Article Number: 3239
Congoleum breaks into the fiberglass market - AirStep offers two product collections, installation methods
MERCERVILLE, N.J.—Congoleum recently took the wraps off AirStep, engineered with a reinforced fiberglass inner core for extra comfort and cushioning underfoot. The product joins a segment that already includes FiberFloor from Tarkett, CushionStep from Armstrong and Sobella from Mannington, among others.

AirStep’s construction allows for two installation options—fully adhered and loose-lay—as determined by job needs, such as subfloor conditions, complexity of the room and number of seams required. The loose-lay method allows for easy removal when redecorating.

The AirStep package includes two product lines, Cloud Nine and Basis, at two price points. Both are designed to provide cushioned comfort and sound absorption.

Cloud Nine features Congoleum’s WearTec high-performance textured urethane surface, which protects the floor from everyday wear and tear, resists scuffs and stains and facilitates cleanups, noted Liz Charbonneau, vice president of marketing. It is available in seven designs and 20 colorations and offers a 15-year limited warranty.

Basis features an easy-care wear surface designed for easy maintenance. It is available in four designs and 10 colorations and is warranted for five years.

According to Dennis Jarosz, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Congoleum, the mill is getting into the fiberglass market due to demand. “Most of our distributors have seen some fiberglass sheet sold in their markets and have asked us to offer them a line of products so they could compete.”

Airstep will be merchandised as a separate line of sheet products with its own display system and separate literature, Jarosz said. “It won’t be positioned ‘against’ other Congoleum products, but simply as another product we offer to retail.”

Charbonneau added that AirStep offers versatile styling options that coordinate with today’s design trends. “AirStep’s beautiful designs, colorations and textures are perfect for any consumer, any décor.”

The AirStep merchandising system presents the entire line in one compact unit designed to maximize the number of samples that can be displayed in a minimum amount of square footage, she noted. It features a fold-out assembly system that allows for quick assembly.

Jarosz noted that the fiberglass market has unlimited growth possibilities. “We believe fiberglass sheet flooring to be less than 10% of the overall resilient sheet flooring market today. Five to 10 years from now, it’s anybody’s guess.”

For more information, please visit www.congoleum.com