Laminate flooring manufacturers Pergo and Classen are combining their patents for folddown installation and are collaboratively marketing the new technology – just in time for the major international flooring trade fairs at the beginning of the year.

Pergo, the inventor and leading manufacturer of laminate flooring, has a particularly strong industry position due to the timely and comprehensive registrations of its’ PerfectFold™ folddown technology. Classen has a number of favorable legal judgments in its’ MEGALOC patent family that has created a significant amount of industry buzz in recent years. Jointly, both companies share what is likely the strongest number of patents and technical solutions on the market. As folddown installation becomes more accepted as the industry standard for laminate and hardwood flooring, both companies anticipate more manufacturers to become interested in licensing the technology.

“By bundling our rights, it is now easier to allocate licenses to all manufacturers. We are sure that this will be a major step forward in achieving Pergo’s goal of establishing folddown technology as the new installation standard,” said Ralf Eisermann, CEO of Pergo AG, on the new agreement with Classen.

Arne Loebel of the Classen Group’s board said, “Millions of square meters of our MEGALOC already have been successfully installed on the market, and are delighting our customers. The situation is now becoming very interesting for other manufacturers as we move to make folddown the new flooring installation standard. We have the strongest package for interested licensees.”

On January 16-19, Classen will provide further information on its folddown installation technology at Domotex – while Pergo will showcase the technology at its first Pergo Tex trade fair at the SAS Radisson Messehotel.

About Pergo

Pergo is regarded as the inventor of HPL laminate flooring and enjoys an outstanding position on both the North American and European markets. The company develops, produces and markets laminate flooring with premium-quality multi-layer sequence in unmistakable designs and unique product features for the residential sector and commercial applications.

Pergo produces more than 30 million square metres of laminate flooring a year at two locations in Sweden (Trelleborg and Perstorp) and two manufacturing facilities in the USA (Garner, NC) and Canada (Laval). The traditional Pergo brand was acquired by the MDAX-quoted Pfleiderer AG (ISIN DE 0006764749) in 2007. Pergo AG is the Management Holding of Pergo AB and Pergo LLC.

For more information, visit www.pergo.com or call 1-800-33-PERGO (1-800-337-3746).