Our very own Nyle Wadford was recognized as Tile Person of the Year by the National Tile Contractors Association at Coverings 2013 in Atlanta this month. Since 1958, NTCA has been honoring a tile professional each year who is dedicated to supporting the non-profit trade association and its service to all segments of the tile and stone industry.
NTCA Tile Person of the Year
Nyle joins a prestigious group of tile professionals who have received this honor, and, we’re pleased to say, he was completely surprised at the ceremony (good job team!). Nyle’s work to create qualified labor specifications for the tile industry and his contributions to the growth of NTCA were cited among his many industry accomplishments.
The whole Neuse Tile team shares Nyle’s passion for correct tile installations, but it’s Nyle and the team at NTCA who have worked so diligently to make sure all tile contractors have the technical instructions they need to perform installations that will last. When Nyle was President of the NTCA, the organization experienced record growth in membership, expanded its Partners for Success program, formed an historic partnership with Tile Contractors Association of America, and significantly expanded the NTCA’s Five-Star Contractor Program.
Nyle will continue to represent the NTCA on the Tile Council of North America (TCNA) Handbook Committee, and serve on the ANSI ASC 108 Committee, making Neuse Tile Service one of two contractors worldwide to sit on all three committees! He currently is the Chairman of the Board for NTCA.
Way to go Nyle! We’re proud of you!
Check out this interview with Nyle from the floor of the Coverings Show in Atlanta:
It’s often aesthetics or convenience that make us consider a home renovation or remodel, but dollars and cents might encourage you to pull the trigger on that project as well. Recently published statistics in the Remodeling Cost vs. Value report indicate that bathroom and kitchen remodels in our area recoup more than 60 percent of their value.
The cost-to-value ratio of remodeling projects has improved for the first time in six years due to stabilizing resale values and flat construction labor costs. The cost-value ratio is figured by comparing resale value as a percentage of construction cost, and the upturn “is an encouraging sign that the remodeling industry may have turned the corner,” states Remodeling magazine. Check out the statistics by city or region for a project you might be considering www.remodeling.hw.net
While you’re thinking about improvements, consider using ageless design elements to make your home more universally appealing. Wider doorways, curbless showers, varying cabinet heights, and lever-handled faucets and knobs can make your renovation beautiful and adaptable to the long-term needs of family members or visitors with different physical abilities. Local realtors tell us they have a hard time finding homes which can accommodate those clients who are looking for a barrier-free home, so thinking long-term can improve your resale value as well.
And, do let us know if you’re considering a renovation. With almost 50 years experience in the Triangle’s construction market, we have some great local contacts to assist with just about any renovation or project.
Tile containing recycled content or set with materials which emit no harmful odors meets the criteria to be called ‘green’ in some rating systems, but, if it’s manufactured overseas and brought here using a great amount of transportation energy, should it still be considered part of an environmentally friendly local-government building?
We’ve seen this scenario play out a few times in the past several years, and are always amazed that fabulous tiles manufactured within 500 miles of our location are not used on local ‘green’ projects. (Of course, we’re also flabbergasted by local projects that bring in contractors and subcontractors from other states, but that’s another blog topic.)
The point is that ‘green’ criteria to date have addressed individual components of a tile installation – the composition of the tile or setting material, the long-term durability of tile, the fact that tile doesn’t emit any VOC’s (volatile organic compounds), where it’s manufactured, or how the plant that makes it handles its water supply. Now, however, there’s a measurement standard which will encompass all aspects of ‘green.’ ANSI’s new Green Squared Standard (A138.1) is a “multi-attribute, total-system approach to sustainability.”
Within the standard, things like recycled material, life-cycle assessment, and re-use of post-life product are detailed. It’s complex and measured by independent certification laboratories so that the industry now has definite points of evaluation and end-users can determine which products are truly ‘green.’ With the Green Squared certification, customers will be able to see that they are choosing some of the most sustainable products on the market today.
‘Green’ features aren’t new to tile and stone, but this quantification of its positive attributes should help easily translate its viability to architectural specifiers and consumers. “Tile’s inherent durability, and the perpetuity of the natural materials out of which tiles are manufactured, have made ceramic tiles the natural choice for centuries,” states the 2012 TCNA Handbook.
The tile market is on the rise in the United States, according to a recent report by John Baugh at Stifel Nicolaus. Svend Hovmand, Chairman Emeritus of Crossville, Inc., has some insight on what's sparking this double-digit increase during an interview with FloorDaily.net.
http://youtu.be/jhyXOKd1kmg
Tile already tops the market in Europe, South America and other countries. The ever-increasing rise of popularity in the US is naturally occurring thanks to several key factors.
Tile is outpacing the growth of alternative products in the floor covering industry. This interview with the 'godfather of ceramic tile in the US' gives some insight into the attributes that are sending tile to the top of the list for remodeling and commercial concerns: versatility, style, 'green' attributes, durability, and ease of maintenance.
When we talk about tile’s durability, I often think of the image of a solitary tile shower stall on the second story of an area home that withstood the devastation of a 1988 tornado. That blue 4×4 tile seemed to stand out defiantly in a neighborhood ransacked by nature’s power.
The property damage and loss of life that night were devastating, but, 24 years later, thinking of that shower reminds me of all our craft used to be. Tile was the substantial, durable, and standard bathroom material. The color choices might have been few, but the installation was meant to last.
Today tile is a designer product, a limitless ‘feature’, and often an ‘upgrade,’ and yet we spend many of our hours tearing out our competitor’s poor installations and tiling them as they should have been done the first time. It isn’t the fashion or even the function of the tile itself that’s made the difference in durability. It’s what’s under the tile – what you can’t see.
Stephanie Samulski does a great job explaining the change in tile installation methods and the consequences in the Tile Council of North America’s 2012 Handbook. Here’s an excerpt from Stephanie’s article:
In the earlier days of tile setting, “there were only a few methods of installing tile – bonded mortar beds and unbonded mortar beds. For several reasons, the resulting installations were likely to be problem-free, and indeed, many of them are still around today.
First, mortar beds were, simply stated, good. They helped tile installations withstand building movement and the installer created the substrate, for a nice flat finish.
Second, because mortar bed methods had been in use for hundreds of years, the knowledge and understanding of how to properly execute them was high.
Third, there was a culture of tile setters, a fraternity of sorts, of the tradesmen who knew how to turn a pile of sand and a couple bags of cement into substrate, setting material, and grout. Anyone who could do this was, by necessity, thoroughly trained, and the industry benefited from this built-in training and quality control mechanism.
Tile Installation guide 2012
Fast forward to today. Even though mortar bed methods are still recognized as the best choice for many scenarios, most jobs are being specified with thin-bed installation methods because these thinner, lighter installations are faster and less expensive to install. They are also less expensive to design for: floors don’t need to be recessed, lighter duty framing materials can be used, and the installation is 75 percent lighter than if a mortar bed were specified. This has allowed tile installations to be more affordable and more readily available.
But what else happens when a labor-intensive, highly skilled method of installation is almost completely supplanted by methods that don’t require years of training? The built-in competency requirement diminishes. Outside of a few state licensing programs, very little is in place to make sure a tile contractor knows industry standards and best practices and has good installers. The consistent uptick in tile consumption over the last fifty years attracted workers and business owners who recognized a growth industry with very few obstacles to getting started, and many good companies and installers entered the trade, but at the same time less-skilled workers and less-qualified business owners set up shop as tile contractors too.
The perception popularized by television shows, internet blogs, YouTube, and the like – that tile setting is so easy you can do it yourself – is a fallacy that oversimplifies the craft. While materials exist now that make it look easy and allow nearly everyone to attach tiles to a floor or wall, knowing the right materials for the project and installing them properly to last the life of the building is, in some ways, even more difficult today than it was when only mortar beds were used. With all the improvements to setting materials through the years and the changes to how buildings are constructed, tile setting has gone from a skill-centric trade to a knowledge-centric trade. Knowing what will work over the life of the building requires real expertise.”
As the TCNA Handbook states, “Because tile is a permanent finish, the lowest bid should not be the driving factor, but rather who is the most qualified to perform the scope of the work specified.”
Cleaning your tile with bleach-based products may seem like a good solution to get rid of the ‘gunk’ growing in your shower, but it may have the exact opposite effect. Bleach-based products sold by many manufacturers as “mildew solutions or preventives” actually open the pores of the grout between your tiles and encourage the growth of even more bacteria.
This can cause your cementitious grout to deteriorate, and it can make your grout more susceptible to bacteria growth, meaning you’ll be cleaning it even more often. This works well for manufacturers of off-the-shelf, bleach-based products, but it’s causing more work for you, costing you extra money, and releasing more chemicals into your environment.
Save yourself some work and give your grout (and your lungs) a break — clean tile and grout ONLY with pH-Neutral cleaners and a stiff-bristle brush. (pH-Neutral cleaners are neither acidic nor alkaline.) Routine squeegeeing of your tile will also help it stay cleaner longer. Remember, you chose tile because it was easy to maintain; don’t make extra work for yourself.
There are many good pH-Neutral tile cleaners sold at local tile distributors, or you can check out our website, www.neusetile.com, for links to our favorites.
I have experienced this business from the mud box to the grout float to the balance sheet, but as I have continued to watch our industry grow and change, I am reminded that it is people who are the constant — PASSIONATE PEOPLE — Passion for the tile industry is the common thread you will find in Five-Star businesses like ours and in family businesses throughout this great country.
It is this passion and love that drives us to better our industry on a daily basis. As Bob Noyce said, “Knowledge is power and knowledge shared is power multiplied.”
I am proud to lend my passion to the tile industry, and to work with the many others that share the same fervor, as we forge ahead to the future.
I know times are tough. I implore you to stay in the fight; continue to do the right things for your business and your family. I believe that our nation still believes that private property, entrepreneurial risk, and the potential for profit or loss are the elements that make our system dynamic and are what has spread prosperity to more people in and out of our country than any system in the history of man.
Leadership will take us there. God bless.
Nyle Wadford
Nyle is President of Neuse Tile Service and current president of the National Tile Contractors Association. These excerpts from his induction speech serve as good reminders in challenging times. We are grateful for our people and their passion for our industry and our customers.
We are in the process of tearing out and re-doing a very nice couple’s steam shower. The tile work they had was horrific, the ‘waterproofing’ was non-existent, the framing was a joke, and the ‘finished’ product leaked all over their house. It wasn’t our work – it was the work of someone who claimed to be a ‘contractor’ and who has taken advantage of these unsuspecting homeowners.
This was one of the worst excuses for construction we’ve seen in a while. (Though last week’s shower with 8 nails through the pan liner was bad too!!)
There’s no way this ’tile installer’ thought he was doing a sufficient job for these folks– he stuck cardboard in behind tile as a ‘filler’ in one area of the shower! Yet, he was recommended to this couple by a plumbing manufacturer, so they thought they were hiring someone who would do a good job.
He didn’t; and he’s doing his best to give our industry a black eye. But, to this couple’s credit, they realize he is an exception, and they’ve maintained a positive attitude meeting their adversity by educating themselves. Before they signed on with us to tear out and re-tile their steam shower, they got references, researched the products we suggested, and even came by a steam shower installation in progress to see our guys at work.
Good for them! When you’re not in the construction business, it’s hard to know where to start to find a reputable and experienced craftsman. Certainly, referrals are a good resource, as is doing some research on-line. Other valuable places to get information on potential contractors are their trade associations (ours is National Tile Contractors Association); a certification body (for us its Ceramic Tile Education Foundation); the local Home Builders Association; local business groups; and other people in similar fields. Your money and your home are too precious to entrust to someone who would stick tile to cardboard.
We wish we had met this couple before their bad experience started, and we’re doing our best to create the steam shower they had in mind when this project started many months ago.
In the meantime, we’ll keep reminding everyone how important it is to find a reputable and experienced contractor who will stand behind their work. (Longevity in the business DOES matter, especially in today’s economy.) If you have any suggestions on where else we should be spreading the word, feel free to share.
We seem to be making lots of circles lately – and, with square tiles, that’s a pretty big accomplishment
When you were in school, you probably wondered if you’d ever use what you learned in math class. Most people don’t need a compass or protractor to accomplish daily tasks, but our profession is based on measurements, fractions, and geometry (with some chemistry and physics thrown in, of course).
It takes skilled craftsmen to install these works of artistry, but behind-the-scenes we’re often using colored pencils and protractors to prep for the laser lines and configurations used on the actual job site.
Detailed measurements and certified installers combine to create beautiful symmetry.
A recent photo of our work on the front page of the local newspaper featured mosaic tiles with concentric metal rings that we fashioned from regular square edging. And, after we made a circular pattern with changing-colored tiles, an architect wrote to tell us,
“the floor tile in the lobby is some of the best work I’ve seen in a while. The circles are very close to perfect. The arches are cut in nicely, the joints are very good. It’s just a good neat job.”
Geometry & tile artistry make this lobby a work of art.
And, we even won a national award for a combination of tile and marble circles that we formulated to fill the first floor of a commercial space. Good thing we still remember how to use that compass and string from math class all those years ago!
Whether it be in circles or squares, we love a long-lasting and beautiful tile installation. And, no matter what– it takes math to get there.
Scroll down for a before-and-after picture of a grout transformation.
We installed this kitchen tile 6 years ago, and it’s had some heavy-duty traffic, so the grout had gotten pretty dingy. A thorough clean from our technicians, and the floor looks as good as it did when it was new!
Tile and grout renewed after our heavy-duty cleaning.
the fact that tile doesn’t emit any VOC’s (volatile organic compounds), where it’s manufactured, or how the plant that makes it handles its water supply. Now, however, there’s a measurement standard which will encompass all aspects of ‘green.’ ANSI’s new Green Squared Standard (A138.1) is a “multi-attribute, total-system approach to sustainability.”
