CTEF to Demonstrate ‘GPTP By the Standard,’ Promote ACT at Coverings

CTEF Demonstrates “GPTP By the Standard”, Promotes Advanced Certifications for Tile Installers (ACT) at Coverings 2022The Ceramic Tile Education Foundation (CTEF) invites the tile industry to CTEF Booth N3163 for a demonstration of “GPTP By the Standard” and to witness the Mud Walls and Mud Floors Advanced Certifications for Tile Installers (ACT) program tests during Coverings, the Global Tile & Stone Experience, taking place in Las Vegas, NV from April 5 through 8, 2022.

GPTP stands for Gauged Porcelain Tile and Gauged Porcelain Tile Panels/Slabs and is one of the ACT areas of certification. During “GPTP By the Standard,” on Tuesday, April 5th, Scott Carothers, CTEF, and Lupe Ortiz, International Masonry Training and Education Foundation (IMTEF), two of the six leading tile industry organizations to have developed the ACT program, will demonstrate in detail the requirements for installing this demanding tile product. They will make formal comments from 11 a.m. to noon and 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

“On Tuesday, CTEF and IMTEF are providing a broad overview of the ANSI Standards for Gauged Porcelain Tile and Gauged Porcelain Tile Panels/Slabs, aka GPTP,” explains Carothers. “We will focus on these tile industry standards to provide our viewers with a comprehensive background on the proper methods required in a high-quality GPTP installation. The topics to be covered will include job site requirements, material handling requirements, cutting, and fitting, mortar spreading, embedding the tile, and most importantly, how to handle these products safely to avoid any possible injury to those involved by adhering to the regulations and guidelines of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).”

On Wednesday, April 6th and Thursday, April 7th, CTEF and IMTEF installers will complete the ACT Mud Walls and Mud Floors tests as follows:

  • IMTEF installers will take the Walls ACT test on Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. while Jason McDaniel CTI #1273 and Carl Leonard CTI #1393 take the Floors ACT test from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Joe Lima CTI #1487 and Mike Foster CTI #1735 will take the Walls ACT test on Thursday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. while IMTEF installers take the Floors ACT test from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

On Friday, April 8th, those interested can visit Booth N3163 to meet the CTEF and IMTEF teams and discuss the ACT program in greater detail. This includes those companies interested in partnering with CTEF to host ACT test events.

The ACT program evaluates the skills and knowledge of tile installers with certifications in nine specific areas of tile installation (Grouts, Membranes, B415, B421, B421C, LFT, Mud Floors, Mud Walls, and GPTP). An installer may choose to become ACT certified in one or more areas. ACT certified installers represent the pinnacle of performance in the tile trade and maintain a level of excellence superior to non-ACT certified installers.

The program came about to offer consumers greater confidence that their tile installers follow tile installation procedures that exceed ANSI standards and TCNA guidelines for floor and wall. In addition to CTEF and IMTEF, the tile industry organizations involved in creating the ACT program include:

  • The International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (IUBAC)
  • The National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA)
  • The Tile Contractors’ Association of America (TCAA)
  • The Tile Council of North America (TCNA).

To learn about the ACT program, visit https://www.ceramictilefoundation.org/advanced-certifications-for-tile-installers.For more information about CTEF, visit https://www.ceramictilefoundation.org/about-us.

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