Austrade media release

Wednesday, 16 January 2008

Demand for green building technology is on the rise in China with the country expected to be home to half of the world’s building construction between now and 2020. Without intervention building-related energy consumption is set to double in this time, which has led Chinese authorities to establish a raft of environmentally-friendly building plans and policies.

According to Austrade’s Country Manager for China, Peter Osborne, these trends are creating opportunities in China for Australian businesses offering green building products or services.

“Not only has the Chinese Ministry of Construction instructed all Chinese cities to cut their building energy use in half by 2010, but there is also a plan to retrofit a quarter of existing public buildings to increase their energy efficiency in the same time frame,” he said.

“The Ministry has also established an international conference on energy efficient building technologies which will be held in March for the fourth time in Beijing.

“A wide range of Australian businesses have already achieved success in China, such as PTW Architects, co-designer of the award-winning, energy-efficient ‘Watercube’ National Swimming Centre, which will be used in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

“However, the enormity of China’s ongoing demand for green building technology means there’s potential for further Australian businesses to expand into China.

“And although we face competition from around the world in the Chinese green building sector, Australia has the largest foreign government network in China through its 15 Austrade offices, giving Australian businesses an advantage.”

Australian green businesses already established in China are bracing for a surge in demand in the coming years.

Since licensed manufacturing got underway in 2001, Rapidwall, a low-cost prefabricated walling system, has been collecting the waste product from power generation plants in China - flue gas gypsum - which is produced as a result of desulphurisation. The waste is turned into plaster and subsequently into the Rapidwall product, thereby helping to clean up the environment.

According to Rapid Building Systems CEO Peter Zwaans, South Australian-developed Rapidwall has increasingly become the building material of choice in China.

“Local authorities class Rapidwall as the second most economical building system available and it’s proved to be one of the most popular because it helps to reduce pollution from coal fire plants and chemical plants, and it’s very quick to assemble,” he said.

“In 2006, Beijing City Council established a 20,000 RMB grant for people using green building materials, including Rapidwall, to construct a home (policy number 895). So there’s extra incentive for locals on top of the fact it’s a low-cost, earthquake-resistant and fire-proof product.”

Rapidwall has been used for a variety of buildings in China, including community centres, factories and supermarkets, as well as residential town houses, village houses, terraces and apartment complexes.

Also making inroads in China after an initial attempt to enter the market is Sydney-based Insulating Technology, which manufactures an insulating paint that reflects the sun’s rays.

“We distributed Insultec through an agent to China in 2004, which turned out to be a false start,” Insulating Technology CEO Tushar Bhatt said.

“We then contacted Austrade in Guangzhou. And they were very helpful in identifying effective distribution channels in southern China, where Insultec is most useful due to the warmer weather.

“Austrade has organised meetings with potential distributors when I’ve travelled to China and we’re now getting a lot of enquiries.

“Exporting accounts for a considerable portion of Insultec’s sales and China is a hot spot for us.”

Mr Bhatt estimates sales will grow ten-fold in the next five years as the demand for green building products continues.

Already Insultec is featured on a high-rise residential tower in Beijing and various commercial buildings, and the product has been registered as a potential supplier for the 2010 Asian Games Village in Guangzhou.

Australian companies are also meeting demand in the energy-saving retro-fitting industry.

Ilum-a-Lite, a designer and manufacturer of energy-saving products for fluorescent lighting, set up a joint venture (JV) in China three years ago which is now rivalling its Australian parent company in turnover and profit.

Ilum-a-Lite CEO Mark Rutherford said Austrade’s assistance was an integral part of getting the JV off the ground.

“Austrade, in the form of support for trade missions and support on the ground in Beijing, has been instrumental in helping Ilum-a-Lite form and grow the JV,” he said.

“In addition, the JV company - Light (Beijing) Electric Equipment Company Ltd  - has now even undertaken R&D and developed some products with unique applications in China.”

Mr Rutherford said the demand for energy-saving products in China meant Ilum-a-Lite’s JV would be kept busy in the future.

“I expect the JV to become bigger and more profitable than Ilum-a-Lite over the next 12 months and it has the potential for explosive growth in such a large and energy-constrained country as China.”

Off the mainland in the busy tourist hotspot of Macau, Victorian-based EnviroBond, manufacturer of carpet underlay made from recycled PET bottles, has installed its product at the new six-star Crown Casino which opened last year.

More than 14,000 square metres of the environmentally-friendly underlay was used on gaming floors and in guest rooms –  made from more than 17 tonnes of PET fibre. The underlay is also fully recyclable and contains no volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

According to EnviroBond General Manager Asia Pacific, Neil Young: “Green products are the way property developers, architects and builders in China are leaning towards. There’s also a demand from the general community for more environmentally-friendly products.”

With Austrade’s assistance, EnviroBond is now investigating openings in the mainland China market as it continues to work on a number of projects in Macau.

ENDS

Media contact

Alisha Allen
Tel: +612 9390 2745
Mob: +61 419 267 780


For further news and information from the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) visit www.austrade.gov.au/mediacentre.