Flooring industry reacts to its installation crisis
The Floor Covering Leadership Council (FCLC), a coalition of 11 flooring industry trade associations, convened its annual fall meeting in Orlando to address installation—the most vexing issue facing the flooring industry.
The meeting, which coincided with its second annual installation summit, prioritized objectives and confirmed a plan of action for the coming year.
The industry leaders acknowledge they cannot solve the challenge of installation until the scope of the problem has been formally quantified and analyzed. Their objective is to quantify the scope and severity of the lack of installation professionals on industry sustainability and growth.
Industry executives say there are three facets to the installation challenge: the dearth of installers today in an aging industry; the declining skill level of existing installers; and the need to recruit the next generation of installers. At a recent Certified Flooring Institute (CFI) conference, it was noted that the average flooring installer working today is 56 years old.
The FLCL announced that the member associations would fund a comprehensive research project in order to give a clearer picture of the severity of the growing installation challenge and the level of resources it would need to ensure long-term industry growth. An experienced research firm will be engaged to conduct the work. An FCLC-member task force will recommend the research firm. The project will be completed in early 2018.
