“Keeping my custodial costs in line is a constant challenge. Vacuuming seems to be a lot faster than mopping. Is carpet the solution?”

“I want our flooring to look good and hold up over time. What will make it last longest?”

Durable by design.

Tough flooring for demanding spaces. Conventional wisdom says carpet is a higher maintenance solution for education facilities. The Mohawk Group has proven conventional wisdom wrong. Our modular and broadloom carpet offerings can take a beating and stand the test of time while actually reducing maintenance costs. That’s because we engineer performance into every product we make. With proper routine maintenance, such as vacuuming and following simple cleaning instructions, carpet from The Mohawk Group will maintain its beauty for years to come. In fact, carpet will allow your custodial crew to clean more space in the same eight-hour shift than spaces with hard surfaces.* Let us show you the value of our carpet and how easy it is to protect your investment.

Can you maintain it?

Good maintenance preserves the appearance and retains the value of your flooring investment. This applies to any category of flooring

Choose lasting performance.

Soft or hard surfaces: performance products that fit the space. Education flooring needs change throughout a facility. Why should a one-floor-fits-all approach be expected to work everywhere when your priorities vary from stain resistance to quiet comfort to resilience under high traffic? Regardless of the space, the demand for maximum performance remains critical. The Mohawk Group specializes in fitting the right high performance product to each space to ensure ease of maintenance and the longest possible life cycle. Our hard and soft surface options promise exceptional durability, reduced maintenance costs and the option of replacing sections instead of whole areas. When your goal is performance, The Mohawk Group is the clear choice for the widest range of flooring options.

*Source: APPA. Custodial Staffing Guidelines/Clean Ops Staffing Package.

Contain your maintenance costs.

Tough flooring for demanding spaces.Duracolor is permanent stain resistance – not a topical treatment that can wash off or wear away. Its patented ability to resist stains is engineered into its molecular structure and has been proven effective in millions of yards of demanding installations. No other stain resistence is engineered into its molecular structure and has been proven effective in millions ofyards of demanding installations. No other stain resistance technology comes close to Duracolor’s record of success. The fact that Duracolor can be cleaned with water or a mild detergent means you don’t need expensive chemical cleaners and you can reduce maintenance time and labor costs. Most importantly, Duracolor extends the useful life of your carpet, and is warranted to last forever.

Colorstrand: performance and beauty. Carpet made with Colorstrand^® Solution Dyed Nylon combines enduring beauty with sustainable performance. With aesthetics that are unsurpassed by other solution dyed fibers, Colorstrand also resists color loss from cleaning chemicals and ozone degradation. In fact it’s five times more resistant to fading than conventionally dyed nylon fibers. Plus, Colorstrand’s 25% pre-consumer recycled content contributes to greener schools.

“How can I make our facility safer and reduce work related injuries from slips and falls?”

Slip and Fall Injuries

Minimizing slip and fall incidents – especially in high traffic areas – is easy and cost effective with the right flooring. Slips and falls account for as much as 43 percent of all non-playground injuries in schools.* The costs of these incidents are estimated to exceed $20 billion** for medical treatment alone. Students, teachers and school visitors are more likely to slip and fall in the areas where they do the most walking. But, if they’re walking on carpet, their chances of slipping and falling are greatly decreased. And if they do fall, they are much less likely to be injured because carpet cushions the impact.

Research shows 46% of falls on hard surfaces result in injuries requiring medical attention compared to 17% for carpet.

* Source: Michigan Federation of Teachers and School Related Personnel. “Top 5 Injuries in Schools: What every member should know.” Retrieved from http://www.aftmichigan.org/members/handbook/schoolinjuries.html

** Source: National SAFE KIDS Campaign (NSKC). School Injury Fact Sheet. Washington (DC): NSKC, 2004

“Can carpet actually reduce the amount of allergens in the air?”

High Traffic = High Dust

Corridors and classrooms experience a lot of foot traffic on any given day. All of that walking stirs up airborne particulates that students, teachers and visitors could potentially breathe. Fortunately, carpet helps by reducing the amount of dust and allergens in the air. Many particulates that fall to the carpet are held there and remain away from the breathing zone until they are removed by vacuuming or cleaning. On the other hand, walking on hard surfaces actually disturbs more particulates than walking on carpet and these remain in the air. So, for the highest traffic areas, The Mohawk Group can recommend carpet solutions that improve indoor air quality and create healthier facilities.

“Hard surfaces make it easier to clean up frequent spills. But are they really effective at resisting the transmission of bacterial, fungal and other types of infections?”

A Growing Concern.

Some areas just need more clean-up. By their very nature, bathrooms, cafeterias, science labs and entries require more maintenance. That’s where the most spills and wetness occur and it’s where hard surface flooring really excels. Spills on rubber, vinyl tile and other hard surfaces are easily cleaned. Properly cleaned hard surfaces will effectively resist the growth of bacteria, fungus and mold. The Mohawk Group’s next-generation hard surfaces meet the demands of the messiest areas and complement our carpets so you don’t have to sacrifice aesthetics for the highest functionality.tance technology comes close to Duracolor’s record of success. The fact that Duracolor can be cleaned with water or a mild detergent means you don’t need expensive chemical cleaners and you can reduce maintenance time and labor costs. Most importantly, Duracolor extends the useful life of your carpet, and is warranted to last forever.

Infection Control

No worries. Is flooring a factor in transmitting diseases, such as H1N1, or parasites, such as head lice? Carpet has never been linked to the spread of infectious disease, assuming proper maintenance is performed.* Further, flooring of any type is not a host for most parasites.* Studies have shown that carpet is no more likely to transmit infections than hard surfaces.** In fact, carpet is able to hold bio-contaminants and parasites, keeping them out of the range of contact for transmission and out of the breathing zone. Daily carpet vacuuming and routine cleaning have been shown to be highly effective in maintaining a healthy space.

Match the space with the right flooring. Today, carpet and hard surface flooring represent the ultimate multiple-choice test. The Mohawk Group’s full line of soft and hard surfaces allows you to pick the best flooring for each type of space, coordinating colors and designs to end up with an A+ for functionality throughout your entire school. * Source: Leib R., Rhode J. “Are those room finishes and cleaners safe?” Healthcare Design 2007 Vol.7(2)

** Source: Speare R., Thomas G., Cahill, C. correspondence to the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, AU, 2002

Taking a stand.

There’s a reason the majority of public school teachers have said they preferred carpet.* The reason is comfort – for those who are standing all day as well as for their students. Compared to hard surface flooring, carpet has demonstrated its ability to reduce fatigue and potentially disabling foot injuries. For elementary school kids who spend a lot of time learning on the floor, carpet also provides a softer, warmer environment – one, when properly maintained, that keeps kids safe from infection.

A carpet convert’s story.

With a new building planned for Naperville Central High School in Naperville, IL, Principal Jim Caudill had a once-in-decades chance to make sure that things were done right. On the advice of his architects at Wight & Co., he involved many teachers in the decision-making and even set up prototype classrooms to test flooring, seating, technology, etc. He encouraged out-of-the-box thinking to support the school’s successful, non-traditional educational approach.

The Goal:
Creatively think through all classroom components and how flooring can help make the whole learning environment function effectively.

The Result:
After testing VCT and other hard surfaces that were the first choices for flooring, the teachers overwhelmingly voted for carpet. They said carpet made the classroom quieter, more comfortable and increased interactivity.

While hard surfaces were preferred in science labs and hallways, Caudill found himself ordering carpet for the new classrooms, media center and faculty offices. After listening to his expert users, he agreed that carpet was the right solution for their learning environments.

How does the students’ ability to hear what is being taught effect the rate in which they assimilate information

Can flooring really have an effect on students’ performance in school and their ability to learn? If we can make our classrooms quieter and improve concentration just by installing carpet, it’s worth it.

Why are acoustics important in education environments?

Less noise, more learning

Have you heard? Carpet’s acoustic properties are unmatched by any other type of flooring. Studies have shown students in carpeted classrooms are better able to understand what teachers are saying, which helps improve student performance. Carpet also mutes background noise, which means teachers don’t have to talk as loud or strain their voices. Finally, carpet mutes loud noises so students can stay focused on their work.