The Flooring Show Exhibitor Experience - F. BALL & CO

How was your experience at The Flooring Show this year?
There was a palpably upbeat atmosphere, and it was noticeably busier than in recent years. After the coronavirus pandemic and the Queen’s funeral the previous year, it felt like things were returning to a degree of normality.

What is your favorite memory from The Flooring Show 2023?
A highlight was the drinks reception held at the F. Ball stand on the Monday afternoon of the show to celebrate the 50th edition of F. Ball’s Recommended Adhesives Guide (RAG®), which lists the compatibility of F. Ball adhesives with over 6,000 floorcoverings from over 200 international floorcovering manufacturers. Each year since 1973, F. Ball has published an update to what has evolved into the most authoritative guide to floorcovering-adhesive compatibility. Everyone was welcome at the event, and it was great to see so many people from across the flooring industry come together.

Did you launch any new products at this year’s show?
Yes, we launched Stopgap 1600, a new fast-drying, fibre-reinforced smoothing compound that is formulated especially for use over underfloor heating systems.

All F. Ball smoothing compounds can be applied over electric underfloor heating systems incorporated into the subfloor, but the new product has been developed especially to be applied between 3 - 40mm to encapsulate water-fed underflooring heating and cooling systems of the kind increasingly installed as part of refurbishments in both domestic and commercial environments.

Can you tell us about your top three products that were showcased at this year’s event?
Apart from Stopgap 1600, we also showcased other innovations to help flooring contractors work to ever more exacting standards, with increasing ease and efficiency, including Stopgap 1500, a water-mix smoothing compound that can be applied directly over old adhesive residues, avoiding the need to remove them by mechanical preparation beforehand.

Attendees could also watch demonstrations of F. Ball’s Styccobond F58 PLUS, a fast-track, fibre-reinforced, pressure sensitive adhesive for the installation of Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVTs), which enables floorcoverings to be installed from just five minutes.

Did you have anything interactive on your stand this year? If so, what was the thought process behind this and was it successful in attracting visitors to your stand?
The live demonstration area returned in response to a continued positive reception from attendees. It was introduced to the F. Ball stand a few years ago to give people the opportunity to see new products being used for themselves.

Visitors to the F. Ball stand at the Flooring Show could watch live demonstrations of F. Ball products delivered by F. Ball’s head of training, Tim Green, and other experts from the Technical Service Department.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the RAG®, flooring contractors also had the opportunity to win a prize by selecting the correct key from a lucky dip to unlock the iconic F. Ball yellow bucket at the company’s stand.

What is your company aiming to achieve ahead of The Flooring Show 2024?
As usual, we’ll be looking to showcase the latest cutting-edge innovations in subfloor preparation products and floorcovering adhesives technology at this year’s Flooring Show. We invest in a program of continuous research and development, led by our Technical Service Department and facilitated by purpose-built laboratories and testing facilities at our Staffordshire headquarters. We encourage flooring professionals to look out for news of the latest developments by following our social media channels and signing up to regular news emails, as well as our Ball Rewards customer loyalty scheme to receive our F-Talk e-newsletter.

Visit F. Ball and Co on stand B1 at The Flooring Show 2024. Click here to register your interest in attending.