Tile production is at its highest level since 2014

• The production of tiles and accessories is up by 15,9% in 2021 compared to 2020 and by 5,9% over the first 6 months of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021.
• Since 2020, the profession has been mobilizing to meet exceptional demand and serve its customers in difficult business conditions (health crisis and energy crisis).
• Production lines are running at full speed despite the massive and unprecedented increase in energy prices.
• Stock levels are historically low, manufacturers are seeing a sharp drop in the return rate of returnable pallets.

For Isabelle Dorgeret, General Manager of the French Federation of Tiles and Bricks: “The manufacturers' teams are aware of the difficulties encountered by the victims and they are mobilized to do everything possible to produce and serve customers under very tight conditions for everyone and with an already very high level of demand. The lines are running at full speed, often organized in 5x8 shifts to produce 24 hours a day, 24 days a week. The profession sells everything it produces by trade, stocks are historically low. The tensions have been going on for several months and the recent and tragic episodes of hail do not help matters. In the field and through their professional organisations, manufacturers, traders and roofers are working to prioritize the victims. »

+15,9% for tile production and +15% for deliveries in 2021

The production of tiles and accessories in tons is up by 15,9% and deliveries up by 15% (+15,1% in France and 13,9% for export). More than 42 million m2 of tiles were produced and delivered in total and an additional 5,5 million m2 in 2021 compared to 2020.

The stock in tonnes as of December 31, 2021 was 41,6% lower than the pre-COVID stock as of December 31, 2019 and 27,7% compared to that of December 2020.

For Isabelle Dorgeret, General Manager of the French Federation of Tiles and Bricks: “From March 2020, the profession mobilized to serve its customers and support the resumption of construction sites. The branch was among the first 4 to obtain validation by the Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Health of its work protocol during COVID. At the end of May 2020, the production and delivery rate of tiles and bricks was at 95% of its level compared to the same period of 2019*. At the end of 2020, production only fell by 7% compared to 2019, but demand was such that stocks of tiles and accessories had already decreased by 20%. »

Demand still strong in the first 6 months of 2022 accentuated by hailstorms

Production of tiles and accessories is up 5,9% and deliveries are up 1,7% in France for the first 6 months of 2022 compared to the same period of 2021.

The stock of tiles and accessories at the end of June 2022 is down 45% compared to the end of June 2019 (before COVID) and by 16,5% compared to the end of June 2021.

For Isabelle Dorgeret, General Manager of the French Federation of Tiles and Bricks: “We are asked why not add production lines. Unfortunately, it is complicated and time-consuming to modify a production line. According to the products, the sites, the models, the clays are not the same, the equipment is not the same, the adjustments and adjustments are long. This is not possible quickly especially in a context of high demand and creating a line requires several years. »

Energies, recruitment, pallets, transport: tense business conditions

While the tile and brick sector is not affected by supply difficulties for its raw material, clay, because the manufacturers work with clays extracted in their quarries near the factories, the tensions are mainly linked to energy, transport, logistics and labor items. From the summer of 2021, the profession, like other industries, will thus be strongly affected by the massive, sudden and unprecedented increases in the cost of energy, particularly natural gas.

The megawatt hour (MWh) of gas cost an average of €2021 in the fourth quarter of 91 compared to €19 in the first quarter1. For electricity, the tariffs went from 50 to 156€/MWh2. To manufacture a tonne of tiles, the energy item costs on average five times more in the fourth quarter of 2021 than in the first quarter of 2021. For the first half of 2022, the average price is around €100.

For Isabelle Dorgeret, General Manager of the French Federation of Tiles and Bricks: “The increase in energy prices and in particular gas prices could also have led some players to store more than before as a preventive measure. The shortage of truck drivers, tight deadlines and prices on pallets also affect our ability to deliver to our customers within the deadlines and conditions to which they were accustomed and like many sectors we also have positions to fill in the factories for which we are struggling to recruit. We are also alerting the public authorities to the disastrous consequences for the sector and our fellow citizens, if we were to shut down production lines due to gas supply reductions linked to the load shedding plans being drawn up to deal with in the months coming to a total or partial interruption of Russian gas imports. »