Technology

Installation Innovation

Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Today’s locking systems, such as Välinge’s 5G, have been made to suit a variety of vinyl and rigid core products.

Locking and installation systems have helped make flooring easy to install for both professionals and DIY homeowners for decades — today’s technology also addresses the newer rigid and water-resistant flooring that have taken the industry by storm.

According to John Rietveldt, CEO of Innovations4Flooring (I4F), the majority of the market still relies on an angle-angle locking system for hard surface floorcoverings, but the advent of vinyl and rigid core products have yielded the need for the fold-down and drop-lock systems as well.

“I would say in the last two to three years there has been a main focus in the markets on the fold-down drop-lock patterns because the new materials, like LVT and SPC and WPC, have increased in the U.S., and since the characteristics [of the locking system] depend mostly on the material, it’s very different than with angle-angle locking systems. With these new materials, it’s not so easy to use angle-angle, the products are too flexible or too rigid. Therefore, this new focus on drop-lock solutions has really taken off.”

Meeting evolving product demands has been one of the biggest factors driving recent adaptations in locking systems — small changes have made a difference in terms of ensuring the performance of new water-resistant and waterproof products, said Adam Ward, senior product director of hardwood and laminate at Mohawk Flooring, which uses Unilin’s Uniclic joint.

“There are continual revisions to (the locking system) to make it better, so it’s not just that the locking joint was created and then we stopped; we’re constantly looking at how can we make that better,” Ward said. “Specifically, for laminate, but also other products. For instance, as Uniclic goes into LVT lines as well, there’s different configurations that are made. We expect that to continue into the future as the product mix continues to diversify into SPC and other rigid core products, and products that aren’t even on the market yet.”

Ease of installation, water-resistance and design flexibility — for example, the possibility to install in parallel rows as well as in patterns such as herringbone — are some of the important points driving innovation in locking systems today, said Fredrik Olsson, manager of business development at Välinge.

In order to develop high-performance locking systems, Välinge uses design tools including CAD and Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Samples of the new locking system ideas are manufactured using 3D printing, CNC (computer numerically controlled machining) or feed-through profiling in double-end entenoners in Välinge’s facility in Viken (Sweden), Olsson said. A double entenonor is a machine that profiles the ends of a board or tenon.

Installation ease
There are many important behind-the-scenes products that can enhance a floor’s overall performance and benefits such as additional soundproofing, moisture mitigation and new technology to speed installation.

For example, The World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) launched MagneBuild, a proprietary magnetic flooring underlayment system, in the U.S. this year at The International Surface Event. (It was launched internationally prior to the domestic introduction). One of the biggest factors in developing the product was helping to address the installation crisis by extending the careers of professional installers and creating a product that can be installed with minimal effort, said Scott Humphrey, CEO of WFCA.

“Its uniqueness is that it works in all fields of construction with the patent pending system, including floors, walls, ceilings, exteriors of homes, roofs, countertops, cabinets, baseboards, chair rails, trim, etc.,” Humphrey said.

MagneBuild works by first laying the flexible magnetic underlayment that only needs to be installed once to be permanent and only loses one percent of its magnetism every 100 years. It can work with any flooring product that utilizes iron ore in its base layer, either by attaching a receptive layer that includes the compound or by injecting iron ore into the floor during the manufacturing process (done primarily with carpet tile and resilient products), Humphrey explained.

Sunco America launched its wood-fiber underlayment domestically about two years ago, though the company has been selling the European-made product abroad for more than 10 years. It utilizes a “vapor open system” to offer moisture mitigation, said Milana Petrova, marketing specialist at Sunco America.

“Although this ‘breathing’ systems implies airflow, this is not necessarily the case,” Petrova said. “In essence, it allows a significant amount of water vapor (due to unexpected water spills or extreme temperature fluctuation) to be absorbed and released rather quickly in a process known as dynamic equilibrium; thereby regulating the room climate, enhancing indoor air quality and minimizing the possibility for mold or mildew growth in the surfaces in the home.”