Unilin stories

At the start of this year, both Veronique Hoflack and Bert Vandenkendelaere took on key roles within Unilin. Veronique oversees the Unilin Flooring division and Bert heads Unilin Panels. Both climbed the ranks within the organisation and know our values, our people and the market inside out. High time to get to know them a bit better. How do they view their new role and the future?

What started as a clever technical solution to make the installation of laminate floors easier grew into a gamechanger for the entire flooring industry. It also laid the foundations for the success of Unilin Technologies, the IP and licencing division of Unilin.

Unilin has achieved a world first in Bazeilles, France: for the first time, MDF and HDF boards – the core of laminate floors – can be recycled on an industrial scale. . Thanks to a €20 million investment, the company is now able to make the wood fibres from these boards reusable for the production of new decorative panels and laminate floors.

What happens to your old laminate floor? At Unilin, the answer is clear: collect and recycle. Through the Recover programme, we collect old floors, which are then recycled into new MDF and HDF panels using a technological world first. “For years, recycling the panels seemed impossible,” says Geert Coudenys, R&D Director at Unilin Panels.

What began in the 1980s as an innovative flooring solution is still one of the most popular and versatile flooring types: laminate. Thanks to continuous innovation, smart product development and a strong focus on design and sustainability, laminate has remained a true favourite for more than 40 decades. How is that possible? We talked to Rogier Verkarre, General Manager Laminate at Unilin.

At Unilin we believe that a circular approach is the only way for an industrial company to be truly future-proof. Circularity is not only part of our sustainability strategy One Home, it is firmly embedded in our DNA. Since our foundation in 1960, we have turned residual flows from other industries into new products. Back then we produced chipboards from flax shives, a by-product of the flax industry. In the 1980s we switched to residual flows from the wood industry. Today we build on that with a clear ambition: to make our products fully circular, step by step and without compromising on design, quality or cost.

Diversity makes for richer collaboration. Unilin’s Finance Team in Ireland brings together 10 women and 9 men, representing 5 countries as well as different generations and backgrounds. Denys and Barbara share how these differences make their team stronger. “There is plenty of laughter here, but above all, hard work.”