Välinge Innovation pioneered the concept of glueless click together floorings in 1994 and changed the way people install and use floorings. The company’s worldwide-patented technology introduced a speedy and easy way of installing floorboards mechanically, without using glue.

The technology base has gradually been extended to all fields related to floating floorings. Välinge has one of the most comprehensive patent portfolios in the flooring industry comprising more than 800 patents, a license base of more than 100 licensees and the most advanced R&D center in the world related to laminate and wood flooring technology.

License base and IP

Välinge’s licensees have successfully introduced a wide range of products based on the company’s technology, starting in 1996 with the revolutionary Alloc® Flooring. Since then, Välinge has focused on the work to increase the patent activities, expand the patent portfolio, develop new technologies and form strategic partnerships with other IP holders.




Välinge and its more than 100 licensees constitute one of the largest flooring groups in the world and they will vigorously protect their intellectual assets in the glue-free click flooring area and in other new flooring technologies protected by patents. Välinge has one of the most comprehensive patent portfolios in the world related to wood and laminate floorings comprising more than 800 patents and about 5.000 pending applications. The patents are of a high quality and have been successfully defended in numerous oppositions, court cases and nullification actions during the past 15 years.



Välinge anticipates that the number of granted patents will exceed 1.000 patents in 2012

Ownership and key figures

Välinge Innovation AB is one of the main subsidiaries in the Välinge International group, which is owned by Välinge Flooring technology (60%), Kronospan (20%) and Kronotex (20%). The majority shareholder Välinge Flooring Technology is owned by the Pervan Family who founded Välinge Innovation in 1993. The links to the minority shareholders Kronotex and Kronospan, the largest laminate producers in the world, gives Välinge access to large scale flooring and board production technology. Kronotex and Kronospan have successfully introduced several Välinge technologies on a large scale world wide.



Since the start in 1993, Välinge has been an extremely profitable company in spite of the fact that R&D cost have increased considerably in the recent years. Accumulated expenses for patents and R&D are up to now (2011) about 140 MEUR. Present annual expenses for patents and R&D are about 20 MEUR and this is most likely more than 50% of the total R&D costs for the whole world wood and laminate industry together.



Välinge has about 80 employees who are mainly involved in R&D and customer support. In addition Välinge cooperates with many external consultants specialized in material and production technologies

Välinge activities.

Välinge has three main business units:

- Basic locking systems
- 5G Fold down technology
- Surface Technology



Almost all license income is related to these three technology fields. Välinge has also developed about 20 other product segments. The aim is that some of these product segments will eventually be organized as business units when considerable license income has been reached.

Customer support is one of the main activities. Välinge provides extensive support to its licensees such as prototype production according to customer specifications, education and special activities aiming to improve production efficiency and quality.

Välinge’s business is completely based on R&D. In spite of deep and extensive knowledge within the flooring field, the company is not involved in commercial flooring production and will not compete against its licensees. The license income is to a major extent used to develop new technology in order to further support a profitable growth of our licensees based on new innovative products and cost efficient production.

R&D resources

Nearly all of the company’s 80 employees work in R&D. In addition, Välinge uses a wide range of consultants and partners world-wide mainly in the fields of patents, litigation and production technology.

In 2001-2003 Välinge invested 10 MEUR in a very advanced 5 000 m2 R&D centre for floorings in Viken. The main goal was to develop new and improved locking systems for wood and laminate floorings and to support its licensees with prototype production.

In 2007 Välinge decided to broaden its technology base from mainly locking systems to all technology fields related to laminate and wood floorings, especially surface technology. The decision was taken to extend the R&D resources considerably by increasing the organization to more than 100 technicians and to build a new R&D centre for flooring in Viken, which when completed would become the largest and most advanced in the world.



The first step of the new R&D center was completed in 2010 and the investment amounts to about 50 MEUR. Office space, lab and production facilities have been extended from 5000 m2 to 17000 m2.





The new R&D centre is equipped with a full size flooring factory with a theoretical capacity of 20 Mm2 of various flooring types, especially floors with advanced 5G fold down locking systems. Among the equipment there are eight very advanced and flexible profiling machines, several with 12 motor stations on each side allowing a speed up to 200m/min. One of the production lines is the most advanced in the world.




The R&D center is equipped with the largest climate chamber in the world allowing testing of flooring surfaces up to 1000 m2, advanced digital lab equipment, chemistry laboratory, pressing capabilities and fully equipped workshops for wood and metal processing.

The new equipment is used to develop new flooring technology and to make samples and start-up products for the licensees. The equipment is also used for advanced education and training related to production methods, tooling technology and quality control as well as for joint development projects together with Välinge’s licensees and partners.

Välinge Powder technology.

The most advanced part in the new R&D center is a full size demonstration factory for production of new "paper free" solid laminate flooring based on the unique Välinge Powder Technology.The factory comprises equipment to produce and mix powder, which is scattered on a core and pressed in a conventional 4*8 ft laminate press. Välinge is also able to produce powder which could be delivered together with specially developed scattering equipment to a production facility of our licensees in order to facilitate start up production.

Digital powder printing.

Välinge has developed and installed digital powder printing equipement that allows production of an unlimited range of advanced powder based wood, stone, slate and tile designs that could be provided in a few minutes as samples for a new product range.

Support Centers.

In 2007 Välinge took the first major step to broaden its global presence on local markets and Välinge Local Support Centers were established in Belgium, US and China.