Company

The brand NORDPFEIL as part of Vorwerk flooring

Under the NORDPFEIL brand, Vorwerk flooring provides textile floor coverings that are aligned at the needs of the market and target group. NORDPFEIL products stand for a profound understanding of the needs of retailers as well as architects and contractors. Tailor-made for the respective segment. The products inspire customers with its market-compliant and consumer-friendly designs and surfaces.

Functionality and excellent quality are indispensable to the brand essence of the products that are available from stock or as individual contract manufacturing. The production is environmentally friendly and goes beyond the required ecological standards.

Sustainability

Ecology and sustainability as aspects of the modern corporate orientation have always been anchored at NORDPFEIL. The production of the carpets and tiles is consistently based on the aspects of sustainability and environmental protection and is subject to the strictest quality and process standards, as evidenced by numerous international quality and environmental seals.

The DGNB system of the German Sustainable Building Council only certifies a building as being sustainable when it proves to be efficient, eco-friendly and resource-saving in all defined aspects. On the path to this achievement, the building goes through an independent and neutral process which analyses the quality of the building based on its entire life cycle. From ecology to economy, from technical, sociocultural and functional aspects to processes to the location.

The Life Balance testing label stands for a manufacturer’s voluntary commitment to solely produce sustainable products. A part of this is the undergoing of extensive external quality control: testing the suitability of the flooring for allergy sufferers, checking it for harmful substances and the build-up of fine dust particles, as well as its ability to improve a room’s climate. This means all essential adverse effects for the health and wellbeing are analysed by an independent third party – and ruled out.

The French directive on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) regulates emissions from these compounds. It is considered to be very precise, as floorings, paints, varnishes, windows or doors can only be sold if they emit less than 1 μg/m3 each after 28 days. What’s more, the best products receive the A+ rating – all others either A, B or C.

The label from the Gemeinschaft umweltfreundlicher Teppichboden e.V. (GUT) confirms both the eco and user-friendliness of the new floor covering. Across its entire life cycle, all the way up to its recycling. To perform the necessary testing, GUT works together with officially recognised institutions – putting the product through strict product tests, which have recently become even stricter. They are so strict, in fact, that they would have been considered revolutionary back in 1990 when the association was founded.

The CE label from the Communauté Européenne, or European Community, is often considered the passport for products making their way through the single European market. It shows that the manufacturer confirms the product is in line with specific European guidelines according to the Treaty of Lisbon, and that all legal requirements have been met.

Carpet floorings which feature the Indoor Advantage GOLD certification are proven to make an important contribution to the improvement of a room‘s climate. This comes as no surprise – after all, SCS Global Services checks textile floor coverings from Vorwerk flooring on the basis of international scientific standards and confirms that they meet the strict limit values for chemical emissions with regard to volatile organic compounds (VOC) and thus promote a healthy indoor air qualiy.

Geschichte

Im Jahr 1951 gründete Hubertus Rösel in Geesthacht in den Gebäuden der ehemeligen Pulverfabrik Düneberg die Norddeutsche Teppichfabrik (Marke „Nordpfeil“).

Dem mit neun Mitarbeitern aus Thüringen geflüchteten Rösel gelang eine rasche Expansion. So nahm er 1954/55 eine eigene Spinnerei und eine Färberei in Betrieb. Die Teppichfabrik verarbeitete neuseeländische Schurwolle. 1958 beschäftigte sie 490 Menschen, in Spitzenzeiten sogar bis zu 600.

Der Markenname „Nordpfeil“ stand über Jahrzehnte für beste Qualität bei Teppichböden.
Frühzeitig war die Norddeutsche Teppichfabrik nach ökologischen Gesichtspunkten gestaltet worden. Bei der Planung, dem Bau und dem Ausbau der Norddeutschen Teppichfabrik wurden der vorhandene Waldbestand weitgehend erhalten und die Produktionsgebäude harmonisch in die Landschaft eingefügt. Dafür wurde der Betrieb bereits im Jahre 1969 vom Bundesministerium für Umwelt und Städtebau im Bundeswettbewerb “Industrie in der Landschaft” mit der Silberplakette ausgezeichnet.

Die Norddeutsche Teppichfabrik fasste alle Fertigungsstufen vom Spinnen der Garne bis zum fertigen Produkt mit integrierter Qualitätssicherung in einem Werk zusammen. Dazu gehörten auch die Bereiche Entwicklung und Design mit modernsten Computern und Laboreinrichtungen. So konnten internationale Trends schnell in kreativen NORDPFEIL-Produkten verwirklicht werden. Für zahlreiche Projekte entwickelte das Unternehmen maßgeschneiderte gewebte und getuftete Teppichböden.

Mit dem Boom anderer Fußbodenbeläge (vor allem Laminat) sank der Absatz. Im August 2013 geriet das Unternehmen in die Insolvenz. Gläubiger waren unter anderem die Hausbank und der städtische Abwasserbetrieb. 350 Mitarbeiter waren von dem Insolvenzverfahren betroffen. Das Unternehmen Vorwerk (Hameln) sicherte sich im Rahmen des Insolvenzverfahrens den Markennamen „Nordpfeil“ und fertigte mit etwa 80 verbliebenen Mitarbeitern vorerst weiter in Geesthacht. Allerdings wurde die Produktion an der Düneberger Straße im Herbst 2016 endgültig eingestellt und nach Hameln verlagert.

History

Tradition and experience are central corporate values at NORDPFEIL. Since it was founded as a North German Carpet Factory in 1951, the company has lived through a varied and sometimes difficult period.

1951

Founding

In 1951, Hubertus Rösel founded the North German Carpet Factory (“Nordpfeil” brand) in Geesthacht in the buildings of the former powder factory in Düneberg. Rösel, who fled Thuringia with nine employees, achieved rapid expansion.

1954/55

Expansion

In 1954/55 he started his own spinning mill and dye works. The carpet factory processed New Zealand wool.

1958

Best carpet quality

In 1958 it employed 490 people, at peak times even up to 600.

The brand name "Nordpfeil" stood for for decades
best quality for carpets.

The North German Carpet Factory was designed according to ecological criteria at an early stage. During the planning, construction and expansion of the North German Carpet Factory, the existing forest was largely preserved and the production buildings were harmoniously integrated into the landscape.

1969

Creative development

For this, the company was awarded the silver plaque by the Federal Ministry for the Environment and Urban Development in the federal competition "Industry in the Landscape" in 1969.

The North German Carpet Factory combined all production stages from the spinning of the yarn to the finished product with integrated quality assurance in one plant. This also included the areas of development and design with state-of-the-art computers and laboratory equipment. This enabled international trends to be quickly implemented in creative NORDPFEIL products.

The company has developed tailor-made woven and tufted carpets for numerous projects.

2013

Insolvency

With the boom in other floor coverings (especially laminate), sales fell. In August 2013 the company went bankrupt. The creditors included the house bank and the municipal sewage company. 350 employees were affected by the bankruptcy proceedings.

2016

Vorwerk Hameln

The company Vorwerk (Hameln) secured the brand name "Nordpfeil" as part of the insolvency proceedings and continued to manufacture in Geesthacht for the time being with around 80 remaining employees. However, production on Düneberger Straße was finally stopped in autumn 2016 and relocated to Hameln.

2021

Launch of MOOREA carpet tiles collection

Vorwerk flooring presented the new carpet tile collection called MOOREA in a nationwide roadshow at various locations.