Information is the key to being able to plan and discuss industry issues with government departments and to understand trends in the market and changes within industry. The information required, however, is not always easily accessible and is often estimated as a result. This is why the Australian Window Association recently commissioned a more detailed investigation into the local window and glazed door market.

In September 2013, the Australian Window Association (AWA) commissioned BIS Shrapnel to update old research and undertake a detailed analysis of the Australian window and glazed door market. The AWA traditionally supported the Windows Report within BIS Shrapnel’s Building Materials in New Residential Dwellings series. These reports generally report on market size; however the AWA identified the need for a more extensive report that investigated a wider range of topics and issues.

BIS Shrapnel has been producing reports across building materials markets in new residential dwellings for over 20 years. They cover a range of markets including windows, roofing, flooring, external wall cladding, internal wall and ceiling lining, insulation and paving. Report production is dependent on client demand and the windows market was covered in 2009 and prior to that in 2007. This new report commissioned by the AWA was published in February this year with 330 builders interviewed across Australia.

Breakdown of builder interviews
New South Wales: 109
Victoria: 77
Queensland: 87
South Australia: 18
Western Australia: 23
Northern Territory: 4
Tasmania: 12
Dwelling types researched
Detached dwellings.
Semi-detached dwellings.
Multi-units.

The results from the survey were weighted to reflect total commencements across each location and take into account the number of dwellings built by each surveyed builder. In addition, BIS Shrapnel sourced information from historical databases, online sources, developer floor plans and builders.

The result of the interviews and additional research is presented within the AWA’s private research project, Windows in New Dwellings (2013).

Where possible, comparison of the current data with BIS Shrapnel’s two previous Windows Reports has been included in the report.

In this article I would like to share some interesting market facts from the final document.

Total windows installed
Nationally, 1,842,600 windows were installed in new dwellings in 2013 with a mean of 11.8 windows per dwelling. Window installations were highest in Victoria, which accounted for 31% of new windows.

New South Wales and Victoria together account for almost 60% of new dwellings and 56% of new window installations. Add Queensland to the equation and those figures increase to 78% of new dwellings and 76% of new windows.

The number of windows installed was 4% down on the 2009 total of 1,924,200 windows, despite there being more new dwellings commenced in 2013 (up 5,700 on 2009 commencements). The mean number of windows per dwelling peaked at 12.8 in 2009 and has now returned to 2007 levels.

STYLE OF WINDOWS
By year
When examined across the last three builders’ surveys there are some changes in window types. Sliding windows have trended downwards over the period, falling 13 percentage points since 2007.

In the last two surveys, awning/hopper/casement/tilt windows recorded 29% of the market, up seven percentage points on the 2007 finding. Double hung/sash windows have climbed to a period high of 9%; likewise fixed/non-opening to 7%.

By state
Sliding windows are most popular in Queensland and Western Australia, with 70% and 66% respectively, while awning/hopper/casement/tilt products have over half the Victorian market (52%).
Double hung/sash windows peak in popularity in New South Wales (19%).

Windows market by dwelling type
Detached dwellings lead the new dwellings market with 59% share, followed by multi-unit dwellings (27%) and semi-detached (13%).

However, this represents a shift from historical trends with detached dwellings down from around 70% market share in 2009 and 2007. Conversely, multi-units and semi-detached combined have increased from around 30% to 40% share.

A sharp increase in multi-unit construction across New South Wales and Victoria has driven much of this activity.

In terms of windows, detached dwellings account for almost three-quarters (74%) of installations into new dwellings; this is down from 83% across the 2009 and 2007 surveys.

The reason detached dwellings account for 59% of dwellings commenced but 74% of windows is due to the higher number of windows installed into a detached dwelling compared to a semi-detached or multi-unit dwelling. The scenario for external glass doors is similar.

To purchase a copy of the full report visit the Australian Window Association website at www.awa.org.au or contact us on (02) 9498 2768.