Building materials back to pre-Covid levels

14 December 2023

The Construction Leadership Council’s (CLC) Product Availability working group has issued its last Product Availability Statement for the year, showing good availability across all products and regions and that the situation has effectively returned to pre-Covid levels. 

Co-Chairs John Newcomb, CEO of the Builders Merchants Federation and Peter Caplehorn, CEO of the Construction Products Association, say that insulation products used in energy-efficiency-related work, along with other RMI (repair, maintenance and improvement) products such as plasterboard and render, are in plentiful supply, along with ample stocks of bricks and blocks on the ground. 

Product stocks for cement, concrete and aggregate are also described as healthy, and the group has no concerns over current availability of structural wood products. 

However, it warns that buyers should continue to apply due diligence on wood products originating in Russia and Belarus which are subject to UK and EU sanctions. This includes products like birch plywood which may be manufactured from Russian raw wood materials in countries like Turkey, Kazakhstan, Vietnam or China.

The CLC points out that the good levels of product availability largely reflect the slowdown in activity across key construction sectors that has reduced product demand. This is most apparent in the housing related sectors, where few expect to see any real upturn until 2025, it states.

It also adds that energy intensive manufacturers (for example, insulation, steel, bricks and glass) are having to bear industrial energy costs that remain three times higher than pre-Covid levels.

Finally, recognising that the product availability group’s discussions extend beyond product availability to incorporate far broader issues affecting the construction supply chain, from January 2024 it will be renamed the Material Supply Chain Group.

Photo: Brett Jordan