BRICKS
S
imon Taylor, Ibstock Brick’s Director of Sales for Builders’ Merchants, says a combination of market demand and a renewed appreciation of
traditional building materials is catalysing new opportunities to increase brick sales. “The brick industry has been experiencing strong demand for its products, which at times has resulted in an imbalance between supply and demand. There have been a number of reasons for this increased demand; the fundamentals of a housing shortage and the Government’s commitment to build 300,000 new homes a year until the mid-2020s being one, and a reinvigorated appreciation for traditional building materials being another.” However, Taylor says the latest statistics published in the Monthly Statistics of Building Materials and Components report, issued by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, paints a healthy picture for brick production and dispatch in the UK. “Whilst dispatches across the year were broadly flat year-on-year, there has been a significant
BRICKS STAND STRONG
The last month could be seen as one of the shakiest in terms of market stability in the UK in recent years. However, industry experts remain positive when it comes to sales and demand of bricks and concrete tiles.
increase in production; for the first nine months of 2018, brick manufacturers produced nearly 9% more bricks than in the same period of 2017 - the highest level of output since before the financial crisis a decade ago. The latest figures continue to paint a positive outlook, with brick deliveries increasing by 7.2% in December 2018 compared to December 2017.”
Investment “
A combination of market demand and a renewed appreciation of traditional building materials is catalysing new opportunities to increase brick sales.
” 24
“Looking ahead, demand is likely to remain strong; not only because brick will be the number one choice of material for the majority of new homes being built but also as a result of good performance in the repair, maintenance and improvement (RMI) sector, a key market for builders’ merchants. Our ongoing capital investment programme - including our new Eclipse factory and further investment at other factories including Lodge Lane - has allowed us to increase capacity and satisfy our customers demand both now and for the long term.” In order to provide a more reliable service with greater certainty of availability and supply, Taylor says Ibstock has taken steps to improve their scheduling accuracy. “This has been particularly important for our builders’ merchant customers, and we’ve already seen improvements in this area. By continuing to provide the most accurate production information, builders’ merchants can plan their ongoing depot stock requirements and place accurate schedules for key products.” “For builders’ merchants, some of the strongest opportunities to enhance profit margins will be through the add-on sale of special shapes bricks. For this reason, our extensive range of special shape bricks and brickwork components from Ibstock Kevington is increasing in popularity. The use of special shapes delivers real design inspiration and supports creativity across the industry. As well as opening up a palette of possibilities to build inspiring façades, special shaped bricks also offer a route to delivering authentic renovations of historic features on heritage buildings.” BMJ
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net April 2019
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