Special
Producers of adjustable floor support systems for terrace floors
EFFICIENT, INVISIBLE, AND CONVENIENT FINE TUNING OF ADJUSTABLE FLOOR SUPPORTS IS A NEVER ENDING STORY Marc Collings (Buzon - B) Buzon in Belgium has been an authority in the world of terrace floor supports for over 30 years. Buzon employs about 20 people and achieves over 80% of its turnover in Europe, but you will find the company regularly on prestigious international sites. Here are some notable examples: the Apple Centre in the USA, the Shard Tower in London, Santiago airport in Chile, the BEI European Bank of Luxembourg, and Asterix Park near Paris. Marc Collings, who works for Buzon in Herstel and is responsible for the Benelux and France, comments: ‘Our work area covers mainly the Benelux, France, Germany, Italy, and the UK. We cover Belgium with an internal team, whilst abroad we join forces with agents and partners.’ Buzon, too, has noticed that the terrace market is growing strongly: ‘The question is whether that’s a result of the pandemic or that private individuals now attach more importance to a pleasant space. It takes nothing away from the longstanding work of our sales agents, but the circumstances have undeniably promoted this favourable development.’ ‘At Buzon we’ve invested in nothing but quality products for over 30 years. However, the service provided is equally important as that quality. Our partners/agents are trained and informed in depth to make full use of the good equipment.’ At Buzon they’ve noticed how user demands have become increasingly varied. Various main strands stand out: ‘First of all, there’s the demand for more height, where we now even go up to one metre. In addition, clients are looking for more solutions in the area of wind resistance. To guarantee that a system remains firmly in place, we therefore offer an anchoring system with solutions to all possible problems. A third shaft is that of fire safety. Fire safety is a sensitive issue and it’s also essential to respond to all potential forms of legislation which can vary from country to country. Finally, we can’t ignore the ecological aspect. Therefore, we’ve produced floor supports in recycled polypropylene. That’s not all; our new offices are constructed in line with the passive building principle where there’s a great deal of attention to our ecological footprint. Amongst other things, we offset differences by planting trees and installing beehives on the company premises. What it boils down to is that we take working from cradle to cradle very seriously and we pursue it as strictly as possible.’ Finally, there’s obviously the supply of raw materials. From 1 June, Buzon had to announce a price increase, but they kept it to a minimum. ‘We’re fortunate to have worked with the same supplier for so many years and we’re therefore assured of the supply of high-quality basic raw materials. Due to market pressure and purchase prices, we had to make changes, as did other companies in the construction industry, but thankfully the price increases have been very modest.’
When you fit a wooden terrace, there are some elements which you barely see, if at all. Amongst other things, that applies to adjustable floor supports. They play an absolutely essential part in the creation of a splendid outdoor floor, but you no longer see them once the terrace is finished. These adjustable floor supports have to cope with a lot e.g. bear considerable weight, absorb gradient angles, be adjustable, help respond to diverse brand standards, resist the wind, and be easy to relocate. Then, there’s the fact that it should ideally be possible to re-use or recycle them later.
Floor support producers know what they have to do to launch their products on the market. We also note that these producers continually question their own equipment in order to respond as efficiently as possible to the needs and wishes of fitters and end users.
Weight and slope If we consider the weight, we see that modern adjustable floor supports can cope with up to 1000 kg/pc, even for greater heights. As a rule, you can also reckon that on average at least three floor supports per square metre are used, so they can cope with a lot of weight.
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Floor Forum International 117
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