UK and Dutch contractors shine

EUROPE: HVAC contractors and installers in the UK and Netherlands are doing better than some of their European neighbours, according to a new survey.

USP’s European Mechanical Installation Monitor report is conducted on a quarterly basis among 1,200 commercial and domestic HVAC installation companies in six European countries: UK, Germany, France, Poland, Belgium and the Netherlands.

The second quarter survey reveals that both the UK and Netherlands are showing strong growth in terms of turnover and filled order books. Others are not performing as well.

UK

More UK installers notice an increase in turnover than a decrease, compared to a year ago. Despite a small downturn in the first quarter of this year, Q2 showed further increases  and expectations for Q3 are also said to be very positive. Only 8% of installers expect a decrease in turnover in Q3 when compared to the same quarter last year. 51% expect an increase. Order books are also longest in the UK with 5.9 months’ work on average.

Germany

Although more German installers report an increase in turnover than a decrease this quarter, compared to 2014, the amount of work in the order book remains relatively small at 4 months. However, the amount of work in order books has grown and future expectations are positive, with 43% of the installers expect Q3 to generate more turnover than Q3 2014. Only 6% expects a slowdown in turnover.

France

French installers continue to see a slowdown in turnover compared to a year ago. In Q2 2015, 31% of the installers noticed a decrease in turnover when compared to a year before and only 18% noticed an increase. Expectations for Q3 2015 are slightly more positive, but still only 17% expect an increase in turnover, compared to 19% who expect a decrease. Order books are filled for 4.1 months on average.

Poland

Prospects in Poland worsened during the past year, with a growing number of installers reporting a decrease in turnover. In Q2, 30% of installers reported a decrease as opposed to 22% who noticed an increase, although expectations for Q3 2015 are more positive. Order books remain filled for approximately 5 months, although this has gone down to 4.8 months in Q2 2015.

Belgium

More Belgian installers saw an increase in turnover than a decrease in Q2, painting a positive picture for Belgium. Expectations for Q3 are positive as well. The amount of work in the order books average at 4.7 months, down from 5.1 months in Q1.

The Netherlands

A staggering 54% of the installers in the Netherlands experienced an increase in turnover in Q2 2015, compared to 2014, whereas only 7% experienced a decrease. This is in line with the previous quarters, that also showed a very positive development in the Netherlands since Q3 2014.