Walking the show floor at Coverings 2026, it was easy to get drawn into the excitement around new and improved tools. This is where innovation is centered around the installers, and these products stood out to me.
Best of Everything (BOE)
Visitors to the Best of Everything (BOE) booth got an early look at something tile installers have been asking for longer than almost any other installation tool: a kneepad designed from the ground up around how tile setters actually work.
The concept comes from installer and longtime BOE collaborator Grant Jones of San Diego, Calif. Jones is no stranger to turning jobsite frustrations into practical tools—he is the mind behind BOE’s Bucket Brush, Roto-Wedge, and other installer-driven products in the BOE lineup. His latest idea, currently in prototype, is the Roto-Flex™ Knee Pad. The design is still being refined ahead of the formal launch in the months ahead, aided by valuable input received from installers at Coverings.
The Roto-Flex Knee Pad rethinks a category that has seen very little meaningful change in decades. The goal is simple: better support, less fatigue, and a pad that holds up over the course of a long day—and a long career.
QEP
Two years after his first Coverings show, David Arnott–the UK-based, internationally-acclaimed and highly sought mosaic artist known for his portraits of celebrities and custom commissioned work for luxury brands and private owners–drew installers to the QEP booth to see his Artisan Power Nippers in action.
The newly released tile nippers are designed by Arnott, after years of wanting a tool that would better serve his needs. They have separate settings for porcelain, ceramic, and glass tile. The replaceable titanium carbide tips and three thickness settings (1/4”, 3/8”, 1/2”) deliver clean, controlled cuts with unmatched precision. The weight, grip, and tension of these nippers provide the confidence of a quality tool.
Arnott, who exudes a pure dedication to his craft, said he has ideas for other tools that he hopes to develop in the years ahead.
Bihui Tools
Bihui Tools showed a significant focus on efficiency and portability with its switchable-blade notched trowel set and interchangeable-blade grinder. The compact trowel set comes with six 11” x 4.5” stainless steel blades that can be positioned for a right- or left-handed application, thanks to the slide-lock comfort handle. Each blade conveniently slips into a lock case that serves double duty as a vented protective carry box. Emily Ransom with distributor Better Tools in Miamisburg, Ohio, explained that installers find it a nice way to protect their trowel investment.
Bihui’s multi-blade grinder polisher was also an installer magnet. It offers a variety of interchangeable diamond blades, polishing pads, and grinding cups.
Noble Company
Noble Company is launching its Npact™ high-performance sheet membrane and gave installers a sneak peek at Coverings. Npact is being billed as an affordable, high-performance sheet membrane that combines effective sound reduction, reliable waterproofing, and high-performance crack isolation.
Noble’s Jake Gabbert and Jacob Marchand boasted that Npact delivers strong acoustic performance with superior noise reduction, helping to minimize both impact and airborne noise, making it ideal for multi-family and mixed-use applications.
Npact meets ANSI A118.10 for waterproofing and ANSI A118.12 for crack isolation. It has passed the Robinson Floor Test with a Light Commercial rating, providing a durable, efficient solution for projects that demand sound control, moisture protection, crack prevention, or all of the above. Npact will soon be available through your local distributor and comes in a 6’ x 100’ roll.
GRABO
GRABO, known for its vacuum suction power with the ability to lift and move heavy tiles and just about anything else, listened to installer feedback and will soon release the GRABO Vibration Attachment. The add-on accessory is designed to help vacate air from the back of large-format tiles by collapsing the troweled mortar ridges behind the tile.
Dane Patton, GRABO’s Social Media Director, explained the vibration tool is designed to help installers meet the installation standards defined in ANSI A108.19 and A108.20.
The GRABO Vibration Attachment can lift up to 375 lbs., and now, it can help installers achieve better adhesion with porcelain panels.
Chris Woelfel
Chris Woelfel, M. Ed., is Partner and Business Manager at J.G. Woelfel & Associates, Tile and Stone Consultants. A member of the NTCA Technical Committee, she has long been an advocate for qualified labor and adherence to industry standards. She spent over 15 years in the tile contracting business at Artcraft Granite, Marble and Tile Company, with prior work experience as an award-winning journalist, video producer, external and internal communication strategist, and public relations director.
