Allura Meet The Maker: Thomas Eurlings
Senior Designer Vinyl, Forbo Flooring Systems
Meet the maker: Thomas Eurlings
As part of our Allura Meet The Maker blog series, we catch up with Thomas Eurlings, Senior Designer Vinyl at Forbo Flooring Systems, to find out more about his involvement in the creation of the new collection, what it means to him, and current design trends within the flooring industry.
What is your favourite Allura design and why?
I have several favourites within the collection. My first is the new timber design in the 50x15cm plank size, which we developed in house with an in-register embossing. The embossing has a matte finish, so when it’s combined with the different colours it makes the timber a beautiful future classic.
I also love the new terrazzo range. For this collection, we combined a classic terrazzo visual with a contemporary colour palette.
What helps you to relax before or after work, to get you in the right frame of mind to develop new products/solutions?
Last summer saw the opening of SOHO House in Amsterdam, so if my schedule allows, I do an early yoga class there. Yoga helps to clear my mind, so that there is room for fresh new ideas. If the weather is nice enough, I’d then go to the rooftop terrace afterwards and catch up on my emails.
After this, I then have a full day ahead of me to work on projects.
Allura Wood 63407 bleached timber 50x15cm planks
Allura Material Terrazzo
Are you seeing any particular design trends within the industry that you think the Allura collection might help customers achieve?
Recently, I am noticing that the design of the floor is getting more important within high-end projects. It is not a decision that is being made at the beginning (or end) of the project design stages, but it is integrated and coordinated with all of the other elements featured in the interior, such as wall and furniture finishes.
The design freedom that our new Allura collection offers will definitely help designers and specifiers achieve this coordination.
What do you enjoy most about your role at Forbo?
I really like that I am involved in the whole process of a collection; from the first concept ideas right up until the photography and exhibition presentations.
We start gathering inspiration and developing the ideas we have into a collection concept. With this collection, the team then visits clients and architects in several countries to gather their feedback.
After the collection is finalised, the design support team in the factory then takes over and converts everything to an industrial scale. During this upscale in the factory, I develop a plan for the photography of the collection, of which I am the art director. Sometimes the first time I see a finished product is in the photography studio; this is always very exciting as, up until this point, I have only seen most of the new designs as samples from the pilot factory
How long have you been working at Forbo and what does your average day look like??
I started working for Forbo back in 2012, but before then I did complete several projects for the company as a freelancer. I try to have as many non-average days as possible!
What’s been your proudest moment to date?
The completion of the collection’s photography is always a milestone for me. After this the sample books can be made, and the collection is ready for the market!