Export, Pa.—For Karndean Designflooring, the word “design” is more than part of the company name. That commitment to artistry, craftsmanship and creativity has just been recognized with a 2024 ADEX Platinum Award for new wood-inspired designs for its Karndean LooseLay collection.
The woods that inspire Karndean designs are hand selected from around the world—European forests to coastal Australia. In the skilled hands of the Karndean design team, the natural characteristics of the source materials are replicated and enhanced, capturing the distinctive grains, textures and markings of the original wood in a broad spectrum of color tones. Every Karndean design is an original, each with a story that’s just as unique.
“It’s difficult to think of an honor that could be more fitting,” said Samantha Lisi, vice president of commercial sales. “Led by our world-class design team, it’s a tribute to our entire company’s commitment to providing architects and designers with a premium product—one that delivers an unmatched combination of style, durability and performance. We’re proud and humbled by the recognition.”
Inspired by trees hand-selected in Australia, Shorebird Ash is a new design in the Karndean LooseLay collection. The wood used as source material is permanently marked by bush fires, creating strong variation in gentle tones.
Better for the planet
Made with the company’s K-Wave friction-grip backing to keep the flooring in place, Karndean LooseLay can be installed without full-spread adhesive. Individual planks and tiles are easily removed and replaced if damaged. Pieces also can be lifted and reused. The ability to remove and reuse Karndean LooseLay—which comes with a 15-year commercial warranty—extends the product lifespan and makes it more sustainable. Durable, high-quality flooring reduces impact on the waste stream, as well as resources needed to manufacture, transport and install replacement flooring.
Karndean LooseLay can meet criteria for sustainability-focused projects in a variety of ways, including:
- Earn LEED v4.1 points by virtue of product-specific Environmental Product Declarations
- FloorScore certified as low VOC
- FloorScore certification allows product to be used for WELL v2 projects
- Certified to NSF/ANSI 332, the foremost U.S. standard by which to evaluate and verify sustainability of floor coverings across the entire product life cycle