Surteco Edgebands is a global leader in thermoplastic edgebands for the furniture and interior industry. With production sites in Europe, America and Asia, and customers in around 80 countries, the company combines international manufacturing strength with strong local market proximity. By integrating all core production processes in-house, from formulation and extrusion to printing, digital technologies, embossing, lacquering and advanced colour matching, SURTECO maintains full control over quality and performance, with a clear focus on innovation, design and sustainability.
Interview with Daniel Börning, Commercial Director at SURTECO EDGEBANDS in Gladbeck, Germany, responsible for customer development and strategic growth.
How do your products and solutions take client satisfaction to the next level?
Daniel Börning: For us, customer satisfaction starts with reliability. Our customers need more than an edgeband. They need a solution that performs consistently, matches perfectly and supports stable production processes. By integrating all production technologies internally and maintaining strong expertise in colour matching and production, we ensure that every product delivers long-term performance and operational confidence.
What does “reliability” mean for your customers today, and how has your company’s definition of reliability evolved in recent years?
D.B: Reliability today means process stability, predictable quality and supply security. In recent years, our definition has evolved to include sustainability, transparency and certified performance. Customers expect products that not only work flawlessly but also meet environmental and regulatory expectations.
Which specific features of your products or solutions most directly impact reliability for your customers’ operations?
D.B: Precise colour matching, consistent embossing, high surface resistance and dimensional accuracy are critical. Our in-house control of extrusion, printing and finishing ensures uniform quality. In addition, our CIRCULAR EDGE range supports certified recycled content and circular processes, adding long-term value.
How do you design reliability into your products from the earliest stages of development?
D.B: Reliability is built into development. We control formulations, production parameters and surface technologies internally. Each new product is tested under real production conditions to ensure compatibility with customer machinery and bonding technologies, including laser and hot air applications.
What role do data, monitoring, or predictive technologies play in improving reliability and preventing failures for your clients?
D.B: Data supports process optimisation and quality control throughout production. Continuous monitoring allows us to maintain consistency across large volumes and different production sites. It also enables traceability and certification, particularly for our sustainable solutions.
How do you balance innovation and speed-to-market with long-term reliability and operational stability?
D.B: Innovation must always support stability. Before any new colour, product or formulation reaches the market, it undergoes extensive validation and performance testing. In some cases, we develop solutions in close partnership with our industrial customers to ensure the product is perfectly adapted to their machinery, processes and technical requirements. This collaborative approach allows us to introduce innovation without compromising long-term reliability or production efficiency.
Can you share an example of how your solution helped a customer reduce downtime, improve process stability, or increase operational confidence?
D.B: A good example is our PP CIRCULAR EDGE development. These solutions were created in close collaboration with a well-known industrial kitchen manufacturer, who was looking for practical and certified sustainable edging options to meet increasing compliance requirements. We developed solutions that addressed regulatory expectations without compromising quality, processing performance or design standards. The result was the creation of two versions of certified sustainable edgebands, each designed to meet different sustainability targets while maintaining the same reliability and aesthetic performance as conventional products.
How do service, maintenance, and after-sales support contribute to overall reliability and customer satisfaction in your business model?
D.B: Our teams provide technical support, sampling, colour matching expertise and local assistance. With global production and a strong local presence, we ensure fast response times and stable supply chains. Reliability does not end with the product; it also depends on how effectively it is applied in the customer’s production environment. That is why we offer a dedicated Application Technology Service, providing specialised technical support to ensure optimal edgeband performance. We also provide on-site training and technical assistance, as well as adjustments for different application technologies, including laser, hot-air and PUR systems.
What standards, certifications, or internal benchmarks guide your approach to ensuring consistent quality and performance?
D.B: At SURTECO, quality is embedded in every stage of our production process. Each edgeband is the result of advanced manufacturing and strict internal quality control. We conduct comprehensive testing, including adhesion testing, scratch resistance, abrasion resistance and UV light resistance, to ensure long-term durability and processing reliability. Across our production sites, internationally recognised certifications support our structured and responsible approach. These include ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001, ISO 50001:2018 and GREENGUARD certification.
How do you collect and use customer feedback to continuously improve the reliability of your products and solutions?
D.B: Customer feedback is a continuous part of how we work. The opinion of our customers is very important for us. We maintain very regular and close contact with our customers, and we build long-term relationships where we know their processes well and they know our teams and capabilities in return. This proximity helps us identify needs early and respond quickly with practical improvements.
In a more formal way, every year we run a structured customer satisfaction survey covering 17 strategic points across our operations that we consider crucial for performance and reliability. We analyse the results carefully and translate them into clear action plans, ensuring continuous improvement in product quality, service levels and technical support.
Looking ahead, what do you see as the next big shift in how industrial companies will need to think about reliability to stay competitive?
D.B: The market is becoming increasingly demanding. Companies today must manage strict quality standards, regulatory compliance, sustainability expectations, design trends, pricing pressure and supply chain stability all at the same time. In this environment, reliability goes far beyond product performance. What will truly keep companies competitive is having reliable suppliers who act as long-term partners, working together towards shared objectives. Collaboration, transparency and mutual trust will become as important as technical performance. Companies that combine operational stability with verified sustainability, supported by strong and dependable partnerships, will lead the market in the years ahead.
