Mohawk is set to launch the largest number of hardwood looks in the company's history. Fueled by the company's purchase of Columbia Wood Flooring last year, Mohawk said it plans to roll out more than 150 hardwood SKUs through the year. Additionally, the company has debuted a new installation system and support materials for the line.

Ben McNabb, Mohawk Hard Surface brand manager, called the ambition plans "a huge leap forward" for the company. “Dealers understand we were serious about building the industry’s best hardwood line [five years ago]. Now we’re in a position to make a huge leap forward--and dealers will be seeing benefits quickly,” he said.

The new looks will be available in four collections. They include: Lineage, a range of domestic oaks; Revival, a line of premium domestic exotic woods; Rarity, featuring imported exotics in solid and engineered looks; and Artiquity, offering engineered hand-scraped, reclaimed and distressed.

“Products are being added across the board,” McNabb said.  “We’ve created new looks in areas where we may have had gaps in the past, and we’re enhancing strong products with additions that offer new sales opportunities. With these enhancements, Mohawk dealers will have a hardwood line that allows them to compete at virtually any price point,  from high-volume basics to unique designer styles that offer exceptional margins and quality."

In addition to a range of new finishes and species, the engineered products in  Mohawk's line will feature a new glueless installation system based on Unilin's Uniclic technology. The patented drop-lock system is aimed at offering fast, easy installations and secure locking.

The company has also rolled out a new "high-fashion" POP kit to promote the 2008 Mohawk Hardwood launch. According to McNabb, the kit is designed to alert consumers that Mohawk is a "total hard surface provider."

“When we began developing our hard surface products for 2008, we took extra care to look through the consumer’s eyes at our ideas,” he said. "In fact, we even went as far to create ‘personalities’ for product lines to further extend the connections we were trying to make with shoppers. I think the result of this work is that we’ve strengthened every element of our program-product, presentation, and performance,” he said.