Ulrich Windmöller Files Patent Suit Against Bauhaus

Wielsbeke, Belgium, May 15, 2019-Ulrich Windmöller Consulting GmbH & Co. KG (UWC), a company of the Windmöller Group, has filed a patent infringement action against some companies belonging to pan-European retailer group, Bauhaus, before the District Court of Düsseldorf in Germany.

UWC is convinced that a floor panel product sold in various Bauhaus DIY stores across Germany infringes the German part of its Windmöller patent EP 1 983 963 B2. UWC believes that this patent covers multi-layer modular vinyl flooring having a PVC core and containing a plasticizer.

The allegedly infringing “Click-Vinylboden, Black Forest Oak floor panel” is manufactured by Taizhou Huali Plastic Co., Ltd. Jiangyan that, in UWC’s opinion, does not have a valid license agreement in place allowing it to use UWC’s Windmöller patent EP 1 983 963 B2.

Since UWC declared the termination of its sub-licensing agreement with Flooring Industries Ltd. (Unilin) in January 2018, it is of the opinion that all licenses granted by anyone else than UWC for patent EP 1 983 963 B2 after that date are invalid. This affects Taizhou Huali Plastic Co., Ltd. Jiangyan as well as other companies

UWC reiterates that it will continue to take the appropriate legal actions against all infringements to safeguard its patents.