1. What are the prominent trends in flooring design for 2021?
Tiles have over the years become larger & larger. We see an increasing preference towards larger sizes. So 600×1200 mm and larger sizes will gain in preference.
The grey colour is being preferred by the consumers at-large and it is also the Pantone Colour of the Year. The grey colour tiles are versatile enough to be used across residential & commercial spaces. With that said, the market is yearning for newer tones lof blue, and subtle hues of yellow.
2. Given the needs and requirements for flooring is constantly changing, what are the few key considerations for flooring products in various industry sectors like commercial space, residential, etc?
You have to choose different products depending upon the need.
For example, in a data centre or any space handling sensitive electronic equipment or inflammable liquids, Orientbell’s anti-static Conductive tiles must be used to avoid electric sparks and currents.
On the other hand, floors which take a lot of heavy load and are subject to wear and tear (think of automobile garages, warehouses) Full Body Vitrified tiles will provide the strength required.
We also offer Forever tiles which are scratch resistant tiles (and germ free) and can be used in floors to avoid scratches. These tiles are specifically designed to withstand the harshest scratches and most ordinary everyday used materials like screwdrivers, stainless steel chairs will not scratch them.
Further talking about the commercial spaces, these places see a huge traffic of people which makes it difficult for round the clock sanitisation and cleaning process. To reduce the dependency, Anti-Viral tiles make it easier to maintain hygiene. These tiles kills 99% of viruses in 2 hours (as shown in external lab test results). Corporate canteens, hospitals, restrooms will all benefit from one more frontier to fight the battle against microbes.
3. What are some of the latest innovations in the flooring industry?
The flooring industry has seen a lot of innovation on the product front. However, the way tiles are being sold has remained the same for last few decades. Most people are over-whelmed in choosing the best tile from the huge variety of brands & designs available in the market.
I really believe that with new technologies, the way you select & buy tiles must be made simpler & more convenient. Today with our digital tools customers can
• find a similar-looking tile by just uploading a picture from Instagram or a photo (www.orientbell.com/samelook )
• find the tile for their project by using filters of colour, or project location or by other specifications
• play with the tiles being considered in pre-defined ambiences & visualise laying patterns, calculate wastage in a few seconds (Quicklook)
• get a personalised 3D Max render of the chosen tiles in your project layout along with recommendations from our own in-house designers (Trulook)
• Or even upload a photo of the actual sample flat to virtually try as many floor tiles from our range as you want to! (www.orientbell.com/Trialook )”
4. How has technology changed and improvised flooring products?
Technology has changed every aspect of the way the flooring product is manufactured, processed & sold. In the 90’s 300X300mm was a fairly common size. Today even 600x1200mm is increasingly popular.
We are using technology to make selecting & buying tiles easy.
In our factory even the way we are despatching Tiles to our customers is being changed with technology. Our despatch team can order trucks on our proprietary APP. When a truck reaches the gate the driver just shares his “pin” or a “code” sent by ssm to log his entry. From the point of entry, the trucks movement throughout the factory premises, its weight pre & post-loading, the time taken to load is captured digitally. In fact, when the truck leaves the factory an sms along with the invoice is sent to our customer.
Its incredibly powerful in empowering the front-line team with information about their activities. The time taken to load a truck has dropped by almost 40% with teams working passionately to improve their own performance. Infact, even discipline amongst truck drivers has increased with them planning their comfort breaks well before the truck is loaded!
5. What significant improvements have been made in flooring materials?
As a company we are environmentally conscious and have a high focus on sustainability. Most of our raw materials are sourced locally. Our digital tools are also reducing the number of samples lying around with our customers.
6. With a diverse range of offerings and services, could you share details of some of the latest flagship products?
We like to offer solutions tailored for each customer. They would typically combine some of the following unique products:
Anti-viral Tiles: These tiles are the only tiles that restrict the spread of viruses on the surface and kill more than 99% of the viruses in 2 hours. These tiles ensure the floors & walls remain safe and germfree even between cleaning cycles and have applications in hospitals, corporate restrooms, or restaurants.
Anti-Static Conductive Tiles: For server rooms, data centers or those handling sensitive electronic equipments or inflammables will benefit from these tiles that conduct static electricity preventing potentially dangerous electric sparks.
Full Body Tiles: They are heavy-duty industrial tiles majorly used in heavy-traffic areas such as: parking, mall facades, commercial complexes, educational institutes, even metro stations. As the name suggests Full Body tiles, the design of the tile is uniform across the tile body which makes it more durable and practical for commercial usage. Even a 50-ton truck can pass over the tile many times without damaging it.
Large GVT Tiles: Glazed vitrified tiles or digital glazed vitrified tiles are synonyms with marble designs, textures, and finishes. Our Inspire range has been designed by taking cues from nature’s best such as Statuario Marbles from Italy, Armani from Turkey or Sandstones from Australia. There are 35 designs, with finishes ranging from Super Gloss, Gloss, Matte, Baby Satin and Rocker. The range has a healthy mix of White’s, Beige’s, Brown’s and Grey’s which are must have colour palettes.
Cool Tiles: used on roof tops, terraces or even on sun-facing walls they are specially designed to reflect the heat and lower the energy requirements for cooling. On their own they can reduce indoor temperatures by 5-7O C.