Forbo stories

Blog - A return to natural materials

Natural materials are taking centre stage in today’s design landscape. From interiors to exteriors, there’s a growing demand for spaces that feel authentic, calming, and connected to nature. Discover how wood, stone, and other natural elements are shaping the future of interior design.Natural materials are taking centre stage in today’s design landscape. From interiors to exteriors, there’s a growing demand for spaces that feel authentic, calming, and connected to nature. Discover how wood, stone, and other natural elements are shaping the future of interior design.

Fast Flooring: adhesive-free flooring installation

Renovating a space can be a challenging experience—disruptions, extended downtime, and dealing with complex installation processes are common hurdles. But what if there were a way to streamline the process and reduce these challenges? Forbo Flooring’s Fast Flooring ranges are designed to make flooring installations easier and more efficient.

Pantone Color of the Year 2025

For 2025, the Pantone Colour Institute has selected PANTONE 17-1230 Mocha Mousse as the Colour of the Year. This warm, rich brown hue evokes the comforting allure of chocolate and coffee, perfectly addressing our desire for cosiness and warmth.

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Design Trends: bringing nature indoors

Discover the latest additions to our digital print library of flooring designs: Stone, Cornfield, and Moss. These stunning designs, available in both Flotex and vinyl, are a testament to the power of nature-inspired design.

Marmoleum Solid: connect with modern nature

In today's fast-paced world, the need to connect with nature has also become more prominent than ever. Enter Marmoleum Solid, a flooring solution that not only embraces contemporary design principles but also allows you to connect with modern nature in your projects.

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Design Trends: Pantone Color of the Year 2024

Pantone, the world's leading colour authority, has announced its 2024 Color of the Year: Peach Fuzz 13-1023. The colour was chosen to express a yearning for community and cosiness during uncertain times. We love how this new colour connects with Forbo Flooring's own trend and colour research.

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Design Trends: Graphical patterns

Discover the latest additions to our digital library of flooring designs - Miami, Memphis, and Manhattan. These bold and vibrant graphical patterns will make a powerful statement in any space.

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Closing the loop on circular flooring

Dealing with used flooring and product waste responsibly is the final step to creating a circular model for flooring. We have devised various strategies for dealing with waste to reuse as many materials as possible and minimise what goes to landfill.

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Designing for longevity

Developing long-lasting, hard-wearing products that are perfectly fit-for-purpose is a key tenet of sustainable design. Learn how Forbo Flooring thinks long-term when it comes to our products and the planet.

Read the full article

Zero carbon, zero waste

How can a sustainable manufacturing process support circularity in the flooring industry? Find out how Forbo Flooring reduces carbon emissions and waste during the production and distribution process.

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Sourcing for circularity

What role does sourcing and raw materials play in achieving circularity in the flooring industry? Find out how Forbo Flooring is leading the way with a forward-thinking use of resources.

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Designing with circularity in mind

A look at the different ways we can design more sustainable products and work towards circularity in the flooring industry.

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Going round, moving forward - Achieving circularity in flooring

Learn about how Forbo Flooring Systems plans to achieve more sustainable flooring through transparency, circularity and renewability.

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4 reasons to go adhesive free

Adhesive-free floor coverings are becoming increasingly popular across many sectors, but why should you choose them for your next project? Here is our top 4 of reasons to go adhesive free.

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The Flowerbed

Making new Marmoleum from a 20-year-old floor

We are always looking for other ways to reduce, reuse and recycle our production, installation and post-installation waste. That is why in 2020 we started a collaboration with TU Delft to take back and recycle their 20-year-old Marmoleum floors.

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Keeping linoleum beautiful for longer

Choosing flooring products that contain a high proportion of naturally derived materials, involve minimal chemicals during installation, and limit the necessity for harsh chemical cleaning during the use phase will make an important positive contribution to indoor air quality in any building.

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Improving indoor air quality from the ground up

It is the joint responsibility of all stakeholders in the building and construction sector to play their part in creating buildings that work for our environment and that work for people. Designers and specifiers play an important role in limiting human exposure to hazardous materials by becoming more discerning in their product choices.

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Marmoleum Solid: connect with modern nature

In today's fast-paced world, the need to connect with nature has also become more prominent than ever. Enter Marmoleum Solid, a flooring solution that not only embraces contemporary design principles but also allows you to connect with modern nature in your projects.

Read the full article

Behind the collection: Marmoleum Linear

Recently, we refreshed our Marmoleum Linear collection, designed to add warmth and comfort to a room and reflect evolving trends in public buildings. We caught up with Marijke Griffioen, our Senior Designer here at Forbo Flooring Systems, to discover more about the range and what inspired the update.

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Ear to the ground - Part 3: Acoustics for performance

In this 3-part series from Forbo, we will be exploring the influence and effect of sound in buildings, and how acoustics can be controlled and manipulated for optimal outcomes in specific environments.

The third in our series, this blog focuses on the acoustics challenges present in the education and commercial sectors.

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Ear to the ground - Part 2: Acoustics for comfort

In this 3-part series from Forbo Flooring Systems, we will be exploring the influence and effect of sound in buildings, and how acoustics can be controlled and manipulated for optimal outcomes in specific environments.

The second in our series, this blog focuses on the acoustics challenges present in the healthcare and residential sectors, as well as discussing the optimal acoustic conditions for the leisure & hospitality industry.

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Ear to the ground - Part 1: Acoustics and why it matters

In this 3-part series, we will be exploring the influence and effect of sound in buildings, and how acoustics can be controlled and manipulated for optimal outcomes in specific environments. This week: acoustics and why it matters.

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The story behind - The Sarlon and Modul’up collection

The new Sarlon and Modul’up collection offers the most comprehensive and qualitative answer to all your needs with an unprecedented diversity of products. Margareth, Head of Vinyl Design at Forbo Flooring Systems, explains the story behind this collection.

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Marmoleum - Designing with linoleum

Linoleum is a 160-year-old innovation.
What makes this material special is its scope for endless new possibilities. One of the challenges our Design studio faces, is identifying these possibilities and translating them into a new visual that is in-keeping with the modern zeitgeist.

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Linoleum - How sustainability is done

Linoleum from Forbo is naturally good. It captures more climate-harming CO2 than it releases, if you produce it the right way, like Forbo does. The Netherlands is home to the most modern linoleum plant in the world, a factory that shows how industry and ecology really can be compatible.

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The slim chair - There may be no heat involved

“There may be no heat involved, but it’s hot stuff nonetheless” says designer Elvin den Haan about his and Jan Nijland’s latest Lonc chair: the Slim. Not only is this chair cold-pressed, requiring significantly less energy to make, it is also produced using a by-product from Zaanstreek-based linoleum factory, Forbo.

Read the full article

Linoleum - Rise of Off the Floor Applications

The naturally smooth and durable nature of linoleum lends itself perfectly to finishing all kinds of surfaces, with the versatile material being used for much more than just creating beautiful floors. Our Senior Designer, Marijke, takes a look.

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Pantone Color of the Year 2025

For 2025, the Pantone Colour Institute has selected PANTONE 17-1230 Mocha Mousse as the Colour of the Year. This warm, rich brown hue evokes the comforting allure of chocolate and coffee, perfectly addressing our desire for cosiness and warmth.

Read the full article

Design Trends: Pantone Color of the Year 2024

Pantone, the world's leading colour authority, has announced its 2024 Color of the Year: Peach Fuzz 13-1023. The colour was chosen to express a yearning for community and cosiness during uncertain times. We love how this new colour connects with Forbo Flooring's own trend and colour research.

Read the full article

Design Trends: Graphical patterns

Design Trends: Graphical patterns
Discover the latest additions to our digital library of flooring designs - Miami, Memphis, and Manhattan. These bold and vibrant graphical patterns will make a powerful statement in any space.

Read the full article

The Flowerbed - Design trends

Behind the collection: Marmoleum Linear

Recently, we refreshed our Marmoleum Linear collection, designed to add warmth and comfort to a room and reflect evolving trends in public buildings. We caught up with Marijke Griffioen, our Senior Designer here at Forbo Flooring Systems, to discover more about the range and what inspired the update.

Read the full article

Design Trends: Pantone Color of the Year 2022

Recently, Pantone has announced its Color of the Year 2022: PANTONE 17-3938 Very Peri. According to Pantone it's a vibrant colour that displays a spritely, joyous attitude and dynamic presence that encourages courageous creativity and imaginative expressions. We asked Dorothé Kessels, our Global Director Design, about her thoughts on this new Color of the Year.

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Design Trends: terrazzo

Terrazzo is more than just a flooring material. It’s a design aesthetic with a long history while still retaining its unique influence today. Forbo Flooring Systems has a very long history regarding collections in where visuals of natural stone, granite, marble and terrazzo form a significant part of the total design offer.

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The story behind our 2021 Trend Directions

At the beginning of August, our design team launched its 2021 Trend Directions report, giving insight into the current design and flooring trends and the trends we see for the coming year. Marijke Griffioen, Senior Designer Concepts, and Thomas Eurlings, Senior Designer Vinyl, explain how this report came together and what they believe are the most important trends to follow.

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Design Trends: Pantone Color of the Year 2021

“For a designer working at Forbo Flooring Systems, it is always important to think ahead when it comes to the use of colour in new collections,” Thomas Eurlings, Senior Designer Vinyl at Forbo Flooring Systems, explains. When Pantone presented their Color of the Year 2021, we were delighted to see that both colours are already very present in several of our recent collections.”

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Therapeutic - Design principles

Cultivating a healing environment becomes more and more important. By taking a more holistic and patient-centred approach to design, architecture and interior design can help to create better environments.

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Biophilic design - A healthy dose of nature

Research into new circular materials, responsible materials sourcing and zero-emissions manufacturing processes: these are just some of the ways in which an increased respect for the environment is evident within the building sector. On an interior design level, this elevated environmental consciousness is expressed in a trend for sustainability. With this has come a blurring of the boundary between outside and inside. Most notably, through the trend for biophilic design.

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The 0.36m2 - of pinboard linoleum

During the recent lockdown, Thomas Eurlings (Senior Designer Vinyl) and Marijke Griffioen (Senior Designer Linoleum) came up with an exciting plan: for their 0.36m2 project they offered a selected group of creatives a pinboard with Bulletin Board of 60x60 cm and invited them to use it in any way they wanted. Here they explain the story behind this idea.

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3 tips to prevent falls and slips

Keeping your floors clean is of course important from an esthetic point of view; people feel more at ease in a clean and tidy environment. But there are other reasons to take dirt seriously.

Without a proper entrance flooring system, leaves, sand, and dirt will find their way indoors and lead to scratches and wear and tear on the rest of the flooring. Intensively used floors – such as those in schools, shops, and office buildings – will consequently need replacing much sooner.

And as beautiful as the fall foliage is, leaves can become slippery underfoot when it rains, posing all kinds of risks for people entering or leaving the building.

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Marmoleum - Designing with linoleum

Linoleum is a 160-year-old innovation.
What makes this material special is its scope for endless new possibilities. One of the challenges our Design studio faces, is identifying these possibilities and translating them into a new visual that is in-keeping with the modern zeitgeist.

Read the full article

Faust - Passion for Linoleum

What inspires us most about linoleum is its incredibly velvety and pleasant feel, the variety of its deep-matt colours, and the fact that it is also a sustainable product made with linseed oil. Material properties such as these are held in high regard, particularly as a table surface in the office area.

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Design Series - The Dynamics of A Building

Over time, there has been a strong shift in segment design. Before, there was clear uniformity; a hospital would look like a hospital and an office would be designed to be exactly what you would expect from an office, simply a place to work. Our designer takes a look at how the boundaries between different segments have blurred, and buildings are adopting a variety of identities.

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Sensory Experiences - Bespoke Flooring

In today’s competitive economic environment, businesses are constantly looking for ways to stand out. Whether it’s unique branding or clever marketing campaigns, Dorothé Kessels, Head of Vinyl Design, looks at how companies continually seek out opportunities to set themselves apart from the competition.

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The slim chair - There may be no heat involved

“There may be no heat involved, but it’s hot stuff nonetheless” says designer Elvin den Haan about his and Jan Nijland’s latest Lonc chair: the Slim. Not only is this chair cold-pressed, requiring significantly less energy to make, it is also produced using a by-product from Zaanstreek-based linoleum factory, Forbo.

Read the full article

Finding Magic - Blending Materials

With an increasing focus on creating interiors that have a more ‘lived in’ look, many designers are breaking down pre-conceived conventions by juxtaposing seemingly disparate materials, finishes and styles to create more fluid spaces.

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Connected Spaces - Collaborative Working

When it comes to workspace design, many researchers seem to agree on the positive impact of face-to-face and informal interactions – providing distinct connections and opportunities for information exchange, collaboration, networking and problem-solving.

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Linoleum - Rise of Off the Floor Applications

The naturally smooth and durable nature of linoleum lends itself perfectly to finishing all kinds of surfaces, with the versatile material being used for much more than just creating beautiful floors. Our Senior Designer, Marijke, takes a look.

Read the full article

Closing the loop on circular flooring

Dealing with used flooring and product waste responsibly is the final step to creating a circular model for flooring. We have devised various strategies for dealing with waste to reuse as many materials as possible and minimise what goes to landfill.

Read the full article

Designing for longevity

Developing long-lasting, hard-wearing products that are perfectly fit-for-purpose is a key tenet of sustainable design. Learn how Forbo Flooring thinks long-term when it comes to our products and the planet.

Read the full article

Zero carbon, zero waste

How can a sustainable manufacturing process support circularity in the flooring industry? Find out how Forbo Flooring reduces carbon emissions and waste during the production and distribution process.

Read the full article

Sourcing for circularity

What role does sourcing and raw materials play in achieving circularity in the flooring industry? Find out how Forbo Flooring is leading the way with a forward-thinking use of resources.

Read the full article

Designing with circularity in mind

A look at the different ways we can design more sustainable products and work towards circularity in the flooring industry.

Read the full article

Achieving circularity in flooring

Learn about how Forbo Flooring plans to achieve more sustainable flooring through transparency, circularity and renewability.

Read the full article

Making new Marmoleum from a 20-year-old floor

We are always looking for other ways to reduce, reuse and recycle our production, installation and post-installation waste. That is why in 2020 we started a collaboration with TU Delft to take back and recycle their 20-year-old Marmoleum floors.

Read the full article

Building with a conscience

We believe in building with a conscience. Ultimately, what matters is what our priorities are. What will be our legacy: missed opportunities or ecological sustainability and wellbeing?

COP26 aspires to some specific objectives: secure global net zero and keep 1.5 degrees within reach, adapt to protect communities and natural habitats, and work together to deliver.

If, as a collective, we hold ourselves accountable to these same objectives, there is still some hope...

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The CooLoo Circular Canopy

We are always looking for other ways to reduce, reuse and recycle our production, installation and post-installation waste. That is why in 2019, we started a collaboration with CooLoo, resulting in the CooLoo Circular Canopy with a coating made from Marmoleum waste material.

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Factory Facts: Forbo recycling in practice

At Forbo Flooring Systems, we are committed to transforming all our linear processes and products so they support the circular economy. Read more on how recycling at Forbo Flooring Systems is done in practice.

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The making of Marmoleum the movie

A behind-the-scenes look at the creation of our epic and breath-taking new Marmoleum video, which focuses on the fact that Marmoleum is a true CO₂ neutral resilient floor covering, measured from cradle to gate, without offsetting and without buying carbon credits.

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Building a - Sustainable world

Around the world, more and more cities, countries and businesses are adopting pledges to become more sustainable. In this blog, we explain our vision, plans and ambitions for creating a more sustainable world and why products like Marmoleum are helping in this endeavour.

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Keeping Static Discharges Under Control - ESD Flooring in Healthcare

There are a range of different environments within a hospital that require protection from electro-static discharges (ESD) for the protection of patients, staff and equipment. But do you know how static discharge can be controlled? Garry Bateman, Head of Technical Sales at Forbo explains all here.

In hospital areas such as operating theatres, intensive care units and imaging diagnostic facilities, the flooring presents its own unique set of challenges. Not only does the choice of floor covering need to comply with strict hygiene standards to prevent the spread of hospital acquired infections, but the generation of electrostatic charges can pose a serious risk to sensitive electronic equipment and devices.

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Retail - Making An Entrance

Enhancing the shopping experience starts from the moment a customer sets foot in the building. As part of our ‘Floored It’ blog series, Louise Serjeant, Key Account Manager for Retail, discusses the importance of choosing an effective entrance flooring system for retail environments.

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BIM - The Rise of BIM in Healthcare

It is clear that Building Information Modelling (BIM) is steadily taking its place at the forefront of the construction sector. Here, we look at how the many benefits of BIM are becoming most apparent within the healthcare sector, assisting in the efficient construction of our country’s new, modern and technologically advanced medical facilities.

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Office - Towards a new work landscape

Whereas a number of years back, flexible working meant being able to work at any workstation in the office, the term has now evolved to encompass pop-up work places. After all, you can work any time, any place these days.

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Meet The Maker - Thomas Eurlings

In the first of our Allura Meet The Maker blog series, we catch up with Thomas Eurlings, Senior Designer Vinyl at Forbo Flooring Systems, to find out more about his involvement in the creation of the new collection, what it means to him, and current design trends within the flooring industry.

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Meet The Maker - Arjen Roelofs

As part of our Allura Meet The Maker blog series, we catch up with Arjen Roelofs, Director of Research and Development and Forbo employee for over 28 years, to find out more about his involvement in the creation of the new collection, what it means to him, and what working in the Forbo R&D department really involves.

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Meet The Maker - Roy Schepers

As part of our Allura Meet The Maker blog series, we catch up with Roy Schepers, Product Manager LVT at Forbo Flooring Systems, to find out more about his involvement in the creation of the new collection, what it means to him, and the new products within the collection designed to make installation easier and quicker.

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Meet The Maker - Anna Ray

Earlier this year, renowned textile artist, Anna Ray, took up a three-month residency at our Bamber Bridge factory, creating artworks inspired by the colours and yarns used in our carpet tiles, before premiering her creations at this year’s National Festival of Making in Blackburn, Lancashire.

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