Viken, Sweden - March 30, 2006--In 2005 Välinge entered into a license and cooperation agreement regarding laminate flooring with Kronospan (Kronospan Technical Co. Ltd.) and Kronotex (Flooring Technologies Ltd.).
The result of this cooperation so far has been favourable for both parties.
Therefore it has been agreed to extend this cooperation further to a joint ownership, where Kronospan and Kronotex will acquire 20% each of the shares of Välinge. Nordstjernan and the Pervan family will still remain as the largest shareholders, with a combined ownership of 60% of the shares. The parties have decided not to disclose the purchase price.
The shareholders have agreed that Välinge will continue to act as an independent R&D and IPR company in the field of laminate and wood floorings and that a major objective is active licensing of new technology. The joint ownership gives Kronospan and Kronotex possibilities to share the advantages that Välinge will gain from the cooperation and from licensing new technology. The parties anticipate that this cooperation will strengthen the technology base and IP rights considerably and that Välinge will improve its world leading position in R&D.
Välinge’s licensees will also benefit from this cooperation since Välinge will be able to supply more support and broader technology protected by an even stronger patent base. Välinge will also have the right to use the IP of Kronospan and Kronotex commercially and legally. As a result, Välinge has decided to increase its legal department in order to be able to handle the combined portfolio of IP rights which is the largest in the world and consist of more than 600 granted patents related to laminate and wood floorings.
“The ownership structure and our license base with 50 licensees worldwide gives us sufficient financial and commercial strength to match any player in the flooring industry. Additional advantages are that we can now further extend our R&D to core materials and large scale laminate production and combine patent portfolios, says Darko Pervan, CEO of Välinge”.
Välinge is a leading technology development company in the flooring industry, which in 1993 developed the world’s first mechanical locking system for laminate and wood flooring. Today the company holds a world-leading position in mechanical locking systems for laminate and wood flooring protected by an extensive patent portfolio. The company has currently some 50 licensees worldwide, including many leading international laminate and wood floor producers. The company has shown strong growth for a number of years and in 2005 the invoicing amounted to 294 SEK million and pre-tax profit to SEK 111 million. More information: www.valinge.se.
