CSR and Digitalization, Knauf is increasingly committed

In the space of 5 years, Knauf has more than doubled its turnover, going from 7,2 billion in 2018 to 15,4 billion in 2022. This is explained in particular by external growth with the acquisitions of USG in 2019 to strengthen its presence in North America and USG Boral in 2021. This progression also illustrates the conclusion of a record 2022, despite several challenges (construction activity reduced below the level before the COVID health crisis, increase in real estate loan rates, Ukraine invasion, cyber-attack, etc.).

A debt-free group, Knauf has been present in France since 1984, through a regional network advocating proximity (Knauf Ile-de-France/Ouest, Knauf Centre-Est and Knauf Sud) with building professionals. Knauf France also stands out, with nearly 1.000 employees in France, as the French leader in EPS for construction and as the only producer of wood wool in France.

Review of the year 2023 & outlook for 2024/2025

On the plasterboard side, the year 2023 is characterized by a demand for plastering work which is no longer progressing. If renovation slows down (+ 0,7% of interior design work), new construction collapses, resulting in a slightly positive balance in turnover and volumes of plasterboard which will close the year with a decline of almost 5% compared to 2022. However, Knauf France displays almost stable sales compared to the previous year, thanks in particular to a very good level of quality of service.

On the insulation work side, the volume of work increased by + 1,3% but this growth must be balanced since it hides two very different realities, between energy renovation still growing and production of new housing in free fall. Structural insulation solutions have seen a very clear decline since the start of 2023, both in the individual home market and in the collective housing market.

Reflecting these trends, Knauf France indicates a decline in its sales of around -10% of its cut EPS products intended for new construction.

On the other hand, the manufacturer shows growth of +10% for its polyurethane solutions for roofs and +300% for ThermaSoft® natura, its biosourced and recycled interior insulation, particularly driven by renovation.

Concerning 2024/2025, Christine Muscat, Managing Director of Knauf France, considers the prospects for new construction and particularly in housing to be worrying. More generally, the consequences of inflation are slowly spreading to all sectors of activity (automotive, textiles, food, etc.), leading to business failures and a probable increase in unemployment. Inflation pushes households towards savings and consumption focuses on essential products.

The conditions for accessing property (interest rate, obtaining a loan, real estate and construction prices, etc.) exclude, in fact, a large part of first-time buyers, while on the contrary, the needs housing stock continues to increase. If private investment is stalling, with the end of Pinel, social landlords are not taking over, since they are waiting for pledges and support from public authorities.

Remember that 2023 was marked by a clear drop in construction starts of -15,4% and that sales of individual houses in the diffuse sector have been in free fall for 8 consecutive quarters (now -38,6% over one year). Leading indicators (marketing, stocks, etc.) suggest that the crisis will continue, or even get worse, even if the measures to buy back collective housing blocks in blocks by the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations and Action Logement will make it possible to reduce the stock. Thus, new construction is expected to fall further in 2024, both for individual houses (- 15%) and for collective housing (around - 10%).

Finally, in non-residential, despite a start to the year marked by a recovery, it is clear that the trend is also reversing with a business volume at -2,1%. And Christine Muscat concludes that if order books are falling, the fall in new housing can no longer be cushioned by renovation, which would slow down by -1,2%.

CSR... or rather RSF, for family, Knauf is always more committed

A civic actor committed to the circular economy, the Group, which will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2032, has established, in 2022, a roadmap for the next 10 years. Made up of 4 major ambitions, it perfectly reflects the fundamental values ​​of Knauf DNA (“Mensclichkeit”, Partnership, Commitment, Entrepreneurship):

• Be an excellent employer for excellent employees;
• Create the best value for its customers;
• Act with future generations in mind;
• And, finally, achieve exceptional performances.

Knauf: a responsible family player

For Knauf, every employee is a solution provider and intrinsically contributes to achieving the environmental objectives set in absolute terms. Thus, regardless of the evolution of the Group's size, Knauf aims to reduce its carbon emissions by 50% by 2032, both for its scope 1 (direct emissions) and for its scope 2 (indirect emissions linked to energy consumption). energy).

It also sets a goal of reducing scope 3 (indirect emissions not linked to manufacturing) of around -30% by the same deadline. The target for 2045 is carbon neutrality, across all of these scopes. Furthermore, Knauf has also imposed a reduction in its water consumption of 2% each year for all of its production sites.

Knauf: a commitment to recycling and sustainable development

A major player in the circular economy, particularly via its Knauf Circular® approach (collection and recycling of clean offcuts of expanded polystyrene - EPS), Knauf France also plans to fully recover its production waste by 2032 (plaster, EPS and wool). wood) and to completely eradicate the use of certain chemical substances for which a risk would be identified.

Still regarding recycling, let us remember that Knauf has developed, with Knauf Circular®, a real EPS recycling chain specific to a national level, made available to EPS users.

This collection service has a dense network of 18 sites across the country. With 370 agreements signed to date, nearly 25.000 m3 of EPS were collected and recycled in 2023, double the previous year. At every stage of its operations, Knauf thinks sustainably. This is thus the case for the renaturation or renaturalization of sites from which raw materials are exploited.

In addition to low-polluting raw material extraction processes, the Knauf gypsum quarries at the end of their activity are in fact renaturalized with local species of wood. Initiatives going beyond obligations, which promote the appearance of biotopes where many species that have become rare reinvest spaces.

A responsible player in saving plaster resources and reducing waste throughout the product life cycle, Knauf recycles 100% of its internal plaster scraps. For a reduced carbon footprint, Knauf supplies, thanks to its local industrial network, construction sites with plasterboard and insulation with an average delivery distance of less than 200 km.

Knauf: production that constantly reduces its impacts

The new Knauf factory in Fos-sur-Mer (Bouches-du-Rhône), with great energy efficiency, will constitute the perfect illustration of a high level of recycling of plaster waste, thanks to the latest technologies and will also advocate a drastic reduction CO2 emissions.

Representing a total investment of 75 million euros, the new Knauf factory in Fos-sur-Mer is in the test phase and announces the effective start of its production for the first quarter of 2024. With a maximum annual capacity of 30 million m2 of plasterboard with 70 employees, this site has the very latest technical advances from the Knauf Group, across its entire process, from the gypsum calcination stage to that of plasterboard manufacturing.

This Knauf factory uses modern, energy-efficient equipment. This allows it to save water of up to 15%, energy (15 to 20%), as well as CO2 and NOX emissions (nitrogen oxides, also 15 to 20%) compared to to traditional production tools.

On the recycling side, if the Knauf site in Fos-sur-Mer of course recycles all of its plasterboard scraps, the unit is also designed to adapt perfectly to the incorporation of external recycled gypsum.

Knauf is already deploying processes to reduce dust emissions in all its production centers.

Thus, at Saint-Soupplets (77), the site now emits a quantity of dust approximately 5 times lower than regulatory requirements. An ongoing investment of 2,5 million euros should generate a 12% reduction in water consumption and 8% for gas consumption.

Knauf Fibre, the only production unit in France for insulating solutions based on wood wool, has also just carried out a first wave of industrial investments (1,35 million euros over 2022/2023) supported by ADEME, to the tune of almost 200.000 euros*. Building extension, replacement of the saw and press, automation of a new gluing process, installation of acoustic booths, increase in the number of molds and storage capacity, etc.

These investments, operational since September 2023, primarily aim to modernize equipment. They also make it possible to increase production capacity (+ 25% between 2018 and 2021) in order to meet the growing demand for the Organic range.

If these investments will also optimize the safety of employees at the Knauf Fiber site and reduce arduousness (acoustic cabins to reduce noise), they will also be the source of a better environmental impact (for example the replacement of the cleaning process of the gluing machine, source of 2 m3 of water recovered and reinjected daily into the process in a closed circuit). The increase in capacity also made it possible to generate around ten additional jobs.

Knauf: solutions that constantly reduce their impacts

To further accelerate its commitment to sustainable development in the industry, Knauf is constantly innovating to design solutions that reduce the environmental impact of buildings, while making them more sustainable.

The Knauf Group has thus developed a world first in Japan in 2022, with a patented process allowing the recrystallization of gypsum, coming from the demolition of buildings in its virgin state, in order to create plasterboard partitions, entirely recycled and 100 % climate neutral.

Another avenue already tested by Knauf in favor of placing environmentally friendly products on the market is the generalization of buckets incorporating 30% recycled material (from post-consumer waste) for its ranges of coatings. ready-to-use Proplak and Propaint.

Beyond generating a reduced carbon footprint, these buckets are also reusable on site and recyclable.

On the product side again, Knauf provides the market with innovative and biosourced solutions, such as Thermasoft® Natura, biosourced and recycled interior insulation based on 85% natural plant fibers (cotton, jute and linen).

Furthermore, in a logic of eco-improvement, Knauf R&D has managed to increase the share of biosourced materials by optimizing the composition of wood wool products and their manufacturing process.

The result is a Karibati “Biosourced Product, French Industry” label for the most commonly used Knauf Fibra wood wool insulation panels as well as for Organic ceiling tiles, in perfect response to eco-construction standards. The French sector mention also underlines the origin of the wood used for Knauf Fibra and Organic (less than 200 km around the production site), the only wood wool factory in France.

Kote Pro: a new digital program dedicated and designed for craftsmen and the best in renovation

New initiative signed by Knauf and entirely dedicated to craftsmen: Kôté Pro, a digital program aimed at promoting their work in renovation, highlighting their expertise and which provides them with concrete solutions to their daily concerns, both technical and human. .

This program is intended to be a platform to share, with craftsmen, the best of renovation.

Kôté Pro is a 360° program, original, not without a touch of humor, ranging from technical advice to the availability of products adapted to their needs, including management (management, accounting, customer relations , social networks), but also well-being (eat well, move well, stay in shape to face construction sites). Kôté Pro also offers a spotlight on construction sites as well as a cultural aspect (architecture, decorating trends).

Beyond highlighting craftsmen in their own daily lives, Kôté Pro also takes you behind the scenes of real life on construction sites, to discover inspiring journeys and careers that thrill.

Serious, but relaxed, this program is based on a dedicated space within the knauf.fr site and is coupled with an active presence on the brand new Knauf Instagram account dedicated to Kôté Pro, with regular posts and a wide variety of content (techniques, health fitness, fun, cooking, service, etc.).

In addition to exclusive news, a blog and newsletters are available, supported by partnerships with influencer artisans...

For Fanny Meyer, Customer Marketing Manager and pilot of Kôté Pro: “This is a multi-hat companion. With Kôté Pro, Knauf becomes a true everyday partner for craftsmen, whether they are renovation veterans or passionate beginners. »