Wilsonart Flooring has cooked-up a year-end sweepstakes that will lavish one lucky winner a holiday feast for 12 people. Consumers are being invited to register online at the sweepstakes website: www.wilsonartflooring.com/holiday for chance to win. The decorative laminate flooring maker is also running a national advertisement in the holiday issue of O at Home magazine to promote the sweepstakes.

Saying it has "no choice" but to pass along the increased cost of raw materials, Domco will raise the price on its resilient flooring products from 3 percent to 6 percent beginning Dec. 1, 2005. The Farnham, Quebec-based company said the increases are a result of the continued escalation in raw materials and transportation costs. "Throughout this year, we have initiated efficiencies across all of our operations to keep our costs in line," said vice president, sales and marketing Stephan Guindon. "However, with the continued pricing pressures in the marketplace, we have no choice but to pass along some of our increases to our customers."

In a bid to draw more attendance from Midwest states, organizers of the Coverings meeting said they will begin alternating the event between its present location in Orlando and Chicago. While next year's edition of the tile and stone show is still scheduled to take place in Orlando, April 4-7, the following year it will move to Chicago's McCormick Place Convention Center where it will be held from April 17-20, 2007. Previously, the show was held at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando.

Mannington Mills has announced a new "Never Yellow" guarantee to its resilient flooring warranty. The Property managers consistently cite "yellowing" from rubber backed mats as one of the leading reasons to prematurely replace resilient flooring. "It's always exciting to deliver on something the customer requested" said David Sheehan, Mannington's director of resilient business. "This will extend the life of many floors and require fewer change outs." The company said it made the move in response to requests from property managers and "end users in the multi-family industry." The company said it is the first manufacturer to offer this warranty, which is applicable to all residential resilient sheet vinyl products.

Shaw's Hard Surfaces division has launched its newest retailer salesperson incentive, "Shaw Me the Money," with a twist.

Due to the hurricane expected to hit Florida in the coming days, the National Association of Floor Covering Distributors (NAFCD) has cancelled its annual meeting scheduled for Oct 21-23 in Boca Raton, Fla. Although the trade group had said its 34th annual conference was still a go on Oct. 19, the decision was made at an early morning meeting of the executive committee on Oct. 20th. The decision came amid reports that Hurricane Wilma is one of the most powerful storms to hit Florida. Meteorologists report winds of more than 145 mph, more than a foot of rain and a storm surge of 7 to 10 feet above normal tide. NAFCD has also outlined a refund plan for registration fees and asked those interested to contact the group before Nov. 1.

A prominent floor covering industry group that works closely with inspectors and professional cleaners has won accreditation from The American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The group, The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), said the decision will enhance its position and elevate the stature of the industries its serves.

Surfaces will once again include an Installation Showcase aimed at providing time-saving and quality-enhancing techniques from leading installation experts. The showcase is set to run for seven hours each day of the Feb. 1-3 meeting and will include all types of flooring including carpet, tile, stone, resilient, hardwood, laminate and mixed media. It is sponsored by Laticrete and is being produced in conjunction with International Certified Floorcovering Installers Assoc. (CFI), and the World Floor Covering Assoc. (WFCA), Floor Covering Installer and National Floor Trends magazines.

Alfred I. Halpern, an industry leader who was instrumental in the drive to establish a new standard of quality and training for the floor covering industry, died Oct. 12, according to his family members. During his 50 years in the floor covering industry, Halpern greatly influenced many aspects of the floor covering business particularly those related to installation.

Citing "grim economical market conditions for woven and tufted carpet products," Beaulieu International Group based in Waregam, Belgium, said it plans to shut down two production plants in France. It has not set a timetable for the move but said the two facilities to be shuttered will be the Berry Tuft SAS in Châteauroux and Berry Tapis SAS in Buzançais, both located in the heart of France. The company said it is seeking ways to offset the impact to the 314 workers likely to be affected.