The overall UK roofing
market has grown by 7% in value terms in 2016, according to a new report by AMA
Research. Since
2012, demand for roof coverings has been supported by the growth of
housebuilding and domestic RMI, along with increased output in a number of
commercial and industrial new build & refurbishment markets. However, tendering for commercial and
housebuilding roofing projects has remained highly competitive, and year on
year performance has varied.
Overall market trends are largely determined by levels of
demand for concrete roof tiles and metal panel systems, which together accounted
for around half of total sales in 2016. While concrete tiles are predominantly used on commercial buildings, the
main source of increasing demand has been volume housebuilding. Demand
for roof tiles and slates is relatively lower within the commercial and
industrial newbuild & major re-roofing and RMI sectors, with flat roofing
and metal roofing systems being used to an increasing extent.
Distribution of roofing
materials varies significantly between different product sectors. Builders’
merchants and roofing merchants are the key routes to market for suppliers of
concrete and clay tiles, while independent importers and distribution networks
are the main channels in the roofing slates sector, as the majority of products
are imported. With flat roofing systems mainly used on commercial buildings,
the main channels are roofing merchants and direct sales, while direct supply
from the manufacturer is the main route to market for profiled metal roofing
projects, which often require bespoke design, structures and close
collaborations with manufacturers.
Several factors are threatening
the construction market, and are likely to have a knock-on effect for the
roofing market. Uncertainty following Brexit and the general election result
appears to be undermining confidence within the UK construction industry at
present, with Q2 2017 state of trade data from the Construction Products
Association and ONS new orders and output statistics, suggesting major
investors are starting to hold off from funding major commercial and industrial
construction projects. Since 2015, an acceleration in the shortage of skilled
roofers, which is likely to be exacerbated by the Brexit issue and a potential
reduction of EU workers, has resulted in a demand for higher wages and
contributed towards an overall reduction in margins.
However, there are also
a number of positive factors supporting the UK’s roofing market. A significant
share of roofing materials goes into RMI and replacement projects, which
support the market even during difficult economic times. The markets for EPDM
and other types of single
ply membranes (SPMs) have grown strongly over the last half dozen years, also
taking some share from bitumen sheets within the commercial sector.
Keith Taylor, Director
at AMA research, said: “The housebuilding
market remains very positive in the sense that demand levels are high, and the
Government has indicated that it wants to support the affordable sector with
various schemes, something which should have a positive impact on the roofing
sector. In addition, a large part of the roofing
sector is driven by repair and maintenance and as such the market value has
good support, even if the wider construction market turns more negative.”
Bearing these factors in
mind, we forecast a stabilisation in demand for roofing products through to
2021, with more positive market growth in the latter part of the forecast
period, reflecting some improvement in confidence and the economy as the impact
of the EU exit settles down. As such the overall
market is forecast grow by a very modest 4% between 2016 and 2021.
