Coverings 2016 ends in Chicago

The twenty-seventh Coverings, the pre-eminent North American exhibition for the tile and stone industry, closed its doors on 21 April in Chicago. The exhibition was strongly attended and hosted 1,220 exhibitors from more than 40 countries.

Several country pavilions were set up in addition to the US exhibit organised by the Tile Council of America (TCNA).

The large Italian pavilion (122 companies and brands) organised by Confindustria Ceramica under the banner of Ceramics of Italy showcased hundreds of innovative products including high-end mosaics, porcelain tiles, large-format porcelain panels, antibacterial grout and simple installation systems. One of the key events was the presentation of the 26th Confindustria Ceramica North American Distributor Award, assigned to the distributor that has excelled the most in its dealings with Italian ceramic industry. This year’s winner, the company Ceramic Technics (Alpharetta, GA), stood out for its relationship with leading architecture and design firms, collaborating in particular on projects in the hospitality, healthcare and educational sectors.

Spanish ceramic excellence took centre stage in a country pavilion organised by ASCER and hosting 68 companies under the banner of Tile of Spain. The Spanish pavilion showcased a wide range of cutting-edge products and hosted a variety of initiatives. In particular, two seminars led by Ryan Fasan entitled "From Skin to System: Rethinking Ceramic’s Place in Design" and "User Experience Focus: Trends in Ceramics 2016" offered industry professionals some useful insights into innovation, large sizes and major trends in ceramics in keeping with UX design principles.

Coverings 2017 will be held in the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando from 4 to 7 April next year.