Carpet Monkey

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Batavia Fire Stations

Here are some pictures from the Batavia East & West Fire Stations which we completed in 07' with Sigalos & Associates. I'm sure that these stations rival some of the nicest fire houses in the country. They're the perfect home away from home for the men and women that risk their lives for a living. The living quarters are spacious and private unlike the typical bunk type rooms that you'll find at most fire houses. The kitchen is one that even Bobby Flay would be happy to work in. ROI has worked with Sigalos & Associates on several projects and it's always a great pleasure to work for them. Frank & Joe, the superintendents, are so great to work for and they help to create a true teamwork environment on the job site. Nick & Rob in the front office do an awesome job of communicating the needs of the subcontractor to the architect and owners. As you can see in the pictures, the workmanship and detail that goes into a Sigalos project from the jobsite, to the estimators, to the project managers is world class. If you're ever in Batavia stop by the fire house and check out the beatiful facility.....and let those firemen know how much you appreciate what they do for us!

Mori Seiki

Here are some photos of a project we recently completed the flooring on in August of 09 for McShane Construction. We had a great experience working with the McShane field office and the project manager & estimator. McShane did a wonderful job of communicating between the subcontractor and the ownership. As with most large projects many obstacles were presented but we worked seamlessly with McShane to ensure a successful project with beautiful floors that will stand the test of time.

Mori Seiki has built a state of the art office/manufacturing facility in Hoffman Estates. This new facility has a fantastic location clearly visible from Rte 90 traveling in either direction. You can't miss it right near the Sears Center.

Above you will find pictures of the lobby which features a jaw dropping 12x24 porcelain tile in a staggered (brick like) design featuring a custom curve cut into the floor to highlight the entrance into their manufacturing warehouse. The curve is continued through the glass wall which is difficult to see in the picture but it has a really cool effect as if the room just opens into the warehouse without all the noise.

Above you'll also notice pictures of the lobby stairwell which we installed porcelain tile on to match the lobby floor. The top of the stair requires an ADA compliant detectable warning surface which we had custom grooved into the porcelain tile for a clean seamless look. Typically the required tactile warning surface creates a visual eyesore, but this turned out beautifully!

Lastly you'll find pictures of various other areas including an executive suite featuring carpet tiles in an alternating pattern on the floor. You'll also see a picture of the lunchroom area which features a premium vinyl composition tile from Mannington with a custom waterjet cut radius into the floor to visually draw your eye through the space as you enter the room.

As I'm sure you can see above McShane built a gorgeous state of the art facility for Mori Seiki which I'm sure will WOW any of their clientele as they tour the building. I was proud to be a part of this project and am thrilled with the results!

If you have questions about any of the products we've used or techniques in which the floors were installed please feel free to contact me by email or phone and I'd love to talk further. My direct line is 224-238-2045 or email is brakow@rieke.com .

Chanooka Healthcare

Here are a few pictures of the floors at a project we're about 99% completed on in Channahon, IL. It's a medical office building located near the borders of Channahon & Minooka, IL so the center is appropriately named Chanooka Healthcare Center. The designer chose some really luxurious textures for the common areas including a heathered carpet tile by Constantine, a polished Italian porcelain tile wrapping the columns, luxury vinyl plank flooring resembling bamboo, and fun luxury vinyl tiles by Azrock in large format for the children exam rooms. The contractor is beginning the final cleaning process so I'll be sure to post additional (cleaner) pictures of this project after the grand opening.

Ball Corporation

This is a picture of a project I recently completed for Ball Aerosol Corporation. The customer has a huge manufacturing plant located directly off of the front office area as is typical with a lot of manufacturing facilities. The problem they were experiencing was that there was so much grease, dirt, and oil being tracked in on the carpeting that it looked 10 years old in a matter of less than 2 years. I suggested that we create aisles or pathways to match the flow of foot traffic as the employees come in and out of the warehouse into the office. We chose to use a porcelain tile product as it's non-porous and won't absorb any of the foreign soil that is walked into the space. Additionally we put a grout sealer on all the grout to help keep the grout from discoloring over time. As a last line of defense they are using walk-off carpet mats in various areas to help keep the amount of soil that is walked into the offices to a minimum. This is one of the most common issues that our clients have about their flooring. It's not 100% guaranteed to solve the problem, but it almost always drastically helps reduce the amount of soiling on the carpeted areas, and still maintains the office's upscale look. It would be great to install the tile throughout the entire office, however the tile is about 4 times the cost of carpet tile. Additionally, carpet gives the office something that tile never will and that's a better acoustical value and warmth. In an environment where employees are constantly on the phone it's imperative that noise levels be kept to a minimum which is why creating these aisles for Ball Corporation was a great solution!

Exhibit Concepts

Here's a picture of a project we recently completed called Exhibit Concepts. We were contracted by Northern Builders and worked closely with Brad Wood at Northern to ensure a timely completion for the owner's move-in.

This project was challenging as the budget seemed to be constantly changing for the flooring work, but one thing stayed constant in the owner's mind - the lobby must make a great impression.

It's difficult to tell, but we used a semi-polished porcelain tile by Dal-Tile called "Vibe" and there is a tiny grid in the tile that is grooved so that only the surface of the grid is polished. This provides the proper slip resistance on a polished tile. It's a very neat look and gives Exhibit Concept's clients a great impression when they walk into the space.

Gerry Hyzy is the owner of Exhibit Concepts. He did a great job of selecting materials as the space turned out beautifully!

Illinois Center for Pain

Here is a picture of a project that we completed this past winter for Illinois Center for Pain Medicine. When working with Dr. Terri Prunskis she was given the difficult task of tying in the design style and colors of the reception area into some existing chairs they were using in the waiting area. The chairs had an almost teal tint to them, which we found difficult to match. The solution.....see the carpet inlay below. While we chose a neutral porcelain tile surround, I worked with Terri to find a carpeting that would tie in the teal-tinted chairs, and would contribute to the fun/hip design of the office. It doesn't really show in the pictures, but the wallpaper has a really cool curved design to it which works well with the carpet pattern we selected. Dr. Prunskis was great to work with as was the general contractor Jeff Woltman of Woltman Construction. This is the second medical office we've worked with Jeff on and I've been impressed with Jeff's work on both occasions. He manages to create a really inspiring office environment that any Doctor's office would be proud to work in.