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Apply Yourself The continuing trend of large-format tiles and easy-to-use grout by Laurie Jones luxury markets. "This trend is continuing across the country and the primary request for product is Carrara white marble," he says. "Every project I've worked on recently has specified a white marble of some kind. This has been challenging because white marble has increased tenfold in value over the last 10 years. What used to be $8 to $10 a square foot is now at $80 a square foot." To reduce the cost of multiple trades involved in tile appli- cation, Gemstar is offering an increasing number of turn- key solutions, such as installation for linear drain shower systems. Specifications Because writing project specifications is a detailed, time con- suming task that can require review and evaluation of very large amounts of information, the Terrazzo Tile & Marble Association of Canada (TTMAC) has now published the elec- tronic Master Specification Guide. Formerly available only in hard copy, the new guide is downloadable and written in clear and concise language. "The guide is written as a practical tool to assist in editing specifications needed to describe the installation and performance requirements of ceramic and stone tile installations for building owners, contractors and installers," says Keith Robinson, technical liaison to TTMAC. "The guidelines in this document are fully updated from the recently released Specification Guide 09 30 00 Tile Installation Manual 2012-2014 – the most comprehensive up-to-date tile installation standards available in Canada." The Master Specification Guide is in an editable format, allowing interior designers, architects and specifiers to eas- ily customize the document to suit the unique requirements of any project. "The document can be used by technical sales rep- resentatives to present specific product information adjusted to the needs of its clients. It also provides a guide or script for product and system manufacturers to raise important ques- tions when discussing potential solutions for a project," says Robinson. T he world of tile application is changing, not only in the size of the products but the attention given to installation options. With the addition of its new Vancouver showroom on West 2nd Avenue, Ames Tile & Stone is excited to bring the wide spectrum of tile offerings to its clients. "While large- format tiles have been available in past years, this style has really come to the forefront of first choice options," says Curt Higham, product specialist and design liaison for Ames. "There are several options to choose from, and although 12-by-24 inch was standard for years, the 18-by-36-inch tile selections are becoming the normal size. Another popular size is 24-by-48 inch." Higham says most manufacturers worldwide are producing the 18-by- 36 tiles. "This is a good size for floors as well as walls. One client bought 650 square feet of our majestic sand dune visual, Sabbia Series in the size of 24-by- 48 large-format porcelain tiles just to do the walls of the indoor pool room." The most popular colour tile choices include all shades of grey from warm to cool. "We just bought a new series called Rug Home, which includes grey, medium grey, dark grey and charcoal. Titanium metals shades, such as our stylish Lam- iera Series, are also being used to offset the cool greys." Gemst ar Group is also seeing increased demand for large format tiles, but marble selections top the list. "We are working on a number of proj- ects that utilize single slabs of solid marble for the shower enclosure," says Dano Rossi, VP, sales and marketing. "In most cases, the size of the slab is limited by how much space they have to actu- ally get the slab into the building. Book matching is also very big this year to attain a high-end luxury look." Rossi notes the economy seems to be making a slight recovery because he is seeing the resurgence of growth in the Clockwise from top left: WOODSIDE, Plancher Maple dogga 60-by-60 centimetre, from Ramacieri Soligo; Lameria Series from Ames Tile & Stone Ltd.; the Mix and Match tiles combine creativity and esthetic, from Ceragres. october 2014 /41 tiles

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