Refractories

As Quoted In Foundry Magazine

Growth in the US output of steel following a period of decline, along with a resurgence in the manufacture of goods such as ceramics and glass, will drive demand for refractories.

US demand to rise 3.3% annually through 2016

US demand for refractories is projected to grow 3.3 percent per year to $2.6 billion in 2016. Output of steel in the US will grow following a period of decline, driving demand for refractories. Gains will also come as nonresidential fixed investment spending returns to strong growth through 2016, prompting a resurgence in the manufacture of goods such as ceramics and glass. The market for refractories -- as measured by weight -- is expected to increase 1.2 percent annually to 2.3 million tons in 2016, an improvement from the losses registered over the past decade, but remaining below earlier peaks.

Metals industries to remain dominant market

In 2011, sales of refractories to iron and steel manufacturers totaled $990 million, making up 45 percent of all refractory sales. Following a decline in steel output caused by the most recent recession, steel manufacturing in the US -- and associated refractory demand -- will rise through 2016. A shift in consumption toward higher-priced, advanced refractories will bolster sales value. However, the development of longer lasting, more durable refractories will limit demand going forward. Most materials manufacturing industries have reduced their perproduction- unit consumption of refractories by using these newer, more durable products and improved processes.

The fastest gains of any market in dollar terms will be posted by nonmetallic minerals. This market includes ceramics, glass, and cement producers. Output from these industries will rebound as the US economy continues to grow, fueling related refractory demand. Further growth will come from nonmanufacturing markets for refractories -- such as wasteto- energy plants, traditional power plants, and commercial ovens -- although these are all fairly small markets. The largest sales volume increases will be in the engineering contractors market, which will rise more than 50,000 tons between 2011 and 2016, recovering from declines posted during the 2006-2011 period.

Monolithics, specialized shapes to lead gains

In value terms, market gains for refractories will be led by monolithic refractories and specialized shapes. The performance of monolithic refractories has improved greatly, boosting sales of these forms. Technological advancements have also made specialty shapes more cost effective and efficient, bolstering demand for those products. Buyers are increasingly choosing more expensive high grade refractories, which are formulated to perform well under specific operating conditions. As a result, demand for nonclay refractories in tons will outstrip that for clay refractories due to the performance advantages of nonclay types.

Study Scope

This study analyzes the $2.2 billion US refractory industry. It presents historical demand data for the years 2001, 2006 and 2011, and forecasts for 2016 and 2021 by form (e.g., refractory bricks and shapes, monolithic refractories), material (e.g., nonclay, clay) and market (e.g., metals, nonmetallic mineral processing, engineering contractors, nonmanufacturing, petroleum and chemicals).

The study also considers market environment factors, details industry structure, evaluates company market share and profiles 27 industry players, including Cookson, ANH Refractories, and Saint-Gobain.

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  1. Refractories

    $4,900.00

    1. 1 INTRODUCTION

      $168.00

    2. 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

      $169.00

      1. Table | REFRACTORY SUPPLY & DEMAND

    3. 3 MARKET ENVIRONMENT

      $1,990.00

      1. 3.1 General

        $82.00

      2. 3.2 Macroeconomic Trends

        $209.00

        1. Table | MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS

      3. 3.3 Capital Spending/Fixed Investment Trends

        $158.00

        1. Table | NONRESIDENTIAL FIXED INVESTMENT (billion 2005 dollars)

      4. 3.4 Manufacturing Sector Outlook

        $224.00

        1. Table | MANUFACTURERS' SHIPMENTS (billion dollars)

        2. 3.4.1 Durable Goods

          $82.00

        3. 3.4.2 Nondurable Goods

          $82.00

      5. 3.5 Refractory Technology

        $490.00

        1. 3.5.1 Basic Refractory Properties

          $168.00

        2. 3.5.2 Refractory Shapes & Forms

          $82.00

        3. 3.5.3 Refractory Materials

          $82.00

        4. 3.5.4 Other Technological Developments

          $82.00

      6. 3.6 Pricing Trends

        $152.00

        1. Table | SELECTED US MANUFACTURER REFRACTORY PRICING (dollars per ton)

      7. 3.7 Historical Market Trends

        $127.00

        1. Table | REFRACTORY MARKET, 2001-2011

      8. 3.8 International Environment

        $564.00

        1. 3.8.1 World Supply & Demand

          $195.00

        2. 3.8.2 Trends in US Foreign Trade

          $291.00

          1. Table | US FOREIGN TRADE IN REFRACTORIES (million dollars)

          2. Table | US REFRACTORY IMPORTS BY SOURCE (million dollars)

          3. Table | US REFRACTORY EXPORTS BY DESTINATION (million dollars)

    4. 4 FORMS

      $1,502.00

      1. 4.1 General

        $333.00

        1. 4.1.1 Refractory Supply & Demand by Value

          $96.00

          1. Table | REFRACTORY SUPPLY & DEMAND BY FORM IN VALUE TERMS (million dollars)

        2. 4.1.2 Refractory Supply & Demand by Volume

          $139.00

          1. Table | REFRACTORY SUPPLY & DEMAND BY FORM IN VOLUME TERMS (thousand tons)

      2. 4.2 Refractory Bricks & Shapes

        $428.00

        1. Table | REFRACTORY BRICK & SHAPE SUPPLY & DEMAND (million dollars)

        2. 4.2.1 Standard Bricks

          $152.00

          1. Table | STANDARD BRICK REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        3. 4.2.2 Preformed Shapes

          $168.00

          1. Table | PREFORMED SHAPE REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

      3. 4.3 Monolithic Refractories

        $599.00

        1. Table | MONOLITHIC REFRACTORY SUPPLY & DEMAND (million dollars)

        2. 4.3.1 Castables

          $116.00

          1. Table | CASTABLE REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        3. 4.3.2 Gunning Mixes

          $102.00

          1. Table | GUNNING MIX REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        4. 4.3.3 Plastic & Ramming Mixes

          $108.00

          1. Table | PLASTIC & RAMMING MIX REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        5. 4.3.4 Bonding & Other Mortars

          $97.00

          1. Table | BONDING & OTHER MORTAR REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

      4. 4.4 Other Refractory Forms

        $142.00

        1. Table | OTHER REFRACTORY FORM SUPPLY & DEMAND (million dollars)

    5. 5 MATERIALS

      $2,140.00

      1. 5.1 General

        $249.00

        1. 5.1.1 Refractory Supply & Demand by Value

          $92.00

          1. Table | REFRACTORY SUPPLY & DEMAND BY MATERIAL IN VALUE TERMS (million dollars)

        2. 5.1.2 Refractory Supply & Demand by Volume

          $95.00

          1. Table | REFRACTORY SUPPLY & DEMAND BY MATERIAL IN VOLUME TERMS (thousand tons)

      2. 5.2 Nonclay Refractory Products

        $1,416.00

        1. Table | NONCLAY REFRACTORY SUPPLY & DEMAND (million dollars)

        2. 5.2.1 Magnesite & Chrome

          $221.00

          1. Table | MAGNESITE & CHROME REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        3. 5.2.2 Zircon & Zirconia

          $164.00

          1. Table | ZIRCON & ZIRCONIA REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        4. 5.2.3 Extra-High-Alumina

          $120.00

          1. Table | EXTRA-HIGH-ALUMINA REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        5. 5.2.4 Silicon Carbide

          $110.00

          1. Table | SILICON CARBIDE REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        6. 5.2.5 Graphite & Carbon

          $90.00

          1. Table | GRAPHITE & CARBON REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        7. 5.2.6 Ceramic Fibers

          $183.00

          1. Table | CERAMIC FIBER REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        8. 5.2.7 Silica

          $116.00

          1. Table | SILICA REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        9. 5.2.8 Mullite

          $115.00

          1. Table | MULLITE REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        10. 5.2.9 Dolomite & Other Nonclay Refractories

          $173.00

          1. Table | DOLOMITE & OTHER NONCLAY REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

      3. 5.3 Clay Refractory Products

        $475.00

        1. Table | CLAY REFRACTORY SUPPLY & DEMAND (million dollars)

        2. 5.3.1 High-Alumina

          $105.00

          1. Table | HIGH-ALUMINA CLAY REFRACTORY PRODUCTS (million dollars)

        3. 5.3.2 Fireclay

          $140.00

          1. Table | FIRECLAY REFRACTORY SHIPMENTS (million dollars)

        4. 5.3.3 Insulating

          $99.00

          1. Table | INSULATING CLAY REFRACTORY PRODUCTS (million dollars)

    6. 6 MARKETS

      $2,354.00

      1. 6.1 General

        $166.00

        1. Table | REFRACTORY DEMAND BY MARKET

      2. 6.2 Metals Industries

        $1,081.00

        1. 6.2.1 Outlook

          $313.00

          1. Table | METALS INDUSTRY INDICATORS (billion dollars)

        2. 6.2.2 Refractory Market

          $664.00

          1. Table | METALS INDUSTRY REFRACTORY MARKET (million dollars)

          2. Table | IRON & STEEL PRODUCTION REFRACTORY MARKET

          3. Table | NONFERROUS METAL PRODUCTION REFRACTORY MARKET

          4. Table | METAL CASTING & FABRICATION REFRACTORY MARKET

      3. 6.3 Nonmetallic Mineral Processing Industries

        $639.00

        1. 6.3.1 Outlook

          $82.00

          1. Table | NONMETALLIC MINERAL PRODUCT SHIPMENTS (billion dollars)

        2. 6.3.2 Refractory Market

          $520.00

          1. Table | NONMETALLIC MINERAL PRODUCT REFRACTORY MARKET (million dollars)

          2. Table | CERAMICS REFRACTORY MARKET

          3. Table | GLASS REFRACTORY MARKET

          4. Table | CEMENT, LIME, & OTHER MINERAL PROCESSING REFRACTORY MARKET

      4. 6.4 Engineering Contractors

        $98.00

        1. Table | ENGINEERING CONTRACTOR REFRACTORY MARKET

      5. 6.5 Nonmanufacturing Refractory Market

        $106.00

        1. Table | NONMANUFACTURING REFRACTORY MARKET (million dollars)

      6. 6.6 Petroleum & Chemicals

        $151.00

        1. Table | PETROLEUM & CHEMICAL REFRACTORY MARKET

      7. 6.7 Other Manufacturing Industries

        $114.00

        1. Table | OTHER MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES REFRACTORY MARKET

    7. 7 INDUSTRY STRUCTURE

      $4,931.00

      1. 7.1 General

        $94.00

      2. 7.2 Industry Composition & Restructuring

        $147.00

        1. Table | REVENUE DATA: SELECTED REFRACTORY & RAW MATERIALS MANUFACTURERS, 2011 (million dollars)

      3. 7.3 Market Share

        $411.00

        1. 7.3.1 Leading Refractory Suppliers

          $268.00

        2. 7.3.2 Significant Raw Material Suppliers

          $94.00

      4. 7.4 Product Development & Manufacturing

        $256.00

        1. Table | CAPITAL SPENDING PATTERNS: SELECTED REFRACTORY MANUFACTURERS (million dollars, by principal related segment)

      5. 7.5 Marketing & Distribution

        $174.00

      6. 7.6 Mergers & Acquisitions

        $131.00

        1. Table | SELECTED ACQUISITIONS & DIVESTITURES

      7. 7.7 Company Profiles

        $4,029.00

        1. 7.7.1 Alcoa Incorporated

          $82.00

        2. 7.7.2 Allied Mineral Products Incorporated

          $149.00

        3. 7.7.3 Almatis GmbH

          $177.00

        4. 7.7.4 Alteo Holding

          $82.00

        5. 7.7.5 AluChem Incorporated

          $89.00

        6. 7.7.6 ANH Refractories Company

          $368.00

        7. 7.7.7 Asbury Carbons Incorporated

          $82.00

        8. 7.7.8 BNZ Materials Incorporated

          $138.00

        9. 7.7.9 CerCo LLC

          $102.00

        10. 7.7.10 Cookson Group plc

          $249.00

        11. 7.7.11 Corning Incorporated

          $93.00

        12. 7.7.12 Imerys SA

          $417.00

        13. 7.7.13 Lhoist SA

          $82.00

        14. 7.7.14 Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara AB

          $83.00

        15. 7.7.15 Magneco/Metrel Incorporated

          $95.00

        16. 7.7.16 Magnesita Refratários SA

          $119.00

        17. 7.7.17 Materis Holding Luxembourg SA

          $97.00

        18. 7.7.18 McDanel Advanced Ceramic Technologies LLC

          $82.00

        19. 7.7.19 Minerals Technologies Incorporated

          $172.00

        20. 7.7.20 Morgan Crucible Company plc

          $338.00

        21. 7.7.21 Plibrico Company LLC

          $121.00

        22. 7.7.22 Resco Products Incorporated

          $130.00

        23. 7.7.23 RHI AG

          $175.00

        24. 7.7.24 Rio Tinto Group

          $82.00

        25. 7.7.25 Saint-Gobain

          $297.00

        26. 7.7.26 TYK Corporation

          $82.00

        27. 7.7.27 Unifrax I LLC

          $196.00

      8. 7.8 Other Companies Mentioned in the Study

        $170.00

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