THE RUBBER SPECIALIST Floor coverings from nora systems: Expertise in sustainability and design nora systems GmbH develops, produces and distributes high-quality rubber floor coverings, steptreads and shoe components under the nora® brand. The Weinheim-based company was formed from Freudenberg Bausysteme KG in 2007, and as a global market leader has been shaping the development of rubber floor coverings for many years. In 2011, nora systems, with more than 1100 employees, generated sales of 196.7 million euros. The production of nora floor coverings began in 1949 on an old vulcanising machine in the Freudenberg factory. The traditional company, based in Weinheim, which has made gaskets and shoe soles from rubber since the 1930s, was looking for an extra mainstay, and decided to start making rubber floor coverings. The new product was named after the inventor of the rubber formulation, the chemist Dr Nürnberger (Latin: noribergensis). With a global market share of more than 50 percent, nora systems is now the world's market leader in rubber floor coverings. The business has focused primarily on the property business in the health, education, transport, industry and public building sectors, as well as the retail trade and service sectors. All around the world, nora floor coverings from the norament and noraplan ranges represent the kind of quality that is "Made in Germany". Creative room interior design with innovative developments High-quality natural and industrial rubbers form the basis of the nora floor coverings. They are mixed with naturally occurring minerals and with other components such as environmentally friendly colour pigments, drawn out to form blanks, pressed and then vulcanised with heat and high pressure. This process gives the coverings their resilient elastic properties and their durable surface. Even when heavily used, nora floor coverings show hardly any wear, and are not far from indestructible. Thanks to more than 300 colours in the standard nora range, the variety of surface textures and the large number of design options achievable through inlays, architects, planners and builders have a large number of options for creative interior design. The name of nora has for years stood for innovation in floor design. In the 1960s, the norament pastille advanced to the status of a cult classic. Since then, the rubber specialist from Weinheim has made a name for itself again and again with innovative designs. In autumn 2011, the company again launched two products, norament crossline and noraplan unita, whose unusual surface structures and combinations of materials bring entirely new accents to the market for resilient floor coverings. noraplan sentica was launched early in 2012. The newest member of the noraplan product range scores twice straightaway: the 38 colours used for the new rubber floor covering correspond to the Natural Color System (NCS), which makes it easier for architects to plan the overall colour concept for buildings. At the same time, the floor covering is low in emissions, and therefore guarantees a healthy indoor climate. Pioneer in environmental protection Sustainability, environmental protection and healthy living have long been core elements of the company orientation at nora systems. Many certifications from official institutes and associations underscore the environmental compatibility of nora floor coverings, which contain no hazardous plasticisers (phthalates), halogens (e.g. chlorine) and PVC . As one of the world's first manufacturers of resilient floor coverings, the company's environmental management system has been certified since 1996 (EEC 761/2001). In addition to this, there have been the cradle to cradle investigations of the manufacturing process carried out by the Institut Fresenius, plus the LEED and Greenguard certifications of indoor air quality. Since 2006, nora floor coverings have carried the "Blue Angel... for low emissions" environmental label. At the beginning of 2011, the company was the first, and so far only, manufacturer of rubber floor coverings to receive the Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) from the Institut Bauen und Umwelt e.V. (IBU). In addition, nora systems is a founding member of the German Sustainable Building Council. nora system blue: the complete package for clean indoor air The company is taking yet another step on the path to healthy living surroundings with the certified nora system blue installation system. As the first manufacturer in the world, the company has developed an integrated concept for an environmentally sound floor construction. It consists of three components. These include, firstly, the floor covering itself, secondly the installation materials such as adhesive, filler and primer, and thirdly skilled, professional installation. Each single component in this system solution fulfils the regulations on indoor air hygiene from the Federal Environmental agency, and bears the "Blue Angel… for low emissions" label. The company has once again extended its spectrum of expertise through nora system blue: from a manufacturer of rubber floor coverings to a supplier of integrated systems solutions for healthy-living building.*