Off on a plane we went again, this time to Valencia for a factory tour with Porcelanosa. Maddy and I were fortunate enough to be able to go on the trip together. We began in the Porcelanosa showroom, specialising in ceramic and porcelain tiles, where we were able to explore their ranges which were displayed in various room sets.
We then sat down for a lovely lunch, where we naively believed we were only being fed bread and cheese so gathered quite a mountain of food onto our plate before learning we had another 4 courses lined up! After being extremely well fed, we then went onto explore their main factory learning the process of how a porcelain tile is made. We were absolutely amazed by the fact that this factory was mainly machine run, with large robots moving the boxes around us. And of course there is always one that asks “would the robots stop if we stepped out in front of it” and the answer was yes they were sensor sensitive, though no one dared to step out and test the system. The whole factory was very futuristic which was intimidating to think we humans were almost unnecessary. When we did spot a real person, they were whizzing around the factory on bikes. The bikes made their working time really efficient whilst beating the robots on speed as well as looking pretty cool! The end of this factory tour was the section where all tiles were stored + stacked ready for delivery. The space was huge and looked like a scene from Monsters Inc (the Pixar movie) where all the doors were stacked on extremely high shelving again managed by equipment.
That evening we met for a cheeky drink in the hotel, before heading out to the restaurant for dinner. The restaurant had a classic traditional style with the majority of the interior being timber. The food was meat, meat and meat and so if you didn’t like meat you would have to drink on an empty stomach which is never a good plan! We were presented with a huge plate of meat and a grill to cook it on ourselves, our table tried its best to complete the challenge of an empty plate but we failed. The other added luxury was that there were huge kegs showcasing a wide selection of complimentary beers made/brewed locally.
The second day consisted of the morning exploring various showroom, Systempool was one that displayed many of their resin Krion basins + baths. They gave us a talk and tour of the showroom and highlighted what the Krions capabilities are. We learnt that it is an unlimited product that is made to any size by producing it in stages. We were then given a demonstration of how to easily remove stains such as nail varnish and felt tip. The next showroom Gamadecor showroom was more for the everyday customer where they had many sample rooms set up such as bathrooms, kitchens and bedrooms. This was a great way to show off the broad selection of products and finishes they supplied.
There was another lunch were we were wined and dined before the final showroom tour. This showroom, L’antic Colonnial, focused on the luxury end of design, where they displayed highly detailed mosaics, engineered woods, laminate flooring, ceramic + glass tiles alongside contemporary bathrooms + bedrooms set ups.
The final part of the day ended with a slight detour to the city of Valencia on our way to the Airport. It was a beautiful, sunny day and we wandered round the streets looking at the architecture and appreciating the blue sky – a great way to end the trip!
We would like to thank Jayne of Porcelanosa for inviting us to attend.
For more information on Porcelanosa visit www.porcelanosa.com/uk/
