Each year, Total Solutions Plus (TSP) brings the ceramic tile industry together to network and learn from each other. The 2017 conference was held at the Marriott Washington Wardman Park in Washington, D.C. More than 700 tile professionals attended, making it the highest turnout for a TSP of all time. Attendees visited more than 100 tabletop exhibits during the networking night where contractors and distributors were treated to an evening of product knowledge and new technologies.
The conference sessions gave professionals a complete update of issues affecting the tile industry. The team at Laticrete, which presented an uplifting economic report at the conference, reported that 2017 tile consumption will finish 4% ahead of last year. Economic indicators show strong consumer confidence, unemployment is good at 4.1%, 30-year mortgage rates continue to be low and inflation is low at 2.1%;, and the U.S. gross domestic product is above 2.