NATIONAL REPORT—In 2002, when San Francisco’s famed Fairmont Hotel reopened after more than a year of extensive remodeling, one of the first things visitors noted was that acres of carpeting had been replaced with acres of hard surface floors. This is an example of a trend that has been occurring in all types of commercial and residential settings. Where wall-to-wall carpeting was common, hard surface floor coverings, such as stone and wood, are now taking its place. For hotel housekeepers this can mean a major change in cleaning operations. Instead of vacuuming these acres of carpeted floors, they now need...

CHICAGO—Coalesse, a new premium live/work furnishings brand, has received the prestigious Designs for Dignity 2010 Sustainability Award. Coalesse is committed to environmentally-responsible design practices and materials and has several products that have earned SCS (Scientific Certification Systems) certification for indoor air quality protection. Coalesse requires all wood veneers sourced from outside of North America and approved European partners to be FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified to ensure fair, safe and responsible methods are used to harvest and process the wood. Coalesse has eight accredited LEED professionals on its team as part of its ongoing effort to remain a leader in...

ATLANTA—Ensuring good indoor air quality (IAQ) means everyone breathes a little easier: occupants who experience improved health, comfort and productivity, and owners who see increased building value and reduced risk. New guidance for achieving enhanced IAQ is available from five leading building industry associations and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The book and CD provide strategies needed to achieve good IAQ using proven technologies and without significantly increasing costs. “The health and comfort of building occupants is too important to leave IAQ as an after-thought in design, construction and operation,” said Andrew Persily, Ph.D., chair of the committee that wrote...

NORFOLK, NEB.—MP Global Products, a leader in the manufacture of underlayment for the flooring industry, announced that FiberBacker, by MP Global Products L.L.C, has earned Indoor Advantage Gold certification from Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), the organization’s highest level of indoor environmental quality certification and the most stringent indoor air quality certification in the country. It is the first underlayment for ceramic and porcelain floors to do so. The seal from SCS requires conformance with limits for 80 different volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) and is intended to insure that individual occupants’ overall exposure to any one of these chemicals does...

BOISE, IDAHO—ProTeam has earned the gold Seal of Approval/Green Label from the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) for seven of its leading vacuums, signifying that they meet the highest standards for carpet cleaning effectiveness and indoor air quality. Vacuums awarded gold pass a stringent testing process at an independent laboratory and meet three key performance criteria: amount of soil removed, containment of dust and dirt within the machine, and carpet fiber protection. ProTeam vacuums rated gold include: Super CoachVac, Super CoachVac HEPA, Super QuarterVac, Super QuarterVac HEPA, MegaVac, RunningVac and ProVac CN. The Super CoachVac and Super CoachVac HEPA are...

WINCHESTER, VA.—Rubbermaid Commercial Products (RCP), a leader in innovative facility maintenance solutions, announces a new concept in cleaning. The DVAC 1 Pass Cleaning Solution combines multiple cleaning tasks into one to reduce non-productive labor time. The award-winning DVAC 1 Pass Cleaning Solution is a dolly-integrated vacuum that allows cleaning professionals to collect waste and recycling, dust, and vacuum in a single pass, optimizing both productivity and cleaning quality. “Direct labor is responsible for more than 60 percent of the overall costs of contract cleaners, so products that increase worker productivity have a tremendous impact on their bottom line,” said...

ATLANTA—Kimberly-Clark, a leader in non-woven technologies, announces the availability of its newest line of high-efficiency filtration media for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system air filters. Based on the company’s patented, bi-component, nonwoven technology, the new media is ideal for a range of HVAC filter styles delivering MERV 11-15 performance. The new Kimberly-Clark Filter Media delivers both high initial and high sustained particle capture efficiencies, helping to deliver excellent indoor air quality (IAQ) and keeping HVAC components clean for more efficient and less costly operation. It also maintains a low airflow resistance, which reduces energy costs, as the HVAC system...

SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIF.—ClearWater Tech, LLC, a leading manufacturer of ozone generation systems for water and air purification, announced it has received the UL and ULC (equivalent to the Canadian Standards Assn. certification program) safety certification mark for its EcoTex Advanced Laundry Oxidation Systems. Underwriters Laboratories (UL) is an independent product safety certification organization that tests products and writes standards for safety. It has done so for more than a century. Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (ULC) is an independent, not-for-profit product safety testing and certification organization accredited by the Standards Council of Canada, under the National Standards System. ClearWater Tech completed...

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS—With its recent $1 billion in renovations, the Holiday Inn brand has earned well-deserved publicity. Perhaps the Holiday Inn property deserving of the most buzz this year, however, is the brand new Holiday Inn Northwest/Sea World in San Antonio. The 194-room hotel is on track to be the first LEED certified hotel in Texas and the first LEED certified property within the 3,300-property Holiday Inn brand. The hotel, which opened on October 5, is owned by a group of investors out of Lubbock, Texas, and managed by Dallas-based Hospitality Management Corp. Green highlights of the 100 percent...

NEW YORK—Carnegie, a leading manufacturer and innovator of textiles and wallcoverings, announced that its product line, Surface IQ, has achieved SCS Indoor Air Gold Certification. Surface IQ is built from the polymer up: eliminating the hazardous use of vinyl, chlorine, plasticizers, heavy metals, formaldehyde and dioxin. Built on thermoplastic olefin technology (TPO), it delivers both performance and ecology simultaneously, and features the colors, patterns and textures that the Carnegie name has become synonymous with. SCS is a global leader in the independent certification of environmental, sustainability, food quality, and food purity claims. Products that qualify for Indoor Advantage...