Ruukki: We were lucky 10-15 year-old roofs needed replacement

Metal construction materials manufacturer Ruukki Romania, the local branch of Finnish group Rautaruukki, posted a 10% sales volume rise due to demand for roofs from those who renovated their homes and to a rise in exports from the plant in Bolintin Deal, Giurgiu county. The company has yet to release its 2009 financial results, but expects a rise in value against 2008, when its business amounted to around 30 million euros. How was Ruukki able to grow in 2009 when the construction market fell by 17%? The completion of the plant in Bolintin Deal in 2008, in which shareholders invested around 35 million euros, allowed the company to deliver orders that would normally take two weeks to deliver in four days. In addition, it benefited from the fact that demand for tiling did not go down, with the industrial and retail sectors continuing to grow. "Because they no longer had money for new buildings, Romanians chose to invest in their own homes, in renovations and expansions. The roofs built 10-15 years ago reached their expiry date and had to be changed. We continue to expect high demand for roofs, precisely because of renovations," says Madalina Dumitru, country marketing manager of Ruuki Romania and Bulgaria.