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[June 2001]
Summary of 9th Survey of Italian Ceramic Plant & Machinery Sector
ACIMAC reports for the year 2000, turnover for this sector of Italian industry rose by 21.8% to 3,000 billion lire, with increases both in the Italian domestic market (up 24.7%) and abroad (up 20.3%).
After closures, setting up of new companies and consortia, mergers and takeovers, the number of Italian ceramic machinery manufacturers in 2000 totalled 190 - 9 more than in 1999. The increase was also partially a result of the shift (or return) into the sector of companies that previously operated mainly as sub-suppliers or in other sectors outside the ceramic industry.
The number of employees - 7,177 in 2000 - also increased (up by a number of 562, equivalent to 8.5%), recovering the share of workers lost in the previous year and therefore returning to the employment levels of 1998.
The highest concentration of businesses are in the provinces of Modena and Reggio Emilia, where respectively 102 and 27 companies are based (53.7% and 14.2% of the total).
As one would expect, the ceramic tile industry was the leading customer for Italian plant and machinery, accounting for 81.3% of the sector's total turnover, to a value of 2,477 billion lire. Sales in Italy itself showed a 27.9% increase over 1999 to 859 billion lire, the highest value since 1996.
Exports to the tile industry rose by 20.7% over 1999 to stand at 1,617 billion lire.
With the sole exception of sales to the refractory and associated ceramics sector, all client sectors showed positive trends: up 9.7% in the heavy clay machinery sector; up 91.1% in the tableware machinery sector; and up 37.5% in the sanitaryware machinery sector.
ENDS