3 minute read
Vinyl countdown Plastics continue increase in doors and windows
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values and durability, vinyl has made its mark in windows and doors. In 1987, vinyl held l07o of the U.S. window market with 7.2 million units. Metal (39 million units) had a 547o share and wood (26 million units) 36Vo. In eight years, vinyl reached 20.4 million vnits (27.zEo share), at the expense of wood (24.2 million unirs,32.1Vo) and especially metal (30.6 million lur;,its,4O;7Eo).
By the year 2000, Specialists in Business Information expects vinyl to reach 25.2 million units and a 3l.4Vo share, with wood holding at 32Vo with25.7 million units and metal slipping to 36.57o with 29.3 million units.
But although vinyl, or rvc (polyvinyl chloride), is the most prominent and fastest growing resin in window and door applications, it is not the only one. Others, including acrylic, polycarbonate, reinforced polyester and various miscellaneous plastics primarily incorporated into window and door glazing systems, should also enjoy gains.
By 2000, one billion pounds of plastics will be used in the
U.S. each year for doors and windows, reflecting annual increases of 6.2Vo, according to a new Freedonia Group study. Plastic profiles and other components used in the actual fabrication of windows and doors will rise 8Vo annually over the same period to a value of $1.5 billion. Gains will be attributable both to inroads against competitive materials in structural and glazing applications and to an
Story at a Glance
Why vinyl is making big inroads in windows and doors ... other plastics also growing in glazing and skylights.
improved outlook for the overall window and door industry.
Vinyl now accounts for 45Va of total demand and will rise nearly 7Vo annually to 460 million lbs. Aside from market share gains at the expense of aluminum framing materials, much of the increase will be attributable to accelerating opportunities in new construction applications, especially in the residential sector, and to increasing application as a cladding material for wood windows.
Polycarbonate and reinforced polyester will both exhibit favorable market gains due to increased penetration in a wider range of applications, such as window profiles, and improved cost/performance efficiencies. Acrylic will exhibit below average gains through 2000, reflecting heightened competitive pressures from other plastics as well as from insulating g1ass. Polycarbonate, reinforced polyester and acrylic represent 907o of all other plastics utilized in windows and doors, with applications for these resins limited primarily to glazing and skylights.
Although glazing and skylights will comprise a substantial growth market, structural window and door components will continue to represent the largest and fastest growing product application for plastic resins, totaling 545 million lbs. in 2000. The residential sector (representing nearly 60Vo of demand in 1995) will remain the fastest growing end-use, reflecting market share gains for pvc and other resins in new construction and continued strength in the residential aftermarket.
While 70Vo of total demand for plastic window and door materials will continue to be generated by the aftermarket, new construction applications will become increasingly prominent as price/performance efficiencies continue to improve, fueled by an aging housing stock, a steady rate of home turnover, an expanding do-it-yourself market, and an increase in the average number of window and door products per household. Nonresidential demand for plastics in windows and doors will also accelerate significantly, benefiting from advances in the security and impactresistant features of the materials uti- lized in this sector and a rebound in construction activity due to the elimination of excess capacity particularly in office and commercial settings.
The shift toward plastics in framing systems-at the expense of wood and metal-will also be attributable to end users' growing acceptance of plastics, their increasing emphasis on energy efficiency, the scarcity and cost of wood, and improvements in the performance and durability of plastic window and door materials. Expanded opportunities for plastic resins in a wider range of product applications will also stimulate demand. Advances in the production techniques for vinyl, for example, will allow this material to gain market share in more complex window framing applications. In glazing systems, inroads for plastics will reflect substantial advantages in impact-resistance over glass, along with superior design flexibility, lighter weights and more favorable costs.
Dollar gains for plastic window and door materials will rise at a pace only slightly ahead of volume demand, due to the commodity orientation of most materials and significant price/performance enhancements in most material segments. Stiff competitive pressures from alternative window and door materials will also prevent dollar demand from exceeding volume gains by a substantial marsin.
