Michel Contini is the new Chief Operations Officer at Lamigraf. In this function he is part of the Board of Directors and will report to both the CEO and the Board of Directors. Contini, who has extensive experience in the industry through positions at companies such as Coveright and Schattdecor, will be responsible for Lamigraf’s global operations and will be based at the company’s headquarters in L’Ametlla.
2019 was a very intense year for Catas, full of events and initiatives to celebrate the first 50 years of the Italian laboratory, the most important European testing institute for the wood and furniture sector.
A record that have been even improved, thanks to the icing on the cake of these fifty years, represented by the opening of the new furniture laboratory in November of last year. It is the largest and most equipped European structure for furniture tests that will allow Catas to achieve new and more important results.
However, the enthusiasm for the prestigious anniversary did not affect the “productivity” of Catas; starting from the number of tests performed, which this year was 2 percent more than the already brilliant 2018.
In 2019, therefore, something like 48.152 tests were carried out, for a turnover that reached 6,5 million of euros, 2 percent more than the previous year.
The staff also grew (to date there are 54 employees at Catas), with further new entries expected for the beginning of 2020.
Coming back to the activities of the laboratory, we can observe a constant increase of tests on formaldehyde and volatile organic substances emissions in consequence of the new German law and of a growing general sensitivity towards these issues. This situation was tackled by renewing an area of the laboratory and considerably increasing the equipment for the execution of these tests, bringing the number of chambers to 69 units against the previous 39.
Also the activity on playground equipment – and in particular the evaluation of “shockproof” floors (Catas is one of the very few accredited laboratories for such measures) – shows a clear growth; the same applies to mechanical tests on wood based panels.
Another challenge to face is the high productivity requested by the market, which pushed us to raise the level of automation of the tests on finished products: in addition to the anthropomorphic robots, already in use for several years in the test departments of Lissone and San Giovanni al Natisone, several collaborative robots (“Cobot”) of the latest generation have been introduced during the year. An investment that fits perfectly into the choice of making the new furniture laboratory a true example of excellence, an interconnected test environment, completely “Industry 4.0”, which allows us to obtain clear improvements in the management of control processes and in the organization of activities. This “Implementation 4.0” is also underway at the Lissone laboratory facilities and is expected to be completed within the first half of 2020.
Strong impulse also in terms of product certifications, which this year have reached the 177 units against the 150 of 2018. In particular the certifications regarding formaldehyde emission have increased, under the strong push of the American Carb and Epa regulations. Also the “Made in Italy” certification for the finished furniture has highlighted several new requests, reaching now the 16 certified productions.
At the starting blocks there is a new certification on parquet floorings, strongly desired by different actors of this important sector to “make objective” the performance of a product that certainly deserves to be further enhanced also in such terms.
During the first few months of 2020 the process that will lead Catas to be able to offer a service for the evaluation of the Lca-Life Cycle Assessment of the products of the wood-furniture supply chain, also for the purposes of a possible Epd certification (Environmental Product Declaration), will be also completed.
Knowledge disseminating is one of the tasks that Catas has always carried out with extreme attention and commitment, an activity that in 2019 confirmed that it has assumed a strategic importance through a full calendar of appointments, in addition to the courses directly carried out at the company sites.
Also for this activity, as for all the other pillars on which the everyday life of Catas is based, 2020 promises to be a year of further expansion.
Despite a challenging market environment, the surface specialist Schattdecor is posting higher sales for 2019. Thanks to the positive market development in the area of finished surfaces and its two new sites US Coating in America and Vasatech in Malaysia, the Group can look back on sales of around EUR 780 million in 2019 – an increase of EUR 40 million on the previous year, despite a slight decline in volumes in the area of printed surfaces.
Compared to 2018, sales volumes of finished surfaces rose to 730 million square meters from 620 million in 2019.
At the beginning of the year, Schattdecor AG announced the acquisition of US Coating, a US finish foil manufacturer based in Lexington, South Carolina, and Vasatech, a Malaysian impregnator based in Bestari Jaya, Selangor. The company is thus further expanding its presence in North America and Asia.
Viewed globally, the Group will grow to 18 locations in 2019: “We have broadened our base even further,” says Roland Auer, CEO of Schattdecor AG.
Thanks to the positive response, installation of a third impregnation channel could also begin in Malaysia in 2019. Capacity in Lexington, USA, is also to be increased.
In 2019, the expansion of activities in Asia also included the completion of the second Chinese printing facility in Quzhou, where the first roll was shipped last spring. Roland Auer: “With the new building, we are creating the prerequisites to meet the dynamic growth in China and Asia.
Despite all market developments, the Group is positive but prepared for 2020. Roland Auer: “It remains exciting, against the background of certain uncertainties, also with regard to economic and political developments and their possible effects on the industry. In any case, we are facing a sporting competition in 2020. We are well prepared and we are going as a strong, international team, true to our motto ‘One Source. Unlimited Solutions’, into the new year. Our goal is to further expand our total package for our customers and to further strengthen our presence internationally as well”.
You can now read the complete möbelfertigung 01/2020 english edition online.About the navigation of the e-magazines: Our service for our customers is that all ads are linked to the sender. This also includes the upper part of the table of contents. You can click there to get to the respective page. Top topics can be selected directly from the title with a click.
In addition: To guarantee better readability, you can now highlight and enlarge individual text blocks by clicking once (or touch on mobile devices).
And another thing on our own behalf: just in time for “IndiaWood” the second issue of the “Furniture Industry Insider” will be published, which will be distributed in the Indian market and of course at the fair itself. You can find the first issue HERE.
As China is fighting a serious battle against the novel coronavirus, prevention and control of the epidemic is the country’s most important work for now. Following the Chinese government’s guidelines to contain the virus, the Department of Commerce of Guangdong Province and Guangzhou Municipal Commerce Bureau recently announced that all large-scale economic and trade events should be suspended.
To ensure health and safety of all participants, the organizers have taken the decision to postpone the 45th China International Furniture Fair (Guangzhou) (“CIFF Guangzhou”) and China International Furniture Machinery & Furniture Raw Materials Fair 2020 (“CIFM/interzum guangzhou”) until a later date.
The fairs were originally scheduled for March 18-21 and 28-31 in Guangzhou. New date will be notified in due course.
The beginning of the year marks the 125th anniversary of the founding of the Felix Schoeller Group. Founded in 1895 by Felix Hermann Maria Schoeller at the Osnabrück site in Germany, the Felix Schoeller Group now has around 3,600 employees at twelve locations worldwide producing specialty papers – including digital printing and decor papers and release liners. With a clear vision in mind, the company is looking resolutely to the future.
“We look back proudly on 125 years of Felix Schoeller history. As a family business, we have always relied on our employees, sustainable growth and the protection of resources. We have successfully combined dynamic growth with sustainable action,” says Hans-Christoph Gallenkamp, CEO and CSO of the Felix Schoeller Group.
Founded in 1895 as a paper mill in Osnabrück, the Felix Schoeller Group today supplies around 1,500 customers in 65 countries. The Group has been family-owned since its foundation. Five generations have made the transition from a former photo base paper producer to a global producer of specialty papers. Today, the Group has production facilities in Germany, North America, China, Russia and India. With Hans-Christoph Gallenkamp, the company has been family-run since June 2018 in the fifth generation.
On the occasion of its 125th anniversary, the company is not only looking back on achievements. It has a clearly defined vision of the future and the strategies to build on it. In 2030, the Felix Schoeller Group aims to remain financially healthy and independent and to seize its opportunities with agility. The Group plans to be represented in all growth markets and economic areas.
“We are a family business – today and for future generations. My personal goal is to hand the Felix Schoeller Group on to the next generation as a family-run group,” says Gallenkamp about his vision.
The year 2020 is not off to a good start for the Urbach-based supplier Schock Metallwerk GmbH: The specialist for linear ball bearing slides and special profiles filed an application for insolvency in self-administration with the Stuttgart District Court, which the court followed on Friday, January 17, 2020. The self-administration proceedings are intended to complete the restructuring measures begun in 2018. It is planned to continue business operations in full during the entire proceedings – according to the ” Insolvenzportal ” of STP Business Information GmbH.
The self-administration offers companies a legal framework to quickly reorganize their financing in close coordination with the creditors while business operations continue. Thereby the entrepreneurial responsibility remains in the hands of the management. This procedure, which is established within the framework of insolvency law, supports companies that take action themselves at an early stage in case of economic problems and have enough room for manoeuvre to find a solution. “Production, sales and development of Schock Metallwerk GmbH will continue without restrictions during the self-administration”, emphasized the two managing directors Martin Schock and Helmut Fuchs of Schock Metallwerk, at the company’s headquarters.
For the self-administration phase, the lawyer Jan Metzner from the renowned German restructuring law firm Elsässer has joined the management and will support the managing partners Martin Schock and Helmut Fuchs in the restructuring of the company. “Schock Metallwerk is a fundamentally healthy and competitive company with a first-class product portfolio and has taken important and necessary steps on the way to restructuring in the last two years”, emphasises Metzner. “Own management provides us with the appropriate legal framework to complete the restructuring in close consultation with the creditors and to put Schock Metallwerk back on a solid financial basis in the long term”. Dr. Tibor Braun from the law firm Illig, Braun, Kirschnek in Stuttgart was appointed as trustee by the competent local court.
Only Schock Metallwerk GmbH has filed the application. The US subsidiary Schock Metal America, Inc. and the Latvian sister company FTS Baltic SIA are not affected. The wages and salaries of the approximately 190 employees are secured for three months through the insolvency money.
The liquidity crisis at Schock Metallwerk is said to have been triggered by the increasing instability of a former, long-standing main supplier of powder coating and assembly in the Czech Republic – with a resulting delivery stop: “This made it necessary to bring forward the commissioning of the new production site in Latvia, which was not scheduled to start until the end of the first quarter of 2020, to August 2019. Within a few weeks, all necessary operating resources and tools had to be secured and transferred to the new sister plant FTS Baltic SIA, which was founded in June 2019, seven months earlier than planned,” explains Martin Schock. In the end, customer orders could not be completely fulfilled for months despite considerable efforts. The resulting slump in sales led to considerable economic difficulties within a short period of time.
Despite the delivery problems, important customers and partners have already promised the company their support for the upcoming restructuring.
The exhibition management of “Domotex Asia”/”Chinafloor” feels forced to take a drastic step due to the new lung disease in China:
“The Domotex Asia / Chinafloor team has been closely monitoring the recent developments of the corona virus outbreak in several Chinese provinces. Having studied and evaluated the information and news from the competent national authorities, we regret that Domotex Asia/Chinafloor 2020, which was scheduled to take place from 24 to 26 March, has been postponed to a later date.
At this critical moment, our main concern is to protect and ensure the health and safety of all industry players.
We would like to thank all exhibitors and visitors for their continued support and participation over the past 22 years. We will announce the new date as soon as possible. Thank you for your understanding”, Sonia Wedell-Castellano, Global Director “Domotex”, comments in a recent press release.
The “Euroshop” 2020, The World’s No.1 Retail Trade Fair, will open its doors shortly. From 16 to 20 February, around 2,300 exhibitors from 60 nations will occupy 16 halls at the Düsseldorf Exhibition Centre. Trade visitors should also start planning their visit to the fair now in order to make the most of the range of products and services on offer. The “Euroshop” offers a wide range of services that help trade fair visitors from all over the world to make their visit a complete success.
The interactive site and hall plan is the perfect orientation aid on the exhibition grounds. With a touch of the mouse, you can jump to the individual halls, zoom in on individual stands and then see all the information about the exhibitor and the products he offers. The new exhibitor search function also searches the entire “Euroshop” database and displays the hit directly in the plan.
With the “My Organizer” function, every visitor can compile the exhibitors of interest to him in advance and in just a few steps, thus preparing his own route through the exhibition halls precisely. You can use “My Organizer” after registering in the ticket shop with a personal login or without registration. This login enables convenient use on different devices (smartphone, PC) over a longer period of time. Once compiled, the list can be adjusted or added to each time you call it up.
International networking is an essential part of the “Euroshop” in Düsseldorf. But how do exhibitors and trade visitors find each other most easily in the digital age? The new, intelligent matchmaking tool provides the ideal platform for making new contacts and networking quickly and easily. Trade visitors and all exhibitors at “Euroshop” 2020 can already search for the contacts and products that are interesting and relevant for them. They will be directly suggested suitable contacts and have the opportunity to get in touch with them and make appointments for the duration of the fair. Access is via the web portal at www.euroshop.de/mmb for visitors or www.euroshop.de/mma for exhibitors or with the EuroShop matchmaking app for IOS and Android OS. By quickly matching entered interests, recommendations and personalized suggestions for contacting the exhibitor are immediately available.
With the “Euroshop” app, all important information about “Euroshop” is also available on the move and in German and English: from the exhibitor and product search (also offline), trade fair and exhibitor news, specials, the interactive hall plan, to “My Organizer” and matchmaking. The app is available free of charge from the Apple Appstore or via Google Play. Together with the matchmaking app, it is the perfect trade fair preparation tool.
There are a total of eight stages at “Euroshop”, i.e. top-class lecture and discussion forums on the latest developments, innovative trends and best practice examples right in the middle of the trade fair and can be used by all visitors free of charge and without prior registration. The detailed programmes of all Stages can be found at www.euroshop.de from January 2020.
The ticket shop in the “Euroshop” portal is already open. The eTicket offers double benefits: Money and time saving. Visitors can purchase their ticket online, print it out on their own printer or download it as a code and then travel to the fair free of charge by bus and train. In addition, the eTicket is much cheaper than the one purchased on site. Anyone still looking for accommodation for the “Euroshop” is best advised to use the services offered by Düsseldorf Marketing & Tourismus (DMT), www.duesseldorf-tourismus.de/messe/euroshop.
Also visit the online magazine of “Euroshop”, which offers news, interviews, reports, professional articles, studies, photo galleries and videos on topics and trends from the international retail scene 365 days a year. You can go directly to the latest issue here: mag.euroshop.de
The “Euroshop” 2020 is open to trade visitors from Sunday 16 to Thursday 20 February 2020, daily from 10.00 to 18.00 hours. The day ticket costs 80 euros (60 euros in the online presales/ e-ticket), the 2-day ticket 120 euros (100 euros in the OVV) and the season ticket 180 euros (150 euros in the OVV). The admission tickets include free return travel to the “Euroshop” by VRR transport (Verkehrsverbund-Rhein-Ruhr). The online ticket shop at www.euroshop.de/ticket is already open.
