Unilin is closing its laminate plant in Wielsbeke, West Flanders, for three weeks during the Autumn and Christmas holidays against a backdrop of high energy prices and falling demand for flooring material, De Tijd reported on Tuesday evening.
The Wielsbeke plant, where QuickStep floors are produced, employs 1,100 people. “About a thousand can fall back on temporary unemployment under the new energy-crisis regime," spokesperson Sander Laridon said. "They will keep 70 % of their normal pay in the process.”
Unilin, the European division of U.S.-based flooring giant Mohawk, is still registering brisk sales of its insulation panels. By contrast, demand for parquet, laminate and vinyl flooring has fallen by 20% to 30%, according to the company's third-quarter figures.
At the same time, prices of raw materials and energy are skyrocketing. “They have gone up 300% to 400%,” Laridon says. “In raw materials, we feel this fairly immediately, while with energy prices it's drop by drop, as contracts have to be renewed.”
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Unilin's operating profit fell 45% in the third quarter. Feeling the pinch, the company already sporadically scaled back production this autumn. "It varies enormously depending on the product group, plants and even production lines," Laridon said.
For example, concerning the production of luxury vinyl planks and tiles, Turkish or US companies can produce these much cheaper, Laridon explained. "In the United States, energy is 10 times cheaper."
