Special Click systems for laminate

RACE FOR THE STRONGEST LOCK

LOCKING SYSTEMS ARE THE ULTIMATE REASON FOR FITTING THESE FLOORS

Laminate has undergone vast changes. Whilst it was initially little more than a set of pressed layers piled on top of each other and it could hardly bear comparison with the real wooden product, it has now developed into a fully fledged floor. Gone are the days of annoying creaking sounds, problems with tiny drops of water, and shabby impact resistance, not to mention the troublesome fitting.

The sector soon realised that laminate floors had much more potential if only they were easier to fit. Initially, that meant not only applying tongue and groove, for instance, but also aiming explicitly for a floating fitting without the need for adhesive. The latter has the clear advantage of (much) faster fitting, something which professionals are only too happy to tell their clients.

Guarantee of success In all this, locking systems play a clear and decisive role. Obviously, the market eagerly cashes in on this, because if there’s anything to guarantee success, it’s that same locking system. These systems are top of the bill in the sector, as proved by various hard-fought battles for patents in recent years. FAST AND EASY - UP TO 30% FASTER THAN BASIC CLICK SYSTEMS

Nowadays, we notice that what used to resemble open warfare has developed into an ‘armed peace’ in which the patents are in the hands ALL MATERIALS, ALL FORMATS of a few suppliers and various manufacturers come knocking on their doors. We also notice that these manufacturers are interested mainly NO INSERTS, NO PLASTIC in the tensile strength of the diverse lock systems, which are vitally important to a floating floor. Indeed, the last thing you want is for the STRONG, PROVEN PERFORMANCE joints to burst open. Furthermore, we also see that the sector attaches IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY great importance to parts which can be moved and replaced. Indeed, the ideal click system ensures that removing (and refitting) parts or SUITABLE FOR HIGH-SPEED replacing them is no problem at all. MACHINES Drop Lock/Fold down One of the most noticeable features of the laminate sector at present is that professionals use the so called Drop-Lock or Fold down system. This system involves literally allowing the planks to ‘fall’ or ‘fold’ into each other in order to connect them. The big advantage is that the planks are not clicked into each other, but they are connected to each other so that they can swell and shrink.

I4F 3L TripleLock and Click4U are strong global technologies providing a unique one

piece drop-lock installation system for flooring panels that eliminates the need for an

additional insert on the short side. I4F’s technology is being used around the world

and is suitable for all materials including laminate, luxury vinyl tiles, expanded polymer

If we look at the market, we see, amongst others, I4F, providing patents and technologies to the flooring industry, with its 3L TripleLock and Click4U systems that are widely used worldwide and especially popular for new flooring materials. This popularity stems from the systems’ ease of installation consisting of merely dropping and locking the tongue and groove sides of planks together without the THE FLOORING INDUSTRY’S INNOVATION PARTNER OF CHOICE needs for any inserts. I4F’s 3L TripleLock is a one piece drop-lock installation system for the short side of floor panels. It is unlike other ‘fold-down’ systems because it eliminates the need for inserts. Obviously, that has advantages, the main one for installers and end-users being easier and faster installation, in fact up to 30% faster than basic clicks. For manufacturers this delivers higher productivity level, a reduction in costs and a lower ecological footprint. Click4U is I4F’s angle-system for the long side that combined with 3L TripleLock on the short side provides extremely high levels of locking strength. Just like 3L TripleLock, is suitable for existing high speed production machinery. The combination of 3L TripleLock and Click4U offer several installation advantages, including no squeaking and the fact that you don’t need any special fitting tools. Moreover, both systems can be used on all materials including laminate, as well as luxury vinyl tiles, expanded polymer core, solid polymer core and wooden flooring panels. UNILIN

Obviously, there’s a lot more on the market, and here you probably think mainly of the systems such as Uniclic, Unifit, and Multifit or Unidrop by Unilin, the company behind Quick-Step and Pergo. Uniclic was the first locking profile for one piece on the market and has become hugely popular over the years due to its efficiency and technical performances. This system requires no adhesive and can be applied on both the short and the long side of the floor panel. The system is suitable for all types of material from 3.2mm upwards. Unifold is a two-piece fold-down system, which uses a plastic insert which facilitates strong locking in combination with flexible fitting. It can be used for all types of material, but is applied mainly for thicker and less flexible core materials. If we look at Multifit, we notice that this is used for fitting engineerd parquet. The panels can simply be clicked into each other thanks to an ingenious shape of the tongue and groove. Multifit makes it possible to fit the planks in three different ways: clicking them into each other at an angle of 20 to 30 degrees, pressing them down on the short side, or sliding them into each other horizontally with a suitable tapping block. At Unidrop they have one-piece fold-down technology without adhesive, which doesn’t use any plastic inserts and guarantees easy fitting on the short sides of the floor panel. This can be used for all sorts of materials, but is used mainly for materials with some flexibility because the material itself creates the locking. Unidrop is therefore also suitable for laminate.

Välinge

The Swedish company Välinge, which is also a pioneer in mechanical click systems. Here we can hardly ignore their 5G locking system, which is ideal for both wooden and laminate flooring products, with thicknesses of up to 22mm and more. What happens here is that when a panel is ‘folded down’, a flexible plastic tongue is pressed into a tongue and groove connection. Once the panel has reached its end position, the tongue moves to the front in a wedge groove and a click sound indicates that the product is locked in place. The manufacturer also mentions in this connection the easy and rapid fitting and particularly stresses the strong closure as a result of the plastic tongue. This can be used for thicknesses only up to 4mm (with the note that 2G can even be used up to only 3mm) because this is in response to very thin and flexible floors such as LVT. We have also noticed a recent interesting extension to the range in the 5G Climb. This is a response to the fact that the floor should also be able to join the wall seamlessly as high as you wish. Climb is based on the 5G floor systems where the wall panels are clicked into place horizontally, vertically, and in a herringbone pattern. Specially developed clips are used for this and the panels are fastened to a sort of mounting. 5G Dry has also been launched on the market this year as a response to the need for improved water resistance. A fold down fitting system is used to ensure that damp can no longer penetrate into the floor panel joints.