ISO 5323:2019

Overview

ISO 5323:2019 - "Wood flooring and parquet - Vocabulary" is an ISO technical vocabulary standard that establishes clear, consistent terms and definitions for wood flooring, parquet and raw parquet blocks. The second edition (2019) replaces ISO 5323:1984 and updates definitions to align with existing national standards worldwide. Its purpose is to reduce ambiguity in product descriptions, specifications and communication across manufacturers, specifiers and regulators.

Key Topics

This vocabulary covers terminology across product types, components, construction and surface treatments, including:

• Basic materials and categories: wood, lignified material other than wood (e.g., bamboo), solid wood.
• Elements and components: element, raw parquet element, parquet strip, mosaic parquet finger, frame block, parquet panel.
• Board and layer terminology: wood flooring board, face, back, top layer, wear-layer, backing, core layer.
• Joining systems and machining: tongue, groove, lip, chamfer, interlocking system, right- and left-handed elements.
• Product classes: wood flooring, parquet, solid parquet, multi-layer parquet, wood floor covering, wood block paving.
• Patterns and layouts: strip-pattern, deck-pattern, stone-cut (brick) pattern, herringbone, Hungarian (French) pattern, mosaic layouts.
• Surface and coating vocabulary: coating material, lacquer (synthetic and natural), oil, oil-wax combinations, film-forming coatings, open-porous and closed-porous surface treatments.
• Standards structure notes: the document contains no normative references and points users to ISO/IEC terminological resources (ISO OBP, IEC Electropedia).

Applications

ISO 5323:2019 is practical for anyone needing unambiguous, internationally harmonized terminology:

• Manufacturers and product developers - for consistent labeling, technical datasheets and production specifications.
• Architects, specifiers and engineers - to write clear contract documents and performance briefs.
• Procurement and quality teams - to avoid misunderstandings in purchase orders and acceptance criteria.
• Testing labs and certification bodies - to ensure reporting uses standardized terms.
• Trainers, technical writers and translators - to produce accurate educational materials and multilingual documentation.
• Regulators and standards committees - as a baseline vocabulary for regulation and harmonization across markets.

Using ISO 5323:2019 in documentation reduces disputes, improves interoperability in international trade and clarifies product communication throughout the supply chain.

Related standards

• ISO 24294 - Timber - Round and sawn timber - Vocabulary (referenced as a source for the definition of "wood").
• ISO Online Browsing Platform and IEC Electropedia are recommended terminological resources for standardization contexts.