Special "LVT, PVC, vinyl and laminate: click systems examined, a survey" 

Floor Forum International N° 127, December 2022

What are the click systems like, and which ones are currently the best on the market?
There are three distinct types of locking systems on the market – each with different advantages and disadvantages. The oldest system is the snapping or angling installation, like our 2G Angling, which is a robust system that can go down to floors as thin as 3 mm.

"Preview Domotex Hannover"

Floor Forum International N° 127, December 2022

‘We’re expecting a lot from Domotex, even with fewer exhibitors.’
Bijlard International, based in Zoetermeer in the Netherlands and producer of high-quality adhesives and kits, is taking part in Domotex in Hanover for the fifth time and will be at stand A41 in hall 22. Bijlard employs about 30 people and targets only professionals. We are familiar with the company for its parquet adhesive, but also for its production of wood, polymer, and contact adhesives. At Domotex, that parquet adhesive range will witness the launch of the latest product in the family. We asked owner Peter Bijlard and head of marketing and communication Jos Tourné about the new parquet adhesive and their participation in Domotex in general.
Peter Bijlard begins: ‘This adhesive is so new that we still haven’t made a final decision about what to call it. I can certainly assure readers that it’ll be worth coming along because this version represents a significant improvement in performances as compared to the average parquet adhesive.’

Special "Subfloors : part II"
Floor Forum International N° 126, November 2022

“It’s all about sustainability, on top of exceptional quality”
When you want to know more about underlays, it’s a good idea to contact Michaël Wensky, who is Key Account Manager with German Parkettfreund. Wensky mainly works as product manager for insulation materials and accessories for the installation of floors, after having spent the earlier days of his career in the general flooring business. We ask him first to situate Parkettfreund inside Küberit, to see what exactly the difference is between the two.

Special "How to prepare terrazzo, concrete, natural stone and such like for fitting wooden floors, PVC, vinyl, and laminate"

Floor Forum International N° 126, November 2022

‘We’re a one-stop partner; we literally have all solutions under our own roof.’
After incorporating businesses such as Blastrac and HTC, Husqvarna Construction can justifiably take pride in the fact that it offers machines and diamond tools for treating all floors, whether concrete, natural stone or terrazzo. The company thereby has all bases covered, from removal work and preparatory work to finishing the floor.

Special "Powder technology for the top layer of wooden multilayer floors"

Floor Forum International N° 126, November 2022

‘This product takes ecological awareness to new heights.’
A topic which we haven’t covered before is the use of powder technology to create top layers for wooden multilayer floors. To learn more about it, we spoke to Joris Philipsen, business development manager at Stöckl Parkett, Austria, which sells B:hard on the market. He explains the technology, which was developed by the Swede Darko Pervan (founder in 1993 of the well known Välinge).

Special "Top Austrian companies focused on export"

Floor Forum International N° 126, November 2022

“We offer wood products for the more demanding side of the market”
One of the leading woodworking companies in Austria is Admonter Holzindustrie AG. This company was founded in 1972 and celebrates its 50th birthday. It started as a sawmill and became a leading enterprise in the production of high-quality natural wood products for holistic room concepts, combining natural wood on floors, walls and ceilings. With a turnover of 69 million euros in 2021 and 280 employees, this is quite an achievement for a company that is owned by… the local Benedictine abbey.

Special "Staircase renovation"

Floor Forum International N° 126, November 2022

‘Strong points of PVC stand out more on a staircase.’
Some ten years ago, Mano Demmers, business director of the Dutch firm VICstairs, saw how PVC floors were conquering the market. And so, he thought, why not use that same PVC to make a stair cover. We bring out the strengths of PVC to the full, but not just on the floor, but also on the stairs.

Special "Air humidifiers for consumers: a necessity"

Floor Forum International N° 126, November 2022

‘Think beyond purely the wooden floor.’
In the air humidifier market, the originally German company Venta leads the international field, including with its Airwasher, which Venta launched in 1981. In a previous edition Hans van Beurden from Venta Benelux highlighted the importance of using an air humidifier with a wooden parquet floor, but this time he takes an even broader view. The reason for that lies partly in the revised legislation in the Netherlands at the start of this year. That new law stipulates that all new houses which are built from 1 January 2022 onwards must comply with various new regulations. The new law discourages the use of gas and obliges project managers to install either a heat pump or a heat recovery system, a so called WTW. Let that give air humidifiers extra wind in the sails.

Special "Top German companies focused on export"

Floor Forum International N° 125, September 2022

"Commitment to accelerated transition to sustainable production is bearing fruit"
If you talk about profiles among flooring professionals, there is a good chance that the first name that comes up is that of the German company Küberit. And that is not surprising. This company, founded 159 years ago and headquartered in Lüdenscheid, has been the market leader in profile solutions for floor and wall coverings for decades. In other words, it is a more than suitable discussion partner for what is currently going on in the German flooring market (and beyond).

Special "Subfloors"

Floor Forum International N° 125, September 2022

"The ideal underlay has to take a lot of factors into account”
Steico was founded in 1986 in Germany as a trading company for wood based products. The company went through numerous growth phases and developed into a manufacturer of a complete timber construction system. In 2011 Steico transformed from a German to a European stock company. Today it is the world market leader for ecological wood fibre insulation materials, complemented by its own integrated wood construction system.

Special "Producers of filling machines and the fillersl"

Floor Forum International N°125, September 2022

"The automation of the filling process has numerous advantages"
As a machinery and plant engineering group, the Austrian Wintersteiger AG acquired a global leading position in providing innovative solutions for customers in technically demanding niche markets. It does this in four divisions: Seedmech, Sports, Metals and Woodtech (et al.parquet, furniture and panels).

Special "Producers of distressing machines"

Floor Forum International N° 125, September 2022

“Market for ageing wood evolves every two to three years”
In the world of ageing machines for wood, the Italian companies Renzo Borgonovo Srl and FNT-Trabbatoni Stampi (the FNT as an abbreviation for Figli di Nando Trabattoni) have worldwide renown. Both companies are based close together in the north of Italy, in the vicinity of Milan, and have been working together since their inception more than 60 years ago. The first as a builder of the machines, the latter as the provider of the unique rollers that make the machines so state of the art.

Special "Be aware of the hazards of dust and provide maximum dust suction when sanding"

Floor Forum International N° 125, September 2022

"Aiming for efficient dust extraction today is a must"
When it comes to fight the dangers of dust in the workplace, German company FG Floortec, based in Bischofswerda (Saxony), is more and more a global reference. The company has a long history: for the origins of FG we have to go back to Berlin, more specifically to 1918, when the company was founded under the then name of Fritz Gross Elektromotorenwerk. This was a company specialising in the construction of electric motors.

Special "Colour oil and colour hard wax oil"

Floor Forum International N°125, September 2022

"Popularity of colour oils and colour hardwax oils is still on the rise"
How popular are colour oils and colour hardwax oils these days? That was our main question to Tassilo Hochstein, CEO/Managing Director of the German Heidelberg Coatings specialist Dr. Rentzsch GmbH. Mr Hochstein, who heads this company based in the town of the same name in the north-west of the German state of Baden-Württemberg, doesn't have to think for long: colour is on the rise, if possible even more so than before.

Special 'Isocyanate-free lacquers'

Floor Forum International N° 124, June 2022

‘We were already the pioneer in isocyanate-free work ten years ago!’
The rules for working without isocyanates are getting stricter each year and the floor covering industry has no exemption from those rules. The Italian company Tover realised more than ten years ago that a change was needed and in 2012 was a pioneer in the sector with the launch of Bella, its first isocyanate-free two-component lacquer. Marie-Claude Conversy, export manager, explains the policy of her company, which is specialised in wooden floor finish products: