NEWH - Spring 2020 - 58

COVER STORY

Taking the Floor
Durkan's approach to design and technology continues to raise the bar
By Alia Akkam
Photography by Eric Laignel, Lara Swimmer Photography, Sppider, and courtesy of Durkan

I

n the 1970s, Tom Durkan, a New York-based carpet-industry
veteran, set his sights on the hospitality market, building a
niche around high-quality manufactured printed carpet as
an alternative to then-dominant expensive imports. By the late
1990s, flooring behemoth Mohawk Group bought the company,
and Durkan's footprint expanded-its products now gracing hotel
lobbies, corridors, guestrooms, and ballrooms, as well as theaters,
casinos, convention centers, and senior living facilities.

"The ascendance of hard surfaces is undoubtedly one of the
biggest shifts in flooring since then, and although it's a category
that offers fewer opportunities for customization, Durkan thrives
on mixing and matching different platforms. "Whatever it is that
clients have in their imagination, we bring to life. Our two key words
are leadership and innovation," says David Duncan, Durkan's senior
vice president of sales. "This is a complex business and the more
we can do to innovate and make things faster for our clients-
starting with good design-the better."

58 www.newh.org

Like numerous aspects of hospitality, the pivotal Millennial
segment has impacted Durkan developments, with creative design
director Elizabeth Bonner noting that the generation has "changed
the way we look at things. We have to up the game and offer
them something that piques their interest. Working with interior
designers we've opened ourselves up to new technologies."
Carpet tile, for example, resonates with Millennials because
it's a more sustainable option, garnering far less waste than
traditional by-the-yard, wall-to-wall carpeting. "There is an
ease of installation with carpet tile and you don't need more
product than the space you are covering," Bonner adds.
Mohawk is the flooring industry's leading recycler, and
Durkan follows suit, embracing a green philosophy where
products "leave a greater handprint than footprint. We
have one single facility in Glasgow, Virginia, that is the first
'Living Site' from a product manufacturer in the U.S.," says
Duncan. All of Durkan and Mohawk Group's carpet tile
styles manufactured there on EcoFlex NXT, EcoFlex NXT
AIR, or EcoFlex Matrix backings have met the stringent
requirements for the ILFI's Living Product Challenge Petal
Certification.
This eco-friendly mindset extends Durkan's forwardthinking approach to creation. The brand is known for bold
offerings like PDI carpet tile, using Precision Dye Injection
technology to yield high-resolution patterns that are
customizable for up to 12 colors. There is also the Sakiori
collection, a woven enhanced resilient tile that combines
the durability of hard surfaces with softness, as well as
Curated Craft, a broadloom collection of five different styles
that marks Durkan's first foray into wool.
One significant turning point for Durkan was the launch of
multi-level textured Definity Precision Sculpturing Broadloom
Technology using Colorstrand Solution-Dyed Nylon. "It goes head
to head with Axminster," explains Duncan of Definity's complex
cut-and-loop constructions resembling a hand-tufted aesthetic.
"It's perfect for large ballrooms and prefunction spaces when you
want a 72-foot repeat."


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NEWH - Spring 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NEWH - Spring 2020

NEWH - Spring 2020
TABLE OF CONTENTS
GUEST PERSPECTIVE
WHO’S WHO
NEWS
CONFERENCE ROUNDUP
HAVE YOU SEEN?
SCHOLARSHIPS
SCHOLARSHIP HEROS
INTERVIEW UK
SUSTAINABILITY
BrandED
Q&A: Chris Tucker NEWH, Inc. international president
Q&A: Courtney Crosby Mid-South region steering chair
Q&A: Carolina Cundall UK chapter president
ON THE COVER
PROJECT: AC Hotel Grand Rapids DLR Group upgrades a former warehouse
PROJECT: Tesoro EoA goes with the flow
PROJECT: Courtyard by Marriott Paris Gare de Lyon STUDIOS Architecture’s Paris office tower upgrade
PROJECT: Spa at Cache Creek HBG’s timeless spa design
CHAPTER HIGHLIGHTS
SAVE THE DATE
NEW MEMBERS
PARTNER PROFILES
AD INDEX
NEWH - Spring 2020 - NEWH - Spring 2020
NEWH - Spring 2020 - Cover2
NEWH - Spring 2020 - TABLE OF CONTENTS
NEWH - Spring 2020 - GUEST PERSPECTIVE
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 5
NEWH - Spring 2020 - WHO’S WHO
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 7
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 8
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 9
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 10
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 11
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 12
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 13
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 14
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 15
NEWH - Spring 2020 - NEWS
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 17
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 18
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 19
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 20
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 21
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 22
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 23
NEWH - Spring 2020 - CONFERENCE ROUNDUP
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 25
NEWH - Spring 2020 - HAVE YOU SEEN?
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 27
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 28
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 29
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 30
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 31
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 32
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 33
NEWH - Spring 2020 - SCHOLARSHIPS
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 35
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 36
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 37
NEWH - Spring 2020 - SCHOLARSHIP HEROS
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 39
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 40
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 41
NEWH - Spring 2020 - INTERVIEW UK
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 43
NEWH - Spring 2020 - SUSTAINABILITY
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 45
NEWH - Spring 2020 - BrandED
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 47
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 48
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 49
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 50
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 51
NEWH - Spring 2020 - Q&A: Chris Tucker NEWH, Inc. international president
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 53
NEWH - Spring 2020 - Q&A: Courtney Crosby Mid-South region steering chair
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 55
NEWH - Spring 2020 - Q&A: Carolina Cundall UK chapter president
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 57
NEWH - Spring 2020 - ON THE COVER
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 59
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 60
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 61
NEWH - Spring 2020 - PROJECT: AC Hotel Grand Rapids DLR Group upgrades a former warehouse
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 63
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 64
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 65
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 66
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 67
NEWH - Spring 2020 - PROJECT: Tesoro EoA goes with the flow
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 69
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 70
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 71
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 72
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 73
NEWH - Spring 2020 - PROJECT: Courtyard by Marriott Paris Gare de Lyon STUDIOS Architecture’s Paris office tower upgrade
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 75
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 76
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 77
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 78
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 79
NEWH - Spring 2020 - PROJECT: Spa at Cache Creek HBG’s timeless spa design
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 81
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 82
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 83
NEWH - Spring 2020 - CHAPTER HIGHLIGHTS
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 85
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 86
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 87
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 88
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 89
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 90
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 91
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 92
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 93
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 94
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 95
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 96
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 97
NEWH - Spring 2020 - SAVE THE DATE
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 99
NEWH - Spring 2020 - NEW MEMBERS
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 101
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 102
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 103
NEWH - Spring 2020 - PARTNER PROFILES
NEWH - Spring 2020 - 105
NEWH - Spring 2020 - AD INDEX
NEWH - Spring 2020 - Cover3
NEWH - Spring 2020 - Cover4
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