by Roberta Cristallo06   Agosto   2014

The recovery of the building sector goes through «rebuilding the old»

What’s the current situation for this sector?
According to Luigi Di Carlantonio, president at ANDIL, the Italian Association of clay bricks and roof tiles producers, “The whole sector has been downsized, losing two thirds of production since the crisis broke out. There are 116 firms and 138 active plants at the moment. ANDIL represents about 80% of national production, which in 2013 totaled 6.35 million tonnes. This has been a difficult year, the sixth consecutive year witnessing a decrease in production of clay bricks and roof tiles in Italy: -15.2% compared to 2012 and -69.0% compared to 2007, the last year before the crisis started.
After all, a decrease in production reflects investments trends. A study by CRESME, one of the main Italian research institutes on construction industry, shows a further decrease in new constructions for the year 2014 (with a substantial increase in renovations being carried out over the same year), and a general stability for the years 2015-16. Considering the percentage changes for the years 2014-16 in residential investments (“new homes” and “renovation”), and applying such differences to the various types of brick products according to the market they are meant for (“new” or “old”) a further 5.6% decrease in total production is expected this year, with a stable 6 million tonnes production until 2016.
We believe nevertheless that a possible future construction recovery will trigger a selection of products, bringing to the use of high quality bricks and materials. This is why the association keeps working at full capacity and with great effort on different issues and tasks, taking part into decision making processes and cooperating with the most important Italian universities through research studies and participation in trade shows.

During 2014 ANDIL annual meeting which took place in Naples on June 20th, you proposed a plan to “rebuild what there is already” as an effective solution for the rehabilitation of the Italian building heritage which must be «supported and encouraged by the State ».
The European Central Bank report on household finance and consumption within the euro zone showed some significant data I would like to go through: 60.1% of families own the house they live in while 23.1% also own a second home. In Italy this figure reaches 68.7%. According to Istat (Italian research institute), home prices have dropped by 12% since 2010. 55% of buildings are over 40 years old and waste three times as much as new buildings. The main investment for Italian families is losing its value year by year.
We believe it’s time to act to rehabilitate our building heritage, which is Italy’s most valuable richness. What we propose is the requalification (or demolition, if needed) of old buildings, based on sustainability and safety, that is long term durable solutions both in terms of earthquake proof structures and energy-saving.

What would the possible repercussions be?
New value for the properties as well as benefits for the environment, as the land would be saved from further building. Construction industry, spotted as the driving force of the entire economy, would also benefit from such practice. To support a certainly ambitious but unavoidable plan both public investments and policies urging a commitment from owners are needed. A great State support is needed. The government is already doing much for school properties, in the context of a large social housing project aimed at helping the more disadvantaged classes and boosting economy. Each public euro invested on real estate generates an immediate boomerang effect encouraging further investments (both public and private) for more that 60 cents, with a consequent increase in employment rates. Italy needs to restart from its own internal market to match the requirements of development and employment with the rehabilitation of our building heritage: more safety, quality, health and living comfort while respecting natural and environmental resources.

How to implement the necessary measures to ensure that minimum requirements for buildings are set so as to guarantee high-quality real estate?
Apart from eathquake safety measures, concern must be taken over the climate of our country. Our industry proposes building solutions able to guarantee structural security, energy saving both in winter and summer, guaranteeing the right balance between insulation and living comfort. Policymakers risk once again ignoring the laws of bioclimatic architecture, encouraging the building of hyper-insulated homes with expensive ventilation to try and overcome discomfort, causing immediate damage and for the years to come. The 90/2013 implementation decree on energy efficiency (NZEB – Near/Net Zero Energy Building) is being currently discussed, although it seems it’s taking the wrong path, insisting on imposing insulation values stricter than those set by German regulations, when Italian climate is certainly milder. If Germany itself has chosen not to embrace excessive insulation, one does not understand the reasons of Italian policymakers!
Particular attention is given to mould formation, a health linked issue which seems to be of easier acceptance.
Similarly, as far as Technical Building Regulations are concerned (DM 14/01/2008), it has been underlined “the importance of technology and last generation systems and instruments”. The Association and the industry keep investing  (also thanks to the European project INSYSME) on better solutions for structural and non-structural walls, hoping that such solutions may be of great use to the High Council for Public Works.

What are the next exhibitions you will take part in?
We will be at SAIE once again representing the clay bricks and roof tiles firms. Together with Confindustria Ceramica we will continue last year work and will present a made in Italy standard building matching safety, saving and health in the Mediterranean area: our priority is to match modern building requirements with environmental issues and living comfort. This is made possible by the joint efforts of our industry and the industry of ceramic tiles which have merged together in the Federazione Confindustria Ceramica e Laterizi. We are therefore pleased to be part of the same team and it is with great pleasure that we have accepted the invitation at Cersaie where we were also present last year with the 3D show “Laterizio Unconventional”.