Wrightstyle, the UK steel glazing company, was in China earlier this month at the Guanzghou CPD Exhibition. The major event was an opportunity for Wrightstyle to showcase their advanced glazing systems. The company was represented by Chairman Denis Wright and Far East agent Billy Kung, underlining the international nature of specialist glazing systems.
Wrightstyle shared a stand with Jebsen Building Products whose MD Vincent So also attended.
The Chinese market is now the world’s second-largest economy and at the end of 2011 there were some 3,444 glass and glass product manufacturing enterprises in China. China accounts for about 50% of the world’s production of flat glass.
Putting that into perspective, China’s domestic glass output reached 13,736,800 tons in 2011, although much of that production is for basic glass types. China still imports advanced glazing systems, to mitigate against fire or ballistic/bomb attack.
The glass trade in China, with continued year-on-year growth, is being largely driven by China’s huge investments in commercial, real estate and infrastructure projects. Between 2008 and 2012, the Chinese construction industry grew annually by over 20%, valuing the market at some $2.1 trillion.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, there are over 70,400 construction companies in China, employing over 43.1 million people. The market is being boosted by significant State spending; in 2012, the Chinese government approved about $150 billion in projects, largely to stimulate economic activity that slowed last year to a 13-year low of 7.8%.
Despite that slow-down, China’s industrial output is over 76% higher than it was five years. In comparison, US, EU, and Japanese output remains stubbornly below what it was five years ago.
"The market for advanced glazing systems is truly global, with only a limited number of suppliers able to meet stringent specifications. At Wrightstyle, we have recently completed projects in the Lebanon, Cyprus, Hong Kong and the UAE – and therefore understand the changing dynamics of international markets," said Denis Wright, Chairman of Wrightstyle.