It’s no secret that laminates play a crucial role in home design. A good selection can elevate a space, bringing in all sorts of different textures and colours to walls, flooring and carpentry. A bad one, however, can quickly make things go south.

We’re probably all too familiar with the sight: gaudy, regularly repeating prints, hanging off the walls or carpentry in some friend or relative’s house. “It looked fine on the catalogue,” you might be told. “I didn’t know it’d look like this in person.”

Even as homeowners’ standards for home products continue to climb, low-quality laminates have become increasingly common. Some are simply presented as cheaper alternatives on the market, while some underhanded manufacturers have instead taken to making counterfeits of products from established brands, in order to charge a higher price.

A few of these knockoffs and duds are easy to spot right away, with undefined textures and inconsistent colours. But others may take time to show their substandardness, with degradation — peeling, cracking and even moulding — setting in a short period after installation.

Nicole Wu, senior creative manager at Lamitak, tells Haven that homeowners “may not always recognise the difference until they compare samples during the inspection period or, more commonly, after some time has passed”. The upshot of such situations, especially if they are discovered too late, can be that homeowners bear the cost of replacing the affected surfaces.

Of course, it can be difficult for homeowners to busy themselves with every step of the renovation process, right down to the sourcing of individual materials. More often than not, multiple hands are involved, making it nearly impossible to maintain full control.

For those willing to take on a more active role without having to purchase materials personally, Wu recommends getting deeper into expense-tracking during the renovation. “This could mean requesting written invoices from designers or an official memo on material purchases for personal reference, but this could be a tedious process.”

Brand recognition is another way to avoid choosing a poorer product. Beyond looking at swatches in a catalogue, homeowners and contractors alike can look into the companies from which those swatches originate. Established brands with a long history will not only have internal quality-assurance processes in place, but also a substantial string of reviews lending credence to their reputation.

With over 20 years of experience under its belt, Lamitak is one such company. The homegrown specialist in high-performance interior surface solutions has a catalogue of some 400 designs, with matching edge bands to provide a seamless finish. Each comes with antimicrobial features, as well as abrasion and impact resistance.

Lamitak employs a suite of methods to ensure the best laminates make it to consumers, says Wu. “To maintain high standards, we implement rigorous quality-control procedures and apply authenticity marks to all products.”

For example, In March 2023, the company introduced its Newedge UV Authenticity Mark, an ultraviolet light-activated mark to identify original edge bands from the company. Wu shares that this makes it easier and more convenient to conduct an authenticity check. On its laminates, meanwhile, the company laser-inscripts signature codes as a marker of authenticity.

Such initiatives are part of a holistic approach to quality at Lamitak. “Our business is grounded in the Asian values of honour, reliability, respect and integrity,” Wu explains. “Innovation and quality are at the heart of what we do, and we’re proud that our products consistently meet high standards of thoughtful, unique, and eco-conscious design.”

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