NewslineVolume V, Issue 1 - January 9, 2004The Carpet and Rug Institute news for industry executives
Special Edition - 2003 HighlightsThe staff of CRI felt 2003 produced a number of significant industry stories. We would like to use this Special Edition of Newsline to highlight some of the most noteworthy of the last twelve months. In This Issue: CRI: From Trade Association to Business ModelCRI evolved into a new organization this past year, transforming from a traditional trade association into more of a business oriented operation. CRI began the transformation with the formulation of a marketing plan early in 2003, taking the barriers to profitability and growth for our members and the messages that go along with them and turning them into our "products." CRI then developed and implemented an aggressive plan for those products to specific and targeted audiences. Baseline measurements were also taken of the audiences, gauging perceptions from each in order to calculate how much the aggressive marketing plan had "moved the needle." It is important to see what kind of measurable progress has been made in order to move forward with this year's marketing plan. Those same audiences were recently re-surveyed and the 2004 marketing plan will be configured to address the audiences requiring the most "educating." Contact Joan Seelaus at 706.428.2123. Science-Based Comprehensive Assessment of CarpetThe CRI science-based comprehensive assessment of carpet was led by Dr. Michael Berry, Professor at North Carolina University. A blue ribbon panel of ten international scientists was assembled to rigorously and critically examine the existing peer reviewed science relative to the positive and negative attributes of carpet in the indoor environment. Key science/research papers were identified and examined relative to human responses to allergens over carpet and non-carpet surfaces. Facility environmental management, maintenance, and sanitation practices related to flooring and human responses were evaluated. Each expert prepared a review paper for their specialty area. Dr. Berry, as chairman of the panel, prepared a comprehensive summary of the scientific papers. The papers will be submitted for publishing in various scientific journals and all the papers will be listed in a new "International e-Journal of Carpet Science" on the CRI website. The e-Journal should be available on the CRI website within a couple of months. Contact Ken McIntosh at 706.428.2105. Talk Is Cheap! CRI Backs Up Claims With Sound ScienceCRI is constantly digging through the medical literature and searching for clinical studies to back up the claims and literature we send out. The year 2003 was an exceptional one in terms of finding solid and sound scientific evidence that says what we knew all along: carpet is healthy. As part of our strategy to convey these messages and get the word out in an educational fashion, CRI developed a new website this year to point those in the scientific and health-related community toward: www.carpet-health.org. The highlights of our 2003 research and review of scientific data were the findings of three very specific clinical studies which included carpet as one of the factors in measuring health. Below are the short summaries of each of those studies: "European Community Respiratory Health Survey'' "Peak-flow variability in asthmatic children is not related to wall-to-wall
carpeting on classroom floors'' "Household exposure factors, asthma, and school absenteeism in a predominately
Hispanic community'' Contact Joan Seelaus at 706.428.2123. Successful Meeting With Las Vegas School DistrictCRI President, Werner Braun, and staff member James Beach, met with Fred Smith, Clark County School District Assistant Superintendent and Facility/Construction Manager, while in Las Vegas for Surfaces 2003. The Clark County School District is currently the fifth largest in the country with 244,000 students enrolled and an average of 12-16 new schools being constructed every year. Mr. Smith said all their facilities have carpet and they just signed a contract with a CRI member. They also have one with another CRI member as well. They are very pleased with their carpet and specify it in all their new construction. The school's central office has gotten very few complaints over the past few years regarding carpet and/or its role in indoor air quality. They have addressed a few complaints with some teachers on occasion, but they are mostly mold problems. Mr. Smith said some of his operational folks (custodians, etc.) had complained that carpet was too expensive to maintain on a yearly basis, and they preferred the ease and management of VCT flooring. Central office bowed to their wishes on a few schools. Less than a year after VCT installation, those same operational folks said they were wrong and wanted their carpet back. It was easier to maintain and cheaper. They got their carpet back. Mr. Smith was shown a copy of the new Asthma & Allergy CD and was very impressed, although he was already sold on the benefits of carpet. Contact James Beach at 706.428.2116. Government Issues AccomplishmentsIn the Government Issues Department, 2003 saw: *The Georgia Senate, by a vote of 39-0 passed House Bill 189, the carpet sample sales tax legislation near the end of the 2003 Session of the General Assembly. Governor Perdue signed the bill into law on May 30. *Passage of Connecticut Bill 6426, "An Act Concerning Indoor Air Quality in Schools." The legislation requires regular inspections of all school buildings for the purpose of protecting the indoor environmental quality, and permits school boards to create an IAQ committee for each district or facility to increase staff and student awareness of factors that impact the quality of indoor air. *Various CRI staff spoke with designers, architects and facility managers about carpet and indoor air quality via participation in several Trends & Truths Seminars. These seminars, sponsored by DuPont Antron and Mannington, were held nationally to help educate those individuals that work in designing and maintaining healthcare and school facilities. *John Miller appointed to serve on the Industry Sector Advisory Committee on Textiles and Apparel (ISAC 15) for the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) representing the U.S. carpet and rug industry. This Committee provides detailed policy and technical advice, information, and recommendations to the DOC Secretary and the United States Trade Representative regarding trade barriers and implementation of trade agreements negotiated under the Trade Act with respect to products considered within its designation. Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE) Made Major StridesCARE made major strides in 2003 by establishing a solid foundation that will enable development of the infrastructure needed to accomplish our landfill targets. Our first order of business is to communicate what we are about, and this was facilitated by working with PBS to produce a video segment for the American Environmental Review, hosted by Morley Safer, which was seen by over 48 million viewers. In order to make things happen, it takes resources and to this end, CARE put in place a voluntary solicitation program. Through vigorous communications with the industry, CARE received over $154,000 in the first year, a significant accomplishment during tough economic times. That money was put to good use by the development of a grant process which, following a request for proposal call, resulted in over $92,000 being awarded. Grants were presented at the first annual meeting where Ron Greitzer, President of Los Angeles Fiber Co. also received CARE's first Recycler of the Year award. CARE conducted the first benchmark survey and issued its first annual report which is available on the CARE website. In addition, CARE received a boost when Congress appropriated a $300,000 grant for the study of carpet as an alternative fuel source for cement kilns. The appropriations bill was approved in Congress and signed by President George W. Bush. Representative Nathan Deal (R-GA) and Senator Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) helped spearhead the project as did Representative Dave Hobson (R-OH), who serves as Chairman of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee. Contact Bob Peoples at 706.428.2115. CRI Meetings* Policy Committee Meeting, January 15, 12 noon - 2 p.m., CRI Boardroom CRI Participation in Upcoming Events* DOMOTEX, January 17-20, Hannover, Germany If you are aware of other events that present significant opportunities to deliver our messages to our critical audiences, please contact Louise Dobbs at 706.428.2104. Check our website calendar for other industry related events |
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