F. Ball is the leading British manufacturer of preparation products and adhesives for use with hardwood flooring, with over 100 years of experience.
Founded in 1886, F. Ball & Co have been market leader in sub-floor preparation and adhesives that are tried and trusted by professional wood flooring installers as well within the Contracts and building industry.
Francis Ball formed a partnership with William Henry Cowburn who was an ink manufacturer and established the business of ‘F. Ball & Co in Lower Kennington Lane, South East London where they developed and produced a range of products for the shoe and leather trade. In 1904 Francis Ball passed away, leaving his share of the business on to his son Walter James who directed the business to introduce a variety of adhesive products over the next few years with a growing emphasis on the development of adhesives.
In1933 the factory on Kennington Lane site was vacated for a bigger factory in Tooting and it was here in 1936 that saw the F. Ball enter the flooring trade with the introduction of Stycco latex a product to join widths of carpet together.
Midst the Second World War F. Ball & Co moved away from London to an new factory site in Staffordshire. It was from here that F. Ball focused on the commercial flooring trade.
In the middle of 1960’s saw the use of cement based floor levelling product of which Stycco (later Styccobond) F3 which is today the most widely used adhesive for the bonding of floorcoverings in the contracts sector.
By 1989, F. Ball moved to a new 8½ acre site Cheddleton, which remains the location of F. Ball’s state of the art factory and research development facility. Today F.Ball and Co. remains in the ownership of Ball family..
The name of Ball or F. Ball is revered within the flooring industry for their range of flooring adhesives, smoothing under-layment and ancillary floor preparation products are the preferred brand by experienced wood floor installers.
Stop-Gap, Styco and Stycobond are established and renowned branded ranges by Professional installers who opt for pedigree with proven reliability in many applications across commercial, retail, education, healthcare and leisure.
F. Ball is remains committed to investment in product research, development and innovation.
