To date, TechnoNICOL's production assets in the Mineral Isolation line include 6 plants for the production of basalt thermal insulation. The systematic modernization of all enterprises of the direction allowed an increase in the volume of insulation production from 7.9 million cubic meters. m up to 9.3 million cubic meters. m per year. Mineral Isolation is implementing a number of large investment projects with a total value of almost 9 billion rubles. Among them, the launch of the second plant for the production of stone wool in Khabarovsk in 2015, with a total investment of 1.5 billion rubles.
In 2017, TechnoNICOL plans to open a plant for the production of basalt thermal insulation in Kazakhstan, for which 2 billion rubles have been allocated. The enterprise in Karaganda will produce 1.1 million cubic meters. m of finished products per year. The plant's products will be supplied to all 14 regions of Kazakhstan, Russia and the countries of Central Asia, including Western China.
The development strategy for the Mineral Isolation direction of TechnoNICOL implies the expansion of sales markets in Asia. The construction of new plants in Khabarovsk and Karaganda will allow the company to increase its share of the market of thermal insulation materials in the countries of the Asian region. In 2015 alone, TechnoNICOL plans to supply China with almost 100 thousand cubic meters. meters of stone wool insulation. To meet the PRC's needs for high-quality basalt thermal insulation, the company is considering options for building its own plant in the country or purchasing and modernizing an existing enterprise.
China is the nearest promising market, where the consumption of stone wool is growing every year and TechnoNICOL products are in demand. This is facilitated by the tendency for the rural population to move to cities here, which is expanding the housing market. In addition, construction technologies are changing, as well as approaches to the regulatory framework, including a trend towards the use of energy-efficient technologies, increasing requirements for the quality of building materials, as well as revising the technical regulations for fire safety of buildings.
The consumption of stone wool per capita in the PRC is only 1.9 kg per person per year, which is 5 times lower than in Russia. At the same time, the growth of the stone wool market is about 9% per year, which indicates its fairly high potential. Many small companies in the Chinese stone wool market mainly produce low quality slag wool based materials. The slag makes them prickly, more brittle and less durable. This complicates the installation of stone wool on site and can also lead to shorter repair intervals. In addition, such production is low-tech and uneconomical, which often becomes the reason for the bankruptcy of Chinese manufacturers of thermal insulation materials.
TechnoNICOL thermal insulation materials are produced using high-tech equipment designed and manufactured in Europe. The lines are equipped with control and visualization systems that allow you to control and regulate all the technological parameters necessary for the production of quality products. The production of TechnoNICOL stone wool is based on the processing of natural, environmentally friendly raw materials - rocks of the basalt group. The Scientific and Technical Center of the Company is constantly working on an in-depth analysis of the properties of raw materials, materials, finished products, technological processes and other information in order to use the most advanced and effective methods to produce products of the highest quality.
Thermal insulation materials based on TechnoNICOL stone wool are clearly positioned according to the field of application. They are used both in civil and industrial construction, and in the reconstruction of buildings and structures for various purposes. The technical characteristics are set in such a way that the materials work efficiently and as long as possible.
Irek Allayarov, General Director of the Mineral Isolation Direction This is how he comments on the company's investment strategy: “If we recall the history of the development of TechnoNICOL, then it was in the crisis year of 2008, thanks to the confident adherence to the strategy of active financial investments in production, that the Mineral Isolation business was able to gain a leading position in the stone wool market. The crisis is not only problems, but also new opportunities, which is why, despite the difficult situation on the foreign exchange market, the Mineral Isolation business is planning to implement its investment projects in full. At the end of a crisis, there is always a growth process, and at this time you need to be ready to fit well into the market cycle."
Elena Kuznetsova, Marketing Director of the Mineral Isolation Division analyzes the Chinese construction market: “The Chinese construction market is developing at a steady pace. In the next five years, it will grow at an average rate of 10%. If we talk about the volume of the construction market in China in monetary terms, now it is 1284 billion dollars and is approaching the volume of the North American market. The market for Chinese thermal insulation is actively growing due to investments in real estate, which allows construction companies to develop. Five out of ten major world construction companies are Chinese, which characterizes the PRC market as one of the largest and most promising. In addition, construction technologies have been changing in recent years; in China, much attention is paid to energy saving technologies.
All these factors are a stimulus for the growth in the consumption of thermal insulation materials in general, and stone wool in particular. If we talk about the stone wool market in China, it is at the stage of formation, which gives us, as an already established leader in this industry in Russia, additional advantages."
Roman Kolesnikov, Sales Director for Mineral Isolation talks about plans regarding the company's pricing policy in the Chinese market: “There are two types of competition in the PRC thermal insulation market: with local manufacturers and with importers. Today, the Chinese slag wool is of low quality and, on average, costs about 2,000 yuan per ton, which is about 10-12 thousand rubles. European and American companies export stone wool to China, which meets high standards and requirements at a price of about 45 thousand rubles per ton. Our direct competitors are companies importing their products to China from abroad, while TechnoNICOL will offer materials of similar quality at a price of 30-35 thousand rubles per ton of stone wool. We will start the development of the PRC market from the eastern territories and plan to occupy 10% of the market in the segment of high-quality basalt insulation”.
TechnoNICOL company is one of the largest manufacturers and suppliers of roofing, waterproofing and thermal insulation materials. Today, TechnoNICOL's production assets of the Stone Wool business include 6 non-combustible insulation production plants with a total capacity of over 9.3 million cubic meters. m of insulation per year. According to the research of the marketing agency ABARUS Market Research 2012, TechnoNICOL is the leader in the segment of heat-insulating materials based on stone wool, occupying 30%.
All TECHNONICOL products are certified, are of high quality, and comply with international standards. The factories use the most modern fiber-forming technologies, which makes it possible to produce safe, non-combustible heat-insulating materials that have increased strength characteristics. At the same time, all enterprises of the company operate on the principle of waste-free production, which keeps the ecology of the environment unchanged.
