Page 108 - History-of-flooringLR

Välinge – the no. 1

innovator of the hardened

wood flooring market

Välinge flooring at the HW Clarion Post Hotel in Gothenburg

There can be no other company operating in the wooden and wood floors were installed with mechanical click systems,
flooring sector which has been more influential in the history of based on Välinge technology.
hardened wood flooring than Välinge. As a company based on
innovation, it has been responsible for most of the key In 1996, Välinge and its licensee Alloc AS launched the world’s
development milestones in this sector over the last 30 years. first glue-free laminate floor with an advanced mechanical
locking system. This system received several patented
Although Välinge was founded in 1993, it can trace its history improvements between 1996-2001.
back to the late 70s. At that time Darko Pervan, who later went
on to found the company, was general manager of the laminate To support the further development of its expertise and to make
division at Perstorp. it more available to licensees from around the world, Välinge
opened its first lab, a training centre and an exhibition in
He was the leader of the team which developed the first ever Alvesta, Västmanland outside Stockholm in 1996. Many
laminate flooring panel. This development was the foundation distributors from several countries were trained to install floors
of Pergo and the whole laminate flooring industry, when this with Välinge’s mechanical locking systems.
new concept was introduced to the market by IKEA in 1979.

Darko Pervan went on to found Välinge in 1993, and in the
same year developed the world’s first mechanical locking system
which enabled wood and laminate flooring to be locked
together for a secure and durable fixing. This was also the year
that the company made the first of many patent applications.
Indeed, the company was primarily a technology and
innovation company, rather than a manufacturer, for the best
part of the next 30 years.

Starting in 1994 with Norske Skog (Alloc) for laminate floorings
and Kährs for wood floorings, the company made licence
agreements with flooring manufacturers all over the world. In
fact, the basic Välinge technology for locking floorboards
mechanically gradually became the world standard. During the Välinge founder, Darko Pervan
following decade close to one billion square metres of laminate

108 The History of Flooring