10/2024 The master‘s certificate is still the goal in the future of the czech parquet laying guild

The parquet layers' guild in the Czech Republic invited the representatives of EUFA (European Association for the Promotion of Training in Parquet Laying and Flooring Technology) to another specialist seminar.

The reason for these invitations: Our professional colleagues are aiming to take the master craftsman's examination in the parquet laying trade in order to create an official proof of quality to set themselves apart from other competing companies.

Resilient, textile and similar flooring as well as their production and installation were the specified topics.

The EUFA board member Heinz Brehm asked the publicly appointed and sworn expert (german: ö.b.u.v. Sachverständiger) Peter Schwarzmann for help to give a lecture in his special field, which he immediately agreed to do.

The Czech guild rented the seminar rooms in the fortress Krassa, near Liberec, for the period from October 27 - 31, 2024.

The presentations, which had been translated into Czech in advance by our colleague Jan Klika and were mostly kindly provided by our supplier industry, were presented in German. The participants had the written presentations available and were able to read along. The resulting questions were translated by Ms. Hanna Tomešová and the German answers were immediately returned in Czech.

This enabled the participants to gain new knowledge that they could later put into practice. This avoids complaints and unnecessary costs.

The wide range of topics covered: Linoleum, cork, synthetic, rubber, PVC, CV and laminate floorings as well as velour, loop pile, needle felt and flock carpets. The presentations dealt with their characteristics and explained the typical installation methods.

The translated information sheets from the 'Professional book for flooring installers' (publisher Heinz Brehm, edition 2023), such as 'Information about the existing screed' or 'Cleaning and care of elastic and textile coverings' or the 'Screed test protocol for determining readiness for covering' were discussed in detail and compared with Czech specifications.

In the practical part, Peter Schwarzmann explained the various seam cutting techniques for resilient and textile floor coverings as well as the laying of NORA molded stairs. Heinz Brehm demonstrated and explained the Radtke shredding rod for a cordless screwdriver. This is used to crush the screed test material. The more floury the test material is for the CM measurement, the more accurate the measurement result.

It was an exciting time for all participants in the Czech Republic. Each side was able to take home a lot of innovations and experiences.

The surroundings also contributed to the success. The hotel offered a perfectly equipped seminar room, the food was of exceptional quality and the staff were helpful with all questions and problems.

The Czech parquet layers would like to receive further training.

Seminar participants:

Pres. Mariahna Mahulik, Vice Ing. Jiři Dvořák, Pavel Mahulik, Ivan Dobiáš, Daviel Pelikovsky,

Petr Hořejši, Martin Huleč, Martin Holovic, Dmytřo Koplya, Ota Votoček, Jakub Dobiáš and partly three guests.