, but it contains fewer calories than sucrose or table sugar.

The updated list includes select food ingredients (including food and color additives), food contact substances and contaminants under FDA review.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released a revised draft Introduction and Appendix 1 to the multi-chapter draft guidance for industry titled “Hazard Analysis and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Food: Draft Guidance for Industry” (PCHF Draft Guidance).

The alert gives the FDA the ability to help prevent entry of human food products into the U.S. if they are found to be contaminated with a broad range of human-made chemicals.

The meeting is designed to help the agency improve its understanding of how it can leverage data and technology to exponentially advance food safety and achieve better health outcomes.

The guidance describes how firms can voluntarily engage with the FDA before marketing food from genome-edited plants.

The resource provides information needed to prepare businesses to achieve compliance with the FDA Food Traceability Rule.