Saima Design New Colours

Karelia-Upofloor is launching new colours to the Saima Classic Hardwood Floor family. Saima is the only design hardwood floor, with strong links to the world-famous architects and designers of its native country, Finland.

Aalto & Wirkkala

Aino and Alvar Aalto were forerunners as developers of wood bending and wooden architecture. In private homes the solid hardwood floors and the numerous wooden details, the result of a carpenter's handicraft, provided a finishing touch to the air of a modern home.

Aino and Alvar Aalto also developed the use of curved plywood in the furniture industry, which, for its part, promoted the development of the birch-slat-structured hardwood floor. A distinctive feature of Aino and Alvar Aalto's furniture design was the visual air of the birch veneering. The fine-line effect created by cut birch veneer is reflected in the Saima hardwood floor.

The Saima hardwood floor is of excellent strength and durability. Its slat-patterned surface, based on Aino and Alvar Aalto's design, creates an exceptionally rich, wood ambience in a room. Thanks to its special structure, Saima uniquely reflects light and the colours of any room.

The most famous Finnish Designer Tapio Wirkkala took an interest in the Saima hardwood floor in the 1980's and influenced its product design. The unique vertical veneer structure of Saima resembled the structure used in much of Wirkkala's and Aino and Alvar Aalto's work; within sculptures, furniture and interior decor details. Wirkkala wished to design a new colour for the Saima product family. He defined it as "Beehive grey" and the material as solidly coloured. Nearly thirty years ago, it was possible to produce only a limited amount of this special Saima floor - all for Wirkkala's private use and for his world exhibition tour.

The magic of light and colour
Now Saima comes with colours, too.
In addition to the Wirkkala colour, Karelia-Upofloor is launching other colour-Saima products. Saima Lumi is white matt lacquered, Saima Ruska has been coloured cognac brown, and Saima Raita is a vivid striped hardwood floor board with an lternating dark-grey and birch-coloured veneer. With the various composition options of Saima, a completely new effect and extravagance can be created in a room, for both private and public facilities.

More information from: R&D Manager Kyösti Puurunen, tel +358-40-8495525, kyosti.puurunen@kareliaupofloor.com
Photos: Marketing Manager Merja Jukola, tel +358-40-5101141, merja.jukola@kareliaupofloor.com.

Karelia-Upofloor
Karelia -Upofloor Ltd is one of the leading flooring producers in Europe. The main products of the group are Karelia and Upofloor branded hardwood and resilient floorings. Karelia-Upofloor group comprises five production units in Finland, one factory in Russia and one in Rumania. Our products are exported to around 40 countries. The main markets are the Nordic countries, Russia, Central and Eastern Europe, the USA and Japan. Net sales in 2007 was 128,8 million euro and today the group has around 950 employees.