Declining carpet sales, regardless..

[Mikey P]

Plenty of commercial work to be found

Look at the mop residue on this porcelain.

The grout is at the Butter Knife stage..


Vegas Egg joint..

 

[BIG WOOD]

I see it as just a trend. It'll probably last about 10years, just like hardwood did in the late 90's. I see carpet coming back with a vengeance around 2025 if we can survive with tile cleaning

 

[Bob Pruitt]

Texas has lots and lots of hardwood floors. Seems like something you almost have to do, basic clean and shine at minimum. Of course tile kitchens and carpeted bedrooms and family rooms.

 

[Mark Von*Lay]

With the reach of all members of forums it's mandatory to PROMOTE CARPET --Not just clean it--,there are a ton of pro carpet advocates and for damn good solid reasons ,,I myself had been drove toward the bare floor conscious realm,,,and Nope,,,gotta have carpet.. Why chose carpet so many great reasons and the dust etc is always more of a hassle on non carpet surfaces. Spread the word 24/7 why carpet is the best all around way to go

 

[Mikey P]

Nylon Lives Matter.

 

[Mark Von*Lay]

Nylon Lives Matter.

Lol---R.O.C.

 

[steve_64]

I don't think I'll ever run out of carpet to clean.

Just wish they made it better.

 

[Lee Stockwell]

They make more than we can get to, so why worry?

 

[Connor]

Nylon Lives Matter.

All fibers matter.

 

[Old Coastie]

This thread is dyeing...

 

[dgardner]

All fibers matter.

That's why Prochem makes All Fiber Rinse....

 

[Desk Jockey]

The thought makes sense. Carpet hold soil hard surfaces don't.

The trouble with that theory is that is not reality. Without something to trap and hold theses particles they become airborne.

No worries though, once airborne these particles are filtered by "you". Yep, without carpet to trap and hold them they float around waiting to be breathed in.

At least carpet holds soil until the "sink" is emptied by regular vacuuming or cleaning.

Whenever I'm told they removed carpet because it was healthier.

Healthier? You and your family are healthier by breathing in all the contaminants.

 

[Bob Pruitt]

The trouble with that theory is that is not reality. Without something to trap and hold theses particles they become airborne.

My Florida house is all tile except 2 Guest Bedrooms. So much work. Everyday there is dust, pet hair and grit from outside. I love carpet.

 

[Desk Jockey]

I have a balance of tile and carpet. The carpet is easier to maintain.

 

[hogjowl]

Y'all sound like a bunch of women.

 

[Nate The Great]

The thought makes sense. Carpet hold soil hard surfaces don't.

The trouble with that theory is that is not reality. Without something to trap and hold theses particles they become airborne.

No worries though, once airborne these particles are filtered by "you". Yep, without carpet to trap and hold them they float around waiting to be breathed in.

At least carpet holds soil until the "sink" is emptied by regular vacuuming or cleaning.

Whenever I'm told they removed carpet because it was healthier.

Healthier? You and your family are healthier by breathing in all the contaminants.

I like when they try to argue the point, rip out the carpet and put in hard floors.... Then they bitch about there allergies more and how they can't keep up with the sweeping/maintenance.......Then they put the carpet back in, it takes them a few years though...

Did I forget to mention most who argued that had pets also..........

 

[steve_64]

Wasn't it Switzerland that made it a law back in the 80s that carpet was banned from government buildings. Then after a couple years of asthma and allergy increases by the employees changed it all back

We have a little tile some carpet and wood floors. We cover most of the wood and tile with rugs lol.

 

[Bee Busy]

Have you hit up CVI yet? That tumbled travertine is awful last time i was there

 

[Mikey P]

Have you hit up CVI yet? That tumbled travertine is awful last time i was there

Yep, came out great.

 

[Connor]

The thought makes sense. Carpet hold soil hard surfaces don't.

The trouble with that theory is that is not reality. Without something to trap and hold theses particles they become airborne.

No worries though, once airborne these particles are filtered by "you". Yep, without carpet to trap and hold them they float around waiting to be breathed in.

At least carpet holds soil until the "sink" is emptied by regular vacuuming or cleaning.

Whenever I'm told they removed carpet because it was healthier.

Healthier? You and your family are healthier by breathing in all the contaminants.

I tell people this all the time. There's always some person who says that carpet is "dusty and moldy".

 

[Desk Jockey]

Its is but that's the intent. Trap it and hold it so you can vacuum it out.

Its either that or they become human HEPA filters, breathing in all those allergens they are trying to avoid.

 

[Cleanworks]

Carpet is a dust trap. Traps dust so you don't.

 

[Doug Cox]

My Florida house is all tile except 2 Guest Bedrooms. So much work. Everyday there is dust, pet hair and grit from outside. I love carpet.

I have wood in just about my whole house and is always clean and never gets dusty.

 

[Desk Jockey]

Douglas lets not brag about our wood here. Save the lies for the rubber room.

 

[Nate The Great]

Too much wood is a health hazard....... I thought I started going blind at one point.......had to ease up on them little blue pills with the V on it...........

 

[doylebloss]

Thought you might be interested in this summary of a presentation by Lew Migliore to the IICRC Certification Council in the spring of this year. This summary of the presentation was written by Jeff Bishop. You will note that there are two sets of statistics for each measurement. Mr. Migliore was likely using multiple sources for greater comparison accuracy. There is a lot of data here, but the biggest takeaway from this and statistics provided by the CRI earlier this year is that carpet sales (as measured by poundage shipped) is growing again. It is a slight growth, but compared to 2008-2014, it is a big turnaround. One caveat on the optimism of us carpet lovers - this growth is likely due to the rebounding of new housing sales. It does not appear that carpet is gaining market share in the residential home against hard surfaces. But it also indicates it has stopped the bleeding in the loss of market share, and has begun to stabilize.


Notes from Jeff Bishop on the presentation by Lew Migliore: Floor Covering Industry Statistics

To speak on industry trends to floor covering inspectors and cleaners, the IICRC Certification Council Chair, Jeff Bishop, invited Lew Migliore, of LGM and Associates to speak to the amount of floor covering market share held by both soft and hard flooring segments. In addition, Mr. Migliore also was asked to give an idea of where the industry was headed in terms of fibers, yarns, dye systems, and construction types.

Mr. Bishop considered three sources before he asked Lew to speak. It is very difficult to find anyone who can pin down industry statistics, simply because the industry is a bit fractured and getting statistics from flooring manufacturers is difficult at best. Therefore, some latitude must be given to the statistics that date to 2014.

The following serves as a summary as complied by Mr. Bishop of the information provided by Mr. Migliore.

1. Overall flooring market share (in billions) according to two sets of statistics:
   
   flooring $ volume % %
   
   1. carpet 8.080 42.8% 44.9%
      
      
   2. rugs 2.410 12.8% 12.3%
      
      
   3. resilient 2.392 12.7% 12.2%
      
      
   4. tile 2.380 12.6% 12.1%
      
      
   5. wood 1.943 10.3% 9.9%
      
      
   6. laminate 1.135 07.1% 5.8%
      
      
   7. rubber 0.540 02.8% 2.8%
      
      Total 18.88 101.1% 100.0
      

The conclusion from these figures is that broadloom carpet still dominates the market. Note that wood and laminate combined has a 17.4% (15.7%) market share, and if considered together, the “wood-like” category comes in second place. Rugs, not including imports, is in close competition with resilient (solid, sheet vinyl and luxury vinyl tile, or “LVT”), followed closely by tile (ceramic).

1. Carpet construction includes:
   
   1. tufting 91.5%
      
      
   2. weaving 7.3%
      
2. In commercial flooring installations, we have:
   
   1. carpet 44.9%
      
      
   2. wood (9.9%) and laminate (5.8%) 15.7%
      
      
   3. rugs (imports not included) 12.3%
      
      
   4. resilient 12.2%
      
3. 2014 combined residential and commercial flooring percentages include:
   
   1. carpet and rugs 62.1%
      
      
   2. resilient (all types) 15.1%
      
      
   3. tile 11.2%
      
      
   4. wood and laminate 10.3%
      
      
   5. rubber 1.3%
      
4. Flooring sales by category (residential, commercial)
   
   1. residential 62.1%
      
      
   2. commercial 34.4%
      
5. Commercial carpet by construction type ($3.88 billion; 2.33 billion ft2)[1]:
   
   1. broadloom 48%
      
      
   2. modular tile 52%
      
      • completely “closed-loop” recyclable
        
        
      • variety of colors, textures, styles and sizes
        
        
      • lighter weight results in easier handling, packaging and transport
        
        
      • easily installed by qualified contractors even in offices with high furniture density
        
6. 2014 carpet sales by end-use:
   
   1. replace existing residential 47.4%
      
      
   2. new residential 7.2%
      
      
   3. commercial existing 35.6%
      
      
   4. main street commercial (<10K ft2new) 8.5%
      
      
   5. other 1.3%
      
7. Commercial market share by segment ($6.565 billion U.S.):
   
   1. corporate 45%
      
      
   2. hospitality 16%
      
      
   3. healthcare 14%
      
      
   4. retail 13%
      
      
   5. education 12%
      
8. Commercial modular carpet market share:
   
   1. corporate office 48%
      
      
   2. education, institutional; theaters; churches 35%
      
      
   3. retail 4%
      
      
   4. healthcare, medical office, assisted living 3%
      
9. Face fiber market share (overall):[2]
   
   1. nylon 40%
      
      
   2. polyester 36%
      
      
   3. polypropylene (olefin) 12%
      
      
   4. triexta 12%
      
      
   5. other 1%
      
10. Residential carpet/rug face fiber market share:
    
    1. nylon 29%
       
       
    2. polyester 45%
       
       
    3. triexta 16%
       
       
    4. polypropylene (Berber) 08%
       
       
    5. wool 02%
       
11. Carpet backings:
    
    1. primary – Pattern Loc®, woven polypropylene, non-woven
       
       
    2. secondary – leno-woven polypropylene (ActionBac®), unitary, attached-cushion backings, non-woven (SoftBac®)
       
       
    3. specialty backings – Bio-Balance®, Ecologix®, EcoWorx®, BioCel® and many others
       
       
    4. most new technology today is in backings
       
       
    5. the “green” factor is prevalent
       
       
    6. carpet backing has evolved into a multi-component system:
       
       • more fleece-type backings
         
         
       • more recycled content
         
         
       • more hard-backed products (modular)
         
         
       • more unique products from parochial manufacturers
         
         
       • more adhesive-free installation systems
         
    7. characteristics of backing systems:
       
       • recycled content
         
         
       • non-permeable (moisture barrier); tested but implications not known (think WRT implications)
         
         
       • dimensional challenges, especially modular (SCI issue)
         
         
       • moisture challenges (entrapment) associated with non-permeable backings
         
12. Yarn types:
    
    1. staple 06%
       
       
    2. continuous filament (BCF) 94%
       
13. Top producers of carpet:
    
    1. Shaw Industries 37.4%
       
       
    2. Mohawk 23.2%
       
       
    3. Beaulieu of America 06.7%
       
       
    4. Interface 05.9%
       
       
    5. Engineered Flooring 05.3%
       
14. Top producers of area rugs:
    
    1. Mohawk 26.1%
       
       
    2. Maples 8.5%
       
       
    3. Oriental Weavers 8.1%
       
       
    4. Orian 4.4%
       
       
    5. Capel 2.2%
       

Conclusions:

1. the manufacturing industry has consolidated and it continues to do so;
   
   
2. migration of upper management is common;
   
   
3. the three low-cost producers are: Shaw, Mohawk, and Beaulieu, with Shaw being the lowest;
   
   
4. the industry is dominated by integration of manufacturing processes, from polymer to finished product;
   
   
5. there are several emerging, small unique mills;
   
   
6. there is an entrance of commercial manufacturers into high-end residential markets;
   
   
7. there is an increase in luxury and high-end products in both hard and soft-floor markets;
   
   
8. there is more patterned carpet product, which creates installation challenges;
   
   
9. there is a major increase in hard-surfaced flooring;
   
   
10. there is high growth in area rug production;
    
    
11. there is an increase in both hard and soft flooring imports;
    
    
12. no manufacturer makes all of its product offerings today;
    
    
13. there are significant increases in new technology applied to manufacturing, styling and performance;
    
    
14. “green” issues and initiatives are at the forefront;
    
    
15. technical (lab) services have been decreased by manufacturers;
    
    
16. youthful and untrained claims analysts are impact customer relations and inspections, and
    
    
17. there is a severe shortage of qualified installers.
    

What’s new for the floor covering industry?

1. new manufacturing technology is developing monthly
   
   
2. much more polyester in residential carpet
   
   
3. solution-dyeing in both polyester and nylon
   
   
4. modular carpet tile is booming; lighter weight, varying sizes, unique installation methods
   
   
5. growth in hard surface
   
   
6. more luxury vinyl tile (LVT) and plank (FCT)
   
   
7. higher styling and brighter colors
   
   
8. PVC-free vinyl (PVB)
   
   
9. new installation technology
   
   
10. new carpet backing systems
    

New Flooring Trends

1. The healthcare market growth is hot; from hospitals, medical facilities to community-type housing.
   
   
2. Corporate carpet tile installations are growing
   
   
3. The hospitality market is very strong; more boutique hotels
   
   
4. Hard surface flooring in hospitality is growing exponentially – LVT, tile, porcelain, wood.
   
   
5. The multi-family housing market is growing – think Millennials.
   
   
6. The commercial flooring market is taking off.
   
   
7. There are more imported products in hard surface flooring, about 51% of resilient, but over 50% in all categories.
   
   
8. Carpet, except woven, is still a U.S. product and is likely to stay so.
   
   
9. 41% of flooring comes from China, except for tufted carpet.
   
   
10. Internationally, the world market for floor covering is booming, especially for high-end products [hand tufted – high end]).
    
    
11. Woven turf products are less expensive and provide better performance.
    
    
12. Formaldehyde is not an issue; historically it has been used in adhesives and other products, but no more – not for decades.
    

Carpet is still king in floor covering!



Where is the industry going … or LGM predictions?

• Big will get bigger.
  
  
• Mohawk and Shaw will continue to grow their hard-surface business.
  
  
• Luxury products will fare well in the market place.
  
  
• Specialty manufacturers will continue to enjoy success.
  
  
• Residential and commercial market and manufacturers will polarize.
  

[1] Floor Covering News, 2015

[2] 70% of carpet cost is face fiber. Only 5% is labor, which is why carpet manufacturing will not be taken overseas.

 

[Mikey P]

Thanks @doylebloss !


Interesting, do you believe it?

 

[Cleanworks]

I am surprised that polypropylene (olefin) is such a small part of the markey. At one time, everyone had that in their basement rooms here. In a loop construction, it is durable and easy to clean. Great for family rooms and rec rooms. Not the softest carpet around but inexpensive.

 

[Lee Stockwell]

"Rugs" should not be included statistically in the percentage of installation.

 

[doylebloss]

The big boy manufacturers in carpet have no reason to try and exaggerate sales numbers for carpet, because they are already diversified into other floor coverings and lead the marketplace there to. However, when I am forced to watch my wife's favorite channel - HGTV - the way they talk about carpet on those shows would have you believe no one ever puts carpet anywhere, anymore except bedrooms. My daughter works as a designer for a large flooring retailer here in Seattle, where the politically correct thing is using renewable resources for flooring, yet they still sell a lot of carpet for remodeling. I do think carpet sales have finally stabilized. I do worry that the massive market share grab of polyester means that a lot of people who do put carpet down will be disappointed in the way some of the cheap stuff performs, but then I guess you could have always said that about apartment grade nylon too.