The National Wood Flooring Association held a pilot Wood Flooring Technology training course at Chattahoochee Technical College July 8-11 in which the NWFA partnered with the technical college to offer technical training on wood flooring. Based on the pilot course, the college plans to offer four-week courses every quarter starting in the spring of 2014. Chattahoochee Tech will be working with the NWFA to hire instructors from the industry to teach the four-week classes.
Raushanah Butler, technical coordinator for the Department on Economic Development at Chattahoochee Tech, is responsible for bringing new programs to the school. She hopes the program will attract a diverse group of male and female students, from recent high school graduates to older students either looking to learn a new trade or build on the skills they already have.
"I'm excited [about the course] because I see the value," Butler said. "I know the economy thrives off of small businesses, and it makes sense to give those who want trades and those who want training in certain areas the tools to allow them to start small businesses, so they can assist in keeping our economy thriving in this area."
"The Wood Flooring Basics Training class held at Chattahoochee Technical College has been a great success this week," said Brett Miller, NWFA's director of education and certification, about the pilot class. "We have had great feedback from students coming from a wide variety of backgrounds. The folks at Chattahoochee have been more than helpful and willing to accommodate our specific needs. We are extremely optimistic that this week will be the beginning of a great partnership with Chattahoochee Technical College and look forward to what this may bring to our industry."
Miller led the pilot class with the help of the following instructors:Mike Bailey (Harris Wood Floors/QEP Co. Inc.)Wayne Lee (Middle Tennessee Lumber)Jared Mohler (Mohler's Custom Wood Floors)Jeff Pope (Jeff Pope Inc.)Joel Rago (Mohawk Finishing Products)Rob Zehnder (Basic Coatings)Jim Schumacher (3M)
The following students attended the pilot program:Alex Brown (Floor DĂ©cor)Cristiano Cotrim (Spectrum Floors & Design)Delia Diaz (Simple Floors Inc.)Richard Dorsey (50 Floor Inc.)Jason Drum (K & M Floors Inc.)Michael Filkins (Spectrum Floors & Design)Jeff Franklin (Comfort Builders Service Inc.)Bruce Hammer (Elof Hansson USA Inc.)Sydney Jenkins (Mohler's Custom Wood Floors)Taylor Lowery (Floor DĂ©cor)Anthony Marinelli (Tomahawk Flooring)Ibis Mejia (Meg's Installation & Flooring)Vince Mohler (Mohler's Custom Wood Floors)Tucker Mohler (Mohler's Custom Wood Floors)Jorge Morales (Dust Free Wood Floor Solutions LLC)Joel Negron (Metro Atl Floors)Jamie Perry (ECMD Inc.)Jackie Smith (CFS Corporation)Allen Townsell (ECMD Inc.)Tony Zeidan (Meg's Installation & Flooring)
The following Partners in Education provided supplies and instruction:3M (St. Paul, Minn.)Basic Coatings (Toledo, Ohio)Delmhorst Instrument Co. (Towaco, N.J.)Fortifiber Building Systems (Fernley, Nev.)Harris Wood Floors/QEP Co. Inc. (Johnson City, Tenn.)Jeff Pope Inc. (Alpharetta, Ga.)Lignomat USA Ltd. (Portland, Ore.)Mapei Inc. (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)Middle Tennessee Lumber (Burns, Tenn.)Mohawk Finishing Products (Hickory, N.C.)Mohler's Custom Wood Floors (Sautee, Ga.)Porta-Nails/QEP Co. Inc. (Boca Raton, Fla.)Powernail Company Inc. (Lake Zurich, Ill.)Primatech Inc. (Quebec, Quebec)Somerset Wood Products (Somerset, Ky.)Wagner Meters (Rogue River, Ore.)
