THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE NATIONAL TILE CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION BART A. BETTIGA, publisher bart@tile-assn.com LESLEY A. GODDIN, editor lesley@tile-assn.com MICHELLE CHAPMAN, art director advertising sales michelle@tile-assn.com MARY SHAW-OLSON, advertising sales mary@tile-assn.com Mailing Address: P.O. Box 13629 Jackson, MS 39236 U.S.A. Shipping Address: 626 Lakeland East Drive Jackson, MS 39232 Tel: 601-939-2071 Fax: 601-932-6117 Website: www.tileletter.com www.tile-assn.com Columns 6 Welcome new members 8 NTCA Tile & Stone Workshops 9 CTEF Workshops 12 Editor’s letter 16 President’s letter 20 Ask the Experts: Sponsored by LATICRETE International, Inc. 28 Business Tip: NTCA offers UofCTS online courses for thinset standards, and basics of ceramic tile and stone By Bart Bettiga, NTCA executive director, TileLetter publisher Sponsored by MAPEI Corporation 70 Tech Talk: Mock-ups eliminate miscommunication and reduce install failure risk By Robb Roderick, NTCA Technical Trainer Sponsored by TEC® /H.B. Fuller Construction Products 86 Member Spotlight: Out of the frying pan and into tile: JSG's Stephen Belyea made the leap from chef to tile contractor By Lesley Goddin Sponsored by Custom Building Products 96 Thin Tile: GPT at Coverings 2018 – Education that goes beyond PowerPoint By Dan Marvin, MAPEI Director of Technical Services Sponsored by MAPEI Corporation 104 Richard Maurer transitions to Outside Consultant for Noble Company By Lesley Goddin 108 NTCA Benefits Box NTCA Position Statement Library 110 NTCA University Update 114 News Briefs 116 Product Briefs 120 Advertiser Index The National Tile Contractors Association, Inc. is an equal opportunity association and seeks to include qualified individuals and businesses in all phases of its activities. The National Tile Contractors Association, Inc. does not discrimi- nate on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or disability. The National Tile Contractors Association, Inc. seeks opportunities to include these groups in its programs and activities. TileLetter is a free subscription to the tile, stone and allied products industries. To subscribe, visit www.tileletter.com -> click on Advertisers & Subscribers -> click on Subscribe. To make address changes or unsubscribe, please send an email to: webmaster@tile-assn.com. TILELETTER EDITORIAL POLICY: TileLetter is the official publication of the National Tile Contractors Association, Inc. (NTCA). TileLetter provides a medium for expressing views and opinions without approving, disapproving, or guaranteeing the validity or accuracy of any data, claim or opinion appearing under a byline, or obtained or quoted from an acknowledged source. Statements of fact and opinion are made on the responsibility of the authors alone, and do not imply an opinion or reflect the official position of NTCA. NTCA would not be possible with- out the dedicated service of our board and committee members, and regional and state directors. Meet these dedicated volunteers by visit- ing www.tile-assn.com and clicking on About Us. You can also find infor- mation and a continually updated list of Five Star Contractors at www. tile-assn.com – click on Find a Tile Contractor or Consultant. 4 TileLetter | September 2018