Carl Williams, widely credited for bringing a special brand of humor, knowledge and a motivational teaching style to the cleaning and inspection industry, died May 28 following complications from a heart attack. He was 67.

Williams had more than 35 years of experience in the industry. He was founder, president and instructor of the Academy of Textiles & Flooring in Whittier, Calif. He was also past president of the Carpet Cleaners Institute and was awarded CCI's Joe Laurino Carpet Cleaner of the Year Award, as well as becoming an unequaled five-time recipient of the Bill Bailey Memorial Award. Additionally, Williams was a regional supervisor for the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) and instructed for a range of industry associations for close to 20 years.

He also loved to share his knowledge as an author. He wrote the Floor Covering Industry Dictionary; Installation, Reinstallation & Repair Technician Manual; Vapor Emission Testing Manual; Water Damage Restoration Manual; Making Money Marketing Guide; and the Report Writing Manuals. He was also co-author on a range of books and training manuals covering everything from carpet cleaning to water damage restoration.

Additionally, Wiliams developed the InspecTen ten-step report writing software program for inspectors.

Mike West, past president of the IICRC, and a fellow instructor, remembered his colleague recently on the IICRC's online forum. "Carl and I attended one of the first IICRC Certification courses up in Fresno with Ed York monitoring and Tom Hill instructing ... Within a short time Carl wanted to begin putting on classes on behalf of the IICRC for the then CCI (now CFI). Using Bill Griffin’s manual he talked me into partnering with him and suddenly we were IICRC Approved Instructors," he wrote. "We never stopped working together, until today, to pass on our experience, knowledge, and in Carl’s case homegrown humor to many thousands of smiling students."

"Carl was a unique and irreplaceable asset to our industry, his community and his family," West added.

Funeral services will be held tomorrow, June 2 at 11 a.m. at Memory Garden Memorial Park in Brea, Calif. For more information, call (714) 529-3961. Flowers can be sent to Memory Garden Memorial Park.