CEVISAMA, the International Ceramic Tile Fair, recently took place at the Feria Valencia center in Spain.
The Spanish tile industry continues to be vibrant and sales are on the rise for a third year. Spain has grown its tile exports, further solidifying their leadership position at the forefront of technology and design. As a result, Spain is currently Europe's leading ceramic tile producer, and the second largest exporter at worldwide level.
Spain's ceramic tile sector exports grew by 8%. It is estimated that total sales by the Spanish ceramic tile industry will have hit 2.8 million euros by the end of 2013. Exports to the USA rose by more than 22%.
The following provides a brief overview of some of the key trends and new products featured at CEVISAMA:
1. Encaustic and Hydraulic
Classic encaustic ceramic hydraulic cement styles in a wide variety of colors and geometric patterns continue to attract attention. From distressed antique to contemporary colors, the mixed pattern look was everywhere at the fair and was shown on walls, floors and counter surfaces.
2. Beveled
Beveled tile adds dimension, depth and interest to a subway tile pattern. Tile textures and geometric shapes give designers flexibility to take classic looks and recreate them in new, interesting ways.
3. Geometric and Fashion Inspired
Geometric shapes such as hexagons and fashion inspired Victorian reliefs or herringbone patterns offer a fresh vantage point - outside the rectangular or square box. Shapes also provide a crafted or artisan feel given the attention to detail in execution. Mix and match patchwork takes this effect even further.
4. Technology Advances
New 12mm countertop slab sizes in 5'x10' dimensions were launched by Inalco and Neolith. Inalco presented a unique material with the resistance of porcelain tile combined with an innovative translucent quality called Poise. It allows designers to have light show through the surface.
Touché is another new addition to Inalco's range, standing out in this case for its ultra-white surface, a pioneering achievement in porcelain tile design. This degree of whiteness provides a better background for the creation of classical high-quality marble-effect tiles.
Relonda introduced a single fire product with reactive metallic glaze. Kefrin is a beautiful and accessible metallic concept.
5. Oxidized and Fossilized
Spain manufacturers continue to push the envelope on wood looks creating new petrified or fossilized concepts that have a stone-like appearance. Oxidized looks were also prevalent incorporating rust, blue and metallic tones for a contemporary industrial feel.
Related Stories
| Nov 19, 2013
Top 10 green building products for 2014
Assa Abloy's power-over-ethernet access-control locks and Schüco's retrofit façade system are among the products to make BuildingGreen Inc.'s annual Top-10 Green Building Products list.
| Nov 15, 2013
Metal makes its mark on interior spaces
Beyond its long-standing role as a preferred material for a building’s structure and roof, metal is making its mark on interior spaces as well.
| Nov 13, 2013
Installed capacity of geothermal heat pumps to grow by 150% by 2020, says study
The worldwide installed capacity of GHP systems will reach 127.4 gigawatts-thermal over the next seven years, growth of nearly 150%, according to a recent report from Navigant Research.
| Oct 30, 2013
11 hot BIM/VDC topics for 2013
If you like to geek out on building information modeling and virtual design and construction, you should enjoy this overview of the top BIM/VDC topics.
| Oct 18, 2013
Researchers discover tension-fusing properties of metal
When a group of MIT researchers recently discovered that stress can cause metal alloy to fuse rather than break apart, they assumed it must be a mistake. It wasn't. The surprising finding could lead to self-healing materials that repair early damage before it has a chance to spread.
| Sep 30, 2013
Smart building systems key to new Wisconsin general aviation terminal’s net zero target
The Outagamie County Regional Airport’s new 8,000 sf general aviation terminal was designed to achieve net zero.
| Sep 19, 2013
What we can learn from the world’s greenest buildings
Renowned green building author, Jerry Yudelson, offers five valuable lessons for designers, contractors, and building owners, based on a study of 55 high-performance projects from around the world.
| Sep 19, 2013
6 emerging energy-management glazing technologies
Phase-change materials, electrochromic glass, and building-integrated PVs are among the breakthrough glazing technologies that are taking energy performance to a new level.
| Sep 11, 2013
BUILDINGChicago eShow Daily – Day 3 coverage
Day 3 coverage of the BUILDINGChicago/Greening the Heartland conference and expo, taking place this week at the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza.
| Sep 10, 2013
BUILDINGChicago eShow Daily – Day 2 coverage
The BD+C editorial team brings you this real-time coverage of day 2 of the BUILDINGChicago/Greening the Heartland conference and expo taking place this week at the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza.
