The International Certified Flooring Installers Association (CFI) announced expanded membership opportunities. The CFI Board of Directors has approved the addition of a nonprofit membership tier and an expansion of the associate-level membership to include non-CFI Certified individuals and reducing membership fees, to encourage wider participation from every industry served by the association.
"Since our inception in 1993, the membership aspect of CFI has been the foundation of our organization," says Robert Varden, CFI’s executive director. "It's a place for passionate professionals who share common goals and challenges to unite and gain knowledge, learn best practices, establish friendships, and grow – both professionally and personally. This new membership level is an important vehicle for us to expand our reach and make our programs more accessible to young professionals and welcome them into our family. Our work of elevating the trade by creating more knowledgeable, professional and skilled craftsmen is so important in shaping the future of our industry.”
Effective September 1, the restructured membership includes three levels: Certified member, Associate member, and Partner member.
The Certified member is any individual installer who has achieved a minimum of one level of Approved certification. Annual membership fees have been reduced to from $120 to $65.
Associate membership includes any individual or company who is involved within the flooring industry including installers who are not CFI certified, manufacturers, flooring contractors, work rooms, distributors, retailers, sales associates, architect and design professionals, inspectors, general contractors, and other professionals supporting the floorcovering industry.
The hallmark of the new Associate-level membership structure is that an installer, even though he or she may not be CFI Certified, may now become a member of the CFI Family. This new tier provides individuals at the early stage of their careers with the guidance, resources and support from the most recognized training and certification platform in the industry.
The individual membership is $65 per year and receive the following benefits: technical assistance help line, discount vouchers, access to the online CFI store, industry networking at the Annual Convention, and CFI content, including the quarterly magazine, Flooring Specialist, newsletters, emails and social media.
A Partner member includes an industry association, school or organization that supports professional floorcovering installation whose values, objectives, and strategic initiatives align with CFI.
CFI has grown its membership base to be the most recognized training and certification communities of floorcovering installer professionals. The power of this network culminates at the Annual Convention each year.
Details on how to join CFI, as well as descriptions of the member benefits are available at the CFI website.
