Forbo: From Linoleum Flooring to the Acquisition of Siegling, Becoming a Swiss Hidden Champion in Industrial Belting

Origin

In 1928, three linoleum factories—Deutsche Linoleum-Werke (Germany), Forshaga (Sweden), and Giubiasco (Switzerland)—merged in Basel to form the Continentale Linoleum Union, controlling approximately 80% of the continental European linoleum capacity. The company built its foundation in public infrastructure markets like healthcare, education, and rail transport using natural linoleum flooring (made from linseed oil, rosin, wood flour, and jute), and was renamed Forbo in 1973. Concurrently, in 1919, Ernst Siegling founded a leather transmission belt workshop in Hanover, Germany. In the 1950s, his son Hellmut invented the light conveyor belt 'Transilon' to meet the transport needs of the Bahlsen biscuit factory, and began global expansion in 1956. In 1994, Forbo acquired Siegling in full, bridging the cash-cow flooring business with industrial transmission material technology, completing its transition from a flooring supplier to a hidden champion in industrial conveying.

Milestones

Turning Points

• The 1928 merger of three linoleum factories into the Continentale Linoleum Union, capturing 80% of European capacity and establishing scale and raw material bargaining power.
• The 1943 registration of the Extremultus multi-layer flat belt patent by the second generation of the Siegling family, boosting transmission efficiency to over 98% and opening a technical window for the industrial belt business.
• The 1950s biscuit factory order that birthed the Transilon light conveyor belt, transforming Siegling from a leather belt workshop into an automated transport equipment supplier.
• The 1994 full acquisition of Siegling by Forbo, completing the transition from a building materials group to a hidden champion in industrial transmission belts.
• The May 2026 shift of Movement Systems to a functional organization under direct CEO leadership, ending over two decades of geographic fragmentation and betting on innovation and operational excellence.

Failures & Pitfalls

• Over-diversification in the 2000s with non-core businesses like wallpaper and laminates dragging down profits, leading to eventual divestment and nearly two decades of wasted strategic resources.
• Early attempts to enter carpets and vinyl flooring after the 1970s linoleum peak failed to offset the building materials cycle, proving that single-category companies struggle to resist structural decline.
• The 2025 fiscal year saw net sales drop to 1.085 billion CHF due to the strong Swiss Franc and geopolitical pressures, with the lack of currency hedging strategies directly eroding reported performance.
• The long-standing geographic division structure of Movement Systems since 2007 created layers of reporting between headquarters and regions, resulting in slow innovation and decision-making, with stagnant profit growth until the 2026 reorganization.

Core Data

• 2025 Group Net Sales：1.085 billion (CHF 1,085 million) (Company disclosure, as of 2026, unaudited)
• H1 2026 Group Net Sales：545.7 million (Company disclosure, as of 2026, unaudited)
• H1 2026 Sales：175.4 million (Company disclosure, as of 2026, unaudited)
• Total Employees (FTE)：Approx. 5,050 (Company disclosure, as of 2026, unaudited)
• Global Linoleum Flooring Market Share：Approx. 70% (Company disclosure, as of 2026, unaudited)
• Business Coverage：39 countries with operations, 25 production sites (Company disclosure, as of 2026, unaudited)
• Flat Belt Transmission Efficiency：Over 98% (Company disclosure, as of 2026, unaudited)

Competitors / Peers

In the light conveyor and processing belt sector, Forbo and fellow Swiss firm Habasit are considered the global duopoly, long competing for top-tier orders in food, logistics sorting, and airport baggage lines. Dutch firm Ammeraal Beltech (part of Dunlop) and Germany's Continental ContiTech provide competitive pressure in medium-to-heavy conveyor and modular belts, while players like Nitta (Japan) and Gates (USA) compete in the timing and flat belt markets. Forbo's moat lies in its Transilon and Extremultus patented material systems, a 50-year global local service network, and the operational cost advantages of Amp Miser energy-saving belts. However, whether the 2026 reorganization can outpace Habasit's innovation rhythm remains a suspense for the market.