Wilsonart Commercial laminate floors installed on a cruise ship.

By Matthew Spieler
When people hear about commercial floor coverings they tend to immediately think of either some kind of carpet or resilient product. And rightfully so, as these categories have dominated most segments of the contract market for many years. But, just as it has on the residential side, hard surface flooring products, specifically laminate and hardwood, have been gaining in popularity with architects, designers and specifiers.

Currently, both product types represent relatively small portions of the contract market, with both continuing to hover in the low to mid single digits. But as the commercial market has expanded in the last two years, so has the use of wood and laminate, with many manufacturers reporting sales exceeding market rates.

Similar to the residential side, there are numerous reasons why these products are growing their respective commercial market shares. These include advances in product and installation technology; a growing desire for environmentally friendly products; more commercial settings having the look and feel of a residential area and so on.

“We see wood continuing to grow nicely within the commercial segment,” said Scott  Jones, general manager of Armstrong World Industries’ Robbins Hardwood Floors. “We see this being driven by commercial designers seeking the luxurious beauty that wood brings coupled with the explosion of visuals that have been brought to this area of the market.”

Jack Eyal, president of Accord Flooring, added, “We have seen an increase in wood flooring orders to the commercial sector within the last three years.  The trend in the contract market is toward comfort with elegance; wood flooring fits perfectly.”

In laminate, Mark Brunelle, commercial sales-specifications for Alloc, noted despite the product being a “relatively new medium on the block, it is, nonetheless, faring well. Continued efforts to position for more specifications in the commercial market show projections of sales to exceed double-digit growth in the next few years.”

Curt Thompson, president of Wilsonart, said when it comes to laminate, “we continue to make great strides in developing and leading the commercial segment. Laminate’s market share as a category in the overall contract flooring market remains in the low single digits. Wilsonart Flooring, however, has seen huge demand for our high performance, high pressure laminate products and consequently have seen 12% to 15% of our overall business enter this arena. I expect this business to grow significantly over the next three years.”

One of the reasons for Thompson’s bullish attitude has to do with Wilsonart’s newest laminate flooring developed exclusively for the commercial market (see related story, Page 19).

Executives said laminate flooring, is now regularly installed in a large variety of commercial settings—retail shops and boutiques; hair salons; hospitality, such as hotel lobbies, foyers and guestrooms, and restaurants; offices, healthcare facilities, especially patient rooms and assisted living areas, and education, in particular universities and places of higher learning like dorm rooms, student lounges, and other public use areas.

“There are several benefits to installing laminate for commercial use,” explained David Small, Pergo’s marketing director. First, he pointed to laminate being very durable. “Secondly, the downtime required for installation is significantly minimized with laminate. Also, it is easy to maintain since there’s no need for polishing or refinishing. And, laminate offers a wide variety of designs—all available at a fraction of the cost of the real thing.”

As with the residential sector, laminate products that replicate wood visuals dominate the commercial segment, though tile looks are finding their uses. “Retail and hospitality markets tend to be attracted to stone,” said Brunelle. “Healthcare, education and corporate tend to design more with cleaner crisper wood grains from maple to merbau.”

He added when it comes to style, “The trend in coloration has interesting polarity—from the light maple to the darker oaks and walnuts. In fact, the introductions of darker finishes contributed to Alloc getting great recognition. Also, smoother or textured gloss products tend to be in vogue to reflect a cleaner shinier look.”

Small agreed with Brunelle’s assessment, adding, “Right now in the commercial market, we’re seeing a trend toward exotic wood looks and darker-colored laminates such as Java Teak and Dark Mahogany found in the Pergo Select line. Additionally, many business owners are asking for a high-gloss look like Select’s Lacquered American Oak or Lacquered Italian Walnut.”

When it comes to wood looks, many commercial establishments are turning to the real thing. “There has been a big design trend in the commercial market toward wood flooring, said Accord’s Eyal. “Offices are becoming more comfortable and less ‘cold.’ CFO’s are hearkening back to the days of elegance and opulence in their surroundings and are opting to put dramatic wood floors in their offices. The trend is moving into more wood everywhere; richly paneled walls and decorative molding speak volumes about an executive.”

In addition to offices, he pointed to the retail segment as another hot spot for wood floors. “This is to create a more intimate feeling for the customers.  It does put them in a better frame of mind to linger longer in the ambience and, coincidentally, spend more. Some of the big clothing/home furnishing designers put wood flooring exclusively in their showrooms—Ralph Lauren was one of the first.”

Armstrong’s Jones noted a reason why wood is seeing more jobs is the diversity of styles it gives specifiers. “As in residential, we see many visuals being popular depending upon the various looks the design community is aiming to convey. One example is strong growth in distressed looks based upon the fact they are both a beautiful, popular visual combined with an ability to help camouflage life’s little accidents.”

While commercial laminate and wood sales are growing at a healthy clip, manufacturers note there are still challenges to maintain the growth, namely educating the buying public.

“The challenge for us,” said Eyal, “as we see it, is educating the professional community—designers, architects and flooring professionals—about the types of wood flooring available and how they wear in any given application. Armed with the product knowledge necessary, these professionals can recommend the correct wood for the proper application.”

Wilsonart’s Thompson added, “The savvy, well-educated market will be much more cautious in its approach and concentrate on truly high performance and value.”

One area where education is helping develop sales deals is with the environmental movement, as both wood and laminate mills promote the various green benefits of their products.

“Alloc has always promoted a green story to the A&D and end-use community on commercial projects,” said Brunelle. “From the landfill issues to gray water, Alloc offers a friendly approach to the environment.”

Eyal added, “Everything is moving toward greener production. That’s why we believe glueless installation will be the preferred method very soon.”

Jones agreed, noting the company recently introduced a six SKU collection for its Armstrong Locking Hardwood commercial line. “As in residential, these locking alternatives save time and money during installation, as well as allow commercial customers to get back on their floors quicker since there is no waiting for adhesive to cure.”

In the end, though, he explained there remains great opportunities for wood in the commercial market. While his comments speak for wood, he could equally be talking about laminate as the two seem to go hand-in-hand when it comes to potential. “The biggest opportunity is two-fold. It means continuing to develop beautiful products that will perform within the demanding commercial environment, while at the same time helping to educate the customer that an effective preventative maintenance program is essential in these environments, and these floors are not right for every commercial situation.”