This year’s meeting brought together sales and customer service representatives, members of the marketing team and senior executives from across the U.S and Canada to take part in two days of educational sessions and product demonstrations put on by the Loxcreen product specialists and installers. With over 40 years in the business of vinyl and aluminum extrusion trims for flooring, the entire Loxcreen team has been excited to bring new product innovations to the market just within the past five years. “The sales and service teams understand that more technical and practical installation knowledge on these products will help service all customers both existing and new,” Steven LaGrou, vice president of sales and marketing for the professional distribution channel shares. “It is our hope that we have given the team the educational and marketing tools they need to inform flooring, ceramic and shower/bath distributors of the benefits in using our products”.

 

The focus of the two-day meeting was to further expand on the technical aspects of products like the Prova Shower System, Prova Board Plus Tile Backer, and Prova-Flex Lightweight Tile Underlayment. Installation and product demonstrations were used to aid in practical knowledge of benefits. The demonstrations were lead by Wade Verble and Joe Linzmeyer, U.S ceramic industry specialists for Loxcreen. A life size module of a 4-foot shower was constructed for demonstration purposes and each member of the sales team was given an opportunity to get their hands dirty and play the role of an installer for the day. “This approach really helped to emphasize how easy it really is to use our products from an installer’s perspective; we covered everything from the Prova shower pan assembly with drain and liner to installing Prova Board Plus and using it to construct a curb, bench, and niche; it is a very versatile product,” said Linzmeyer 

 

The second demonstration involved mixing and toweling premium modified thin set mortar over the Prova-Flex tile underlayment and showing how the dimpled design and top mesh locking system traps mortar right away and has full coverage with just two passes versus the competition which took much longer with an open dovetail design. “Not only did we get to share our two-pass toweling method which illustrates the ease with which Prova-Flex cavities can be filled but the strength of Prova-Flex was also evident when working on top of it, there was no buckling or bending of the membrane itself,” Verble added.

 

Next on the agenda was a presentation on caulk technologies by Ray Heck of M-D Building Products and Tower Sealants. There are several new Tower and DuPont caulks and silicones available for the flooring and ceramic/bath industry. This meeting gave the sales team the inside scoop on the benefits of the advanced technologies used in Tower products versus the traditional polyurethane varieties available on the market currently. An extension of the Prova line came to be with the introduction of Prova-Seal a 100% waterproof flexible assembly adhesive that is paintable in 30 minutes and will not shrink or crack. Prova-Seal was used in the Prova Board Plus installation demonstration to adhere all panels together and seal all joints, seams and washers for a fool-proof watertight installation.

 

Tower Tex Acrylic Grout Caulk was also a product in the spotlight as it is a textured caulk used for touch-ups or filling joints where tile meets dissimilar surfaces. Heck's demonstration involved members of the sales team using a caulk gun in between tiles where grout would typically be used. The vacuum sealed, pressurized tube makes squeezing the caulk out of tube a breeze. The sanded texture of this caulk makes it look identical to grout and comes in several colors which can be used to complement existing caulk. “I love the fact that we have been given the opportunity through Loxcreen to show the pro channel our new patented technologies in caulking and silicones which meet specific needs in the flooring and bath industries," he said. 

 

The Loxcreen sales meeting closed with announcements of new products expected to be released in 2015. Prova Shower Niches will be pre-formed niches made of Prova Board Plus and are to be used to create inlets in shower walls which act as shelving for shampoo bottles, soaps, etc.  Also coming soon is a new Square Ceramic Tile Edge profile which is used to protect the outer edge of tiled walls and backsplashes and adds a more contemporary look when finished with the sleek square edge.

 

“The majority of the new products we intend to release are extensions to our ceramic and PROVA° shower line as that is where the future growth is for our customers,” said Julia Comitale, marketing manager professional distribution channel. “We have been vigorously working to bring distributors new and innovative products at economical prices. There are many more in the works however we are unable to release information on those at this time, everyone will just have to wait and see what the Loxcreen team can bring in 2015.”

 

For more information, visit loxcreenflooring.com.