ISOPA and ALIPA Present Newly Published Polyurethane Socio-Economic Study

ISOPA and ALIPA presented the latest polyurethane socio-economic study conducted by Conversio Market & Strategy. This comprehensive analysis underscores the socio-economic value of the polyurethane industry across Europe, demonstrating economic growth despite significant economic and geopolitical challenges. The study reveals not only the sector's contribution to economic growth and job creation, but also the urgent need for future investments in the face of recent economic downturns.

The socio-economic study focuses on the sector's status from 2018 to 2023 in EU27, Switzerland, Norway, the United Kingdom and Turkey. While the data shows general economic growth, it does not fully reflect the impacts of the economic crisis affecting the chemicals sector since 2022/2023.
Nevertheless, the findings underscore the versatility of polyurethane and its long-term economic importance by emphasizing its indispensable role in construction, automotive, industrial products, furniture and similar sectors.

The polyurethane industry, which includes more than 80,000 companies operating in Europe, generates annual revenues of around EUR 149 billion and directly employs approximately 700,000 workers in the production of polyurethane and polyurethane products. Additionally, more than 1.7 million companies in Europe work with these products, generate EUR 84 billion in revenues and provide employment for more than 6.5 million people. This underscores the sector's importance not only for the European economy but also for the workforce.

Despite broader challenges facing the chemicals sector, the polyurethane sector has shown overall growth compared to 2018. The construction and furniture sectors in particular have shown relatively strong performance, with construction remaining the largest application area for polyurethane products.

The construction sector directly generates over EUR 25 billion in value with more than 3,500 companies and 100,000 employees. In addition, more than one million companies in the plumbing and craft sectors working with polyurethane products employ more than 4.7 million people and add EUR 42 billion in added value.

The construction sector has achieved a growth rate of 5.6% since 2018, reaching the highest growth rate in the polyurethane sector. However, growth has not been uniform across all sectors. For example, the automotive industry experienced only modest expansion, with added value increasing by 2%.

Furthermore, due to the economic downturn experienced since 2022/2023, recent growth rates are expected to present a more challenging outlook for the sector. At the same time, improvements in employment rates have remained relatively low since 2018.

Nevertheless, the economic value of the polyurethane industry across Europe should not be underestimated. The sector's impact is distributed across the continent, with Germany continuing its leadership in this field through its annual contribution exceeding EUR 50 billion and supporting more than one million workers. France, Italy and the United Kingdom continue to be important players in the sector. At the same time, we see Turkey emerging as a new and important market contributing approximately EUR 8 billion annually. The country is making significant progress particularly in construction, bedding and furniture.

The study emphasizes the resilience and growth of the polyurethane industry despite significant external challenges. However, low growth rates in some sectors in particular reflect the economic difficulties the sector has faced in recent years, underscoring the need to strengthen long-term competitive capacity.

The presence of the polyurethane industry across economic sectors and geographic regions also underscores its importance as a unifying force in Europe's manufacturing ecosystem. With necessary economic and regulatory incentives as well as continuous collaboration and innovation, the polyurethane industry has the potential to make a significant contribution to Europe's socio-economic landscape in the years ahead.

To examine in greater depth the transformative role of polyurethane in the European economy, you can read the full study via the link below:

https://www.isopa.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Polyurethane_Socioecnomic-Study_2024.pdf

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