Brent Bergham, left, and Fred Land display the 2015 Technology Award their business won for its newest product, RugLock.Fred Land, president and CEO of Chattanooga-based Spray-Lock, has a personal application for his company's new stay-in-place, aerosol rug adhesive.
His 87-year-old mother recently tripped in the bathroom and suffered injuries resulting in a hospital visit, followed by unpredicted complications and leading now to a dangerous situation.
"I guaran-dang-tee you, I'm going to treat all of their rugs," said Land.
Spray-Lock recently rolled out an aerosol adhesive called RugLock, in the company's words "a permanent spray-on, non-slip rug backing that secures rugs to surfaces including hardwood, hard tiles, vinyl flooring and carpet."
It's a solution concocted in Spray-Lock's Chattanooga lab with one purpose in mind: to keep rugs flat on the floor.
Spray-Lock has been making aerosol adhesives for commercial application since the mid-80s, when Land started working on the side developing aerosol flooring adhesives with a partner.
"Lordy," said Land. "We got in way over our heads."
But the partners knew it was a live-or-die venture, so they put their noses to the grindstone and made it work. They ultimately sold the startup and Land went on to start Spray-Lock.
Spray-Lock's manufacturing facility is in Chatsworth, Ga.
The company has provided commercial spray-on flooring adhesives to the biggest names in retail over the years, and Land says Spray-Lock adhesives are holding the floors down at many Wal-Mart, Payless Shoe, Cabela's and Gander Mountain stores.
A previous straight- to-consumer Spray-Lock product -- a spray-on wall tile adhesive -- didn't go well, so Spray-Lock abandoned the product, though it still gets plenty of commercial application.
But Land has bigger and better hopes for RugLock.
He said most people know the struggle of keeping a rug flat on the floor, whether because of pets or weak backing. Inventing a spray-on adhesive for home use seemed like a natural companion to the company's existing business, he said.
So Brent Bergham, a research and development chemist at Spray-Lock, went to work coming up with a solution that fit Spray-Lock's model of using aerosol and environmentally-safe, water-based adhesives.
It took over six months and more than 50 test runs, but Bergham ultimately delivered the formula for RugLock.
The key, says Land, is keeping the rug stuck to the floor but not so stuck that it can't be moved or washed.
"Basically, we wanted the characteristic of the rug, once it's coated with our adhesives, to be like a giant sticky note," he said. "Just enough adhesive to stay put where you put it."
RugLock was launched in August. It recently won the Best of 2015 Technology Award at The International Surface Event, one of the largest flooring trade shows in the country.
And though it was before Land's mother fell, he says home safety was always part of the thinking with RugLock.
The National Safety Council reports that in 2013, there were 21,819 injuries in the United States "associated with runners, throw rugs or doormats."
Injury descriptions often involve older victims and result in injuries ranging from light lacerations and bruises to concussions and back trauma.
Land said for now, customers have to either buy RugLock at www.ruglock.com or www.Amazon.com, or at select distributors, which can be found on the product's website.
He said Spray-Lock is currently development TV ads for the product and hopes to soon have RugLock on big box shelves.
"People are always looking for the latest game changer, and this is a game changer," he said.
Contact staff writer Alex Green at agreen@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6480.