Today, Chimiver can boast a lot of new products in its LED-range. In its R&D laboratories it developed a new line of solutions for polymerization through UV LED lamps. This comprises a complete range that includes oils, lacquers, undercoatings and primers Chimiver not only promotes in the industrial sector but also for on-site applications.
In this article we will primarily be talking about the product LED Hard Wax Oil, with some extra attention for the water based lacquers. Leading us through is Alessandro Butta, Chimiver’s Industry Department Manager.

“This technology is the technology of the future”, says Alessandro Butta. “The reason for this needs hardly be explained. Before we had LED, lamps with mercury and gallium had to be used. These are dangerous both for the environment and the safety of the user. With LED technology, the lamps use only a very low amount of energy. In comparison to before you have a gain of about 90%. At the same time, the lamp has an extremely long lifespan, changing is only necessary after 20,000 to 25,000 hours. Compare this to mercury lamps, that have to be changed every 1,000 hours… Furthermore, there are no problems with ozone emissions.”

Cold light = less wood stress
We also heard the lamps had another advantage: they use cold light?
“That is totally correct”, reacts Mr. Butta. “The temperature is maximally 50 degrees Celsium, which means the wood is less stressed and there is absolutely no risk it is being ruined by the heat of the lamps. I would also like to add we already have 40 standard colours for our LED technology. This means our customer can make a lot of variants.”
According to mister Butta, the evolutions are such that even the on-site usage of LED has become optimal. And also: the lamps are very easy to be installed.
“We work every day to improve our product even more, but one mustn’t forget this is a new technology. The only existing limit at the moment is with hard wax oil. If you use normal UV-oil, you can reach 3 or 4 gloss levels. Now it is possible to go to 9.”

A sustainable technology
“What is important to remember, is that we bring high performance products to the market, even with LED technology. Moreover, these new developments are environmentally sustainable. Customers should understand this and how we can deliver maximum sustainability to ensure the best possible clean solutions. We are also in the process to issue our first sustainability reports very shortly, in conjunction with a report of the carbon footprint of our entire own organisation. This reporting will from now on be done on a yearly basis.”
Earlier on, we talked about two Chimiver LED products, the Hard Wax Oil and the water-based lacquers. We ask our interlocutor to explain these somewhat more and at the same time want to know more about their main benefits.

“Our Hard Wax LED UV curing oil is modified with acrylate oligomers. This oil is suitable for varnishing wooden floors and the wooden floors varnished with LED Hard Wax Oil are characterized by excellent hardness, distension and elasticity. The oil confers the wood item a natural look, soft to the touch and oil-like staining. LED hard wax oil is available both for industrial application and in situ tratment“, we hear. “LED water-based laquers for wooden floors are single-component, photoactivated laquers formulated with special acrylic resins in water dispersion with LED crosslinking, ready to use. They possess excellent physical drying speed that allows to minimize flash-off time. I would like to mention FINITURA UW SV-LED 924, one of our top quality water-based lacquers available for industrial use”

“What I also would like to mention is our Ecofast UV LED curing laquer. This single-component, water-based LED curing lacquer is ideal for the in situ treatment of wooden floors. Ecofast UV LED has a high resistance to foot traffic and abrasion and is therefore suitable for flooring subject to high wear. It is cross-linked using portable LED machines and is recommended where the rapid use of a wooden floor is required. For this reason we have designed LED-Y, the Chimiver solution for LED photo-curing of oils and lacquers after application on-site. It managed to reduce the working times drastically, making surfaces immediately walkable and making these products ideal especially for refurbishments of commercial, sports and residential areas, and in all situations where time is an essential element.”

“Battling our entire own Carbon Footprint is a source of pride and ambition for Chimiver”
In a previous issue of Floor Forum, we already explained how Chimiver has expressed its firm wish to be one of the leading companies in the fight against climate change. Alessandro Butta explains how Chimiver is tackling this problem in its everyday business: “We have decided to take the path of decarbonization in order to limit and eliminate its impact on climate change. This is in line with the European Union's goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55%, compared to 1990 levels by 2030, reaching climate neutrality by 2050. The decision to consider the entire organization in the Carbon Footprint (ISO 14064: 2018) is a source of pride and ambition for us, as we want to consider everything that concerns us: customers, employees, suppliers, logistics, raw materials, packaging, energy, water, etcetera ... The goal will be to reduce CO2 equivalent emissions as much as possible and possibly try to offset the remaining ones with specific projects.”