Total Transformation

To satisfy a client, a contractor must be diligent and creative, and manage to come in at budget at the same time. The winners of this year’s Contractor of the Year (CotY) awards were able to do all of those things, and impress the judging panel in the process.

Honored by the Des Plaines, IL-based National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) at its recent “Evening of Excellence” in Austin, TX, winners were named in 27 categories ranging from residential kitchen and bath design to commercial projects. Contractors from seven regions across the country vie for the annual honors, which recognize primarily additions or renovations to existing structures.

The winning entries displayed the formula for client satisfaction: a successful marriage of thoughtful design and fresh innovation. From a request for a pink bathroom that wouldn’t remind the homeowners of Pepto-Bismol, to another’s desire to be able to open the dishwasher while standing in front of the cooktop, each project displays the winning contractor’s unique problem-solving solutions.

To be considered for the awards, projects must have been completed by NARI members in good standing, between July 1, 2005 and November 30, 2006 to be eligible. Preliminary judging took place at the association’s headquarters in early January, and regional winners were announced for each category in late April. The winners were then judged against one another by a panel of industry leaders, who evaluated each submission based on before-and-after photography and project description. The panel specifically weighed the overall problem-solving, functionality, aesthetics, craftsmanship, innovation and difficulty of the project, according to NARI.

View the award-winning kitchen and bath designs in the Project Spotlight section, under the current listing of projects (or the June 2007 section archive).