The International Committee of the Decorative Laminates Industry (ICDLI) says it had a very successful annual conference with a record number of participants in Portugal, Cascais in October. Topics about design, colour trends, new EU regulations as well as market reviews about the economic situation in Portugal, Spain and Russia inspired all participants.
The start of the two-day event was made by Monika Fecht, Renolit SE, with her presentation on important colour and design trends for the branch. In the future, colour schemes for different kitchen elements of decorative laminates will follow state-of-the-art fashion trends. Preferred colouring are tones of blue and green, as well as other colours which are borrowed from nature.
A highlight of the meeting was the presentation of Georgios Katsarakis from the European Commission, about the introduction of the EU Construction Product Regulation, which came into force in July, and forms the basis for CE-marking. Beside others, the aim of the new Construction Product Regulation is to express the performance of construction products in order to promote a smooth functioning of the European international market.
Furthermore, the re-elected ICDLI president Carlos Cruz reported about the recent economic situation in Portugal and Spain. Both countries suffer under a high unemployment rate as well as a shrinking gross domestic product (GPD) and a continuous decrease of construction.
Dr Robert Wagner, Dynea Austria GmbH, dealt in his speech with the Russian market. Despite of a shrinking population, Russia still counts as an interesting and recently growing economic sphere.
In addition, Matthias Pollmann, Kölnmesse GmbH, and Rolf Wermelinger, Argolite AG, presented the highlights of the Interzum trade fair and the special show Innovation of Interior. They visualised the success of the Laminates Gallery, which was realised in cooperation with the ICDLI membership companies. Moreover, Markus Sander, Westag & Getalit AG, held a presentation about the refocus of the Fachgruppe Dekorative Schichtstoffplatten to proHPL and Bernd Reuß, Schattdecor AG, presented trends and developments of Decorative Digital Printing.
The international companies Sappi Europe SA, which was represented by Jaques van Riel and JCP Slotex, which was represented by Vadim Osipov, introduced their firm’s work areas at the Plenary Assembly.
The well-attended event was rounded off by a diverse supporting program which offered all participants a lot of space and time for networking.
