60-Second Interview: Rudy Owens
Quick-fire questions with the contract manger at Ideal Interiors Southern, including how he went from retail to flooring and what he loves most about the industry.
How did you get into the flooring industry?
It was during lockdown. I was working at Ikea on reduced hours. I already knew the director at our company, and I asked if there was any work that I could pick up here and there. I enjoyed it and went from there. After spending a year and a half on site with the lads, I moved into the office and started managing contracts, which was the plan from the start.
What’s been the biggest change in the industry over the past ten years?
Obviously, I can only speak about direct experiences over the past few years, but the kinds of the jobs that we are involved in have changed a bit, prompted by lockdowns. As more people have been working from home, we’ve had fewer office fit-outs. Instead, we’ve been doing more public sector projects, including schools and hospitals.
Looking forwards, what do you think will be the biggest change in the next ten years?
It’s difficult to predict the future, but I think that we’ll see an increasing preference for vinyl over carpet tiles. Again, this is linked to changes arising from lockdown.
I expect that we’ll probably see more environmentally friendly products, in line with demand as companies look to reduce their carbon footprint.
What’s the best job you’ve been on?
It could be one that I’m currently working on in a new hospital emergency ward. It is over three floors and involves lots of bespoke designs and border work. These sort of big jobs give you a lot of satisfaction when you finish and you can look back on them.
And what’s the worst?
I can think of one where we had to cut carpet in a building separate from where we were working and had to crane it in. It was tough logistically.
Do you have a go-to product for certain jobs?
We are very much an F. Ball adhesives company. We use a lot of Styccobond F44 for vinyl and F57 with vinyl SDTs (Static Dissipative Tiles) in areas where static build up may be problematic, such as in hospitals and laboratories. We also use F. Ball’s Styccobond F41 tackifier for carpet tiles and F60 for capping and coving, as well as Styccobond F3 for floorcoverings such as entrance matting.
For subfloor prep, we always use Stopgap 1200 where old adhesive residues are present. Both Stopgap P131 and Stopgap P141 are our primers of choice, and we’ve just started using the new Stopgap 1400.
What is your least favourite thing about the job?
Probably having to work around other trades and being dependent on them. As a finishing trade, everything falls on us when there’s pressure to complete a project.
What do you like best about the job?
The responsibility and the variety that comes with getting to work across multiple sites and travelling between them, as well as networking and meeting new people and the opportunity to work for different individuals and organisations. I also find it very rewarding to see projects through from the tender stage all the way to handover.
