Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 966 2017 | TRENDS We are fortunate to be part of a dynamic and innovative industry, where change is normal with new products, methods and trends in design and installation. Here at David Allen Company, we have just com- pleted several projects with 40 to 60 different tile types and numerous different color combinations. I don’t know of another finish trade that is so diverse and complex: gauged por- celain tile/panels in sizes up to 5’ x 10’ have been around long enough that most of us have some experi- ence working with them. There has been a resurgence of handmade and extruded tiles with concave, convex and three-dimensional faces, just to name a few. If you were at TISE West in January, you had the opportunity to see many new tile designs. While these tiles create beautiful projects and some- times works of art when they are complete, they demand the highest levels of installation skills and man- agement ability. Continuous training to keep crews updated on the spe- cific installation requirements of 60 different products on a single proj- ect is challenging. It’s times like this that a good working knowledge of industry standards and recommen- dations is essential. On more than one occasion recently after installing handmade tiles, the project architect rejected portions of our installation quoting the TCNA Handbook toleranc- es. Knowing that the TCNA Handbook standards only apply to tiles manu- factured and tested to comply with ANSI A137.1 was the key to helping educate the architect that not all tiles can be judged by the same standard and installation tolerances. Following are excerpts from the TCNA Handbook that specify where standards can be applied. Ceramic Tile Types “Ceramic tile suitable for TCNA Handbook installation methods are those that meet the specifications outlined in ANSI A137.1 American National Standard Specifications for Ceramic Tile. ANSI A137.1 contains performance and aesthetic criteria for the five major types of ceramic tiles: porcelain, pressed floor, mosaic, quar- ry and glazed wall tiles.” – 2016 TCNA Handbook, pg.2 Specialty Tile “Specialty tiles are designed to meet special physical requirements or to have special appearances char- acteristics. They are not required to meet all requirements of ANSI A137.1. Consult the manufacturer’s specifica- tions. They are sometimes manufac- tured to create an architectural effect toward the casual [sic].These tiles vary in size, one tile from the other. Variations in plane may be expected. Larger tiles will usually require greater variation in joint width. For each spe- cialty tile being chosen, review instal- lation guidelines supplied by manufac- turer/distributor of specialty tiles and/ or adhesive manufacturer. Specialty tiles include, but are not limited to, tiles made from nonceramic materi- als.” – 2016 TCNA Handbook, pg.5 Keeping up with industry standards can keep you from replacing accept- able workmanship unnecessarily. If you are unsure if the tile you have been contracted to install meets ANSI A137.1 contact the manufacturer and request a Master Grade Certificate. If they can’t provide one or state that their product is not manufactured to meet this standard, you have the answer needed. This will allow you to educate your client and establish reasonable expectations for the instal- lation. Education is key to working more professionally and profitably. Keep on tiling! –––––––––– Martin Howard, President NTCA Committee Member, ANSI A108 mhoward@davidallen.com PRESIDENT'S LETTER Martin Howard Keeping up with standards