April’s NKBA learning series is all about tile and stone. By Dianne M. Pogoda
“The hard… is what makes it great.”
The famous quote spoken by Tom Hanks’ character Jimmy Dugan in “A League of Their Own” was referring to the tremendous effort involved in doing something special well, but it equally applies to the subject of April’s NKBA webinar series: Tile and Stone.
The Association’s Professional Development team has assembled experts representing different points of view centered on this month’s theme. All seminars offer 0.1 CEU credit and are free, although registration is required. Participants may register up to two hours before the event begins and must participate in 80% of the session to earn credit. The webinars are located in the NKBA store at store.nkba.org
Special Note: When registering on the website, users must log into their store account, which is separate from their regular website account. If you don’t have a store account, it’s easy and free to create one HERE.
The first webinar, on April 4 at noon (Eastern Time), is “Large Format Porcelain Slabs: A Revolutionary Product in the Architectural & Design World.” It’s taught by Piergiorgio Mazzetta, Business Development Manager for North America at the Italian ceramic slab manufacturer Laminam SpA.
Porcelain slabs were introduced to the market less than a decade ago, and are becoming increasingly popular due because of their performance and versatility. The main goal of this webinar is to educate architects, interior designers and specifiers about the differences in manufacturing processes, performance and technical features of the porcelain slabs available in the market.
Mazzetta will compare these slabs to other products such natural stone, engineered quartz and solid surfaces, as well. At the end of the webinar, participants will be better prepared to articulate the differences between porcelain slabs and other products to their clients, describe their features, performance, technical aspects of fabrication and
discuss applications for porcelain slabs, including countertops, facades, walls, floors and more.
The next seminar, April 19 at noon (Eastern Time), is “Why Choose Natural Stone?” and presented by Joshua Levinson, president of wholesale at Artistic Tile Inc.
This course will explore the qualities of natural stone and their applications in architectural and design projects. Throughout history, natural stone has been used in structures symbolizing strength and permanence, and how natural materials connect people to the planet in a unique way.
Levinson will discuss natural stone’s durability and performance in commercial and residential applications, interior or exterior, and new technologies that produce innovative textures and patterns. After this course, attendees will be able to define the historical uses and durability of natural stone, describe its attributes and performance qualities, sustainability issues and connect natural stone to the latest design trends.
Wojcikiewicz will discuss the use of natural stone in floor tiles, backsplashes, countertops, custom vessels, cladding, exteriors and more. Many quarries and fabricators are creating sawn-thin veneer options, too. These can be used to carry exterior design inward to a structure or as a stand-alone accent material requiring minimal structure (no required masonry back-up or brick ledge), so it can be as easily utilized in renovation and remodeling as it can be for new builds.
He’ll cover best practices in design and installation to aesthetically pleasing and long-lasting design solutions. Participants in this session will learn to describe the broad base of applications for natural stone that can be applied beyond countertops and tiles; explain the basics of using natural stone thin veneers for accent wall coverings, fireplaces and other applications, and determine various considerations for specifying and installing natural stone.
For more information on the webinars and to register, click on the following links:
April 4
April 19
https://store.nkba.org/collections/april-free-webinars/products/why-choose-natural-stone
April 26
