Global demand for geosynthetics is projected to increase 8.3 percent
annually to 4.5 billion square meters in 2015. Advances will be driven
by increasing use of geosynthetics and the large-scale construction
plans in place in many developing countries. China will surpass the US
as the world’s largest geosynthetics market by 2015.
The study also considers market environment factors, details industry structure, evaluates company market share and profiles 38 industry players, including Royal Ten Cate, GSE Holding, and Low & Bonar.
World demand to rise 8.3% annually through 2015
Worldwide demand for geosynthetics is projected to increase 8.3 percent annually to 4.5 billion square meters in 2015. This growth rate is an acceleration from the gains of the 2005-2010 period, reflecting in part the reduced 2010 bases of the developed countries. Advances are being driven by the increasing market penetration and large-scale construction plans in place in many developing countries.
Asia/Pacific region to surpass North America as largest market
In 2010, North America was the largest regional market, accounting for 31 percent of global sales. The US is the world’s largest individual country market, with one-quarter of total sales. Growth in North America benefits from the massive size of its construction sector, which is expected to rebound through 2015 from a low 2010 base, as well as the need to maintain its large transportation infrastructure. Gains are also aided by the region’s building codes and environmental protection regulations.
The Asia/Pacific region was only slightly smaller, accounting for 30 percent of global geosynthetics sales in 2010. However, this region is projected to achieve the fastest growth rate through 2015, primarily driven by China, which is expected to account for nearly half of new global demand generated between 2010 and 2015. China’s gains are primarily due to amount of available land, its ongoing development of large-scale infrastructure projects, and the need for
erosion control. India is also expected to post double-digit annual growth through the forecast period, with sales nearly doubling by 2015, albeit from a much smaller base. In many of the least developed countries, however, growth for geosynthetics will be more limited, due to lack of adequate funding, a lack of regulations that require their use, and the presence of lower-cost alternatives.
Western Europe and Japan are fairly comparable to the US in terms of the level of maturity of their respective geosynthetics markets, as well as the type of regulatory environment. Both of these areas are expected to rebound from reduced 2010 bases, benefiting from improved construction activity and high level of concern for environmental protection. Gains in these areas are forecast to be the slowest among all regions through 2015, indicative of Western Europe and Japan’s relative maturity. However, the affluence of these countries allows them to use advanced geosynthetic technologies despite their larger upfront costs.
Key construction market to register fastest gains
In 2010, the construction market accounted for the largest share of geosynthetics sales with 34 percent. It will also register the fastest gains through 2015, albeit from a reduced 2010 base, as construction activity improves. This market benefits from factors such as the passage of environmental regulations, including those regarding sedimentary runoff from construction sites, as well as the increasing need for erosion control and other practices to protect against soil loss in a growing number of countries. Transportation infrastructure, the second largest market in 2010 (28 percent), is expected to post above-average gains through 2015 aided by the increasing use of geosynthetics in these projects, and the ongoing extension of paved roads and railways. The landfill market is another key area for geosynthetics as a growing number of
countries adopt modern landfill designs and operations.
Study Coverage
This new Freedonia industry study, World Geosynthetics, is available for $5900. It presents historical demand data (2000, 2005 and 2010) plus forecasts for 2015 and 2020 by type, market and for 19 countries. The study also considers key market environment factors, evaluates company market share and profiles 38 industry competitors.
COMPANY PROFILES
Profiles 38 players such as AMCOL International, Fiberweb, NAUE, GSE Holding, Low & Bonar, Propex, Royal Ten Cate and Saint-Gobain
Additional Information
This study analyzes the world market for geosynthetics, including geotextiles, geomembranes, geogrids, geonets and others (e.g., geocells, geofoam, geosynthetic clay liners and preformed geocomposites). Plastic geopipes and natural fiber geotextiles are not included in this study. Markets include construction, transportation infrastructure, landfills, liquid containment and such others as mining and secondary containment. Historical data for 2000, 2005 and 2010 and forecasts to 2015 and 2020 are provided for demand in million square meters. As used in this study, the term demand refers to sales or apparent consumption and denotes production from a nation’s indigenous geosynthetic manufacturing facilities plus imports, less exports. Tabular details may not add to totals due to independent rounding. Ratios may be rounded for the sake of clarity.
A wide variety of primary and secondary sources were used in the compilation of this report. These include national and regional statistical agencies, industry experts, trade associations, online databases and other Freedonia studies. The US Census Bureau, European Union, International Monetary Fund, Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), United Nations, World Bank and various national government statistical publications were among the public sector data sources utilized. Primary information was gathered through consultations with personnel of participating companies. Secondary data and background information were obtained from various publications, including Civil Engineering, ENR/Engineering News-Record, Erosion Control, Geosynthetics, Roads & Bridges, TextileWorld, Waste Management World and World Highways among others.
Macroeconomic and demographic indicators presented in this study were obtained from The Freedonia Group Consensus Forecasts dated August 2011. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) historical data are derived from the national income and products accounts from the Organisation for Economic Co- Operation and Development (OECD) for its member countries, from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for its member countries, and from the International Monetary Fund for its member countries that are not part of the OECD or EBRD. Sources of GDP estimates for other countries are based on information from the World Bank and a variety of sources including the countries’ statistical bureaus. GDP forecasts are developed from a consensus of public agencies and private firms.
All estimates of gross domestic product and components of GDP are done in terms of constant purchasing power parity in a benchmark year (2009) that is one year before the base year (2010) used in this study. Purchasing power parity GDP estimates for the benchmark year are obtained from the OECD, Eurostat, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the US Central Intelligence Agency and selected other sources. These purchasing power parity GDP estimates for the benchmark year are based on gross domestic product data expressed in the individual countries’ local currency, which are then converted to US dollars by valuing each country’s output at US prices in the benchmark year. This approach values the same physical output at
a consistent price for all countries, thereby reducing the distorting influence of different price levels in the different countries. The alternative approach of using exchange rates to convert local currency GDP to US dollars would tend to overvalue the output of countries with high average price levels and undervalue the output of countries with low average price levels, because exchange rate conversions only partially reflect the relative prices for goods and services that are domestically consumed and invested. Furthermore, factors other than relative prices, such as demand and supply in currency markets, interest rates and capital flows, affect exchange rates.
Once the GDP values for a country are estimated for the benchmark year, we then calculate inflation-adjusted GDP for all other years for that country based on historical and forecast growth rates of GDP expressed in inflationadjusted units of that country’s local currency. This approach ensures that the GDP series for any given country is an accurate index of changes in inflationadjusted GDP for that country. However, it also implicitly assumes that the price structures across countries do not change from those of the benchmark year. Therefore, caution should be used in comparing the relative GDP of countries in years other than the benchmark year. If the ratio of prices across two countries in a given year differs from the ratio of prices across those countries in the benchmark year, then the change in the relative sizes of those two economies as measured will not accurately reflect changes in output. The benchmark year is chosen to be one year prior to the base year for the study for reasons of data availability. One benefit of that choice is that the ratio of prices across countries in the base year is usually similar to that in the benchmark year. Therefore, the ratio of real GDP between two countries in the
base year of 2010 is generally a reasonably accurate representation of the relative sizes of their economies.
Table Of Contents
INTRODUCTION xi
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1
2. MARKET ENVIRONMENT 4
General 4
World Economic Overview 5
Recent Historical Trends 5
World Economic Outlook 7
World Fixed Investment 11
World Demographic Outlook 12
World Construction Activity 14
Nonbuilding Construction 16
Nonresidential Building Construction 18
Residential Building Construction 20
World Paved Roadway Outlook 22
World Agricultural Outlook 24
Pricing 26
Environmental & Regulatory Issues 27
3. OVERVIEW 32
General 32
Demand by Region 32
Demand by Type 36
Geotextiles 39
Geomembranes 44
Geogrids 48
Geonets 52
Other Geosynthetics 55
Geosynthetic Clay Liners 57
Preformed Geocomposites 59
Geocells 60
Geofoams 61
All Other Geosynthetics 62
Markets 63
Construction 65
Transportation Infrastructure 70
Landfills 75
Liquid Containment 80
Other Markets 84
Production & Trade 87
4. NORTH AMERICA 89
General 89
Demand by Type & Market 91
United States 94
Canada 104
Mexico 112
5. WESTERN EUROPE 120
General 120
Demand by Type & Market 122
France 125
Germany 132
Italy 139
Netherlands 146
Spain 152
United Kingdom 159
Other Western Europe 167
6. ASIA/PACIFIC 175
General 175
Demand by Type & Market 177
Australia 180
China 187
India 198
Japan 208
South Korea 215
Taiwan 223
Other Asia/Pacific 230
7. OTHER REGIONS 239
Central & South America 239
Demand by Type & Market 241
Brazil 243
Other Central & South America 250
Eastern Europe 257
Demand by Type & Market 258
Poland 261
Russia 267
Other Eastern Europe 275
Africa/Mideast 283
Demand by Type & Market 285
Turkey 287
Other Africa/Mideast 294
8. INDUSTRY STRUCTURE 302
General 302
Industry Composition 303
Market Share 306
Competitive Strategies 311
Research & Development 315
Distribution 316
Mergers & Acquisitions 317
Cooperative Agreements 320
Company Profiles 324
ADS Incorporated 325
AMCOL International Corporation 327
Anglo-Danish Fibre Industries, see Low & Bonar
Asahi Kasei Corporation 330
Ashimori Industry Company Limited 332
Beaulieu International Group NV 333
Boddingtons, see Fiberweb
Colbond, see Low & Bonar
Colloid Environmental Technologies, see AMCOL
International
CONTECH Construction Products Incorporated 334
Cooley Group Holdings 337
Don & Low, see Thrace Plastics
Dow Chemical Company 339
Fibertex Nonwovens A/S 341
Fiberweb plc 343
Freudenberg & Company KG 347
Garware-Wall Ropes Limited 349
Geo-Tipptex Ipari es Kereskedelmi kft, see Low & Bonar
GSE Holding Incorporated 351
Hanes Geo Components, see Leggett & Platt
HUESKER Synthetic GmbH 355
Huikwang Corporation 357
HUITEX Geosynthetics, see Huikwang
Intermas Nets SA 359
JUTA as 360
Kuraray Company Limited 362
Kusumgar Corporates 364
Leggett & Platt Incorporated 365
Low & Bonar plc 367
Lumite, see Thrace Plastics
Maeda Kosen Company Limited 371
NAUE GmbH & Company KG 372
Officine Maccaferri, see S.E.C.I.
Okasan Livic Company Limited 374
OOO Plastic Geosynthetics, see SIBUR Holding CJSC
Orton JSC, see SIBUR Holding CJSC
Poly-America LP 375
Poly-Flex, see Poly-America
Propex Operating Company LLC 376
Raven Industries Incorporated 379
Royal Ten Cate NV 381
Saint-Gobain 386
Samyang Corporation 388
S.E.C.I. SpA 390
Shandong Hongxiang Chemical Fiber Group Company 395
Shandong Taifeng Geosynthetics Company Limited 396
SIBUR Holding CJSC 398
Solmax-Texel Geosynthetics, see ADS
Synthetic Packaging, see Thrace Plastics
Taiyo Kogyo Corporation 400
TENAX International BV 401
Terram, see Fiberweb
Texel, see ADS
Tharreau Industries, see Fibertex Nonwovens A/S
Thrace Plastics Company SA 404
Trelleborg AB 407
Other Companies Mentioned in Study 408
List Of Tables
SECTION I — EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Summary Table 3
SECTION II — MARKET ENVIRONMENT
1 World Gross Domestic Product by Region 10
2 World Gross Fixed Capital Formation by Region 12
3 World Population by Region 14
4 World Construction Expenditures by Region & Sector 16
5 World Nonbuilding Construction Expenditures by Region 18
6 World Nonresidential Building Expenditures by Region 19
7 World Residential Building Expenditures by Region 21
8 World Paved Roads by Region 24
9 World Agricultural Value Added by Region 26
SECTION III — OVERVIEW
1 World Geosynthetics Demand by Region 35
2 World Geosynthetics Demand by Type 38
3 World Geotextile Demand by Region 43
4 World Geomembrane Demand by Region 47
5 World Geogrid Demand by Region 51
6 World Geonet Demand by Region 54
7 World Other Geosynthetics Demand by Region 57
8 World Geosynthetics Demand by Market 64
9 World Construction Market for Geosynthetics by Region 69
10 World Transportation Infrastructure Market for Geosynthetics
by Region 74
11 World Landfill Market for Geosynthetics by Region 79
12 World Liquid Containment Market for Geosynthetics by Region 83
13 World Other Markets for Geosynthetics by Region 87
SECTION IV — NORTH AMERICA
1 North America: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 90
2 North America: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 93
3 United States: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 96
4 United States: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 100
5 United States: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 103
6 Canada: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 106
7 Canada: Geosynethetics Demand by Type 108
8 Canada: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 110
9 Mexico: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 114
10 Mexico: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 116
11 Mexico: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 118
SECTION V — WESTERN EUROPE
1 Western Europe: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 121
2 Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 124
3 France: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 127
4 France: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 129
5 France: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 131
6 Germany: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 134
7 Germany: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 136
8 Germany: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 138
9 Italy: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 141
10 Italy: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 142
11 Italy: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 144
12 Netherlands: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 147
13 Netherlands: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 149
14 Netherlands: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 151
15 Spain: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 154
16 Spain: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 156
17 Spain: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 158
18 United Kingdom: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 161
19 United Kingdom: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 163
20 United Kingdom: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 165
21 Other Western Europe: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 168
22 Other Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 170
23 Other Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 172
24 Other Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Country 174
SECTION VI — ASIA/PACIFIC
1 Asia/Pacific: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 177
2 Asia/Pacific: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 179
3 Australia: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 182
4 Australia: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 184
5 Australia: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 186
6 China: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 190
7 China: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 193
8 China: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 196
9 India: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 200
10 India: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 203
11 India: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 206
12 Japan: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 210
13 Japan: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 212
14 Japan: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 214
15 South Korea: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 217
16 South Korea: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 219
17 South Korea: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 222
18 Taiwan: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 225
19 Taiwan: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 227
20 Taiwan: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 229
21 Other Asia/Pacific: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 231
22 Other Asia/Pacific: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 234
23 Other Asia/Pacific: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 237
SECTION VII — OTHER REGIONS
1 Central & South America: Market Environment
for Geosynthetics 241
2 Central & South America: Geosynthetics Demand by Type
& Market 243
3 Brazil: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 245
4 Brazil: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 247
5 Brazil: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 249
6 Other Central & South America: Market Environment
for Geosynthetics 252
7 Other Central & South America: Geosynthetics Demand
by Type 254
8 Other Central & South America: Geosynthetics Demand
by Market 256
9 Eastern Europe: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 258
10 Eastern Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 260
11 Poland: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 262
12 Poland: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 264
13 Poland: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 266
14 Russia: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 269
15 Russia: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 271
16 Russia: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 274
17 Other Eastern Europe: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 277
18 Other Eastern Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 279
19 Other Eastern Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 282
20 Africa/Mideast: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 285
21 Africa/Mideast: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 287
22 Turkey: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 289
23 Turkey: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 291
24 Turkey: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 293
25 Other Africa/Mideast: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 295
26 Other Africa/Mideast: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 297
27 Other Africa/Mideast: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 299
SECTION VIII — INDUSTRY STRUCTURE
1 World Geosynthetics Sales by Company, 2010 304
2 Selected Acquisitions & Divestitures 319
3 Selected Cooperative Agreements 322
List Of Charts
SECTION III — OVERVIEW
1 World Geosynthetics Demand by Region, 2000-2020 36
2 World Geosynthetics Demand by Type, 2010 39
3 World Synthetic & Natural Geotextiles Demand, 2000-2020 44
4 World Geomembrane Demand by Region, 2010 48
5 World Geogrid Demand by Region, 2010 52
6 World Geonet Demand by Region, 2010 55
7 World Geosynthetics Demand by Market, 2000-2020 65
8 World Construction Market for Geosynthetics by Region, 2010 70
9 World Transportation Infrastructure Market for Geosynthetics
by Region, 2010 75
10 World Landfill Market for Geosynthetics by Region, 2010 80
11 World Liquid Containment Market for Geosynthetics
by Region, 2010 84
SECTION IV — NORTH AMERICA
1 North America: Geosynthetics Demand by Country, 2010 94
SECTION V — WESTERN EUROPE
1 Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Country, 2010 125
SECTION VI — ASIA/PACIFIC
1 Asia/Pacific: Geosynthetics Demand by Country, 2010 180
SECTION VIII — INDUSTRY STRUCTURE
1 World Geosynthetics Market Share, 2010 307
World Geosynthetics Market to 2015
This study analyzes the three billion square meter world geosynthetics industry. It presents historical demand data for the years 2000, 2005 and 2010, and forecasts for 2015 and 2020 by type (e.g., geotextiles, geomembranes, geogrids, geonets) and market (e.g., construction, transportation infrastructure, landfills, liquid containment).The study also considers market environment factors, details industry structure, evaluates company market share and profiles 38 industry players, including Royal Ten Cate, GSE Holding, and Low & Bonar.
World demand to rise 8.3% annually through 2015
Worldwide demand for geosynthetics is projected to increase 8.3 percent annually to 4.5 billion square meters in 2015. This growth rate is an acceleration from the gains of the 2005-2010 period, reflecting in part the reduced 2010 bases of the developed countries. Advances are being driven by the increasing market penetration and large-scale construction plans in place in many developing countries.
Asia/Pacific region to surpass North America as largest market
In 2010, North America was the largest regional market, accounting for 31 percent of global sales. The US is the world’s largest individual country market, with one-quarter of total sales. Growth in North America benefits from the massive size of its construction sector, which is expected to rebound through 2015 from a low 2010 base, as well as the need to maintain its large transportation infrastructure. Gains are also aided by the region’s building codes and environmental protection regulations.
The Asia/Pacific region was only slightly smaller, accounting for 30 percent of global geosynthetics sales in 2010. However, this region is projected to achieve the fastest growth rate through 2015, primarily driven by China, which is expected to account for nearly half of new global demand generated between 2010 and 2015. China’s gains are primarily due to amount of available land, its ongoing development of large-scale infrastructure projects, and the need for
erosion control. India is also expected to post double-digit annual growth through the forecast period, with sales nearly doubling by 2015, albeit from a much smaller base. In many of the least developed countries, however, growth for geosynthetics will be more limited, due to lack of adequate funding, a lack of regulations that require their use, and the presence of lower-cost alternatives.
Western Europe and Japan are fairly comparable to the US in terms of the level of maturity of their respective geosynthetics markets, as well as the type of regulatory environment. Both of these areas are expected to rebound from reduced 2010 bases, benefiting from improved construction activity and high level of concern for environmental protection. Gains in these areas are forecast to be the slowest among all regions through 2015, indicative of Western Europe and Japan’s relative maturity. However, the affluence of these countries allows them to use advanced geosynthetic technologies despite their larger upfront costs.
Key construction market to register fastest gains
In 2010, the construction market accounted for the largest share of geosynthetics sales with 34 percent. It will also register the fastest gains through 2015, albeit from a reduced 2010 base, as construction activity improves. This market benefits from factors such as the passage of environmental regulations, including those regarding sedimentary runoff from construction sites, as well as the increasing need for erosion control and other practices to protect against soil loss in a growing number of countries. Transportation infrastructure, the second largest market in 2010 (28 percent), is expected to post above-average gains through 2015 aided by the increasing use of geosynthetics in these projects, and the ongoing extension of paved roads and railways. The landfill market is another key area for geosynthetics as a growing number of
countries adopt modern landfill designs and operations.
Study Coverage
This new Freedonia industry study, World Geosynthetics, is available for $5900. It presents historical demand data (2000, 2005 and 2010) plus forecasts for 2015 and 2020 by type, market and for 19 countries. The study also considers key market environment factors, evaluates company market share and profiles 38 industry competitors.
COMPANY PROFILES
Profiles 38 players such as AMCOL International, Fiberweb, NAUE, GSE Holding, Low & Bonar, Propex, Royal Ten Cate and Saint-Gobain
Additional Information
This study analyzes the world market for geosynthetics, including geotextiles, geomembranes, geogrids, geonets and others (e.g., geocells, geofoam, geosynthetic clay liners and preformed geocomposites). Plastic geopipes and natural fiber geotextiles are not included in this study. Markets include construction, transportation infrastructure, landfills, liquid containment and such others as mining and secondary containment. Historical data for 2000, 2005 and 2010 and forecasts to 2015 and 2020 are provided for demand in million square meters. As used in this study, the term demand refers to sales or apparent consumption and denotes production from a nation’s indigenous geosynthetic manufacturing facilities plus imports, less exports. Tabular details may not add to totals due to independent rounding. Ratios may be rounded for the sake of clarity.
A wide variety of primary and secondary sources were used in the compilation of this report. These include national and regional statistical agencies, industry experts, trade associations, online databases and other Freedonia studies. The US Census Bureau, European Union, International Monetary Fund, Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), United Nations, World Bank and various national government statistical publications were among the public sector data sources utilized. Primary information was gathered through consultations with personnel of participating companies. Secondary data and background information were obtained from various publications, including Civil Engineering, ENR/Engineering News-Record, Erosion Control, Geosynthetics, Roads & Bridges, TextileWorld, Waste Management World and World Highways among others.
Macroeconomic and demographic indicators presented in this study were obtained from The Freedonia Group Consensus Forecasts dated August 2011. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) historical data are derived from the national income and products accounts from the Organisation for Economic Co- Operation and Development (OECD) for its member countries, from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for its member countries, and from the International Monetary Fund for its member countries that are not part of the OECD or EBRD. Sources of GDP estimates for other countries are based on information from the World Bank and a variety of sources including the countries’ statistical bureaus. GDP forecasts are developed from a consensus of public agencies and private firms.
All estimates of gross domestic product and components of GDP are done in terms of constant purchasing power parity in a benchmark year (2009) that is one year before the base year (2010) used in this study. Purchasing power parity GDP estimates for the benchmark year are obtained from the OECD, Eurostat, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the US Central Intelligence Agency and selected other sources. These purchasing power parity GDP estimates for the benchmark year are based on gross domestic product data expressed in the individual countries’ local currency, which are then converted to US dollars by valuing each country’s output at US prices in the benchmark year. This approach values the same physical output at
a consistent price for all countries, thereby reducing the distorting influence of different price levels in the different countries. The alternative approach of using exchange rates to convert local currency GDP to US dollars would tend to overvalue the output of countries with high average price levels and undervalue the output of countries with low average price levels, because exchange rate conversions only partially reflect the relative prices for goods and services that are domestically consumed and invested. Furthermore, factors other than relative prices, such as demand and supply in currency markets, interest rates and capital flows, affect exchange rates.
Once the GDP values for a country are estimated for the benchmark year, we then calculate inflation-adjusted GDP for all other years for that country based on historical and forecast growth rates of GDP expressed in inflationadjusted units of that country’s local currency. This approach ensures that the GDP series for any given country is an accurate index of changes in inflationadjusted GDP for that country. However, it also implicitly assumes that the price structures across countries do not change from those of the benchmark year. Therefore, caution should be used in comparing the relative GDP of countries in years other than the benchmark year. If the ratio of prices across two countries in a given year differs from the ratio of prices across those countries in the benchmark year, then the change in the relative sizes of those two economies as measured will not accurately reflect changes in output. The benchmark year is chosen to be one year prior to the base year for the study for reasons of data availability. One benefit of that choice is that the ratio of prices across countries in the base year is usually similar to that in the benchmark year. Therefore, the ratio of real GDP between two countries in the
base year of 2010 is generally a reasonably accurate representation of the relative sizes of their economies.
Table Of Contents
INTRODUCTION xi
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1
2. MARKET ENVIRONMENT 4
General 4
World Economic Overview 5
Recent Historical Trends 5
World Economic Outlook 7
World Fixed Investment 11
World Demographic Outlook 12
World Construction Activity 14
Nonbuilding Construction 16
Nonresidential Building Construction 18
Residential Building Construction 20
World Paved Roadway Outlook 22
World Agricultural Outlook 24
Pricing 26
Environmental & Regulatory Issues 27
3. OVERVIEW 32
General 32
Demand by Region 32
Demand by Type 36
Geotextiles 39
Geomembranes 44
Geogrids 48
Geonets 52
Other Geosynthetics 55
Geosynthetic Clay Liners 57
Preformed Geocomposites 59
Geocells 60
Geofoams 61
All Other Geosynthetics 62
Markets 63
Construction 65
Transportation Infrastructure 70
Landfills 75
Liquid Containment 80
Other Markets 84
Production & Trade 87
4. NORTH AMERICA 89
General 89
Demand by Type & Market 91
United States 94
Canada 104
Mexico 112
5. WESTERN EUROPE 120
General 120
Demand by Type & Market 122
France 125
Germany 132
Italy 139
Netherlands 146
Spain 152
United Kingdom 159
Other Western Europe 167
6. ASIA/PACIFIC 175
General 175
Demand by Type & Market 177
Australia 180
China 187
India 198
Japan 208
South Korea 215
Taiwan 223
Other Asia/Pacific 230
7. OTHER REGIONS 239
Central & South America 239
Demand by Type & Market 241
Brazil 243
Other Central & South America 250
Eastern Europe 257
Demand by Type & Market 258
Poland 261
Russia 267
Other Eastern Europe 275
Africa/Mideast 283
Demand by Type & Market 285
Turkey 287
Other Africa/Mideast 294
8. INDUSTRY STRUCTURE 302
General 302
Industry Composition 303
Market Share 306
Competitive Strategies 311
Research & Development 315
Distribution 316
Mergers & Acquisitions 317
Cooperative Agreements 320
Company Profiles 324
ADS Incorporated 325
AMCOL International Corporation 327
Anglo-Danish Fibre Industries, see Low & Bonar
Asahi Kasei Corporation 330
Ashimori Industry Company Limited 332
Beaulieu International Group NV 333
Boddingtons, see Fiberweb
Colbond, see Low & Bonar
Colloid Environmental Technologies, see AMCOL
International
CONTECH Construction Products Incorporated 334
Cooley Group Holdings 337
Don & Low, see Thrace Plastics
Dow Chemical Company 339
Fibertex Nonwovens A/S 341
Fiberweb plc 343
Freudenberg & Company KG 347
Garware-Wall Ropes Limited 349
Geo-Tipptex Ipari es Kereskedelmi kft, see Low & Bonar
GSE Holding Incorporated 351
Hanes Geo Components, see Leggett & Platt
HUESKER Synthetic GmbH 355
Huikwang Corporation 357
HUITEX Geosynthetics, see Huikwang
Intermas Nets SA 359
JUTA as 360
Kuraray Company Limited 362
Kusumgar Corporates 364
Leggett & Platt Incorporated 365
Low & Bonar plc 367
Lumite, see Thrace Plastics
Maeda Kosen Company Limited 371
NAUE GmbH & Company KG 372
Officine Maccaferri, see S.E.C.I.
Okasan Livic Company Limited 374
OOO Plastic Geosynthetics, see SIBUR Holding CJSC
Orton JSC, see SIBUR Holding CJSC
Poly-America LP 375
Poly-Flex, see Poly-America
Propex Operating Company LLC 376
Raven Industries Incorporated 379
Royal Ten Cate NV 381
Saint-Gobain 386
Samyang Corporation 388
S.E.C.I. SpA 390
Shandong Hongxiang Chemical Fiber Group Company 395
Shandong Taifeng Geosynthetics Company Limited 396
SIBUR Holding CJSC 398
Solmax-Texel Geosynthetics, see ADS
Synthetic Packaging, see Thrace Plastics
Taiyo Kogyo Corporation 400
TENAX International BV 401
Terram, see Fiberweb
Texel, see ADS
Tharreau Industries, see Fibertex Nonwovens A/S
Thrace Plastics Company SA 404
Trelleborg AB 407
Other Companies Mentioned in Study 408
List Of Tables
SECTION I — EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Summary Table 3
SECTION II — MARKET ENVIRONMENT
1 World Gross Domestic Product by Region 10
2 World Gross Fixed Capital Formation by Region 12
3 World Population by Region 14
4 World Construction Expenditures by Region & Sector 16
5 World Nonbuilding Construction Expenditures by Region 18
6 World Nonresidential Building Expenditures by Region 19
7 World Residential Building Expenditures by Region 21
8 World Paved Roads by Region 24
9 World Agricultural Value Added by Region 26
SECTION III — OVERVIEW
1 World Geosynthetics Demand by Region 35
2 World Geosynthetics Demand by Type 38
3 World Geotextile Demand by Region 43
4 World Geomembrane Demand by Region 47
5 World Geogrid Demand by Region 51
6 World Geonet Demand by Region 54
7 World Other Geosynthetics Demand by Region 57
8 World Geosynthetics Demand by Market 64
9 World Construction Market for Geosynthetics by Region 69
10 World Transportation Infrastructure Market for Geosynthetics
by Region 74
11 World Landfill Market for Geosynthetics by Region 79
12 World Liquid Containment Market for Geosynthetics by Region 83
13 World Other Markets for Geosynthetics by Region 87
SECTION IV — NORTH AMERICA
1 North America: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 90
2 North America: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 93
3 United States: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 96
4 United States: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 100
5 United States: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 103
6 Canada: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 106
7 Canada: Geosynethetics Demand by Type 108
8 Canada: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 110
9 Mexico: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 114
10 Mexico: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 116
11 Mexico: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 118
SECTION V — WESTERN EUROPE
1 Western Europe: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 121
2 Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 124
3 France: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 127
4 France: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 129
5 France: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 131
6 Germany: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 134
7 Germany: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 136
8 Germany: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 138
9 Italy: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 141
10 Italy: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 142
11 Italy: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 144
12 Netherlands: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 147
13 Netherlands: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 149
14 Netherlands: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 151
15 Spain: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 154
16 Spain: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 156
17 Spain: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 158
18 United Kingdom: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 161
19 United Kingdom: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 163
20 United Kingdom: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 165
21 Other Western Europe: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 168
22 Other Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 170
23 Other Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 172
24 Other Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Country 174
SECTION VI — ASIA/PACIFIC
1 Asia/Pacific: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 177
2 Asia/Pacific: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 179
3 Australia: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 182
4 Australia: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 184
5 Australia: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 186
6 China: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 190
7 China: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 193
8 China: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 196
9 India: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 200
10 India: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 203
11 India: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 206
12 Japan: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 210
13 Japan: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 212
14 Japan: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 214
15 South Korea: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 217
16 South Korea: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 219
17 South Korea: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 222
18 Taiwan: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 225
19 Taiwan: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 227
20 Taiwan: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 229
21 Other Asia/Pacific: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 231
22 Other Asia/Pacific: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 234
23 Other Asia/Pacific: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 237
SECTION VII — OTHER REGIONS
1 Central & South America: Market Environment
for Geosynthetics 241
2 Central & South America: Geosynthetics Demand by Type
& Market 243
3 Brazil: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 245
4 Brazil: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 247
5 Brazil: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 249
6 Other Central & South America: Market Environment
for Geosynthetics 252
7 Other Central & South America: Geosynthetics Demand
by Type 254
8 Other Central & South America: Geosynthetics Demand
by Market 256
9 Eastern Europe: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 258
10 Eastern Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 260
11 Poland: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 262
12 Poland: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 264
13 Poland: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 266
14 Russia: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 269
15 Russia: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 271
16 Russia: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 274
17 Other Eastern Europe: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 277
18 Other Eastern Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 279
19 Other Eastern Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 282
20 Africa/Mideast: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 285
21 Africa/Mideast: Geosynthetics Demand by Type & Market 287
22 Turkey: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 289
23 Turkey: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 291
24 Turkey: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 293
25 Other Africa/Mideast: Market Environment for Geosynthetics 295
26 Other Africa/Mideast: Geosynthetics Demand by Type 297
27 Other Africa/Mideast: Geosynthetics Demand by Market 299
SECTION VIII — INDUSTRY STRUCTURE
1 World Geosynthetics Sales by Company, 2010 304
2 Selected Acquisitions & Divestitures 319
3 Selected Cooperative Agreements 322
List Of Charts
SECTION III — OVERVIEW
1 World Geosynthetics Demand by Region, 2000-2020 36
2 World Geosynthetics Demand by Type, 2010 39
3 World Synthetic & Natural Geotextiles Demand, 2000-2020 44
4 World Geomembrane Demand by Region, 2010 48
5 World Geogrid Demand by Region, 2010 52
6 World Geonet Demand by Region, 2010 55
7 World Geosynthetics Demand by Market, 2000-2020 65
8 World Construction Market for Geosynthetics by Region, 2010 70
9 World Transportation Infrastructure Market for Geosynthetics
by Region, 2010 75
10 World Landfill Market for Geosynthetics by Region, 2010 80
11 World Liquid Containment Market for Geosynthetics
by Region, 2010 84
SECTION IV — NORTH AMERICA
1 North America: Geosynthetics Demand by Country, 2010 94
SECTION V — WESTERN EUROPE
1 Western Europe: Geosynthetics Demand by Country, 2010 125
SECTION VI — ASIA/PACIFIC
1 Asia/Pacific: Geosynthetics Demand by Country, 2010 180
SECTION VIII — INDUSTRY STRUCTURE
1 World Geosynthetics Market Share, 2010 307
