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The 2016 National Wood Flooring Association Wood Flooring Expo pulled out all the stops in its mission to “Floor It” in Charlotte, N.C., April 27–29.
Between the education sessions, Wood Floor of the Year Awards Ceremony, trade show demonstrations and exhibitor booths, this year’s Expo, held across the road from the NASCAR Hall of Fame inside the Charlotte Convention Center, was one for the winner’s circle.
“There was almost too much to soak in,” said Emmanuel Gaxiola, a project manager with San Antonio, Texas-based Advanced Wood Floors.
Attendees like Gaxiola walked a trade show floor with more than 250 company booths, and while products caught his attention, like a dust control system from Bona US, he was most impressed with the Tech Zone demonstrations, he said, especially NWFA Regional Instructor Kjell Nymark’s presentation on old-school methods for installing strip flooring.
The Expo was off to a racing start even before the trade show floor opened. Wood Floor of the Year Award winners were crowned, new NWFA officials were voted upon and NWFA degrees were awarded, all before NASCAR racing legend Rusty Wallace took the stage and told the audience how he had continued to achieve success throughout his career.
The NWFA hosted education seminars before the show each morning, as well as a pre-Expo Symposium on April 27. Among the seminars, which included sessions on preventing injuries on the job site, creating showroom experiences and the science of adhesive, among many others, was a sneak peak of the upcoming NWFA University. The NWFAU, which launches July 1, will allow members to take part in NWFA education online.
The Expo ended Friday with a happy hour on the trade show floor and, for an extra cost, a closing reception inside the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Attendees at the closing party took part in virtual NASCAR races and hands-on pit crews, all while enjoying beverages and food throughout the Hall of Fame’s exhibits.
“It was absolutely a good event for me, and well organized,” Danny Arnold, owner of Little River Lumber Company in Asheville, N.C., said about the Expo. “I did enjoy it and I picked up some leads.”
Next year’s Expo takes place April 11–14 in Phoenix, Ariz.