Turn an SPC plank on its edge and you are looking at a material sandwich, each layer chosen for one job. As a manufacturer, we buy these materials by the tonne and blend them daily — so here is what SPC flooring is actually made of, from the mineral core out to the coating you walk on.
The core: limestone and PVC
The bulk of an SPC plank is its core: finely milled limestone (calcium carbonate) bound in PVC resin with stabilisers. Limestone is dense, dimensionally stable and abundant, which is why an SPC core is heavier, stiffer and calmer under temperature swings than the softer core of flexible vinyl. It absorbs no water — the source of SPC's waterproof claim.
The decor film
Above the core sits a printed film carrying the wood or stone design. Modern printing reproduces grain, knots and mineral veining in high resolution, and the same film technology is what allows a manufacturer to develop custom colours for private-label ranges.
The wear layer
A transparent layer over the print takes the actual wear — footsteps, chair legs, grit. Its thickness is matched to the traffic class the floor is sold for, and it is the main reason two identical-looking planks can be priced differently. Ratings run up to AC5 for heavy commercial use.
The UV coating
The top finish is a UV-cured coat — 2X UV on MILAT floors — that resists scuffing and staining and filters ultraviolet light so the design keeps its colour. It is applied wet and hardened instantly under UV lamps during production.
The IXPE backing
Bonded underneath is a thin layer of IXPE — cross-linked polyethylene foam — which cushions footfall, absorbs sound up to 21 dB and takes the chill off the mineral core. Because it arrives attached, most installations need no separate underlay.
The stack at a glance
| Layer | Material | Job |
|---|---|---|
| UV coating | UV-cured finish | Scuff, stain and fade resistance |
| Wear layer | Clear vinyl | Takes the traffic |
| Decor film | Printed film | The wood or stone design |
| Core | Limestone + PVC + stabilisers | Rigidity, stability, waterproofing |
| Backing | IXPE foam | Acoustics and comfort |
Sourcing the ingredients: a manufacturer's supply chain
Before a plank exists, a purchasing team has been at work. Limestone powder is bought against particle-size and purity specifications, because coarse or contaminated filler weakens the core. PVC resin comes in grades, and the grade chosen decides how the melt flows and how the finished board behaves. Decor films are printed by specialist film makers, wear layers arrive as calendered rolls, and IXPE foam comes in defined densities. A factory is only as good as this incoming stream, which is why goods-in testing exists: reject a bad batch at the gate and you never have to recall a floor.
How the layers become one plank
The stack is not glued together like a sandwich at lunch. The core is born in an extruder, where the limestone-PVC blend is melted and forced through a die into a continuous rigid sheet. While heat is still in play, the decor film and transparent wear layer are married to the core under pressure between rollers, fusing rather than merely sticking. The EIR texture is pressed in register with the printed grain, the UV coating is applied and cured with light, and the IXPE layer is bonded beneath. Only then is the sheet cut and its Unilin click profile milled.
What happens when one layer is under-specified
Each layer fails in its own signature way, which is useful diagnostic knowledge for buyers. Skimp on the core recipe with excess filler and the click profile becomes brittle, snapping during installation. A wear layer too thin for the traffic dulls and patterns through in walkways within a few years. Weak UV coating shows as early sheen loss and staining. A poorly bonded pad delaminates and the floor drums underfoot. When a cheap plank and a proper plank sit side by side looking identical, the difference is which of these failures has been quietly built in.
Rigid vinyl chemistry: why SPC is not the vinyl of old
Old flexible vinyl earned its reputation through plasticisers, additives that keep sheet vinyl bendy. SPC's chemistry runs the other way: the recipe is dominated by mineral filler and rigid PVC, and the product's virtue is stiffness, not flex. Beyond formulation, indoor air quality is a tested property rather than a promise; FloorScore certification, which MILAT holds, verifies emissions against an indoor air standard. So the honest answer to what SPC is made of includes what it is not made for: it is engineered as a rigid mineral composite, a different animal from the roll vinyl of past decades.
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