FEATURE From Rugs to Riches Sunny Manchanda, V.P. of Business Development at Pointex, discusses


the evolution of rugs, from heirlooms only found in affluent households to the decorative accessory found in so many homes today.


Of all the accessories that make a room both comfortable and attractive, the rug must be the most neglected. Following those brief moments of aesthetic pride that are part of any domestic purchase, the rug is overlooked, forgotten; subject to incalculable foot traffic and never considered again unless something is spilt and it begins to look shabby or starts to smell offensive. In practically all domestic households, little thought is given to the humble rug, to its creation, evolution or to the technological advancements that create a quality item that is able to withstand whatever the domestic or business environment can throw at it.


Whether it is through the utilisation of palm leaves or the creation of rag rugs from old clothes, throughout civilisation mankind has always looked for ways of making their homes more comfortable. In Western society, our traditional view of rugs comes from the luxury items that, being handmade by artisans, were too expensive for the working man, only adorning the homes of the aristocracy and the wealthy from the 16th century onwards. Thanks, however, to the pioneering ingenuity of one man, rugs have become a significant presence in homes throughout the world.


Through his invention of the mechanical loom, Belgian-born Van De Wiele was able to transform rug production from being the time-consuming product of artisans, to the supercharged product of mechanisation; increasing production and creating a product affordable to everyone. But such transformations are rarely delivered fully-formed and various innovations needed to take place until we have the quantity and standard of rug production that we have today. For the looms of Van de Wiele, this moment came with the recognition of the hidden potential of polypropylene pellets (waste products of the petroleum industry) to be converted into synthetic yarn. Having previously been made using only wool, rug production could still be expensive and was hampered by limited wool production. The invention of synthetic yarn revolutionised the process, with yarn being available both cheaply and on demand. Although initially limited to production using only four colours, further developments have created a synthetic yarn that it not only softer, but can now utilise twenty different colours at any one time. Additional advancements in digital printing creating rugs that are both unique and affordable.


Rug production today has exceeded even Van de Wiele's expectations. Not only in the variety of yarns available, including viscose, silk and nylon, but also in the hybridisation of the process through the hand-weaving of neutral colour based rugs, which are then overprinted with the main design, achieving spectacular results. And rug revolution doesn't end there with the recent introduction by Pointex in Italy of the unique fray-resistant rug. Utilising a new production process, the rug is created by weaving a design onto a jacquard loom,


22 | Tomorrow’s Retail Floors


creating a fabric that is then bonded with a thermoplastic backing. This creates a rug that does not fray, but also keeps its place on the floor without the need for any under-padding. By creating an open-sided material, Pointex have eliminated the process of surging and side over-locking, and have created a floorcovering that, available in rolls two metres wide, can be cut to fit any room shape without the need for finishing.


It would seem that now, in the 21st century, the sky is no longer the limit in rug production and the industry has the potential to take things much further.


www.pointexspa.it www.tomorrowsretailfloors.com


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