The veneers and wood panels market - France (2023)

1.2 A steadily growing global market

World production of wood-based panels (***) Source: ****

The global wood panel market is expected to grow at a CAGR of *.**% between **** and ****, reaching a size of *** million cubic meters.

The main producers of wood-based panels are listed below:

World's leading exporters As % of total Source: ****

Analysis of data on average wood-based panel production in millions of cubic meters shows that China is the world's largest producer, with output of **.** million cubic meters. The USA follows in second place , with a significantly lower output of **.** million cubic meters. Germany and Canada have fairly similar production levels, at **.** and **.** million cubic meters respectively, occupying third and fourth place.

1.3 Domestic market

The veneer and wood panel activity is listed under NAF nomenclature code **.**Z: "Manufacture of veneer and wood panels"

This code includes :

the manufacture of veneer sheets thin enough for the production of plywood or other uses: sheets polished, stained, coated, impregnated, reinforced (***) patterned sheets the manufacture of plywood, veneered wood and panels manufacture of oriented strand board and other particleboard manufacture of medium-density fiberboard (***) and other fiberboard manufacture of densified wood manufacture of glulam

INSEE gives this market size for ****. It amounted to *.*** billion euros. This figure can be used to estimate the size of the veneer and wood panel market in France in ****, by multiplying it by the annualized sales index for the year ****, also given by INSEE, then dividing by the sales index for the year ****.

This formula gives *.*** billion euros * ***.**/*** = *.** billion euros, for the year ****. The same applies to the other years:

Veneer and wood panel manufacturing market size France, **** - ****, in billion euros Source: ****

We can see from the previous graph that, before the health crisis, sales in the veneer and wood panel sector were stable between **** and **** (***). In ****, with the health crisis, market size fell by **.*%. Nevertheless, the market rebounded strongly in ****, reaching almost * billion ...

1.4 Balance of trade

Exports and imports of wood-based panels France, ****, in millions of euros Source: ****

Data analysis shows a significant trade exchange in terms of wood-based panels. Total exports amount to $***.** million, while imports are considerably higher, at $***.** million. The figures suggest a greater dependence of the domestic market on imports to meet demand for wood panels, rather than on local production. The balance of trade is in fact in deficit by over $*** million.

What's more, this deficit has widened since ****: when it was just under $** million. Foreign trade in wood panels has increased significantly over the past seven years, particularly on the import side.

In detail, "particle board, of wood, whether or not agglomerated with resins or other organic binding substances, faced with paper impregnated with melamine" (***).

However, it's not just the veneer and wood panel manufacturing sector that's suffering from a lack of international competitiveness, it's the entire French timber industry. [***]

Main wood panel export partners France Source: ****

Belgium is France's biggest export partner, worth $***.** million. Germany follows with significantly lower exports, however, at $**.** million. Italy's export figures are slightly lower than Germany's, with a total of $**.** million. Generally speaking, the vast majority of exports are destined for neighbouring European countries.

Main ...

2.1 Timber construction: the main demand driver

The wood construction market in France will represent sales of *.** billion euros in ****, compared with *.* billion euros in ****, an increase of **% in * years despite the unfavorable context of the health crisis. [***]

The following map shows the breakdown of the number of homes built in wood by region in ****, and their market share in relation to the total housing market (***). Nationally, wood construction accounts for *.*% of the housing market, for a total of **,*** wood constructions.

Number of homes built in wood by region and market share in ****:

Source: ****

The following map shows wood construction activity by region in ****, with the number of companies and sales generated by these companies for each region.

Wood construction activity by region in **** :

Source: ****

The timber construction sector has also proved resilient in the face of the health crisis. Indeed, the proportion of wood construction in the housing market will be higher in **** than in **** (***) despite a double unfavorable context: the pandemic on the one hand, and the slowdown in building permit issuance during the electoral periods corresponding to the municipal elections on the other.

In addition, wood construction is expanding into other segments, such as private and public tertiary, agricultural, industrial and craft buildings, where wood's ...

2.2 Other demand drivers

The market for wooden furniture:

Other demand drivers include the production of wooden furniture, which requires panels of the same material. According to theUNCE, the wood panel furniture sector can be divided into two different areas of demand: B*B demand, for professional use (***), and B*C demand, for domestic use.

The furniture market is historically cyclical, with short periods of growth and decline following one another. This cyclicality of the furniture market is explained by the strong correlation between the market and the country's economic situation, but also by the fact that furniture products are replaced less often than other goods (***). Prior to ****, however, the market had demonstrated a certain stability, with sales stable for around ten years. Between **** and ****, the sector experienced a slight contraction in activity. By ****, however, the market had breathed new life into itself, increasing significantly in size to reach sales of €**.** billion in France.

Furniture market size France, ***** - ****, billions of euros Source: ****

Moreover, France is much more of an importer than an exporter in the furniture market, and this trend has become slightly more pronounced over the years, as shown by France's market coverage rate (***). The lower this rate, the more dependent the country ...

3.1 The 6 stages of wood panel production

According to the Union des industries de panneaux de process (***), the union of wood panel manufacturers, panel production involves * main stages:

Cutting (***); Low-humidity drying: This essential stage is designed to dry the cut wood to avoid any bacteriological risk; Sorting and grading: The dried wood is sorted according to size and material quality, using mesh and skilled workers to control production; Gluing and shaping: The aim of this stage is to shape the panels to the required dimensions by applying a glue solution to the wood chips; Hot pressing (***): The purpose of pressing is to solidify the panels and regularize their shape, thickness and dimensions; Finishing (***): This stage is designed to even out the appearance of the wood panels by removing impurities from the manufacturing process.

3.2 Multi-sector distribution

As we have already seen, the construction sector is the main outlet for wood panel manufacturers. Furniture is also a very important market.

Source: ****

3.3 A concentrated market

The following graph shows the trend in the number of establishments registered under NAF code **.**Z: "Manufacture of veneer and wood panels". The number of establishments in the veneer and wood panel manufacturing sector has fluctuated slightly over the last decade. In ****, there were ** establishments, this number fell to ** in **** and ** in ****. It rose to ** in ****, then fell back to ** in ****. It remained stable at ** in ****, rose to ** in **** and ****, then fell again to ** in ****. In ****, there will be ** establishments, ** fewer than in ****.

Number of establishments registered under activity **.**Z: "Manufacture of veneer and wood panels" France, **** - ****, in number of establishments Source: ****

The sector's workforce is also on a downward trend. The sector has seen fluctuations in its workforce over the past decade. In ****, the number of employees was ****, and this figure has fallen slightly over the years to **** in ****. However, a slight increase was seen in **** with **** employees, and the figure continued to fluctuate until ****, when it reached ****.

This decline can be explained by the automation and digitization of production lines in the timber industry. [***].

Workforce registered under activity **.**Z France, **** - ****, in headcount Source: ****

The map and table below show the geographical distribution of the workforce for the ...

4.1 Price analysis

Production costs:

Panel prices are highly dependent on production costs, which vary according to two main factors:

The price of the raw material wood, whose costs vary according to world prices and supply and inventory levels; The cost of the energy required to process the wood and dry the panels once produced.

Sales prices:

Insee provides the French industry's producer price index for the French market for the manufacture of wood-based panels and veneers. Producer price indices (***) in the industry for the French market measure changes in transaction prices, excluding VAT, of goods produced by industry and sold on the French market.

The following graph shows the evolution of the selling price index for wood-based panels and veneers between **** and early ****. We can note the very sharp rise in this index in **** (***). This rise is explained by the health crisis linked to covid-**, which has impacted the entire supply chain[***].

Production price index for wood-based panels and veneers France, **** - ****, in index points Source: ****

The sector's price rise peaked in May ****. Since then, prices seem to be following a slow, but nevertheless visible, downward trend.

4.2 The different types of wood panels

The different of wood panels :

Particleboard or chipboard : composed of wood particles and an organic or mineral binder. The particles are ground, sorted, dried and glued; Oriented strand board (***): obtained by adding several strips of wood glued together with a binder; Glued-laminated wood panels or BLC panels : obtained by adding several wood strips arranged in parallel; Laminated wood panels : color and pattern can be customized. It can be used for doors and floors; MDF (***) : made from wood fibers and a synthetic binder. It does not split and is often used for furniture; Plywood : obtained by gluing sheets of peeled wood together. The glue used differs according to the intended use; Melamine-coated wood panels : These are more fragile, made from wood heat-coated with a sheet of paper under pressure containing melamine.

The following two graphs show the evolution and distribution of European production between these different product types, with particleboard dominating (***), ahead of MDF and OSB.

Production volume of different  

Particleboard dominates the European product mix. This dominance in terms of volume can be explained by the relatively low production costs associated with strong demand for this type of product.

Breakdown of European production by panel type EU + EFTA, **** Source: ****

Wood veneer ...

5.1 Labels guaranteeing respect for the forest

There are two main labels in France: PEFC and FSC.

PEFC label:

"Offered on a wood or wood-based product (***), the PEFC label certifies that :

the forest owner who cultivated the wood and the forest manager who harvested and transported the wood have implemented PEFC sustainable forest management practices; all the companies that subsequently process and market the wood have applied PEFC traceability rules. The challenge is to guarantee at the end of the chain that the product comes from environmentally, socially and economically responsible sources" (***)

The FSC label is divided into four sub-labels:

- PEFC ***% origin" label

This label guarantees that the product is made exclusively from materials sourced from sustainably managed, PEFC-certified forests.

-pEFC Recycled" label:

This label guarantees that the product is made exclusively from materials derived from recycled sources. This label is mainly used for paper products, but can also be found on certain wood products.

-pEFC-certified" label with recycled content

This label guarantees that the product contains a minimum of **% of materials from PEFC-certified sustainably managed forests or from recycled sources, with the remainder made up of materials from PEFC-controlled sources.

-pEFC-certified" label without recycled materials

This label guarantees that the product contains a minimum of ...

5.2 State-supervised silvicultural operations

LAAF:

The Law on the Future of Agriculture, Food and Forestry(***), which came into force in ****, aims to improve the economic, social and ecological performance of the timber industry. In particular, this law frames:

The forest exploitation program as well as forestry policy ; The creation of a fund (***) to enhance the value of the timber industry and encourage forest renewal; The creation of an interest group, the GIEEF, to defend private forests and their operations.

A strategy for wood industry players:

In ****, timber professionals met with state representatives to define a long-term strategy for timber exploitation. This strategy focuses on a number of areas, including:

Setting up a steering committee for the sector; The development of appropriate and effective management tools; Securing the supplies needed by the sector; Developing assistance for entrepreneurs in the sector; Structuring the industrial fabricto foster innovation.

An R&D plan to ****:

In ****, the French government launched a series of investments in the form of a Research & Development ****plan to enhance the exploitation of forestry resources. The plan is based on ** R&D projects and an analysis of possible funding for future projects.

6.1 Segmentation

The following segmentation of market players is used:

• Mohawk Industries
• Wilsonart international
• Garnica Plywood
• Thébault Groupe
• Ober Groupe
• Polyfont
• R. Drouin
• Malvaux Groupe
• Swiss Krono
• Charpentes Françaises
• Bio Foret Solution
• Bois Deroules de Champagne (BDC)
• Cf2p
• Cie Francaise du Panneau (CFP)
• EB & NE Veneers
• Egger Panneaux et Decors
• Etablissements Fernand Brugere
• Europlacage
• Finsa France
• Garnica Samazan (Gpfr)
• Joubert les Eliots
• Joubert ST Jean d'Angely
• Kronospan
• Malvaux Origin
• Marquoplac Productions
• Ober
• Panneaux de Correze
• Pavafrance
• Polyfont
• Seripanneaux
• SIB Thebault
• Sodeplax
• Sonae Arauco France
• Sté Francilienne de Placage (SFP)
• Steico Casteljaloux
• Structures et Panneaux
• Swiss Krono
• Tarnaise des Panneaux
• Thebault Jean
• Thebault PLY Land
• Unilin