The laminate floor covering usage level is classified according to the European Standard prepared under a mandate given to CEN by the European Commission and the European Free Trade Association and supports essential requirements of EU Directive(s).

The European Standard specifies characteristics, states requirements and gives test methods such as Abrasion, Impact, Stains, Cigarette Burn, Effect of Furniture Legs, Castor Chairs, High Heel, Thickness Swelling, Squareness, Straightness, Flatness, Light Fastness and Dimensional Variation for the laminate floor.

CEN (European Committee for Standardization) members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Classification Symbols Table (Test Method prEn - 13329)
SYMBOL	CLASS	FOR	USAGE	EXAMPLES
	21	Private Domestic Areas	Light	Private guest room, bedroom
	22	Private Domestic Areas	General	Living room, dining room, children's room
	23	Private Domestic Areas	Heavy	Entrance halls, kitchens
	31	Public Commercial Areas	Light	Hotel room, small office
	32	Public Commercial Areas	General	Office, boutique, cafe, waiting rooms, hotel lobbies
	33	Public Commercial Areas	Heavy	Corridors, open plan offices, department stores, classroom

prEN13329

There are many locking systems available for laminate floors. High-end laminate manufactures tend to use Patented versions such as UniClic system.


Since 1996, a revolution has taken place in the flooring business with at its basis the Uniclic® technology. Take a closer look at tongue and groove, and you'll discover a whole array of unparalleled qualities. It works in all kinds of materials as effective as it does in laminate with the following advantages: Precise milling, Pretension, Anti-Creak, and Easy Installation.


Precise Milling

This profile can be milled with a minimum of knives, so that the machine operator has a better control.

Pretension Tongue and groove are designed with a small overlap. When they are connected, the lower lip of the groove is bent out. As a result, it is pushing back due to the flexibility of the material. This pretension force creates a constant tension in the joint and avoids gaps between the panels, so that dust, dirt and moisture cannot enter. It can also compensate small (milling) machine tolerances.

Anti-Creak

When walking on a floor, creaking noises can sometimes be heard with every footstep one takes. The anti-creaking noise feature is all about giving extra fixation between the panels to avoid these annoying creaking noises. The application of wax (=paraffin) in the click profile is recommendable because the wax acts as a lubricant so that boards pop in their end position even more easily. Wax is also very helpful in making the anti-creaking noise solution complete. The wax can be sprayed on the tongue, as an integrated part of the production process.