Premium Flooring Solutions

Press Release 

In May, at the National Institute of Flooring Inspectors convention in Calhoun, Ga., a meeting was held one evening with the following floor inspectors’ schools that provide superior educational classes. 

·  Certified Floor Inspectors University

·  Institute of Flooring Covering Inspectors International

·  Inspectors Training Services

The agenda was to discuss how to improve flooring Inspectors education and training programs. 

This meeting necessitated due to continuing complaints about the quality of inspection reports from retailers, general contractors, distributors, and installers concerning particularly trained inspectors not from these schools. 

A consensus was reached that to improve the trade, the schools need to work together to improve and promote their educational programs as a unified front. The schools agreed to work with NICFI to achieve these goals for the common good of the industry. 

Based upon those discussions, a webinar meeting was held this past June 23, with representatives from inspection schools and the Flooring Inspectors Educational Guild’s Peer Reviewed Inspectors who agreed to help with those programs. 

Over twenty-five of the country’s most experienced and educated floor inspectors, with experience ranging from 35 to over 50 years in the flooring trade as installers, manufacturers, and contractors, agreed to help. 

From this meeting a five-step program was adopted:

1.  An inspector mentoring program will be implemented to help advance inspectors’ education and training.

2.  For the mentoring program to be successful, the Peer Reviewed Inspectors will ban together their services as a national organization to promote their unique skills and services to cover their expenses for this noble cause sharing their knowledge and experience.  

(The mentors, with humor and grace, agreed to be called, “Elder Inspectors”.)

3.  It was agreed to increase the number of Peer Reviewed Inspectors to thirty or thirty-five members to meet the number of inspectors seeking mentoring. 

4.  Classes by the inspection schools and the Guild will be recognized by each school for continuing educational credits to help inspectors receive a broader, more inclusive, and comprehensive educational and training experience to improve their skills. 

Many of the schools’ instructors are members of the Peer Reviewed Inspectors, but the need for individual mentoring requires more involvement from the Elder Inspectors.

5.  The Peer Reviewed Inspectors, NICFI and the Inspection Schools, with the Guild,  will have meetings to discuss improving programs and help develop future seminars each year where special classes will be taught to all types of flooring professionals, not just inspectors, to improve the overall quality of work for all involved in the floor trade. 

The mentored inspectors who seek to join the mentoring program will have an advance designation and upon completion, will be eligible to join with the Peer Reviewed Inspectors.