When it comes to tile, mills point out no segment in the flooring industry offers as much state-of-the-art, cutting-edge technology. This was evident once again during Surfaces 2010.

Crossville

Laurie Lyza, director of marketing, saw things going “surprisingly” well. “Last year, everyone was wondering where the bottom was going to be. This year, the general attitude is much more positive.”

When asked about the “Crossville USA” theme, Lyza noted, “It’s about who we are. It’s about our American ownership, American manufacturing. Crossville USA is just a testament to the fact we are made in the U.S.A., that a great majority of our products are made in Crossville, Tenn.”

The manufacturer’s positive outlook for 2010 is due, in part to the reaction its plank offerings received at Surfaces. Specifiers can now have any Crossville product (excluding natural stone) cut into a popular plank shape with no minimum order and only a three-week lead time.

Another drawing card was the mill’s Tile-Take-Back program, a proprietary system of processing ceramic and porcelain tile back into the powder used in manufacturing new tile. The program allows the company to take back samples and installed tile, always a concern for environmentally minded designers.

One porcelain line that did very well at the show for Crossville was Cotto Americana, which features a terracotta design with metal flakes and an extensive color palette. It’s available in 6-, 12- and 18-inch sizes, plus 2-inch mosaics.

Dal-Tile

Lori Kirk-Rolley, marketing director, said the show “has gone really well. We’ve seen a steady flow of traffic. The people coming into the booth are excited about seeing the new things, talking about design trends, product trends. There just seems to be a bit more optimism than there was a year ago at this time. That’s really encouraging.”

Employing the use of ink jet technology on many of its products, Dal-Tile received a bevy of positive reactions, especially to its new San Michele glazed porcelain product. “It’s really amazing what we can do with Reveal Imaging,” she said. “The graphic is such that there are no repeat patterns. The veining looks so realistic.” San Michele also features Microban protection as well as pre-consumer recycled content. It comes in three colors and four sizes: 12 x 12, 12 x 24, 18 x 18 and 24 x 24.

Dal-Tile has also expanded its exotic, natural stone offerings, as well as increased finishes such as acid-washed, polished and honed.

Mannington

Returning to the Surfaces show floor following a one-year absence, Jim Dougherty, director of ceramic business, said, “I don’t know if the economy is going to be responding all that well this year but part of the battle is changing people’s attitudes so they are positive about the future.”

According to Dougherty, Mannington has differentiated itself from other tile producers by developing more color, more dark neutrals as well as multicolored patterns. “We are also focused on supplying different design alternatives rather than just a copy of another stone. If you open up a lot of the major players’ catalogs in the U.S., all you see is some version of beige in tile. You are not going to see that with us.”

He added that the tile business over the last 20 years has been focused on replicating stone. “When customers look at our line, they’ll see we are going somewhere else.”

Among the major attractions in Mannington’s booth was its Accent Gallery line of glass mosaics as well as its Metro and Antiquity porcelain tile lines.

Stonepeak

“We can definitely say the show was more positive than last year,” said Noah Chitty, director of technical services. “We’ve had quality people coming by with good interest in everything. We’re pretty content.”

The major attraction in the Stonepeak booth was its newest technology, Active clean air and antibacterial ceramic, featuring photocatalytic porcelain tiles that actually help improve the quality of the environment. Photocatalysis is a natural phenomenon that involves light, moisture and a photocatalyst, in this case, titanium dioxide (TiO2). When light (both natural and artificial) comes in contact with the photocatalyst, a chemical reaction called oxidation occurs. The oxidation process brings about anti-pollution, anti-bacterial and self-cleaning qualities.

“In the last few months, we’ve talked a lot about Active,” he said. “We really think it is going to be a great new innovation to the industry. We definitely see some copying going on already. People are asking a lot of questions about it.”

The Caesar collection, a natural stone line emulating the shades in travertine, proved to also be a major hit. It comes in four colors and four sizes: 12 x 12, 12 x 24, 18 x 18 and 24 x 24.