Interior News

2008 K/BIS Set to Take Windy City by Storm

Chicago — This April, the Kitchen/Bath Industry Show & Conference (K/BIS) is blowing through the "windy city," bringing with it the latest and greatest in kitchen and bath products and information at Chicago’s McCormick Place, April 10-13, 2008. This year, such green professional development courses like "Experience Green" and "Residential Green" along with such forums as "Green Products - Just What Resources Are Out There?" will be available. Visit, www.kbis.com for more information.

Office Interiors Utilize Low-VOC Emitting and Recycled Materials

Washington, D.C. — The Portland Cement Association (PCA) furthered the cement industry's commitment to sustainable development with the recent LEED Commercial Interiors Silver certification of its Washington, D.C., offices. PCA moved its offices to the headquarters at the National Association Realtors building.  The concrete-framed, glass-clad structure built on a brownfield site is the district's first LEED-certified new building… more 

Bonakemi Earns Additional GREENGUARD Certification for Children and Schools
Aurora, Colo. — BonaKemi USA has been awarded GREENGUARD Children and Schools Certification for hardwood and hard surface floor care products by the industry-independent, non-profit GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI)...more

Eco-Friendly Building Materials
Sunnyvale, Calif. — Serious Materials announced that it has closed $50 million in additional investment, led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA) and Foundation Capital, along with Rustic Canyon Partners. Serious Materials develops and manufactures sustainable green building materials that reduce the impact of the "built environment" on the climate…more

Shaw Industries Earns WRAP Recognition for Third Consecutive Year
Dalton, Ga. — For the third consecutive year, the California Integrated Waste Management Board acknowledged Shaw Industries, Inc. through its Waste Reduction Awards Program (WRAP). The California Integrated Waste Management Board has administered this program for 15 years as a means to publicly promote businesses locally and statewide that implement environmental best practices for successful reduction of waste disposal in landfills... more

Interior Products

Decorative Techniques Shape Collection
LaGrange, Ga. — Milliken Hospitality’s ( www.millikencarpet.com/hospitality ) latest carpet introduction, Orsay, draws from an encyclopedia of decorative painting techniques and calligraphy. Using Milliken’s étage technology, the collection allows designers to define their own style and create a fully custom look quickly and easily. Orsay is available in both broadloom and 36-inch tile formats. The collection includes small, medium and large scale elements for ultimate flexibility in defining rugs, runners and addressing the floor covering needs of a wide variety of hospitality interiors. Manufactured to the highest green standards, like all Milliken carpet products, Orsay is PVC-free, the company reports.

New Recycled Resin Options
Seattle — R4 introduces Lumicor’s (www.lumicor.com ) green standard, which contain as much as 60 percent recycled material. According to the company, R4 products are evaluated by Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) and include Lumiclear R4 (ideal for light transmitting applications), Lumiguard R4 (used for countertop, tabletop, kitchen and bath applications), Lumiform R4 (ideal for applications requiring a superior fire rating), and Recycled Glass R4 (available in 12 color options). 

Interior Features

Greener Hotel Rooms, Workplaces and More

by C.C. Sullivan

"Made in Asia" isn’t generally thought of in terms of green manufacturing, but Decca Furniture USA is breaking the mold. Its parent company will be the first contract furniture manufacturer in Asia to institute design and manufacturing standards that ensure its products may contribute points to fulfill LEED and Green Globes standards.

19th Century Platinum

Provided by Consigli Construction Co., Inc.

Sustainable design and construction has hit a high note on Harvard University’s Cambridge, Mass., campus with the recent LEED Platinum certification of the Blackstone Office renovation project, a building that not only achieves top marks for its environmentally-friendly design, but also for being the first Platinum-rated pre-1900 building on record, as well as the first LEED Platinum rating on a higher education renovation project.

Demountable Partition Systems — The Ugly Duckling Turns Into the Beautiful Swan

by Carl Haines

Ahead of its time when first introduced in the late 60s and early 70s, demountable, or movable, wall systems were touted as the wave of the future. The product was functional, offered flexibility and could be installed with relative ease. However, key factors such as cost and a major lack of design options negatively impacted its use. But now this product is making a surprising comeback as one of the "new" products of the future.