FORBO EUROCOL GERMANY
A turbulent history
Forbo Eurocol in Erfurt has a similar history to Forbo Eurocol in Wormerveer, although the German part of the story was significantly impacted by the Second World War. The company began the production of all kinds of adhesives in 1920, and was immediately successful. The factory invested heavily in buildings and machinery. During the early days, the focus was primarily on adhesives for the lucrative shoe industry, which had its heyday during WW II. After the Russian troops reached Germany by the end of the war, the owner left to found a new company in Pirmasens, on the French-German border. In 1949, the Erfurt factory came under Russian management and was nationalised under the name: VEB Schuhchemie.
From shoes to new construction
In this post-war era, all goods were scarce, so the factory manufactured all kinds of products in addition to shoe adhesive, such as floor wax. The factory name was changed to ‘Chemisol’, where a lot of shoe adhesives are still manufactured today. The quality was so good that Chemisol became the preferred supplier for the ‘Salamander’ shoe brand, which sold its products in both East and West Germany. In order to guarantee the future of the factory, VEB Schuhchemie continued to expand its product assortment. For example with construction adhesives, an enormous market thanks to the ambitious reconstruction plans of the DDR. This resulted in the 'VEB shoe adhesive factory' growing into the market leader in construction adhesives.
Flying the Forbo flag
In the meantime, the factory built in Pirmasens was run like a family company, until it was taken over in the 1980s by the Swiss company Forbo. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the same happened with the factory in Erfurt, which continued under the name ‘Forbo Erfurt’ as a centre of expertise for chemical products in construction. The company offers a large number of system solutions for the flooring industry. Under the motto: "One-stop shop", Forbo Eurocol provides high-quality primers, levelling compounds, adhesives, varnish for parquet flooring and cork, and maintenance and cleaning supplies out of Erfurt. Like Forbo Eurocol in Wormerveer, the company believes in high customer satisfaction and provides excellent service, advice and technical and commercial support. This makes it a very strong company and partner for the German construction industry.