Florida Tile, Inc., makes tiles of all sorts. They manufacture porcelain and other ceramic, along with glass, metal, and stone to produce tiles for indoor and outdoor use.
The R&D facility for Florida Tile is located in Sassuolo, Italy. Employees at that site research new tiles and new equipment. Most of the actual tiles for sale are produced in Kentucky.
Tiles are first fired in a mold (at 1200 degrees C, approx. 2,200 degrees F), then glazed. Some of the 'glaze' techniques used by the company actually involve digital printing, which permits the creation of a specific and high-resolution design.
Florida Tile makes a point of advertising environmentally friendly tiles. Although tiles themselves cannot be LEED-certified, they can make LEED certification easier. The company uses recycled materials and can be produced with few emissions.
Tiles are also durable and require replacement less often than other floors. They are easy to clean and do not release volatile compounds or dust into interior environments. Florida was one of the first companies to achieve Greenguard certification for its tiles; this indicates that their tiles release a relatively low amount of material over time.
Florida Tile offers a lifetime warranty for the original purchaser of its tiles. This warranty does not cover labor costs for installing or removing tile.
Florida Tile was founded in 1954 by Jimmy Sikes. The company originally produced specialty trim and now makes tiles of all sorts.
The company was bought by Panariagroup in 2006; it subsequently underwent a large expansion of its operations.
Florida Tile tiles are sold in more than 100 countries. All told, the company has about 1000 employees. Its headquarters is in Lexington, KY and its primary production facility is in Lawrenceburg, KY.