Article Number: 4801
CFI, Armstrong form partnership on installation excellence
By Matthew Spieler
KANSAS CITY, MO.—Two of the most trusted names in providing installation training and certification have come together to continue their quest in making sure the end user is given a professional, quality installation the first time out. At the 16th annual convention of the International Certified Floorcovering Installers Association (CFI), a joint announcement was made by the organization and Armstrong World Industries to unveil a unique partnership between the two.
Armstrong, long known for having one of the industry’s most thorough mill installation training programs, will now give qualified CFI trainers/certifiers the same benefits as if they were an Armstrong trainer/certifier in its successful Certified Installation Program (CIP), which began approximately a dozen years ago.
Armstrong has been looking at organizations within floor covering installation that promote quality training and professionalism,” noted Tim Provence, the mill’s Western installation technical services manager.
“We’ve watched CFI people for a number of years now put into action what they said they would do—help people get better at their trade,” added Tim Rawlins, Armstrong’s manager of new product development and installation services. “CFI is intense about training and promoting excellence, just like Armstrong has always been.”
As a result, the company “reached out” to CFI to create this partnership. “We know we can trust CFI in not being a rubber-stamp organization when it comes to certifying someone’s installation skills,” he explained. “I’ve heard stories in which a person with years and years of experience is not given a passing grade simply because he showed up to take the test, or of people who have had to retake a test five different times before showing they have the necessary skills to be called a certified installer, and that falls perfectly in line with how we are—nothing is automatic.”
As proof, while Armstrong has trained thousands upon thousands of people during its century-plus of holding installation schools, Rawlins said a little more than 8,000 have actually been awarded Armstrong Certified Installer status.
Likewise, while CFI has trained more than 37,000 installers since 1993, the number of people that have been certified under 13,000, and its Master program has less than 700 bearing the distinction.
Chance of a lifetime
Jim Walker, CFI’s CEO and one of the organization’s founding members, called the partnership an “opportunity that comes once in a lifetime and it is knocking on our door right now. This not only gives us a great deal of instantaneous clout, it will make the rest of the industry take notice.”
He told the membership having the industry’s largest resilient and hardwood manufacturer, and overall hard surface leader, as a partner is an “honor and privilege not to be taken lightly. We could not afford to buy this confidence— we had to earn it. Having Armstrong on board is like having a badge, and we at CFI are accepting more responsibility by wearing it because we are now associating ourselves with the best.”
In order for the partnership to succeed and grow, Walker said it is up to everyone to take the CFI motto of P-R-I-D-E even more to heart. “No matter how expensive the product is, it is still a commodity until it is off the shelf and installed correctly and professionally. But it’s up to you to make that happen. Good installation starts in your heart.”
How it works
Rawlins said to get the partnership going Armstrong invited CFI’s executive board and certifiers to its training center in Lancaster, Pa., and ran them through the company’s Train the Trainers program. This program allows the mill to extend CIP outside of Lancaster by certifying the people teaching the course are following the exact methods and techniques prescribed under the program.
“This allows us to guarantee what they are saying,” he explained, “since they’re using the same system/methodology we use at our headquarters. These people now have full authority to go out and train and test installers.”
So now, CFI has the ability to hold training and certification seminars for both its own various levels of recognition— Residential I and II, Commercial I and II, along with its Master category—as well as for those wanting to become Armstrong Certified Installers (ACI) for its resilient, wood and/or laminate products.
As an ACI, Armstrong promises to protect the mechanic using its products if a claim arises— from up to $1,000 per residential job and up to $2,500 on commercial jobs. Put simply, Armstrong will provide a material credit to replace product incorrectly installed by an ACI, up to either $1,000 or $2,500 per job. This is meant to help compensate for the flooring and accessories should an installation fail for any reason other than errors in subfloor preparation or problems due to moisture and alkali. The installer is required to provide the labor to replace the flooring.
Rawlins was quick to note this is not an ongoing deal. Armstrong works on the “three strikes you’re out” principle. If an installer has three claims against him, his certification will be removed and he will need to retest to try and earn it back. “This program is not about paying off claims, it’s about finding and keeping the best people to install our products correctly every time.”
Near zero claims
The investment has certainly paid off, he added, which is why the company is trying to expand it through the CFI partnership. Since CIP started the claims rate for ACI is less than 1%. “We’ve not only saved untold millions of dollars because these people have virtually zero claims, our overall reputation has risen dramatically when it comes to giving the end user a favorable experience with our products from start to finish.”
For CFI’s part, Walker said less than 1% is still too high and he implored members to strive for perfection. “I don’t ever want to see Armstrong have to pay on a single CFI-related job.”
Along with a goal of zero claims, he is hopeful that one day CFI will be able to duplicate CIP on its own. “We want to follow Armstrong and eventually guarantee installation done by CFI installers. This is a very challenging thing to do, but by learning the Armstrong model we feel we will eventually be able to transfer this to carpet.”
Pointing out Armstrong is the first step, Walker said the partnership will pave the way for other major players to come to the association because “they’ll see what we’re doing with Armstrong” and that will create the opportunity to expand the program.
Despite CFI’s troubles in gaining industry-wide support over the years, Rawlins said there is no doubt the organization “has a great training reputation and we wanted to find a way to tap into that knowledge and expertise,” noting it is hard to keep full-time trainers on staff because this is not a revenue making stream. “That is why we are looking for partners in this area—people we can trust to carry forward the Armstrong reputation for quality and professionalism.”
As such, this is not the first time Armstrong has partnered with an installation organization. Earlier this year the company announced a strategic alignment with the Carpenters International Training Fund (CITF) and its INSTALL program for commercial resilient installation (FCNews, March 9/16).
By having these alignments, Rawlins concluded, “we can promote and advance quality, professional installation, which benefits our entire industry.”
(Editor’s note: There was much more that took place at this year’s CFI convention and FCNews will cover it all in an upcoming issue.)
KANSAS CITY, MO.—Two of the most trusted names in providing installation training and certification have come together to continue their quest in making sure the end user is given a professional, quality installation the first time out. At the 16th annual convention of the International Certified Floorcovering Installers Association (CFI), a joint announcement was made by the organization and Armstrong World Industries to unveil a unique partnership between the two.
Armstrong, long known for having one of the industry’s most thorough mill installation training programs, will now give qualified CFI trainers/certifiers the same benefits as if they were an Armstrong trainer/certifier in its successful Certified Installation Program (CIP), which began approximately a dozen years ago.
Armstrong has been looking at organizations within floor covering installation that promote quality training and professionalism,” noted Tim Provence, the mill’s Western installation technical services manager.
“We’ve watched CFI people for a number of years now put into action what they said they would do—help people get better at their trade,” added Tim Rawlins, Armstrong’s manager of new product development and installation services. “CFI is intense about training and promoting excellence, just like Armstrong has always been.”
As a result, the company “reached out” to CFI to create this partnership. “We know we can trust CFI in not being a rubber-stamp organization when it comes to certifying someone’s installation skills,” he explained. “I’ve heard stories in which a person with years and years of experience is not given a passing grade simply because he showed up to take the test, or of people who have had to retake a test five different times before showing they have the necessary skills to be called a certified installer, and that falls perfectly in line with how we are—nothing is automatic.”
As proof, while Armstrong has trained thousands upon thousands of people during its century-plus of holding installation schools, Rawlins said a little more than 8,000 have actually been awarded Armstrong Certified Installer status.
Likewise, while CFI has trained more than 37,000 installers since 1993, the number of people that have been certified under 13,000, and its Master program has less than 700 bearing the distinction.
Chance of a lifetime
Jim Walker, CFI’s CEO and one of the organization’s founding members, called the partnership an “opportunity that comes once in a lifetime and it is knocking on our door right now. This not only gives us a great deal of instantaneous clout, it will make the rest of the industry take notice.”
He told the membership having the industry’s largest resilient and hardwood manufacturer, and overall hard surface leader, as a partner is an “honor and privilege not to be taken lightly. We could not afford to buy this confidence— we had to earn it. Having Armstrong on board is like having a badge, and we at CFI are accepting more responsibility by wearing it because we are now associating ourselves with the best.”
In order for the partnership to succeed and grow, Walker said it is up to everyone to take the CFI motto of P-R-I-D-E even more to heart. “No matter how expensive the product is, it is still a commodity until it is off the shelf and installed correctly and professionally. But it’s up to you to make that happen. Good installation starts in your heart.”
How it works
Rawlins said to get the partnership going Armstrong invited CFI’s executive board and certifiers to its training center in Lancaster, Pa., and ran them through the company’s Train the Trainers program. This program allows the mill to extend CIP outside of Lancaster by certifying the people teaching the course are following the exact methods and techniques prescribed under the program.
“This allows us to guarantee what they are saying,” he explained, “since they’re using the same system/methodology we use at our headquarters. These people now have full authority to go out and train and test installers.”
So now, CFI has the ability to hold training and certification seminars for both its own various levels of recognition— Residential I and II, Commercial I and II, along with its Master category—as well as for those wanting to become Armstrong Certified Installers (ACI) for its resilient, wood and/or laminate products.
As an ACI, Armstrong promises to protect the mechanic using its products if a claim arises— from up to $1,000 per residential job and up to $2,500 on commercial jobs. Put simply, Armstrong will provide a material credit to replace product incorrectly installed by an ACI, up to either $1,000 or $2,500 per job. This is meant to help compensate for the flooring and accessories should an installation fail for any reason other than errors in subfloor preparation or problems due to moisture and alkali. The installer is required to provide the labor to replace the flooring.
Rawlins was quick to note this is not an ongoing deal. Armstrong works on the “three strikes you’re out” principle. If an installer has three claims against him, his certification will be removed and he will need to retest to try and earn it back. “This program is not about paying off claims, it’s about finding and keeping the best people to install our products correctly every time.”
Near zero claims
The investment has certainly paid off, he added, which is why the company is trying to expand it through the CFI partnership. Since CIP started the claims rate for ACI is less than 1%. “We’ve not only saved untold millions of dollars because these people have virtually zero claims, our overall reputation has risen dramatically when it comes to giving the end user a favorable experience with our products from start to finish.”
For CFI’s part, Walker said less than 1% is still too high and he implored members to strive for perfection. “I don’t ever want to see Armstrong have to pay on a single CFI-related job.”
Along with a goal of zero claims, he is hopeful that one day CFI will be able to duplicate CIP on its own. “We want to follow Armstrong and eventually guarantee installation done by CFI installers. This is a very challenging thing to do, but by learning the Armstrong model we feel we will eventually be able to transfer this to carpet.”
Pointing out Armstrong is the first step, Walker said the partnership will pave the way for other major players to come to the association because “they’ll see what we’re doing with Armstrong” and that will create the opportunity to expand the program.
Despite CFI’s troubles in gaining industry-wide support over the years, Rawlins said there is no doubt the organization “has a great training reputation and we wanted to find a way to tap into that knowledge and expertise,” noting it is hard to keep full-time trainers on staff because this is not a revenue making stream. “That is why we are looking for partners in this area—people we can trust to carry forward the Armstrong reputation for quality and professionalism.”
As such, this is not the first time Armstrong has partnered with an installation organization. Earlier this year the company announced a strategic alignment with the Carpenters International Training Fund (CITF) and its INSTALL program for commercial resilient installation (FCNews, March 9/16).
By having these alignments, Rawlins concluded, “we can promote and advance quality, professional installation, which benefits our entire industry.”
(Editor’s note: There was much more that took place at this year’s CFI convention and FCNews will cover it all in an upcoming issue.)
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