“The difficulties of the past year did not stop us and, despite the many concerns, we also look forward to 2021 with relative confidence”. This is how Franco Bulian, from January 1st the new Catas managing director, thinks about the next few months, a very challenging time even for the leading European testing laboratory for the wood-furniture sector. “We ended the awful 2020 with better results than we could have expected”, he continued. “The first months were really very positive, but in March the “Covid-19” cataclysm involved also our laboratory, bringing us up to a minus 15 percent in the number of tests carried out compared to 2019, a figure that we fortunately managed to recover in the second half of the year, closing with a turnover even slightly higher compared to the previous year, also thanks to the increase in the number of product certifications we have issued, 175 against 168 in 2019. And for some months the situation, at least as regards the number of tests, it is back to normal, with the inevitable fluctuations due to the swing of opportunities, certainties and sensations that the different pandemic situations of our country and the whole world allow”.
Bulian has therefore to deal with a rather “troubling” situation, in a season that suffers from the lack of events and trade fairs, with all consequences that this implies on the launch of new products and – therefore – on the many connected activities. “The first months of the year have however shown the great vitality of a sector that does not intend to give up and that in recent times has undoubtedly been positively affected by a renewed attention from consumers in the domestic spaces and homes, by the desire of each of us to improve our living environment, where we are forced to spend more time”, added the new Catas director.
New ways, new habits that have also had a positive effect in the standardization working groups of the various international technical committees at which Catas takes actively part: “The standardization sector is paradoxically working very well, because the “change of mentality” we have experienced – from face-to-face meetings to the greater use of tools that were previously almost unknown – allowed more frequent meetings, greater insights and faster decisions, all to the advantage of the quality of standardization”, Franco Bulian commented.
Speaking about the “hot topics”, the issue of the emissions undoubtedly stays on the top: in the first months of 2021, Catas recorded an upward trend in test requests from customers from all over the world, many of whom had no direct relationship with the laboratory in previous years.
It is no coincidence that in the San Giovanni al Natisone headquarters, investments have continued even during “Covid-19” times, reaching the availability of 76 test chambers that today work at full capacity. The issue of indoor air quality in the living environments is therefore always in the spotlight and important news are expected for the near future: “Within the Italian standardization body (Uni) activities – Bulian added – we are working on a standard for the classification of VOC emissions from furniture components. Up to now there are no rules prescribed by specific laws or regulations and Italy could be the first country to adopt a standard that allows the furniture surfaces to be classified according to their emissions and their components, including coatings systems. Technically, we could say that such a standard tool, would allow a manufacturer wishing to make an objectively low-emission furniture component to identify and select form the market the chemically safer coated panels and coating system…”.
Sustainability and ecology are always among the keywords of Catas and one of the first purpose of the year will be to provide a new service the life cycle assessment of a furniture product (Lca). An important goal, which could include intermediate steps in the evaluation of the sustainability or “respect for the environment” that a certain asset can boast, based on tests in the lab and measurable results. The “Lca certification” is in fact a complex process, which commits companies to significant investments; therefore, it is absolutely strategic to be able to define and prepare various possible tools – always recognized and shared – to certify the “green value” of a table, sofa or chair. More “affordable” procedures, which allow companies to gradually approach these fundamental issues for the future. All this with an organization and a structure that allows us to work in the best possible way both at national level and all over the world, so as to always be alongside manufacturers interested in the skills and high, objective professionalism of Catas. Starting from the awards: “As of December 31, 2020 we had 170 accredited test methods, compared to 138 twelve months earlier, a figure that represents our commitment in providing the wood and furniture industry with test reports and certificates that are an important and recognized quality business card all over the world. I think it is also worth remembering that over 40 percent of our work meets the demand of companies from foreing companies coming from all over the world – Franco Bulian concludes – and we intend to grow further, never forgetting Italy, where we are already present in two districts of great importance, both in Triveneto and in Brianza areas, and soon we will be able to announce a new initiative that we are sure will offer to many wood furniture companies interesting opportunities…”.