- Registration Closed
Receive hands-on advice on how to specify products and materials, address health and environmental concerns, and build strong relationships with manufacturers and vendors.
Impress your professors and future colleagues by knowing exactly which questions to ask when specifying products and materials on a project.
What You Will Learn
- Important considerations when specifying materials
- How to address material health and safety concerns to ensure the well-being of building occupants
- How to work most effectively with manufacturers’ representatives and build strategic relationships
- Key questions to ask vendors about products and materials
Core Content
2021 Summer Series: In Conversation: The Designer-Rep Relationship
Some of the most important relationships you’ll build in your design career are with manufacturer and vendor reps. Reps are often invaluable resources for your projects, helping you to find the right solution when specifying materials, finishes, furniture and other products. Hear the designer’s perspective on how to effectively engage with reps and how they’ve leveraged these relationships throughout their career. Then get the rep’s take on how they help designers on their projects and in making connections across the industry.
Featuring: Madison Kester, ASID, Senior Interior Designer, CBRE Design, Nicole Ruffing, Designer Account Executive, Sherwin Williams, and Jon Strassner, LEED AP, Director, Industry Partnerships, ASID (Host)
Eight Attributes of Contract Furniture
Become a more informed specifier through this exploration of the eight key attributes of contract furniture. You’ll gain insight into the crucial factors to weigh in your decision-making, including performance, sustainability, and health and wellness. Understand the tools you can use to assess each of these eight attributes, and evaluate the optimal balance in order to create spaces that meet unique design criteria and work effectively for the occupants.
Healthy Materials Sourcing and Selection
Gain the knowledge you need to recognize materials that could be harmful to human health, and how to find alternatives when specifying. Dr. Andrew Dent of Material ConneXion will walk you through scenarios to illustrate areas of concern and provide examples of situations where healthful alternatives are necessary. You will learn key questions to ask and how to navigate ratings and points systems to evaluate materials’ impact on human health.
In Conversation: Product Intros and Perspectives
Ever wonder how designers navigate through new products and materials as they consider what is best for their clients and projects? Listen in on a series of conversations between leading designers and their reps as they review new products. You will leave with an understanding of the questions to ask when evaluating products, how to navigate relationships with product reps, and fresh insight on what’s up and coming from manufacturers.
- ROUND ONE
- Segment 1: Wood Flooring: Listen as Mindi Weichman, Design Director, Studio O+A, learns about wood flooring options for a new workplace project from Todd Youngs, Founder and Sales Representative – Northern California, Todd Contract.
- Segment 2: Plumbing Fixtures: Hear all about new plumbing fixtures from Jason Reynolds, Director of Hospitality and Architecture and Design, Fortune Brands Global Plumbing Group, as he presents options to Krista Ninivaggi, Allied ASID, Founder, K&CO, for a new condo project.
- Segment 3: Textiles: Listen in on a conversation between Kia Weatherspoon, NCIDQ, ASID, President/ CEO, Determined by Design, and Melanie Ambridge, Sales Representative, Momentum Textiles & Wallcovering, and learn about textile options for a new multi-family residential project.
- ROUND TWO
- Segment 1: Furniture: Listen as three designers from Chambers, Leslie Foster, ASID, Senior Interior Designer/Associate, Megan Hochman, ASID, NCIDQ, Director of Interior Design – DC/Senior Associate, and Patricia Sampson, NCIDQ, Senior Project Manager, Senior Associate, discuss tabletops and other product needs for their hospitality projects with Eddie Weber of The Weber Team.
- Segment 2: Tile: Hear all about new tile lines from Amy Gay, Architectural Sales Representative, Daltile, as she presents options to Melissa Moseley, ASID, NCIDQ, CID, LEED AP, Senior Interior Designer, HDR, for her healthcare projects.
- Segment 3: Home Technology: Listen in on a conversation between Shundra Harris, ASID, RID, Founder | Principal Designer, Shundra Harris Interiors, and Pamela Cortes, Echo Workshop, and learn about home technology and entertainment options for residential projects.
- ROUND THREE
- Segment 1: Paint: Listen as designer Susan Guest, ASID, Owner, Guest Interiors, discusses various options for specifying paint with Shane Jones, Allied ASID, Design Account Executive, Sherwin-Williams Paint.
- Segment 2: Surfaces: Hear all about new options for countertops and other surface applications from Stacy Montero, Manhattan City Manager, Cosentino, as she presents new products to Young Huh, Principal and Founder, Young Huh Interior Design, for her residential projects.
- Segment 3: Furniture: In a departure from our typical "In Conversation" format, Emily Denisar, Regional Director of Sales, Davis Furniture, tells the story of her unique career path as a designer, having worked for a design firm, a multiline rep, a furniture dealer and a major manufacturer.