FCICA, the Flooring Contractors Association, is excited that On-line Registration is Now Open for our 2013 Mid Year meeting being held in Pittsburgh, PA, October 2 - 4, 2013, at the Sheraton Station Square.

The Educational Sessions on Thursday October 3^rd will include the following:

Preparing and Verifying the Labor Estimate – This educational session will concentrate on preparing an accurate labor estimate and then verifying the estimate.  The first area involves creating an accurate estimate that includes all technical aspects, documentation and calculations.  The second area will cover investigating the project and reviewing job site conditions, then comparing them to the estimate, prior to installation.  Time will be allotted for questions as well as discussion on past problems regarding poor labor estimates that have been encountered by participants. Presenters:  Pete Larmore of Bonitz Flooring Group and Terry Wheat of RFMS.

Grout:  Color and Cleaning – Grout makes up approximately 5% of the materials used on a tile/stone installation, but can result in approximately 95% of the project's problems if not installed correctly.  To help minimize these problems, this presentation begins by summarizing the purpose of grout in ceramic tile/stone installation systems.  You will quickly learn about the different types of grout technologies, plus how to identify and solve problems while on the jobsite.  We will also discuss contemporary topics such as installer safety and how different grout options are designed for applications in a variety of environments.  Finally, you will understand the proper techniques to be used when installing each type of grout to help in a successful installation and customer satisfaction.   Presenter: Tom Plaskota of HB Fuller Construction Products

Concrete as a Flooring Option - This educational session will focus on the various techniques available on the market that can create finished floors from concrete.  Topics such as polishing, staining, stamping and micro toppings will be discussed.  Each topic will include an overview on the equipment and skill sets required to achieve the desired effect.  Also discussed will be maintenance requirements of finished concrete floors.  The objective of the presentation is to give the audience an overview of the types of techniques used to create finished flooring systems from concrete.  The audience will also lean about the various concerns of concrete as a finished floor in terms of hardness, traction and moisture emission.  Concrete is a durable and environmentally sound flooring system that can offer a myriad of designer effects and when properly prepared and maintained will last a lifetime.  Presenter: Jeff Johnson of MAPEI

Challenges of Planning the Job - Let your voice be heard in this interactive session facilitated by Gerry Swift of CCA Floors and Interiors.  In "Challenges of Planning the Job", attendees will review the process of planning projects and then openly discuss the "best practices" to resolve obstacles that installation managers deal with on a daily basis.  We will collect these "practices" and incorporate them into our installation manager training program.  Join us and become a part of the process.    Facilitator:  Gerry Swift of CCA Floors and Interiors.

Don’t hesitate and register today at the FCICA website at www.fcica.com under the ‘Highlights’ section on the main page.