Innovus marks decade

27 May 2022


The Innovus decorative panels brand of international wood-based panels producer Sonae Arauco has reached a 10-year milestone in the market

2022 marks the 10-year anniversary of the Innovus decorative panels brand.

Its manufacturer Sonae Arauco celebrated the milestone while exhibiting at FIMMA-Maderalia 2022, the international trade fair for the wood and furniture industry, in Valencia on March 29-April 1, one of the leading trade fairs for the entire wood and furniture industry.

After 10 years of the collection, the company says it is very well placed in the market and ready to meet the challenges of the low carbon debate.

It took the opportunity at FIMMA-Maderalia to share first-hand the most innovative décors and finishes from the Innovus Collection.

The recently launched décors on display were Titanium and Titanium Dark, Super Matt, Sonoma Oak Grey Green, Natural, Artisan, Flow and Endless Oak Natural and Black with the new finish Spirit.

But the Innovus Feel Light Grey | Cosmos décor was firmly in the spotlight. The décor won the German Design Award 2021, in the category “Excellent Product Design and Elements” and the Interzum Award: Intelligent Material & Design 2021.

Feel Light Grey | Cosmos from the Innovus Artwork Collection is a décor-coated panel for high-quality furniture construction as well as for sophisticated interior design.

The natural texture of the matt, three-dimensional melamine finishing in harmony with the authentic décor combines haptic experience and visual appearance. Based on textile felt, which stands for comfort, among other things, the product picks up on global trends and satisfies the need of cosiness and security.

Whether in the kitchen, the bathroom or public, highly frequented areas, Feel Light Grey | Cosmos makes it possible to implement a textile material such as felt even in areas where it is not normally used, because the advantages of the melamine resin-coated wood-based panel, such as cleanability, resistance, antibacterial properties and durability allow it to do so.

The visual appearance is designed to allow colour matching with other décors or materials without any problems.

At the Spanish exhibition, the multiple combinations between décors and finishes were explored by show visitors with its 3D Simulator during the event. After two years with no face-to-face events due to the pandemic, Maderalia was one of the first reunions between all the industry professionals.

João Berger, chief marketing and sales officer at Sonae Arauco, said Innovus had established itself on the market with numerous innovations and, as a “green product solution”, was ideally equipped for the challenges ahead.

Whether it is wood, fantasy or unicolour décor, the Innovus Collection is based on a contemporary and extensive range of décors and structures, including melamine faced panels, laminates (HPL) and composite elements.

It is designed to cover a wide range of needs in furniture, construction, and decorative interior design, for example for retail stores, public facilities, or hotels, and is distributed in around 80 countries.

The brand was originally launched in 2012 under the slogan “A new way to create”.

The strategic direction under the new decorative umbrella brand was continued in 2014 by launching the decorative Topan products into Innovus Coloured MDF. One of the most significant milestones was Interzum 2017, where the joint venture between Sonae Indústria and the Arauco Group was officially announced. At the same time, Sonae Arauco introduced the two Innovus finishes Stucco and Fusion.

The innovation cycle was moving rapidly, and, finally, a unique Innovus Collection was presented in 2019 featuring the new textures Cosmos, Flow, and Spirit and a renewal rate of 40%.

Today in 2022, the brand not only has numerous new décors and modern finishes, but also special variants that are crucial for the value-added products business, such as Fire-X (fire retardant) and Hydro-X (moisture resistance) properties and CARB2.

“The Innovus Collection has played a crucial role in opening up new distribution channels,” added Mr Berger. “It has been central in getting retailers to accept the comparatively young brand full of inspiration and we have been able to steadily expand the Innovus distribution network.”

The low carbon and sustainability issue, Mr Berger added, was an important focus for the company as Innovus goes into its second decade.

“Carbon capture is no longer a vague idea, but a reality – an important, urgent concept on a global scale. Sonae Arauco is in the perfect position to enable this development because wood and wood-based products sequester carbon instead of releasing it into the atmosphere. Therefore, this is the most important trend that will affect our company in the coming years, and in a positive way.”

Sonae Arauco says it was responsible for retaining 3.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide with the products it placed on the market in 2021.

In addition, increasing the efficient use of wood recycling is one of the most strategic areas of investment. In some cases the share of recycled wood in particleboard production at Sonae Arauco already exceeds 65%.

Staying with the sustainability issue, the company also announced recently that it had subscribed its first funding linked to its sustainability performance (Sustainability- Linked Loan), amounting to €184m. The interest rate may vary according to two ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) indicators: increase in the purchase of recycled wood and decrease in work accidents with sick leave.

“Linking Sonae Arauco’s sustainability performance to its financial performance is a natural step on the path we have been taking to realise our vision of creating wood solutions that improve people’s lives and play a relevant role in the climate change challenge,” said António Castro, chief financial officer at Sonae Arauco:

With this funding, Sonae Arauco has committed to increase the volume of recycled wood incorporated in its products by 19% by 2026.

Sonae Arauco has produced a video to mark the anniversary.

Innovus decorative boards on display
Innovus living room decorative panel surfaces
Sonae Arauco Innovus MFC surfacing