Great show in Germany last week (Jan 16-18th), Domotex is the largest flooring show in Europe. The traffic level felt busier than last year, so hopefully that is a positive reflection of what we can expect in the market this year. The exhibitors were a bit different than years past. A few major players did not attend, particularly in laminate flooring. It felt like the area that housed the Chinese exhibitors was smaller this year, although they were still present.
From an innovation perspective I was probably most impressed with Faus, a European supplier of laminate flooring, that has launched some innovation in design that were very impressive. I always wonder, ‘what could be next’ in that segment and each year the factories seem to invent something new.
The multi-directional matching partners were very cool looking (think an antique pattern done in stone tile, they’ve designed the laminate to match in multiple directions). I don’t have a photo of their product to show, but if you are curious what ‘antique pattern’ looks like done in real stone see this picture of travertine antique pattern tile.
Another interesting trend in Europe for North American customers, and for that matter for BuildDirect , is the move to engineered flooring. Nothing new here other than the flexibility and continuous innovation in the engineered market place vs the solid market, which I characterize as stagnate versus last year. Our demand for engineered flooring has increased and I’d say it undoubtedly is gaining market share versus the traditional ¾” solid hardwood market place.
I have a friend who runs a several hundred million dollar distribution company in Europe and they made the decision to go exclusively with engineered flooring, dropping all solid. Not suggesting this will happen in America, but the trend can’t be ignored. I spend a lot of time in China with factory owners and the mindset towards the veneered top layer engineered floor rather than producing a solid product is not only happening, but is seems inescapable.
You’ve seen in my previous blog posts the vital focus required on Lacey Act and CARB compliance in our industry. Part of this governance / compliance may have forced Chinese factories to focus on using less hardwood products. I believe it didn’t start the trend (I’ve seen it starting 2 years before Lacey amendment was announced) but I think the added awareness around compliance kept the momentum going.
Or, maybe the downward pricing pressure in the market we’ve seen since the housing and credit crisis has made engineered a more affordable option. Or finally, maybe it is just awareness of the general population of what engineered flooring is and why it is different versus traditional solid products.
I will leave you with a video from the show… as shown at last years show there is no lack of beer available, they certainly love their beer in Germany … and so do I !!
Some of the best feedback I get on my Twitter account and blog posts are around my ‘What you see in the middle of nowhere’ topic. I do a lot of traveling around the world and I honestly enjoy my travel in China. The people are amazing and the experience with the culture and local customs is remarkable. That said, I really don’t enjoy some of the food. I’ve described business trips in China like an episode of Fear Factor and a drinking game all wrapped into one.
I keep expecting Joe Rogan to jump out and ask me to eat an uncooked elephant intestine for $25,000. It’s just like that, except no Joe and no money!
Here is an example. We are in Wuxi, China (few hours drive from Shanghai) and I am served a nice looking dish. I really like black pepper and spicy food, so I assumed this is a local dish with a bunch of pepper on it. Hmmm, I should have known better. Yah, those black bits are large ants. The dish actually tasted really good, the locally harvested pine nuts were fabulous, but there’s something about a mouth full of ants…
As mentioned in previous posts, Chinese culture is heavily focused around food. It is mandatory to spend time in restaurant in order to conduct successful business. Most Chinese businessmen I’ve met are proud experts at eating out. An interesting experience for the non-China resident is the way they display the food in a restaurant, before it is prepared. Here is a photo of a water snake (or eel) before it is taken out and prepared.
It feels a little bit like being at the zoo, numerous tanks of fresh seafood are displayed and you walk around with an employee and you pick out what you’d like to eat.
Now, I’ve been to hundreds of restaurants in countless different cities and towns in China. Some are beautiful and clean, some are not. I’ll let you imagine the physiological battle you need to personally overcome after you’ve had the unfortunate experience of walking in an unclean, live food environment… and then be honored as the first to eat each dish, no one digging in before you do. Yummy.
Finally, on one of my walks through a restaurant in Huizhou, China I took a little video of one of the plastic tray that we could order from.
As bamboo is recognized as a rapidly renewable resource and a low emitting material it is a fabulous option for your flooring. The challenge for some people is that bamboo looks like, well, bamboo. Not everyone loves the look. Further, many of these people absolutely love exotic looking floors, like Brazilian Walnut or Brazilian Cherry, but are not confident that they can purchase these species legally.
This one is to show you how the industry can quickly react to major legislative changes; The Lacey Act. If you don’t know what it is you better figure it out quickly. No one is immune. It is a major change to the building material industry, strict guidelines to follow to ensure your supply chain can prove the traceability and legality of the wood used in flooring, furniture, paneling, etc.
The answer is a direct printing process that makes the durable and stable strand woven bamboo look exactly like an exotic species like a Brazilian Walnut. You get a floor that is twice as hard as North American Oak, so extremely strong and durable, while you get the fashion forward look that the market place craves. I am not promoting this line just because BuildDirect sells it. It is available from other suppliers as well.
But I wanted to share this product innovation because it shows how public demand and legislative change can quickly effect the industry in a way that many feel is extremely positive. I just spend the past two days with the factory owner and I can’t stop thinking about this line. I love the fact that my role in this marketplace allows BuildDirect and myself to be on the leading edge of product innovation.
And from our website, here’s an explanation of some of the ways that direct print bamboo can contribute LEED points.
LEED® MR Credit 6: Rapidly Renewable Materials: The USGBC has established this requirement to help “reduce the use and depletion of finite raw materials and long cycle materials by replacing them with rapidly renewable materials.”
LEED® IEQ Credit 4.4: Low Emitting Materials: The USGBC has established this requirement to help “reduce the quantity of indoor air contaminants that are odorous, irritating and/or harmful to the comfort and well being of installers and occupants.”
Taipan of the Noble House; Ian Dunross Struans. If these names mean anything to you you’ll probably enjoy this blog post. James Clavell (of Shogun fame) wrote a fabulous novel called Noble House. It was a sequel to the equally impressive novel, Taipan.
These are my two favorite books. I read them as a young adult and have re-read them several times. My wife thinks I’m crazy since I read them so often, but they are inspirational and entertaining for me. They definitely influenced my career path. I have always been enthralled (obsessed) with martial arts and Asian culture. This book, which takes place in Hong Kong, fed that Asian obsession.
When I researched and learned that the novel was loosely based on fact (the business history of a company called Jardine Matheson), I was hooked. I was fascinated with the aspects of global trade & finance along with the dynamics of doing business as a foreigner in Asia. I visited Hong Kong as a 20 year old, have been back numerous times and have loved the city ever since.
Noble House was a mini-series on NBC in 1988 starring Pierce Brosnan. In the mini-series the Jardine House was used as the location of the Noble House. Jardine Matheson is still located in this building. Formerly known as Connaught Center, it is a 52 storey building built in 1972. It is the star of this brief video I took on a recent trip to Hong Kong. Enjoy!
Check out the little frogs I found running around the outside of the wood flooring factory. I always envisioned that these are what would come in the millions if there was a biblical plague. I said something to that effect when I saw them, I couldn’t believe how small they were, approx the size of a quarter (coin).
One of the people at the factory said that in Sichuan, around the time of the earthquake disaster (May 12, 2008), that there were hundreds of thousands of these seen on the streets. The frogs were reported in Chinese media to have been a predictor that something was about to happen.
I don’t know if this was reported before or if it was an after thought. I found this photo that may support this claim. As we heard stories of some animals moving away from the shore before the Dec 26, 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami I wonder if the frogs knew something that the people didn’t? If nothing else, look at how tiny the frogs are!!
Here is a video of one of my visits to a factory a few hours outside of Shanghai. I attempt to show and explain a formaldehyde emissions test.
Honestly it was a pretty average effort, I had done little research and I know no technical terms, so tried to wing it. Hey, I gotta be me! I don’t speak Chinese and I spent awhile speaking with the chemical experts in the factory and unfortunately much of the communication was lost in translation, so I ended up winging it.
You won’t here anything earth shattering in the 2 minutes I speak, but you will see the machines that are used in a formaldehyde test and you’ll hear that CARB is extremely important and we take the process very seriously. Formaldehyde emissions is a hot button topic in the flooring industry and CARB (California Air Resources Board) have changed the way Californian’s and soon to be all Americans on how they buy their flooring.
Formaldehyde is a naturally occurring chemical compound that is often used in manufacturing of household items. Prolonged exposure to high levels is considered unhealthy. It can trigger conditions like asthma and I believe it has been shown to cause cancer in animals (according to the Department of Health and Human Services).
A CARB compliant floor ensures that the emissions are extremely low, in early 2009 and through 2010 the California Air Resources Board is taking a leadership stance and requiring all products to be compliant to their new standards (within CA). BuildDirect is following that stance and is actively attempting to be a leader across the country and ensure the entire North American population has the ability to procure these formaldehyde safe products.
So to recap, don’t expect a great video production, but understand the topic is a very important one and enjoy the inside of a factory testing room in rural China.
Finally, I am jet lagged, hung over and tired from being in a car all day, so I have pretty big bags under my eyes! Good times, I love business travel!
As Johnny Cash once did, I walked the line. In my case however, I walked a finishing line in an engineered flooring factory near the east coast of China. It is was a typical day in this region of China; 35C (95F) and thunder showers. When I was in the factory it was raining pretty hard.
I wanted to show what it was like to walk along a line finishing line. I did this in an impromptu fashion so sorry for the lack of technical terms. Anyways, it’s a little behind the scenes on how engineered or solid hardwood flooring is finished, I hope you enjoy.
One of the coolest things I get to experience in my role at BuildDirect is seeing things that many others wouldn’t see. This little video shows one of those moments. I was flying from Shenzhen airport in the south of China up north to Shenyang airport on a Chinese domestic airline call Shenzhen Airlines.
Other than the obvious differences in the service, language, food and ‘movie’ selection (I’m a little concerned that the general population that fly domestic Chinese airlines may all end up with hearing problems. They certainly are not shy on the volume level of said movies…) I have learned that the most unusual difference in the exercise routine that happens on longer flights (usually 2.5 hours+ in duration).
Here is a small clip of an exercise session that the entire plane took part in.
The flight attendants respectfully asked me not to film this, so I had to try and do it without drawing too much attention … it isn’t a great reflection of what happened, the starting part had a lot more arms waving in the air, but you get the general idea.
I had the chance to wander around the incredible Richmond Olympic Oval with my co-worker Rob Jones recently. I have a membership to work out at the gym, so we were able to enter the facility when it was closed to the public, hence the footage with no one else present. The building is amazing and absolutely huge inside. I highly recommend a visit if you are in the area.
May 15, 2009 the Richmond News newspaper reported that the Oval has been recognized with a top national award for architecture.
“The Oval was honoured by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada for innovation in architecture. Architectural firm Canon Design was behind the look of the $173M Olympic speed skating facility. The institute cited the oval’s use of discarded pine-bettle wood for the ceiling; its wood bean span; and the design of heating, ventilating and acoustics as the reasons for the award.”
I’d throw in the incredible location right on the Fraser River and the view of the local mountain range as additional reasons to love this facility.
Well done and congrats to the City of Richmond and all others involved on this recent award, I’m sure many more will follow.
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