The steel construction market in Italy

The steel construction market refers to all production, engineering and construction activities related to the use of structural steel elements for the construction of buildings, infrastructure, industrial plants, bridges, sheds, civil and agricultural buildings. It includes the design, fabrication, assembly and erection of beams, columns, frames, trusses and other prefabricated steel components. The sector is characterized by a high level of prefabrication, environmental sustainability, design flexibility and reduced lead times compared to traditional reinforced concrete construction.

In 2022, the value of steel structure production in Italy reached 2.2 billion euros, marking a growth of +13% compared to 2021, confirming the positive trend started in the post-pandemic period. However, in 2023 the sector showed signs of slowing down due to shrinking public demand and the redefinition of incentives linked to the NRP. However, the outlook remains favorable in the medium term due to the growing focus on the green transition and increased demand for sustainable, recyclable and lightweight solutions.

The productive fabric of the sector is composed of about 1,200 companies, with a predominance of SMEs specializing in medium-heavy metal carpentry. The companies are mainly located in Lombardy, Veneto, Emilia-Romagna, Piedmont and Tuscany, regions where most of the industrial and logistics demand is also concentrated. The main customers are general contractors, construction companies, engineering companies, and public and private management customers.

The market structure is divided into three main segments:

Industrial buildings and warehouses (about 52 percent of the market);

Civil and commercial construction (27 percent);

Infrastructure and bridges (21 percent).

From a price perspective, the report indicates a sharp increase in the cost of steel between 2021 and 2022, with peaks of up to +85% for hot rolled products and +60% for galvanized products, gradually normalizing in 2023 but remaining 25-35% higher than pre-pandemic levels.

Key 2023-2024 trends include:

the integration of steel into hybrid building systems (wood-steel, steel-concrete);

the use of digital technologies (BIM, FEM simulations, artificial intelligence for structural optimization);

the increasing adoption of low-carbon or recycled steels;

the need for environmental and technical certifications to access public tenders and ESG-oriented private contracting.

Finally, the regulatory framework refers to the Technical Standards for Construction (NTC 2018), UNI EN 1090 for CE marking of structural elements, and UNI EN ISO 3834 for welding processes. Certified companies account for about 65 percent of the total, with a growing number of operators aiming to qualify for public contracts.