## PLASTIC WINDOWS MARKET IN SVERDLOVSK OBLAST

POSTOF ORIGIN: YEKATERINBURG

DATEOF REPORT: 013100

AUTHOR:ALEKSANDR DEYANOV

 

Internationalcopyright, U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service and the U.S. Department ofState, 2000.  All rights reservedoutside of the United States.

 

1.    Summary.

 

Thisreport provides information on the opportunities existing for U.S. businessmenin the plastic windows market in the city of Yekaterinburg and SverdlovskOblast.  End summary.  

 

2.  The market of plastic door and windowunits is one of the youngest in Sverdlovsk Oblast.  Harsh climatic conditions require high standards fordurability and strength.  Beforethe financial crisis of August 1998 many companies were importing expensiveproducts from Germany, Belgium, and the United States.  After the crisis only a few customerscould afford high-quality imports. Naturally suppliers of construction materials began to look at cheaperproducts from Turkey, Poland, and South East Asia.  Unfortunately for their customers, quality standards ofthese items proved to be inferior. Window frames proved to be prone to warping and cracking due to wintercolds and sharp temperature drops. Another important feature for a Russian customer is noiseprotection.  Practically allcorporate and individual clients demand two to three-layer glass package.  Finnish wooden window frames havebecome too costly for an average Russian family to afford, and fiberglasswindows supplied by the Canadian company Inline Fiberglass Ltd are merely anovelty in the local market.  Allthis has contributed to the increasing popularity of plastic window frames. 

 

3.  Local companies were fast to react tothe changing post-crisis market and the decreased buying capacity of thepopulation.  Such companies asWindow Plus, Systemtronic, Sivial, Stil, and Plastmarket have purchased foreignmanufacturing lines and began producing window packages using imported anddomestic components.  Use ofdomestic components and cheap labor has resulted in decreasing plastic windowprices in dollar equivalent by 20 - 30 percent.  Other companies are still buying Western windows and tryingto adjust them to local conditions. The share of imported parts is still very high.  All Russian window-makers have toimport locks, hinges and handles. As a rule, they offer their clients windows on a turnkey basis.  Normally it takes 5-6 days to refurbishan apartment with new windows including measurement, manufacture andinstallation.  Local companies alsooffer accessories such as anti-mosquito nets, bulletproof glass, Venetianblinds, and different types of shutters. 

 

4.  Foreign competition is mostlyrepresented by German, Belgian, and Finnish companies.  Rehau, KBE, VEKA, and Deceuninck areamong the strongest in Sverdlovsk Oblast. The U.S. company LaserLite is also present and specializes mostly inVenetian blinds.

 

U.S.exporters may try to penetrate the plastic windows market of Sverdlovsk Oblastby supplying glass (especially of the Triplex type), locks, and hinges.  The current demand in glass coveredsurfaces in Sverdlovsk Oblast is estimated at 50,000 square meters annually.

 

5.  Contact Information

 

IlyaShakhmin

GeneralDirector

WindowPlus

ArtinskayaStr., 4, Office 407

Yekaterinburg620017

Tel:(3432) 390-987

Fax:(3432) 390-986

 

AleksandrSchulmeister

GeneralDirector

Systemtronic

Pervomayskaya  Str., 104, Office 306

Yekaterinburg620049

Tel:(3432) 751-616

Fax:(3432) 752-991

 

SegeyKurlakov

GeneralDirector

Sivial

KosmonavtovPr., 18,  Korp 54, Office 59

Yekaterinburg620017

Tel:(3432) 395-913

Fax:(3432) 348-898

 

IgorAnokhin

GeneralDirector

Stil

D.Ibarruri Str., 2A

Yekaterinburg620028

Tel:(3432) 424-220

Fax:(3432) 464-998

 

The U.S. & Foreign CommercialService Yekaterinburg is offering to U.S. companies that want to sell U.S. equipmentin the Russian market its services aimed at generating export sales, includingidentifying distributors and arranging meetings with prospective buyers duringbusiness visits to Russia. For more information on FCS Yekaterinburg servicesor investment opportunities in Russia, U.S. exporters may visit the BISNIS siteat: www.bisnis.doc.gov or contact:

 

AleksandrDeyanov

CommercialAssistant

U.S.& Foreign Commercial Service Yekaterinburg

15Gogolya Str.,

Yekaterinburg,

Russia620000

Tel:7-3432-56-47-36

Fax:7-3432-56-45-15

E-Mail:[email protected]