French oak flooring aged to perfection
With its new 801 surface finish for French oak, premiering at DOMOTEX 2020, solid wood specialist Chêne de l’est is demonstrating its finesse in developing floor finishing processes that are hard to distinguish from natural aging.

French family company Chêne de l'est is located close to the German border, not far from Saarbrücken. It specializes in ready-to-lay solid parquet and engineered flooring in lacquered, oiled and wax-finish designs. Founded by the carpenter Joseph Bach, the family business is now run by his four children - who recently decided to add multilayer parquet to the production program. Together with the company's vast expertise in surface treatments and traditional aging effects, this means Chêne de l'est can now offer an even wider variety of premium products. Its innovative new creation, set to be unveiled at DOMOTEX 2020 in Hannover, opens up even more possibilities.

The new 801 surface finish is specifically designed for use on solid wood and engineered parquets made of French oak. The aim is to produce a very specific finish based on variations ranging from light to dark gray tones that give the wood the highly sought-after look of an elegant floor that has gracefully aged over time. Not only that, but a passing resemblance to driftwood, with its weathered irregularities, adds a very special and unique touch. The beauty of the wood is further embellished by revealing its natural structures, while the aging edges underscore the blade width. Preferably laid in a chevron or herringbone pattern, the highly resilient planks are suitable even for areas with heavy footfall thanks to the use of matured French oak (PEFC-certified). The manufacturer, who also supplies the appropriate cleaning products for this exquisite flooring, predicts it will stand the test of time, lasting 70 years on average.
Chêne de l'est (57910 Hambach, France), Hall 13, Stand B66
Contact: Jean-Michel Bach
Tel.: +33 3 879 80 342
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A power to subdue winter storms
"The restraint is so compelling, the total effect so sublime" - that is how Creative Matters describes the "Balthazar" design from the Halcyon collection, which it is unveiling to the public at DOMOTEX 2020.

For more than 30 years, Creative Matters' talented and inspired team of designers in Toronto has been working with interior designers and architects to create exceptional floor and wallcoverings for luxury hotels, boutique retailers, stylish offices, elegant homes and diplomatic missions around the world. This extensive experience has enabled the Canadian company to nurture a roster of the finest artisans - those uniquely capable of realizing the highest-quality creations. From hand-knotted rugs in Nepal to custom printed carpets in Denmark to felted wallcoverings in China, Creative Matters entrusts its designs only to the few who have truly mastered the technique. The results are a feast for the eyes - as visitors to DOMOTEX 2020 in Hannover will be able to see for themselves. One of the latest creations from the Canadian artists is being presented for the first time at the fair - "Balthazar" from the Halcyon collection.

The halcyon is the bird of Greek mythology that has the power to calm the rough ocean waves for seven days every December so she can nest. Like those calm waters, halcyon has come to mean a sense of peace or tranquility, which is what the designers felt as they first handled the samples that arrived from Nepal for the company’s tenth collection. These samples measure roughly 60 x 90 cm and are sent by the mills so the designers at Creative Matters can review and edit any details until perfection is achieved. The "Balthazar" design from the Halcyon collection is a blend of eight gray tones from charcoal through to dove circulating harmoniously around pools of silken pearl. It is a mixture of gray and cream that has an oddly alluring effect, one that certainly seems strong enough to draw a judge’s eye, since the design secured its first awards just a few weeks after being published. The subtle texture, which is flawlessly woven as part of an ancient tradition, comprises extraordinary wool from Tibetan sheep and the finest Chinese silk.
Creative Matters Inc. (M6S 2C2 Toronto, Canada), Halle 3, Stand G15
Contact: Amie Suttie
Tel.: +1 416 9349771
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Bottom up is best!
Unifloor Underlay Systems is expanding its successful and certified Jumpax dual underlay system in time for DOMOTEX 2020. The latest addition to the range is the versatile "Universal" variant, which the company claims is ideal for both renovation and new-build projects.

No matter how beautiful a building's architecture is, it's pretty pointless if the foundations aren’t strong enough to support it. Sounds obvious, but it's the kind of truism that may well have caused some sleepless nights for Bonanno Pisano, one of the figures behind the Leaning Tower of Pisa. However, it isn't just towers that need a stable footing - if floor coverings are going to last a long time and fulfill their function in fine style, they too need a sound substrate. Few understand that fact as well as the developers at Unifloor Underlay Systems in the Netherlands. For more than 30 years, the company has been a leading international specialist in subfloor technology, spanning dry-lay floor preparation, floating installation, noise reduction, acoustic enhancement, or simple and modular designs for rapid installation. Exhibiting at DOMOTEX 2020, the company is showcasing a wide range of the options it offers, including Jumpax Universal, the latest addition to the prestigious Jumpax product family.

Jumpax Universal is a floating subfloor that exhibits outstanding leveling properties and is ideal for renovation projects and new-builds alike. The system consists of a water-resistant base board and a very smooth water-resistant top board that unite to create a completely level and very stable subfloor construction. The smooth surface of Jumpax Universal ensures elastic floor coverings such as LVT, cork, linoleum and carpet can be laid and glued down straight away. The system is also ideal for use with underfloor heating systems and in rooms where high fire retardance performance is required. What’s more, Jumpax Universal is free of formaldehyde and can achieve an impact sound reduction of up to 21 dB when combined with a resilient floor covering such as LVT.
Unifloor GmbH (41069 Mönchengladbach), Hall 13, Stand C24
Contact: Rüdiger Dicke
Mobile: +49 174 919 20 30
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The Low-down on high performance!
Low & Bonar, the home of high-performance polymer-based materials, is coming to DOMOTEX 2020 with a wide range of its Colback non-wovens and the brand new Colcore Sonic acoustic underlay, which features outstanding leveling and noise insulation properties.

Low & Bonar is a leading international group that manufactures high-performance materials across a wide range of sectors, from automotive and civil engineering and building. The company has customers in over 60 countries and production plants in Europe, North America and China. It is in these locations that Low & Bonar develops and manufactures components based on a broad portfolio of polymers, including high-quality yarns, industrial textiles, composite materials and geosynthetics.

At DOMOTEX 2020, Low & Bonar is showing how the floor covering industry can benefit from its materials. The Colback nonwovens cover the company's technical materials that are used as primary and secondary backings in carpets, flooring and automotive interiors. The unique and highly versatile Colback technology enables the production of nonwovens that are optimized for specific process parameters and application requirements. Besides showcasing the Colback range, Low & Bonar is also unveiling its brand-new Colcore Sonic acoustic underlay in Hannover, a light weight yet strong underlay on a roll which aims to impress with outstanding leveling and noise-insulating characteristics.
Low & Bonar B.V. (6827 AV Arnhem, Netherlands), Hall 11, Stand B43
Contact: Heleen Berendsen
Tel. +31 85 744 1275
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Change up your decor without leaving the house!
active online is at DOMOTEX 2020 to reveal its brand-new AI tool for automatically visualizing floor installations.

active online GmbH helps manufacturers, traders and floorlayers harness the power of cross-media and interactive sales promotion by depicting their various different solutions in colorfast, photograph-like detail. Its techniques work as well on paper as they do for online media, mobile solutions, point-of-sale displays, digitalization and digital printing. At DOMOTEX 2020, the company is seizing the perfect opportunity to unveil its AI tool for automatic, virtual flooring installations.

In the blink of an eye, the AI tool visualizes the floor of any photographed room to provide an instant, authentic idea of whether it would be a good match. All users have to do is upload their photo into the tool and pick out their favorite floor covering - and straightaway they can see how the new floor would look in their home. The AI tool automatically recognizes the floor area and - factoring in any chair or table legs, plants and pieces of furniture - simulates the flooring in the room with pinpoint precision. This impressive piece of tech even replicates the original lighting and shadows to offer a truly realistic representation. "Our customers have been waiting a long time for a simple solution like this for personalized product visualization," says Frank Schmied, Managing Director of partner company ESIGN, summing up the extremely positive response so far. "This heralds a new era of visual customer targeting." Besides depicting how floors would look, this nifty tool boasts a range of additional benefits that staff from active online and ESIGN will be more than happy to show to DOMOTEX visitors.
active online GmbH (46485 Wesel, Germany), Hall 12, Stand B28/2
Contact: Simone Neureiter
Tel.: +49 281 319261-23
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Super speedy skirting!
KARL PEDROSS AG is at DOMOTEX 2020 to unveil its new "Clipstar Fast" clip-in, tool-free system for installing skirting boards. This innovative, simple-to-use solution is set to break records when it comes to installation speeds.

In 1956, when South Tyrolean Master Carpenter Karl Pedross took the plunge into self-employment, he couldn't possibly have imagined the amazing journey that lay ahead of him. It was in the 1970s that his entrepreneurial instinct really came into its own, when he decided to focus completely on natural wood skirting boards. That decision paved the way for success after success right up to the present day, not to mention stable growth. Today's KARL PEDROSS AG - part of the PEDROSS Group - consists of several independent and successful companies. Along with the VICOVER business unit, BÜRKLE Leisten & Profile GmbH and PEDROSS America LLC, PEDROSS has joined the world’s leading pioneers in the development, manufacture and marketing of flooring accessories, veneer edges and veneer and foil surfaces.

Exhibiting at DOMOTEX 2020, PEDROSS has a brand new innovation to unveil. Clipstar Fast is a tool-free, clip-in system for fitting skirting boards that has been designed to win over customers with its extreme ease-of-use and record-breaking installation times. The invisible, patent-pending fastening system for the familiar PEDROSS standard milling promises to consign unsightly drilled holes and the mess they make to the past once and for all. The practical tension force of Clipstar Fast also ensures that installation work goes smoothly even when working with floating floors and dry walling.
KARL PEDROSS AG (39021 Latsch, Italy), Hall 13, Stand E23
Contact: Helene Paulmichl
Tel.: +39 473 722 228
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