Most architects and designers will no doubt have come face to face at least once in their career with the old conundrum of interior design.

The debate of real verses enhanced nature. Do I opt for hardwood cabinetry, concrete surfaces and stone kitchen benchtops throughout? Or for more cost-effective laminated finishes for cupboards, flooring and horizontal surfaces?

Thankfully laminate technology is now up to speed with the desires of the designer and has made specifying laminate surfaces for any scale of project less of a compromise and, in reality, more of a benefit.

Companies like Polytec provide architects and designers with enhanced nature and, most importantly, bespoke finishes that are actually far more practical than their real counterparts. Their ARCHITECTURAL range of products equips architects, designers and product specifiers with a ground-breaking catalogue of decorative panels to bring head-turning designs, traditionally associated with natural materials, to fruition.

Their imi-beton range of finishes for example comprises lightweight and installation-friendly boards and laminates that can achieve a true concrete and rust appearance. The imi-beton range, which can be used in rigid board form, on furniture and for curved surfaces, is also a great solution for projects where real concrete and corten is unfeasible for structural reasons.

Colours such as Formwork Grey, Polished Anthracite Concrete and Raw Rust are just the tip of the industrial finishes offered by polytec, and their imi-beton range of products has been specified by designers for vertical, curved and benchtop surfaces.

polytec’s RAVINE range of pre-finished panels is probably the most obvious sign of an improving laminate surface industry. Their range of colours and wooden surface grains is astounding, and just goes to show that laminate suppliers can offer customers greater flexibility and range of choice with some of the best natural touch surfaces available to date.

polytec understands the allure of raw and natural materials but they also appreciate that budgets necessitate restraint. Their high-performing enhanced surfaces such as the imi-beton and RAVINE provide architects and designers with the much-desired natural finishes, all with the cost-benefits and flexibility that only manufactured products can provide.