20 November 2000

Eight Building Materials in Strong Demand in Coming Ten Years

Experts from the State Bureau of the Building Materials Industry forecast that during the next ten years eight varieties of building materials will be in great demand in China. They are:

Plastic flooring: Demand is forecast to reach 80 million square metres in 2000 and increase to 150-200 million square metres by the year 2010. The demand for elastic roll flooring and half-hard plastic flooring will grow quickly.

Plastic pipe: Demand is expected to reach 400,000 tons in 2000 (including 330,000 tons of drainage pipe, and 70,000 tons of water supply pipe), and increase to one million tons in 2010. The country has basically resolved the problem of plastic pipe materials not fitting pipe parts. By the year 2010, it is predicted that demand will reach 1 million

Plastic shaped materials, doors and windows: Demand is estimated to reach 200,000 tons in 2000, enough to assemble 10 million square metres of windows, and by 2010 this will increase to 500,000-600,000 tons of shaped materials and 25-30 million square metres of doors and windows.

Wall paper and fabrics: Demand is forecast to reach 250-300 million square metres in 2000, and will increase to more than 400 million square metres in 2010.

Construction paints: The demand is expected to reach one million tons in 2000.

Wooden flooring: The market prospects of reinforced composite flooring are promising, because the products are easy to assemble and use. Elastic soft wooden flooring from Europe will become fashionable in house fixtures and fittings.

Ceramic Sanitation: Computer-controlled lavatory seats, automatic bidet and other ceramic sanitation products, and new damp-proof products, and ventilation systems will replace traditional products.

Glass: Products will be more diversified, with more new products, such as tempering glass, dioptric glass, heat indicating glass, and automatic-cleaning glass.

By Yi Wen

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