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In almost all countries 2009 saw significant decreases in the number of construction permits issued. However, there have been notable differences with regard to individual building types. In most European countries the building of apartment blocks has been hit harder than the construction of single-family houses, as the apartment blocks require higher levels of investment. In France, for example, the number of permits for apartment blocks fell by 51% between 2007 and 2009, whereas permits for single-family houses only fell by 40%.
The situation in the USA is very different. Here the crisis particularly affected the construction of single-family houses which saw a drop of 40% in 2008, while apartment blocks only saw a fall of 21%.
However, since the base level of demand for the different building types in each of the countries pays no regard to the crisis-related financial difficulties, a dynamic recovery is already being seen in the segments which were previously worst hit. Thus at present single-family house construction in the USA is seing positive growth, whereas in France it is apartment block construction which is growing again.
(B+L News 03/2010)

Despite many gloomy prophecies to the contrary, the economic stimulus package is having an effect on the construction sector earlier than expected. In June the order books saw an increase of 10% on the previous year due to public sector contracts. In fact, compared to May the increase was more than 16%. The fact that not only roads had to be improved and noise barriers built meant that public sector construction was up by 6.3%. It was already up by 16.6% in May. When analysed at the town/regional level, it is clear that the main area of growth is the renovation of schools and public buildings. Thus, manufacturers of windows, cladding and insulation can expect to see positive figures for the second half of 2009. The effects of the economic stimulus package during 2010 will be presented in detail at the B+L Renovation and Refurbishment Conference on 7.10.2009 in Munich. By contrast, the construction of commercial building is seeing sharp declines – the number of orders was down more than a third compared to June last year. Thus, the first signs of reduced investment due to the financial crisis are being seen. From autumn it is also expected that there will be sharp declines for building suppliers and in industrial construction.
(B+L News 08/2009)

Die aktuelle B+L Dämmstoffstudie Deutschland untersucht u.a. die Auswirkungen The current B+L study on insulation materials in Germany analyses the effects of the German economy and the subsidy packages on the market for insulation materials in Germany. This is set against the background of the declines in the construction industry, and forecasts for the whole market until 2011 are presented. The following points were investigated in the study:

•How far can the renovation market make up for the decline in new-build?
•How will the shift towards renovation and redevelopment have an effect on the product groups of glass wool, rock wool, EPS, XPS, PUR and other insulation materials up to 2012?
•Which areas of application will do well in 2009/2010 or at least remain stable, and which will see large decreases?

For further Information about the study "Trendbook Insulation – Germany 2011" see Shop.

The complete study for the whole of Europe "Trendbook Insulation – Europe 2012" is available to buy – see Shop. Studies for individual countries or groups of countries can also be compiled.

For questions relating to the methodology or the study itself please contact: rh@marktdaten.de/ +49 228 62987-20

B+L compiles more than 100 studies a year for all areas of the building supplies and materials industry for the whole of Europe.
(B+L News 06/2009)