Viken, Sweden -- Välinge has acquired a new state-of-the-art factory from its parent company, Pervanovo Invest AB, to meet the increasing demand from its licensees while Pervanovo continues to invest in powder technology in order to serve its direct customers.

In 2015, a major investment was initiated by Pervanovo to build a high-tech large-volume factory for powder-based floors with Woodura and Nadura surfaces in Viken. The €50 million (~$60 million) investment was comprised of a continuous pressing line from Hymmen, a sawing and profiling line from Paul and Homag, a surface treatment line from Bürkle and a packaging line from JB.

The powder technology is very successful and several potential licensees are interested in buying large volumes of flooring with Woodura and Nadura surfaces from Välinge, initially for introducing and evaluating the products while setting up their own production based on a Välinge license. Although Välinge recently installed a second production line for powder-based floors, additional capacity was required to meet the demand from existing and potential licensees and partners. With the new acquisition, Välinge will have an installed press capacity of 7 million square meters at the facility in Viken.

“By taking over the new factory in Viken, we will be able to significantly strengthen our position to serve our partners, including Pervanovo, with products,” said Niclas Håkansson, Välinge CEO. “With the latest investments made by Pervanovo, they will become a major Välinge licensee.”

The demand from direct customers and distributors in Europe is growing and Pervanovo has therefore initiated a major investment in Croatia that will provide at least 6 million square meters of powder-based floors that will be sold under the Bjelin brand. A new factory for floors with Woodura and Nadura surfaces will be operational during 2019 and will be located at a new 220,000-square-meter production site close to the present Parquet factory in Ogulin, Croatia.

Cost-efficient high-quality veneer is of vital importance for production of Woodura-based products. Croatia has one of the best oak forests in Europe and is a favorable location close to main European markets. Pervanovo has therefore initiated major investments in its Croatian company Bjelin d.o.o. to build a capacity of 20 million square meters of special veneer for flooring with Woodura. A new slicing factory will be built in Bjelovar and a new splicing factory will be built in Ogulin to serve Välinge and Pervanovo with veneers. The present annual parquet capacity in Croatia will be increased from 2 million square meters, mainly with increased production of plank-sized floors and small parquet strips for herringbone installation.

“Our total investments in Croatia during 2018 and 2019 are estimated to approximately €100 million (~$120 million). When these investments are finalized, Bjelin d.o.o will become the leading wood processing company in Croatia,” said Darko Pervan, owner of Pervanovo.

For more information, visit www.valinge.se.