Il 2021 was the year of records for Italian household appliances, with an 18,8% growth in terms of production (exceeding 11 million units), exports and sales. He communicated it on Monday in Milan Apply Italy, the Confindustria association of domestic and professional technologies, referring to data from GFK Italia.
Built-in appliances (especially for the kitchen)
Best of all they went recessed appliances (+40%), mainly thanks to the strong recovery of sales of kitchen furniture, a positive sign in view of Eurocucina, an event to be held in June as part of the Salone del Mobile.
Professional equipment
"The increased sensitivity of consumers to the quality of life at home, which began with the first lockdown of 2020 and smartworking, together with an ever greater awareness of the environmental impact, have rewarded more products with better sustainability and quality performances - he said commented Paolo Lioy, president of Applia Italia – Regarding the trends that emerged in 2021, the reopening of clubs, bars and restaurants has pushed the professional equipment sector, which has returned to pre-pandemic levels with 11 million appliances produced. The export performance of this sector is similar, with an excellent +18,5%”.
Excellent recovery for heating
Also good fireplaces, flues e biomass heating equipment, with a growth in turnover of more than 30%.
Also, last year the demand for electric water heaters surpassed 2019 levels, focusing above all on energy-efficient solutions.
2022? The demand is there, but the factories are out of supplies
As for 2022, will there be a repeat? “It will be tough”, is the comment that is most heard in industrial and retail circles. First of all, because the difficulties on the raw materials front, with scarce supplies and ever higher prices. Electrolux has already stopped the production of Italian washing factories twice due to lack of supplies, while Whirlpool has had to deal with serious delays due to the blockage of transport.
Throughout Europe there is a shortage of products in points of sale, production departments are also closing in the East, and the mega-stocks accumulated by the chains in recent months are running out.
Plastics and the petrochemical supply chain
The whole situation is worrying petrochemical supply chain, which supplies the plastic of which European household appliance manufacturers are large consumers, and which has been showing a heavy picture for some months now. There are already many raw material processors completely at a standstill for the by now generalized blockage of supplies, which largely depend on the rest of the world because the petrochemical factories of the continent are obsolete and require costly modernization (toxic fruits of careless and excessive relocation).
The only remedy would be to organize a European autarchy, which, translated into green terms, is called circular economy. As communicated by the companies that are part of PlasticsEurope, 2,6 billion have been allocated at EU level up to 2025 and another 7,2 up to 2030 for the total recycling of plastics, but the intention is to further increase these resources.
Risk of relocation for European household appliances?
La Commission proposal for a regulation on CBAM it only concerns raw materials such as steel and aluminum – explains Paolo Lioy – and does not include finished products, such as household appliances. Overall, European appliance manufacturers will face a 5-10% increase in manufacturing costs for all EU-based production (due to higher raw material and energy prices) when free ETS allowances will be completely eliminated, with a serious impact – underlines Applia Italia – on their competitiveness compared to non-European competitors.
In the absence of a corrective – which is in the approval phase – all this will push to relocate production to take carbon emissions out of the European Union, where mechanisms equivalent to the ETS are not in place. Result: incalculable damage for continental employment levels and no environmental benefits.
