Special Discover the possibilities of industrial lacquers

LET’S HONOUR THE ART OF SMALL THINGS

COATING CONTRACTORS OFFER MUCH MORE THAN JUST AN INDUSTRIAL FINISH

Ann Jordens (Mapo Group - B)

We think that you have very probably heard of Mapo in Houthalen-Helchteren. This company has been active as a coating contractor since 1983 when managing director Jan Schoonbrood decided to start coating contracting for third parties.

At present, they operate mainly in the treatment of wood (mainly oak, but also pine, deal, and occasionally more exotic sorts such as wenge or afrormosia), but in addition indoor walls and wall cladding also account for a lot of their work.

Director Ann Jordens says: ‘We’re only coating contractors, as we certainly don’t want to become rivals of our own clients. Various things mean that we don’t trade in our own ranges of wood and that our client database consists mainly of timber traders, importers, producers, and, sometimes, also parquet traders, who have often found their way to Mapo via one of their own Mapo clients.’

On the market Mapo is well known mainly for the supply of big series. However, that’s precisely where our interviewee wants to put matters right, since those days are long gone: ‘We might work all over Europe, but that image has been out of date for over ten years. Yes, that was certainly true once, but now we do all our work customised to suit clients and that means that even a floor of 5 to 10m² is certainly no exception.’

‘The latter illustrates what we’re all about: offering clients maximum flexibility. We do that not only in volumes, but certainly also in delivery periods and in the range of colours. We always try to think along with the other party so that we always find the best modus vivendi and the best solution for the client in terms of price and technology. And so, various things mean that you explain to the full what you’re offering, that you clarify the treatment process as well as possible, and especially that you indicate why one demand costs more or less than the other. The delivery period is also exceptionally important nowadays, we really do plan from day to day, and we try to help clients as quickly as possible. At all events, this means that over the years we’ve managed to build up a relationship of trust with scores of clients.’

‘What might the future hold? It’s important to realise that we finish everything as much as possible on our own premises where we have state-of-the-art lacquering and oiling lines with which we can also finish ecologically. We also have a manual spray division in Genk, where we’ve also been offering covering lacquering on other floors under our own management. The difference with Houthalen-Helchteren is that everything is much more industrial in the main establishment, whilst traditional skills take centre stage in Genk. Furthermore, we obviously work on the development of our print division in Malle. Personalised wall and floor panels with a print are TOP CLASS!’

The term coating contractors is a little bit misleading. Don’t they concentrate solely on applying a finish? Nothing could be further from the truth; nowadays, coating contractors are involved in all steps of the wooden flooring production process and have developed increasingly into direct contact partners who look for answers to scores of demands.

One fact takes centre stage in the coating contractor profession. It is the ideal point of contact for outsourcing work. This is something which is becoming more the rule than the exception in an increasingly specialist world. No one can still do everything alone, even if they (or the company in question) have all the necessary equipment, so outsourcing is necessary. In the world of wooden flooring, that ranges amongst other things from the mass production such as with the well known pre-finished parquet to the floor which a floor fitter installs on the site inclusive.

Time is money

What, then are the reasons for outsourcing work to a coating contractor? The first one is quite obvious. Coating contractors can complete a requested job much cheaper than it would be if you did

it yourself because they possess all the right equipment and you don’t. Then, there’s another factor; since they do such jobs day in day out, the end result will be much better than if you did it yourself.

Obviously, a second reason is related to speed. Generally speaking, coating contractors can set up their machines faster for specific requests than manufacturers could do. Indeed, the latter would have to adapt their production process and wait for the most suitable moment to ‘spring into action’. The advantage of a coating contractor is that such a company does nothing else except respond to specific requests and, therefore, can also guarantee meeting a fairly strict deadline. The latter point is because they have experience with all the points related to finishing and thereby can guarantee almost with certainty that they can meet an agreed deadline.

The final reason is related more or less to what we’ve already said. You’re calling upon someone with expertise. Whilst the whole process requires lots of preparation from you, plus a risk of unforeseen delays, coating contractors are specialists who know all the pitfalls and can easily avoid them. Specifically in the wooden flooring sector, amongst other things we’re talking about knowledge of not only various wood sorts, but also the reactions of the various chemical products on the market.

Photo – Mapo Group

FOR THE FINISHING OF YOUR WOOD, PVC and METAL PRODUCTS flooring - ceiling - outside cladding - profiles * decorative - durable - ageing - roller coater/curtain coater/spraying/vacuum application – ALSO PRINTING!

MAPO BELGIUM N.V. – B-3530 Houthalen-Helchteren - T +32 11 60 54 93 - info@mapo.be Visit our websites: www.mapo.be – www.mapoprint.com – www.vepola.be

Progress towards small things

One of the most striking developments in recent years has perhaps been that for some time now even the bigger coating contractors no longer turn up their noses at smaller jobs. Gone are the days when you needed hundreds of metres done before you would get a hearing. Nowadays, they even accept jobs for single planks.

Digital printing is another example of something which is being used increasingly nowadays, but not necessarily in the first place on the wooden floor. No one would dream of doing that themselves, but a lot of coating contractors can even do that and thereby they are responding to the trend of our day, namely maximum personalisation.

Take a look outside

What can be worthwhile for you is to visit a coating contractor some time to find out what the possibilities are for working together. That’s the ideal moment, for example once again, to see how they tackle a colour sample and convert it in practice to meet your taste. At the same time, it’s an ideal opportunity to familiarise yourself with the production process to make it clear to both big parquet producers and individual parquet traders how extensive the range actually is. For that matter did you think that coating contractors work only with indoor wood? If so, you were mistaken! These professionals cover outdoor walls, terrace planks, and construction wood. People sometimes forget that this, too, is specialist work: 3 or 4-sided treatment to protect the wood, a treatment with a covering paint, the application of a system which may or may not form a film. There’s more to it than you might think and there, too, coating contractors can help you.

A specialist

Mapo Group

Mapo specializes in the pre-finishing of flooring, ceiling and exterior wall claddings. She distinguishes with a large but flexible pre-finishing equipment, The combination possibilities are unlimited : UV lacquer, UV or oxydative drying oils, with additional treatments as there are brushing, staining, distressing and smoking on traditional planks, herringbone or chevron and surfaces of 1 m² and more. Finishes easy to maintain for competitive prices. Vepola, our manual painting department, offers you special painting treatments in a matt or high gloss paint whereas Mapo Print, digital printing company, services you with a customized image on your panels, well protected with 2 coats of lacquer. Think finishing, contact Mapo !

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