The global pre-engineered buildings (PEBs) industry in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region is projected to have promising days ahead.
According to a new report by Research and Markets, the global PEBs market is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.96 per cent during the period 2016-2020.
A key trend which is contributing to market growth of this sector is the increase in demand for warehouses, says the report. With a rise in the number of e-retailers, the demand for warehouses is also increasing.
Moreover, existing e-retailers are reporting exponential growth in their sales. Online sales accounted for 7.5 per cent of the total retail sales globally in 2015, and they will reach 13 per cent by 2020.
To meet the supply demand, these e-retailers are constructing warehouses to enhance their distribution.
PEBs offer the fastest method to construct warehouses compared to traditional methods, and the demand for PEBs in warehouse construction is rising.
According to the report, a key growth driver is the time and cost savings offered by PEBs. The primary and secondary framing structures of a PEB are pre-punched, pre-sheared, pre-welded, predrilled, and pre-formed in the factory before it is shipped to the job site. Since the structural parts are manufactured completely under controlled factory conditions, the quality of the structure is assured. The prefabricated components are assembled with bolt connections at the job site.
The construction of conventional buildings is 20 per cent more expensive than the construction of PEBs, as the cost and time of construction cannot be accurately estimated before the start of construction.
Additionally, conventional construction is labour-extensive and often requires heavy machinery, which increases the operational costs.
Further, the report states that one challenge that could curtail market growth is the fluctuating raw material prices. Steel is one of the main components used in PEBs and directly affects the cost of construction. Steel accounts for 55 per cent-60 per cent of the overall cost of PEBs. Other components that affect the overall cost of PEBs include cement for making floors and paint. Even a slight change in the cost of these raw materials directly affects the price of PEBs.
The key players in the global pre-engineered building (PEB) market are BlueScope Steel, Kirby Building Systems, PEB Steel Buildings, and Zamil Steel. Other prominent vendors in the market are: Era Infra, Everest Industries, Interarch Building Products, Jindal Buildsys, Lloyd Insulations, Multicolor Steels, PEBS Pennar, SML Group, and Tiger Steel Engineering.
