The NAFCT, previously the National Academy of Floor Covering Training, is now a non-profit 501(c)(6) organization called the National Association of Floor Covering Technicians, which will focus on affordable training and certification of floor covering professionals.
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The NAFCT, previously the National Academy of Floor Covering Training, is now a non-profit 501(c)(6) organization called the National Association of Floor Covering Technicians, which will focus on affordable training and certification of floor covering professionals.
The non-profit NAFCT is the brainchild of co-founders and longtime flooring pros Paul Pleshek and Sonny Callaham, who say their goal is to reduce the installer shortage. The original NAFCT focused solely on training, but this new non-profit will offer certification testing to students who have completed the training provided by manufacturer members.
“We recognized that there wasn’t a lack of training in the industry, there was a lack of certification,” said Pleshek, who is the executive director. So Pleshek and Callaham went to manufacturers who were offering education and asked if they’d be interested in partnering with them to get their trainees certified. “Everybody said, ‘It’s about time somebody did that.’”
Once people complete the training, they will qualify to take the online certification exam via NAFCT. Pleshek and Callaham said they anticipate that subfloor certification will be the first one offered.
In the future, they anticipate doing advocacy work, including participating in standards development, and expanding training and certifications to include retail and business classes.
“There’s really not any other industry like flooring where if you start at the very bottom, you literally can go anywhere from there—you can go to operations, sales, technical—you are learning it from the ground up,” said Callaham, who is chairman. “We want people to know there’s more to flooring than laying floors.”
Founding members of NAFCT include Ardex Americas, Divergent Adhesives, H.B. Fuller, Laticrete International, Inc., Loba-Wakol LLC, MAPEI Corporation, Novalis Innovative Flooring, Roppe Holding Company, Schönox HPS North America, Uzin Utz North America Inc., and Wagner Meters.
Additional NAFCT staff include Grant Rumsey and Sarah Fike. The board of directors includes: Mike Pigeon, Floor Connections; Brent Fike, Roppe Holding Company; Robert Blochinger, Blochinger & Company; Seth Pevarnik, Ardex NA; Jason Spangler, Wagner Meters; Sam Biondo, MAPEI; Don Jewell, Loba-Wakol; Dr. Frank Owens (non-voting), Mississippi State University; Tracy Muller; Kevin Phillips, Novalis; and Dr. Alex Weidenhoeft, U.S. Forest Products Laboratory (non-voting, pending USDA Ethics Committee approval).
Companies or individuals interested in learning more can find NAFCT online or via social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.