Tuesday, October 27, 2009

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 .

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

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.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

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!

Friday, August 28, 2009

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!

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

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.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Callidus Estimating Software

So about 1 year ago ROI Flooring purchased a flooring estimating program called Callidus and it has made life so much easier! The program offers many benefits to my workflow, however it also helps our flooring customers. Here's how....
1. We now work on all blue-prints electronically. What that means for our clients is that we are not wasting HUGE amounts of paper on blue-prints and spec books. Shipping costs for obtaining drawings are eliminated since most drawings can be downloaded on the internet, emailed, or mailed on a disk or flash drive.
2. All of our quotes come with a fully highlighted copy of each floor plan. This is significant because it clearly shows the full scope of work we're including in our proposals to our customers. It helps eliminate confusion or errors during the sale and install process. It helps give our customers a clearer understanding of what it is exactly they are purchasing.
3. The turn around time on our quotes has drastically been reduced. The estimating program allows me to produce an estimate in about 1/3 the time it would have taken with traditional paper drawings. This helps ROI be more efficient in our quoting and sales presentation timelines. A typical turn around is about 1 week for quotes. Smaller projects can often be the same or next day!
Below are a few examples of what an estimate from Callidus looks like. A highlighted color key similar to what is shown below is provided for every quote. Please contact me at 224-238-2045 if you are interested in getting an estimate on flooring for your project.



Tuesday, March 31, 2009

ROI Flooring + Custom Logo Design



Pictured above is a custom logo that we did for Kimball Middle School in 2002. Obviously the school mascot is a tiger and when the school received funding to have all of the old asbestos flooring abated and replaced with new vinyl composition tile they wanted to find a way to make an impact at the school's main entrance. We worked with the contractor and the school to have this custom logo created. The school still gets a ton of positive feedback from parents, kids, and faculty when they are greeted with such a cool design built right into the floor.

Often times our clients forget the importance of making a great first impression for thier customers and employees at the entrance to thier facility. Whether we create a custom logo, use a unique flooring product, or create an interesting design in the floor the main entry or lobby area is a great place to spend a little extra money to create that impact that will give everyone a great first impression of your company. Furthermore, the flooring is one of the first finish materials your customers and employees will see upon entering your office so the floor is a perfect place to make a statement.

If you are interested in seeing what design ideas ROI Flooring can come up with for your office please contact Ben Rakow at 224-238-2045 to see what works best for your facility and budget.