Holzwerkstoffe & Oberflächen

Machinery

• Woodworking machinery production poised to grow by 3% this year
• Shifts among printing and lacquering machine makers
• Wemhöner experiences strong growth in order intake for short-cycle presses
• Deurotech expanded air treatment operations with another acquisition
• Homag integrating System TM into Construction Elements Solutions unit

Chemicals

• German Ministry and Fantoni submit comments on formaldehyde testing
• Two courts declare VOC rules for OSB and particleboard inadmissible
• Wood-based panels
• Few changes in the wood-based panel and surfaces sector in 2020 and 2021

Structural panels

• North America: OSB production reached the same level as 2019
• North America: increase in OSB prices has continued into the first quarter
• West Fraser Timber entered the OSB business by merging with Norbord
• Elliotis pine plywood exports shifting towards North and South America
• EU Commission launches anti-dumping investigation into Russian birch plywood
• European buyers of structural panels are battling supply issues

Composite panels

• Decline in the first half of the year was followed by a strong increase
• Panel manufacturers cite higher raw material costs in efforts to charge more
• Divestments in North America sent Arauco’s capacity below 10m m³
• South African PG Bison to add MDF line to Piet Retief site until 2023
• Starwood puts pen to paper on agreement for thin MDF line
• Homann Holzwerkstoffe fleshes out plans for new MDF mill in Lithuania
• Egger scaled back investments after completion of several bigger projects

Surfaces

• Mayr-Melnhof to buy all shares in Kotkamills Group until mid 2021
• Interprint, Schattdecor and Impress investing in treating lines in Brazil
• Schürfeld Group and Kaindl expanded their shareholdings in Surteco Group
• Schattdecor planning to invest in two more lacquering lines
• Coating manufacturers Oskar Nolte and Klumpp Coatings merged in November
• Wilsonart extending its laminating activities with a plant in Oregon

Furniture

• Retail closures leaving their mark on furniture industry output after all
• German furniture industry: turnover well up at end of year
• Kitchen furniture manufacturers did better on the domestic market
• Online turnover from furnishings increased by 16.1% in full year

Flooring

• Rising sales of SPC flooring make up for downturns in other categories
• EPLF manage to sell more laminate flooring for the first time since 2016
• Neuhofer to extend works area in Zell am Moos by almost 15,000 m²

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Bau & Innenausbau

Machinery

• Woodworking machinery exports plummeted in the first five months
• Number of orders for partial and complete lines has fallen sharply
• Siempelkamp to reach agreement about shedding 260 jobs in autumn
• 28 ContiRoll and 70 short-cycle presses sold by GIM to Turkey
• Positive financial performance at GreCon in recent years
• Kablitz delivers another power system to Kronospan group

Chemicals

• Tide turned on markets for chemical raw materials in the third quarter
• Ineos group intends to acquire BP’s petrochemical activities

Wood-based panels

• Wood-based panel production declined again for first time
• European wood-based panel consumption headed lower in 2019
• Particleboard: Recycled wood use reached almost 43% in 2019
• Furniture industry and DIY shops benefit from pent-up demand

Structural panels

• Disparities within the insulating board industry have intensified
• Steico to install two more insulating panel lines in Poland and France
• Gutex wants to invest in second facility near Freiburg

Composite panels

• Finsa set to close MDF mill in French town of Morcenx by the end of 2020
• Egger Group invested more than €1.5bn over the past three years
• Nolte Holzwerkstoff renamed after Saviola Holding acquired a 50% stake
• Pfleiderer Group to become GmbH again / Silekol transferred to PCF

Surfaces 

• Covid-19 will provoke a slump in worldwide decor paper sales
• China’s share of global decor paper output rises to 58%
• Small growth in pre-impregnated paper sales in full year 2019
• Broadview Holding acquires worktop merchant in the UK
• Production stoppages trimmed Neodecortech’s revenues

Furniture 

• VDM now expects furniture revenues to subside by 5% at most this year
• Chinese Jomoo Group has owned Poggenpohl since 1 September
• Steinhoff trimmed its furniture portfolio with several divestments

Flooring 

• Mohawk: Laminate flooring fared better than other flooring products
• FEP members increased parquet output by 1.6% to roughly 78m m²
• Parquet consumption in FEP region rose slightly last year

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Machinery

• VDMA woodworking group has doubts about production forecast for 2020
• Italian machinery producers: All headline figures lower in 2019
• Dieffenbacher sold 18 lines for wood-based panel production
• Homag Group is planning complete takeover of joint ventures in China
• Weinig relocating Raimann activities from Freiburg to Illertissen by year end
• Biesse: Incoming orders declined by almost 25% in the first quarter

Chemicals

• Mounting European opposition to new E05 rules in Germany

Structural panels

• North American OSB producers improved turnover and earnings
• Steico has doubled turnover and quadrupled EBITDA since 2011

Composite panels

• More wood-based panel lines taking downtime in late May
• North America: Slight downturn in composite panel sales in the first quarter
• EU shipped 21% less particleboard to the USA in the first quarter
• Brazil: Lower domestic sales almost offset by composite panels exports
• Main suppliers shipped more particleboard to the UK in 2019
• Egger sticking to its timetable for particleboard plant in Lexington
• Duratex temporarily shut down all particleboard and MDF/HDF plants
• Sonae Industria booked first net loss after three years in the black
• Homann Holzwerkstoffe boosted margin in financial year 2019

Surfaces

• Too high inventories hindering swift recovery in order intake
• Glatfelter Composite Fibers increases shipments in all areas
• Surteco Group will not meet targets for 2020 due to corona crisis

Furniture

• Furniture retailers fully reopened throughout Germany
• Furniture manufacturers have ramped up production again
• Branch closures in the UK and Austria take a bite out of Nobia’s profits

Flooring

• General exclusion to govern US vinyl flooring imports from China
• Number of I4F licensees for locking of hard flooring climbs to over 100

DIY

• Greater growth in Home Depot’s sales revenue in the first quarter
• Kingfisher reopens half of its DIY stores in eight countries

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Holzwerkstoffe & Oberflächen

Machinery

• China: Woodworking machinery export surplus neared €880m in 2018
• Paper machinery manufacturer Papcel renamed Bellmer Czech
• Siempelkamp and Dieffenbacher booked EBITDA margins of about 5% in 2018
• Holtec now getting more orders from sawmilling industry
• Homag Group restructuring initiatives running as planned

Chemicals

• EU criticises special national arrangements relating to CPR

Wood-based panels

• Panel and surfaces industry back in a phase of consolidation
• China: Delays in supply chains set to intensify in the coming weeks

Structural panels

• Brazilian exports of Elliotis pine plywood reduced to 2017 level
• OSB exports from Canada and the US both declined during 2019
• Norbord: Reduction of revenues by 30% led to an operating loss

Composite panels

• Arauco North America is stopping lines in St. Stephen, Moncure and Eugene
• Fenglin orders production line for Super Strand particleboard
• Borg giving another boost to WBP capacity with MDF replacement
• Kastamonu replacing particleboard line at former Yontas site in Samsun
• Egger invested almost €300m by the end of October 2019
• Unilin Group installing two more short-cycle presses for lamination

Surfaces

• Three titanium dioxide producers reach capacities of more than 1m t
• Ahlstrom-Munksjö Decor enjoyed a recovery of demand towards year end
• Schattdecor boosted revenues by 5% to €780m in the financial year 2019
• Wilsonart sold Asian operations to Japanese company Aica Kogyo

Furniture

• Punitive tariffs for imports of kitchen cabinets from China
• Kitchen furniture producer acpi to do business as Cabinetworks Group
• Nobilia: Plants III and V to start manufacturing at end of this year
• Leicht Küchen to commission new assembly plant in September 2020

Flooring

• I4F, Unilin and Välinge Innovation reach deals to end patent disputes
• EPLF members saw laminate flooring sales stabilise a little last year
• Growth in the design flooring market shifted towards SPC products in 2019
• Turkey extends duties on laminate flooring from China and Germany
• Mohawk stopped making parquet at Magnum Parket at the end of February

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Machinery

• Number of wood-based panel line orders has almost halved recently
• China delivered double-digit growth in woodworking machinery exports
• Rotodecor and Palis to do business as Hummingbird Converting Solutions
• GreCon starting to make segmented scalpers in a new hall in Alfeld

Chemicals

• New emission rules culminating in inconsistent product specifications
• Germany: New formaldehyde rules to take effect in January 2020 as planned
• Baden-Württemberg Higher Administrative Court stops tighter VOC emission values
• ECHA publishes interim report on worker exposure to formaldehyde

Wood-based panels

• Slower growth in European wood-based panels production recorded last year

Structural panels

• US plywood makers file suit against PFS-Teco, TPI and accreditation firm
• Norbord reacts on slowdown of North American OSB markets
• Kronospan commissioned softwood plywood mill in Smorgon in August
• GO Lab plans to reassemble Homatherm insulating panel line at former paper mill

Composite panels

• North America: CPA predicts slower increase in capacity of composite panels
• Brazil: special effect in May compensates weaker demand in the other months
• Chilean production and export of wood-based panel increased
• Turkey has become a net exporter in all wood-based panel segments
• Egger: investments over €450m will complete a three-year programme
• Trade in Pfleiderer shares on Warsaw stock exchange ended after squeeze-out
• Homanit switching production to lower formaldehyde emission levels
• Kronospan to dismantle particleboard line and move it to Eastern Europe

Surfaces

• Decor paper sales have not risen any further after five years of growth
• Growth in Chinese decor paper output almost halved compared to previous years
• Decor paper manufacturers trying to identify why sales remain slow
• Ahlstrom-Munksjö to spin off decor paper division after business combination
• Laminate manufacturers worried about problems sourcing saturating base kraft
• Surteco Group completes sale of treating facility in East Longmeadow to Arclin
• Interprint to become the brand for Toppan’s decor printing business
• British Synthomer group aiming to take over conglomerate Omnova

Furniture

• DoC sets provisional CVD rates for Chinese imports of kitchen furniture
• Ikea Industry will close the Danville site and withdraw from US production
• Ashley enters RTA business taking over Homestar plant in Statesville
• Several investors bid for Masco kitchen furniture activities

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Machinery

• Large-scale plant suppliers set to face slight reduction in order intake
• Dieffenbacher Zaisenhausen: Short-cycle press in Sully-sur-Loire is up and running
• Wemhöner Surface Technologies will deliver single-pass printers in future
• Homag Group’s order intake settles at level of preceding quarters

Chemicals

• European Court of Justice confirms harmonisation of standards
• Public consultation on formaldehyde emissions from consumer products
• EPF plans to introduce voluntary emission class for formaldehyde
• European methanol contract price left unchanged in second quarter
• Prefere Resins to buy Melamine and Paraform divisions from Ineos group
• Hexion wants to end Chapter 11 for US companies in summer

Wood-based panels

• EPF: European wood-based panel production rose to 59.5 million m³

Structural panels

• Price decay in OSB reflected in business figures of North American producers
• Since 2013 Canadian OSB exports have doubled to 7.654m m³ in 2018
• Slight increase in German exports thanks to a better second half of 2018
• Steico’s LVL output stepped up to over 100,000 m³ for the first time

Composite panels

• Situation for Turkey’s wood-based panel industry has taken a turn for the worse
• Georgia-Pacific to close particleboard mills in Hope, Monroeville, Thomson
• Uniboard continues modernisation of its production sites in Québec
• Pfleiderer: Barely any change in production and shipment volumes
• Sonae Arauco net result in 2018 slightly short of a year earlier

Surfaces

• Titanium dioxide producer Tronox wraps up acquisition of Cristal Global
• Schattdecor commissions its new printing site in Quzhou, China
• Schattdecor forges ahead with expansion of treating activities
• Contrasting development in Surteco’s business units Paper and Plastic
• Broadview closed acquisition of Formica at the start of June
• Transferred restructuring for specialty laminate producer Dekodur

Furniture

• Kitchen industry surpasses €11bn mark for the fourth consecutive time
• German furniture exports reached a new record level of €10.9bn in 2018
• DoC postpones ruling on US kitchen furniture imports

Flooring

• Feriel Saouli is new managing director of EPLF and MMFA
• Laminate flooring production fell slightly in all regions last year
• Unilin group files ITC case against 45 flooring manufacturers and distributors

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Machinery

• VDMA woodworking machinery association sticking to production forecast for 2018
• Anthon delivers first high-performance saw to Asian wood-based panel industry
• SWPM has more than tripled its revenues since becoming part of Dieffenbacher

Chemicals

• Methanol: European contract price slashed by 18.2% in the first quarter
• Adhesive and impregnating resin prices fell at the start of 2019 as expected
• Wood-based panel manufacturers preparing for further reduction in formaldehyde limits

Structural Panels

• North American OSB market has been experiencing weakness in the last months
• Brazilian exports of elliotis pine plywood increased again at a double-digit rate
• OSB producer Norbord is planning to invest another £35m in its Scottish Inverness mill
• Competitive pressure will lead to further consolidation in the fibreboard industry
• Steico poised to commission two more lines in Czarnków and Czarna Woda

Composite Panels

• North American particleboard sales stable, MDF/HDF sales rebounded slightly stronger
• Brazilian wood-based panels producers are in the process of restarting lines
• Turkish anti-trust authority investigating 12 producers of particleboard and MDF
• Laminate Park planning to stop manufacturing MDF/HDF and laminate flooring
• Transfer of the Lure particleboard mill took place beginning of January
• Roseburg wraps up acquisition of MDF mill in El Dorado from PotlatchDeltic
• Arauco completes purchase of all shares in five Mexican subsidiaries of Masisa

Surfaces

• Slower growth in the global market for decor paper during the year 2017
• With double-digit growth Chinese production increased to more than 1m t
• Barely any improvement in sales climate on decor paper markets at start of 2019
• Numerous objections to titanium dioxide classification, proposed by ECHA’s RAC
• Contract prices for titanium dioxide have been falling by varying amounts
• Felix Schoeller Holding commissions two decor paper machines in Russia and China
• Acquisition of the Caieiras mill has added €13m to Decor division’s Q4 revenues
• Surfaces industry in even greater state of flux under adverse underlying conditions
• Wrede planning to wrap up sale process for Interprint during the next months
• ECCM Bank is pursuing strategic goals with its 12.28% stake in Surteco Group
• With US Coating and Vasatech, Schattdecor closed two transactions in the last months
• Broadview Holding set to acquire Formica after buying Trespa, Arpa and Westag

Furniture

• Largest German kitchen furniture producers reach further sales growth
• Masco seeking a buyer for kitchen furniture, window and door operations
• New furniture-front production plant in Jeffersonville to open in early 2019

Flooring

• Pronounced slump in laminate flooring sales in Western Europe and North America
• Total multilayer flooring sales of MMFA Members climb to almost 75m m² in 2018
• Mohawk Flooring RoW division posts growth in laminate/wood business

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Machinery

• Woodworking machinery: Germany and Taiwan enjoyed double-digit growth
• Wemhöner to finish reorganising production and assembly by mid-2019
• Deurotech gradually creating other pillars besides treating technology
• Auctus Capital Partners is going to buy a majority stake in Bürkle from Nimbus

Chemicals

• BASF estimates global demand for adhesive resins at 18.5m t

Structural Panels

• Upward trend in OSB production will continue with the ramp-up of more mills
• Market for structural flooring board is shifting from particleboard to OSB
• Swiss Krono Group set to increase OSB capacity at three existing plants

Composite Panels

• European wood-based panel output edged 3.0% higher to 57.6m m³ last year 
• North American particleboard markets still subdued in the first half of 2017
• Composite-panel production capacity to rise by 2.5m m³ by the end of next year
• North America: Over ten short-cycle presses to get up and running in the next two years
• Egger group aiming to invest another €400m in full year 2018/2019

Surfaces

• Matching decors and EIR laminates becoming popular in North America too
• Surteco entities merged into Surteco GmbH by the end of August
• BMK installing a third treating line at Welcome site in North Carolina
• Fletcher Building aiming to conclude sale of Formica Group by mid-2019
• Broadview now holds 58.3% of shares in Westag & Getalit

Furniture

• Investments by panel producers bring changes to US kitchen furniture industry
• Häcker, Nobilia and Schüller fleshing out plans for new kitchen furniture factories
• Steinhoff reduces European furniture activities with the sale of subsidiaries

Flooring

• Production of parquet flooring increased another 2.6% in the FEP region last year
• Pervanovo Invest acquires Otok plant to secure veneer supply for Woodura

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Machinery 

• Woodworking machinery manufacturers deliver double-digit growth in production
• Dieffenbacher and SWPM have sold ten wood-based panel plants by end of April
• Five plants sold by Siempelkamp during the first four months of 2018

Structural Panels 

• North American OSB capacity poised for gradual growth in the years ahead
• Asia to become the next growth market for OSB after North America and Europe
• Elliotis pine plywood exports rising more than in 2017

Composite Panels 

• Brazil: Lorry strike lasting several days curtails production in many sectors
• Brazil’s wood-based panel markets weakened in February and March
• Four lines for wood-based panels to start operating in Brazil in the coming months
• Deadlines for new US formaldehyde rules brought forward after all
• CPA: North American laminating capacity decreased slightly last year
• Sonae Arauco has restarted its mills in Mangualde and Oliveira do Hospital

Surfaces 

• New MTC, Kingdecor decor paper machines to be commissioned before year end
• Schattdecor set to install three treating lines in Chekhov by 2019
• Fletcher Building is looking for a buyer for laminate producer Formica
• Broadview Industries set to become Westag & Getalit’s majority shareholder
• Probos enjoys a 16.8% EBIT margin after its integration into Surteco

Furniture 

• Chinese investors expanding involvement in European furniture industry

Flooring 

• Bauwerk Boen: Parquet production now up and running in Durdevac
• Weitzer aiming to raise 50% stake in Croatian parquet manufacturer Pana

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Overview

• Wood-based panel sector has become more international over the last year

Machinery

• Dieffenbacher and Siempelkamp sold 26 wood-based panel lines combined in 2017
• Andritz sold a total of 14 refiners to the MDF and fibreboard industry
• Eumabois reported another upturn in woodworking machinery revenues
• Weinig and SCM following Homag and Biesse in adding IoT platform

Structural Panels

• North American OSB output surpassed the 20m m³ mark for the first time again
• OSB exports from Canada and from USA developed in different directions in 2017
• Finnish plywood industry has reached a turnaround in its production output

Composite Panels

• In 2017, hardly any change in sales of composite panels in North America 
• Polish anti-trust authority fines four wood-based panel manufacturers
• Arauco to take over Masisa Mexico following the acquisition in Brazil
• Roseburg to expand into Canada with acquisition of Pembroke MDF
• XyloSuisse to take over particleboard plant of Russsian furniture producer Shatura

Surfaces

• Decor printers investing more heavily in increasing rotogravure capacity again
• Lamigraf is adding printing capacity to its new premises in São Jose dos Pinhais

Flooring

• EPLF members offset weaker laminate flooring business in Western Europe
• Private equity investor Kirkbi bought 49.8% stake in Välinge Innovation
• Pervanovo planning powder-based wood-fibre floor works in Croatia
• Mohawk: IVC commissions two new plants making rigid LVT in Avelgem and Dalton

Furniture 

• Nobilia intends to supply French market via kitchen furniture plant in Saarlouis
• More kitchen manufacturers want to switch production to WBPs meeting CARB II

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