Cork in all its various forms, from tree bark to floor tile.

By Louis Iannaco
Over the last few years, cork flooring has been growing increasingly nearer and dearer to the hearts of designers and specifiers across the country. Several factors are responsible for this, including comfort underfoot, more colors and styles than ever before, increased exposure on TV design shows and, of course, the product’s friendly environmental factor. Never has this flooring been so desired by so many for a variety of reasons, and that goes for residential as well as commercial applications.

Susan Eski, national sales manager for Nova Distinctive Floors, believes there are multiple reasons currently driving specifiers and designers into cork flooring. “First is the green aspect of cork because of the huge influence of green building. Other reasons are the comfort, durability of cork floors and the different designs of cork that you can’t find in other flooring types.”

Like Eski, Paulo Nogueira, managing director for Amorim Flooring North America, believes cork floors today have many features and benefits aside from the green story, that is inherent to cork. “Cork floors, in fact, offer a combination of warmth, comfort, sound dampening, and natural resistance to microbes and bugs. They also have design structures and colors never seen before.

“In the cork industry, concepts like sustainability, natural and smart use of raw materials, are the basis of what we do,” he explained. “Without being conservative, the cork industry would not exist. This is a small example of what can be done in terms of creating and economic activity and jobs, all in balance with nature.”

Chris Capobianco of flooringanswers.com believes the green aspect gets people’s attention first and then “the other benefits such as sound and heat insulation, softness underfoot and durability become other attractive features of the product that influence the decision.”

Randy Gillespie, vice president of sales and marketing for Expanko, said, “Even though cork has the density of wood it still gives the perception of softness visually and underfoot. It also provides an alternative to wood. Hard finishes are in high demand and the use of rugs is desirable. The ability to design with colors and patterns offer another dimension of design. The tile installation also gives additional flexibility in design.

“Aesthetics are also important,” he added. “The colors and patterns of cork give the feeling of comfort and familiarity to our outside environments. Cork also creates patterns of scale, color and contrast that hide dirt and damage. Specifiers and designers are attracted by the natural look of cork and additionally to the LEED contribution that can be added to the project. Expanko cork can contribute up to four points toward LEED certification. Cork is a rapidly renewable resource that is very attractive to environmentally conscious consumers and businesses.”

One of the reasons cork is a becoming more popular in rooms like the kitchen is its comfort. In what has become more of a gathering place in the home than ever before, kitchen designs today are more inviting, allowing the end user to either stand for hours preparing food or catch up with family. As many are finding out, standing on a cork floor is a more soothing experience compared to many other surfaces for both the ankles and knees. Cork’s natural structure lends itself to this benefit.

“Cork floors are perfectly suited for many other areas of the home, and some end users have used cork throughout,” said Philippe Erramuzpe, COO of Natural Cork. “Besides the kitchen, playrooms and studies have been the most frequent parts of the house.”

Nova’s Eski said because cork is a “soft tissue composed of dead cells found in the inner bark of the tree with a honeycomb structure, it has 100 million air-cells per cubic inch that provide the softness underfoot and give it the ability to recover back from indentation.”

Nogueira concurred, saying cork cells contain a gas inside them. “This makes those cells act as a cushion, when under pressure, and allows them to regain their initial shape after the pressure is released.”

With the comfort, durability and looks a cork floor provides end users, specifiers and designers are finding new and different ways of utilizing its unique properties. In residential, noted Nogueira, it is, for most, in kitchens and family rooms, “where people stay for a long time and want a comfortable, clean and natural flooring. Many families have invested in their homes, transforming their basements into entertainment or media rooms. Because of the sound insulation properties, cork floors are also used very often in these projects.

“In the commercial side of applications,” he explained, “we see a lot in the hospitality business (hotels), in education (classrooms), and health (from clinics to long-term care). These are all examples where cork floors, if combined with the proper technology in surface finishing and adequate construction, offer unique solutions compared to other floor covering products.

“Cork is a natural material with fabulous properties,“ Nogueira said, “but it is the way that natural material is engineered and transformed in a finished flooring product that makes cork floors what they are today, and their growing acceptance in the market. Not all floors are the same, just because they have cork.”

Eski said in 2006 “our square feet per job has gone up by 40%. That means homeowners are putting in cork in larger areas in the house or in multiple rooms. We had also seen more interest in cork in commercial applications such as in retail stores, art galleries, schools, etc.”

Gillespie said, “Residential use continues to be primarily in the kitchen but family rooms and living rooms as well as bedrooms are becoming more popular installations. When it’s understood that cork flooring is not a soft product but equivalent to wood in density, a decision is made to expand usage. Also, installations that have been in place for 50-plus years are testimonials to the durability of cork.

“Commercially,” he concluded, “cork flooring continues to expand its use. From entry ways, boardrooms, offices and libraries, to courtrooms, wineries, schools, condominiums and showrooms, cork flooring continues to be the product of choice among many designers and specifiers.”