CRI Distributing Video Extolling Benefits of Carpe

Dalton, GA, January 13--A new video entitled "Building High Performance Schools: Beautiful Spaces for Children," is now available from the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI). The video has been mailed to more than 28,000 school administrators to help them understand the contribution of carpet to a better learning environment and focus on the importance of proper maintenance. The CD-ROM videos are part of CRI's ongoing campaign to educate school officials about the facts surrounding carpet as a superior flooring choice, based on independent scientific studies, and to dispel misunderstanding and wrong information. Those receiving the video include members of the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), American Association of School Administrators (AASA), and the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP). In addition to the direct mail distribution, the video will be shown at events and trade shows, as well as other presentations to school administrators, architects, facility managers, and other appropriate audiences. The video features well-known designers, authors, architects and psychologists who link school environment design and furnishings to educational process. It includes facts about carpet care and cost-efficiency and demonstrates how interior design solutions aid in learning and help improve the indoor environment from an air quality perspective. "It is a fact that the quality of the physical environment plays a key role and can have a tremendous influence on the way a child learns," said Werner Braun, president of the Carpet and Rug Institute. "Carpet provides qualities that no other floor surface can provide, and is, according to surveys, the floor covering of choice among the majority of teachers nationwide." The video highlights the benefits of carpet in a school, including reduction of slips and falls, along with the severity of injuries when such accidents occur, and greater acoustic superiority than other floor surfaces. "One out of every four spoken words is inaudible in rooms with hard surfaces," noted Braun. "When you think about the developing mind of a child you realize the importance of being able to understand every spoken word clearly." The video also documents how carpet provides a filter-like effect that can keep allergens and particles out of the breathing zone until they are removed by proper vacuum cleaning. In addition, the video demonstrates how carpet is less expensive to maintain than hard-surface flooring, when both are maintained properly. The video can also be seen on the CRI website along with the underlying and supportive data at: www.carpet-rug.org/schools.