Flooring Podcast

Sustainablity Expert Jon Dougal on the AIA Convention & Carbon Offsets – Part 2 (11:42)

June 8, 2007—Sustainable consultant, writer and editor Jon Dougal in the second part of a four-part series discusses the American Institute of Architects (AIA) National Convention and Design Exposition, which was held last month in San Antonio. Dougal discusses carbon offsets, how the concept works, how the system, which is voluntary is enforced, answering the questions: Whether the carbon market might be a dangerous distraction at a time when decisive action is needed in areas of conservation and changing the way companies operate? and; The hypothetical question, Does carbon travel offsets encourage more flights and do nothing to discourage waste?

Sustainability Expert Jon Dougal on the AIA Convention – Part 1 (17:01)

June 7, 2007—Sustainability consultant, writer and editor Jon Dougal in the first part of a four-part series discusses the American Institute of Architects (AIA) National Convention and Design Exposition, which was held last month in San Antonio. Dougal talks about the tours offered as a part of the convention, the event’s attendees, the theme of the convention “Growing Beyond Green”, the AIA’s historical stance related to sustainability and carbon offsets.

The Week in the Flooring Industry with Floor Focus Publisher Kemp Harr (34:51)

June 6, 2007—Kemp Harr, Publisher, Floor Focus magazine looks back that the past week in the floor covering industry discussing: Tandus’ $83 million carpeting supply contract order from the Los Angeles Community College District, which was the largest such contract awarded and it is also looked at as the most environmentally sustainable order in the history of the flooring industry; The establishment by Armstrong of its own distribution unit in the Northwest; Mohawk shares hitting an all time high after a Stifel Nicolaus’ upgrade; The moderating of office furniture orders in April and; A look at the Floor Focus annual report.

Brand Biz’s Paul Friederichsen on the Do’s & Don’ts of Green Marketing – Part 3 (13:39)

June 6, 2007—Paul Frederichsen, President, BrandBiz, in the final part of a three-part series looks at green marketing, the feel good aspect of sustainable marketing, how retailers can develop a green story by becoming involved in post-consumer carpet collection, the competitive aspect of green marketing and including a sustainable message in an advertising program. Frederichsen discusses how companies can work to establish themselves as an environmental leader, defining an environmentally awareness element in their market area, tactics for exploiting the green market and the potential pitfalls of establishing a company as a pillar of the environmental community.

Brand Biz’s Paul Friederichsen on the Do’s & Don’ts of Green Marketing – Part 2 (10:35)

June 5, 2007—Paul Frederichsen, President, BrandBiz, in the second part of a three-part series, looks at green marketing and the market that exists for sustainable products in the residential sector, discussing the consumers and the percentage of consumers that will pay a premium with no residual benefit other than doing the right thing for the environment. Friederichsen discusses how manufacturers and retailers who have an environmental story to tell might position themselves in the marketplace and how retailer swith an environmentally-skewed audience might approach that market.

Brand Biz’s Paul Friederichsen on the Do’s & Don’ts of Green Marketing – Part 1 (11:11)

June 4, 2007—Paul Frederichsen, President, BrandBiz, in the first part of a three-part series looks at green marketing and the market that exists for sustainable products in the residential sector. Friederichsen discusses LOHAS, an acronym for - Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability, a demographic that represent 23% of adults, or more than 36 million consumers, and a $229 billion market and the types of products LOHAS consumers buy.

Barker on the Market (36:35)

June 2, 2007—Mike Barker, Investment and Retirement Management discusses the record set by the S&P 500 this week and its implications, the correction in the Shanghai market and its lack of impact on the U.S. market and the reaction of the market to yesterday’s GDP report. Barker discusses the minutes from the Federal Reserve Open Market committee meeting earlier this month, Stifel Nicolaus’s upgrade of Mohawk and the factors he will be keying on going forward.

Bob Peoples on CARE’s 5th Annual Report – Part 4

June 1, 2007—Bob Peoples, Executive Director, CARE, Carpet America Recovery Effort and Director of Sustainability, CRI, Carpet & Rug Institute, in the final part of a four-part series, talks about the Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) and the association’s annual conference and its 5th annual report. Peoples talks about the memorandum of understanding that created the CARE program, the fact that no other industries has yet followed suit, his expectations for the program in the future in terms of the number of collectors, specific fiber recovery, and the number of manufacturers producing product from post-consumer carpet.

Economist John McDevitt on the Economy

May 31, 2007—John McDevitt, Former 3M Corporate Economist looks at the economy answering the question: Have we seen the worst of the slowdown? McDevitt talks about the housing sector as he shares his forecast for the remainder of 2007 and for 2008. He also disucsses the affects of the subprime mortgage situation on the market and his view on housing prices and inventories. McDevitt also discusses the commercial marketplace, consumer reaction to rising gasoline prices, his forecast for retail spending for the remainder of the year, his expectations for the Fed and for the manufacturing sector.

Bob Peoples on CARE’s 5th Annual Report – Part 3 (13:25)

May 31, 2007—Bob Peoples, Executive Director, CARE, Carpet America Recovery Effort and Director of Sustainability, CRI, Carpet & Rug Institute, in the third part of a four-part series, talks about the Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) and the associations annual conference and its 5th annual report. Peoples discusses the organization’s efforts at seeking new applications for post-consumer carpet, including nylon 6,6, which accounts for about one third of carpet collected and for developing uses for each of the fiber types collected as well as measures that are currently taking place to produce carpet of the future that has a higher degree of recyclability.