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Notes from the Field

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Featured Product

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Product Reviews

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Product Review 

When it comes to design, there are so many stone and tile options to choose from to create the desired effect.  Whether chic and sophisticated or rustic and warm, there is a collection to meet every design style.  Click here for a look at a few of the numerous new product lines that have recently been introduced to the market

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Project Spotlight

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Stone Palette contributes to chic hospitality design

The recent construction of W Hotel's Miami, FL, location called for an abundant amount of stone to maintain the hotel's stylish reputation

by Alexis Fisher, Associate Editor

Known around the world for its trendy rooms, signature restaurants and glamorous nightlife, the W Hotel brand is the essence of contemporary hospitality - while also maintaining an exclusivity factor. When it comes to choosing décor for its newest destinations, it is no surprise that the hotel brand requires top-notch materials. Its recent new setting in Miami, FL, was no exception, with a grand display of stone throughout its interior design. Full article

A celebration of Dallas culture 

Designed by Foster + Partners, the new Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House in Dallas, TX, gives the city a landmark venue for the Dallas Opera as well as a range of other cultural programs 

by Michael Reis, Senior Editor 

When the doors of the new Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House in Dallas, TX, opened in October of last year, it marked a new era for the city's cultural scene. One of five venues in the Dallas Arts District, the opera house is home to The Dallas Opera, Texas Ballet Theater, touring Broadway productions and numerous other performances. The facility was designed by Foster + Partners of London, England, in collaboration with Kendall Heaton Associates of Houston, TX, and it features natural stone as a key design element. Full article

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Green Design

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FiberBacker™ underlayment for tile, porcelain and natural stone earns third party Indoor Advantage Gold Certification

NORFOLK, NE -- MP Global Products, an innovative leader in the manufacture of underlayment for the flooring industry, has announced that FiberBacker™ by MP Global Products L.L.C has earned Indoor Advantage Gold Certification from Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), the organization's highest level of indoor environmental quality certification and the most stringent indoor air quality certification in the U.S. It is the first underlayment for ceramic and porcelain floors to do so, according to the manufacturer. Click here to read more

Eliane wins Eco Award

CARROLLTON, TX -- Eliane Ceramic Tiles, a Brazilian tile manufacturer with a U.S. headquarters in Carrollton, TX, has been awarded the 2009 Ecology Expression Award for the recycling category of the Brazilian ceramic industry. Click here to read more

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Industry News and Events

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Ceramic Tiles of Italy Design Competition call for entries

Now in its 17th year, the Ceramic Tiles of Italy Design Competition celebrates the outstanding residential, commercial and institutional work of North American architects and designers who use Italian ceramic tile in their products. Click here for more information

Alcalagres creates MTA mural to honor Sol Le Witt

NEW YORK, NY -- At the beginning of 2005, the Metropolitan Transport Authority (MTA) presented a challenge for Spanish tile manufacturer Alcalagres via its "Art For Transit" department: to capture on porcelain tile the works of one of the fathers of conceptual art and minimalism from the past century, Sol LeWitt. Click here to read more

Walker Zanger plans to leverage 2009 success for continued growth in 2010

SYLMAR, CA -- As Walker Zanger, a comprehensive stone and tile company, ends a year in which the U.S.'s economy and its building industry have been buffeted, the company is positioned for growth and continued achievements in 2010. In 2009, Walker Zanger garnered several industry awards and seized opportunities for growth, giving the company cause to set its sights even higher for 2010.  Additionally, the company has seen an increase in sales in the Southern California market for high-end commercial building projects, indicating positive movement in the building industry where the company hopes to capitalize in the coming year. Click here to read more

The NTCA launches "Tile-TV"

JACKSON, MS -- The National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA), the largest professional tile contractors association in the world, has introduced "Tile-TV" as another creative tool to enhance the experience of its active tile and stone contractor members and other industry professionals with this monthly news and information-sharing vehicle available on line at www.tileletter.com. Click here to read more

Industry Events

Specialized events for architecture and design professionals are offered throughout the year, including general design events and others that are geared specifically to the stone and tile fields. For a look at upcoming industry events, click here

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