Observers have described this year’s WFOY Members’ Choice award winning floor as “a room-size wooden jigsaw puzzle.” Field Operations Supervisor for Grain Design Flooring, Alex Hamilton, took on this challenging puzzle, assembling and installing more than 700 white oak tiles to create a mosaic-like installation NWFA members praised as “a seamless blend of artistry and execution.”
This flooring is part of the Oscar Ono Opus collection, comprised of small blocks of prefinished engineered white oak milled into abstract-shaped tiles. “The flooring tiles were sourced from Kaswell Flooring Solutions but came with no instructions,” Hamilton said. “However we soon realized there were two individual configurations, and the first trick was to figure out how the two went together.”
It turned out the two types of tiles–type A identifiable by its sharp acute triangle and type B a more subtle abstract design–were designed to be installed in an alternating pattern. To simplify the process, Hamilton’s team married up the two tile types and created a template. The process was further confounded by the fact that the type B pieces slid easily into the type A pieces, but not vice-versa. Hamilton’s team solved this problem and sped up the assembly by creating a grid that slid the Bs into the As and fashioned the two into a single piece.
“THIS KIND OF PROJECT IS HARD TO FIT INTO A SPECIFIC CATEGORY ... PEOPLE WERE CURIOUS AND WANTED TO KNOW MORE. I PERSONALLY HAVE NEVER SEEN A FLOOR LIKE THIS IN MY LIFE.”
— Alex Hamilton, Field Operations Supervisor for Grain Design Flooring
Given the floor’s intricate design, the installation required extreme precision. “The biggest challenge was keeping everything square and tight,” Hamilton said. He noted that once an issue appears in this type of project “a small gap will grow and become very noticeable.”
Hamilton’s solution was to join the interlocking panels with biscuits, creating a tongue-and-groove and then taping them into the panels. “Everything had to be biscuit-joined to keep the lines straight and the surface smooth and flat, so the sculpted edges stayed flush. The panels were then glued onto plywood using single pieces around obstacles and borders. The completed installation was 915 square feet, covering the main living area, foyer, and half bath. The pattern also extended to the treads of a spiral staircase, a task simplified by templating. The finished project took seven days and 142-man hours to complete, according to Hamilton.
“It is such an honor to be recognized by my peers in the industry,” Hamilton said. “I think other woodworkers saw this project as different, unique, intriguing, outside the box, fresh, exciting. This kind of project is hard to fit into a specific category. It’s not marquetry or basketweave or other common flooring techniques, so it raised questions. People were curious and wanted to know more. I personally have never seen a floor like this in my life.”
NWFA members voted online for the Members’ Choice award winner and praised this complex geometric residential floor for its technical difficulty, quality of installation, and overall appearance.
As proud as he is of having won this prestigious award, Hamilton said the real pinnacle of his career has been his work in developing an apprenticeship program to recruit, train, and develop the next generation of woodworkers. Once complete, the program will be implemented in Cincinnati area high schools, trade schools, and vocational schools. “Our company is committed to helping inspire young people see the building industry as a career and creating a roadmap so they can find success, first as an apprentice and then through stages as an advanced apprentice, journeyman, and master craftsman. I want young people to know you can do cool stuff with your hands, as a builder and an artist.”
Learn more about why members chose this installation for the 2025 Member’s Choice Award, from the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA)
