SOCIAL MEDIA & APPS Socially-Distanced Support
The experts at flooring adhesives specialist F. Ball and Co. tell us all about the virtual services they are currently providing to support their customer base during these unusual times.
With activities involving face-to-face interactions, including training, being minimised or cancelled to help stop the spread of coronavirus, it’s useful to know about other resources for information on best practice in subfloor preparation and floorcovering installation, including online assets and apps from product manufacturers.
For example, the website of F. Ball and Co. Ltd. is a repository of high-quality learning materials, including a library of video tutorials covering all aspects of subfloor preparation and flooring installation. The step-by-step demonstrations show how to use all of the company’s products, including how to mix and apply levelling compounds and adhesives, and provide expert practical tips and advice, such as how to ensure optimum coverage of adhesives using a trowel.
There’s also a comprehensive guide to subfloor preparation, as well as an FAQ section, which covers some of the F. Ball Technical Service Department’s most commonly asked queries, for when a quick answer to a flooring question is needed. The Technical Service Department can also be contacted by telephone Monday to Friday, 8.30am–5.00pm, to answer any questions you might have about subfloor preparation and floorcovering installation. Alternatively, enquiries can be made through the company’s social media channels and via email.
And, while F. Ball’s regional technical representatives are still attending physical site visits where social distancing is possible, the company’s Technical Service Department is also offering virtual site visits facilitated by video- messaging apps, such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and Zoom. That means contractors using F. Ball products can guide a Technical Service Officer around a location using a
22 | Tomorrow’s Retail Floors
mobile phone or tablet and instantly receive an on-the-spot site assessment and advice on the best course of action for specific flooring projects.
Choosing the Optimum Product
Flooring contractors can also access F. Ball and Co. Ltd.’s industry-acclaimed Recommended Adhesives Guide (RAG) online and via a mobile app, which is free to download from the Apple App Store or Google Play. This allows contractors to consult the trusted guide for advice on floorcovering-adhesive compatibility via the smartphone in their pocket at any time.
The latest edition of the guide features adhesive recommendations for over 6,000 branded floorcoverings from over 200 leading international floorcovering manufacturers, helping flooring contractors select the most suitable adhesive for a particular installation and avoid the risk of costly floor failure. The app provides the option to search for floorcoverings by brand name and manufacturer to obtain a list of F. Ball adhesives that are compatible with the selected floorcoverings. It also features a handy coverage calculator, allowing contractors to easily find out exactly how much of an F. Ball adhesive or levelling compound is required for a specific project.
Every adhesive recommendation in the RAG is only included in the guide after the completion of a rigorous 54-day test programme and endorsement of the recommendation by each floorcovering manufacturer. Such is the company’s confidence in the compatibility and performance of the adhesive and floorcovering recommendations, that F. Ball provides a 100% guarantee of success of installations using its recommendations, as long as the advised preparation and installation procedures are followed.
The information about floorcovering-adhesive compatibility that can be accessed via F. Ball’s RAG app is updated continuously by F. Ball’s Technical Service Department, who are responsible for testing the compatibility of floorcoverings featured in the guide with the company’s adhesives and ensuring that the latest recommendations are instantly available.
Criteria for measuring bond performance of adhesives with floorcoverings is based on British Standards. Tests measure initial grab, as well as bond performance over time, with temperature used to simulate the effects of ageing, and recommendations only make it into the RAG if F. Ball’s Technical Service Department can be sure that the adhesive will perform for the entire lifetime of the floorcovering.
The guide is also available as an A5 printed booklet. Details of how to claim your free copy can be found online.
www.f-ball.com/en
www.tomorrowsretailfloors.com
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