Annual Report 2014

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Contents

Foreword 3

Message from the President - Message from the Director General

Europe’s ceramic industry in 2014 4

Communications 5

Ceramic Industry Manifesto - Digital communications

Environment & Health 6

Circular economy - Eco design - NEPSI - Food contact - Refractory Ceramic Fibres - REACH

Annex XIV

Climate & Energy 8

Carbon leakage - Post 2020 Framework - Environmental and Energy State Aid Guidelines

Construction & Sustainability 10

Two Ceramic PCRs - ECO Platform Label - Materials for sustainable construction - Declaration of Performances - CPR Annexes III and V - CPR Implementation

Trade & Internal market 12

Market access - Origin marking - Anti-dumping cases - TDI Modernisation - CU Trade Working Group - Geographical indication

Research & Innovation 15

CU Research Working Group - Public Private Partnerships - Ceramic FP7 projects

Events 16

EPCF welcome lunch - Ceramic Days - 15th EPCF Plenary - R&I in Ceramics conference

External events 18

High Level Forum on Sustainable Construction - SME Helpdesks Stakeholder meeting - World Sustainable Buildings Conference - CERAMITEC Roundtable

Sectoral activities 19

Global ceramic platforms - EU Water Label - European Masonry Alliance - Sectoral Congresses

European Parliament Ceramics Forum 21

Cerame-Unie structure 22

Presidents - Staff - External network

Membership 24

Membership benefits

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Foreword M

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Dear reader,

The European elections did not prevent the outgoing Commission from launching key initiatives and taking regulatory decisions which will have a major impact on the ceramic industry in coming years.

It was a busy year for climate and energy policies. In 2014 the Commission adopt-ed the 2030 Climate and Energy Package as well as the carbon leakage list for the period 2015-2019, which was published in October and included all Cerame-Unie sectors. Moreover, the Environmental and Energy State Aid Guidelines, which allow the burden of renewable energy sources charges to be reduced for a list of energy-intensive sectors, were published for the period 2014-2020.

Trade and internal market issues were also heavily discussed. Negotiations for an EU-US free trade agreement (TTIP) continued throughout the year with a special focus on the benefits for SMEs. Through its vote on the Commission’s proposal for the modernisation of Trade Defence Instruments the European Parliament stressed the importance of keeping a strong and efficient legal instrument in the field of anti-dumping and anti-subsidy. The Parliament also demonstrated broad support for mandatory origin marking for consumer goods as part of the Product Safety and Market Surveillance package.

In terms of research, Cerame-Unie proudly contributed to the successful imple-mentation of the SPIRE PPP launched with the Commission in 2014. Additionally, a public conference addressed the increasingly important role of research and EU funding possibilities for the ceramic industry.

Last year was a productive year not only in our cooperation with the EU institu-tions but also with other trade associations and the global ceramic industry. We look forward to continuing this cooperation next year.

Renaud Batier, Director General of Cerame-Unie

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Dear reader,

The year 2014 will be remembered by the European ceramic industry as a year marked by several important decisions adopted in the last year of the Barroso II Commission and by the European elections which led to the appointment of Jean-Claude Juncker as Commission President for the next five years.

The 2014 European elections were significantly different as candidates for Com-mission President were nominated by European Parliament political groups. These Spitzenkandidaten held public debates on key issues related to enhancing European jobs and growth. The elections provided the ceramic industry with an opportunity to communicate its expectations for the forthcoming mandate to candidate MEPs, EU member states and the new European Commission. The ten policy recommendations highlighted in the Ceramic Industry Manifesto: Paving the way for growth and jobs in Europe were partly reflected in the Commission’s work programme. Ensuring affordable energy, promoting better regulation and completing an EU-US trade agreement are some of the priorities shared by our industry and the Commission.

In 2014 the dialogue between the EU institutions and the ceramic industry in-creased under the framework of the European Parliament Ceramics Forum, which was re-launched at a welcome lunch in October and the Plenary meeting in December and now counts the highest number of MEPs as members since its cre-ation in 1994. With these successes in mind, I look forward to what 2015 has in store. Alain Delcourt, President of Cerame-Unie

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Europe’s Ceramic Industry in 2014

In 2014 the European ceramic industry consolidated the performance of the previous year. According to preliminary Eurostat statistics, the production value was comparable to 2013, with less than 1% variation. It amounted to € 28.2 billion, which is around 30% lower than pre-crisis levels.

These results were related to the fragile outlook of the EU economy and of the construction sector in partic-ular. According to Eurostat statistics, in 2014 GDP rose by 0.9% in the euro area and by 1.4% in the EU28. In the same year, production value increased by 3.1% in the whole construction industry and by 3.8% in the building sector.

The leading member states producing ceramics are Italy, Germany, Spain, France, the UK, Poland, Portugal and Austria. However, ceramic manufacturing is present in all Member States; it provides more than 200,000 direct jobs and many more indirect jobs in the upstream and downstream sectors.

The ceramic sector contributes significantly to the trade balance of the EU. Around one third of the produc-tion value is related to exports outside the EU, which accounted for € 8.9 billion in 2014 and increased by 2% compared to the previous year. Imports increased by 12%, leading to a positive trade balance of € 4.6 billion.

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On the occasion of the European elections, Cerame-Unie published its Manifesto for the 2014-2019 Parliamentary mandate with ten policy rec-ommendations in the areas of climate, energy, environment, construction, research, trade and the internal market. The Manifesto was translated from English into French, German, Dutch, Spanish, Italian and Hungarian.

The Manifesto was disseminated at both European and national level:

Read it online or download as PDF.

Manifesto

Communications

In May 2014 the CU Board of Presidents shared the ten policy recommendations in meetings with DG Trade, the Italian Permanent Repre-sentation and the cabinets of former Commis-sion Vice-President Tajani (DG ENTR) and for-mer Commissioner Potočnik (DG ENVI). At a welcome lunch for MEPs in October 2014, Cerame-Unie reiterated its ten policy recom-mendations (see p.16).

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CU members organised activities at national level prior to and following the European elec-tions. From an election debate to plant visits with MEPs from the Netherlands, the UK, France and Portugal, members actively distrib-uted the Manifesto and furthered its messages.

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Environment & Health

On 2 July 2014, the European Commission published its Communication on resource efficiency,Towards a circular economy: a zero waste programme for Europe. In this context, Cerame-Unie presented its views on the circular economy package.

In this Cerame-Unie document, we stress that resource efficiency requires a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach that takes into account all stages of the product, including its durability, lifespan and reduction of resource consumption over the use phase. The paper also highlights that the social and economic aspects of sustainability should always be considered in EU legislation.

To reach a circular economy in Europe, adequate access to raw materials as well as separation and pro-cessing of waste and a well-functioning market for secondary raw materials are needed. The paper con-cludes by presenting some best practice examples taking place in the ceramic industry.

Circular economy

Eco-design for industrial furnaces

Cerame-Unie supported the outcome of the Consultation Forum which was held in May concluding that no eco-design requirements for industrial furnaces should be developed.

The ceramic industry has always insisted that the eco-design regulation is not the appropriate tool to im-prove the performance (in an integrated way) of custom designed industrial ovens and furnaces, in particu-lar for the following reasons: (i) custom designed industrial furnaces and kilns do not fall under the scope of the Eco-Design Directive, (ii) industrial furnaces and ovens are already sufficiently covered by other, more appropriate, legislation and (iii) industrial furnaces and ovens require a case-by-case approach. This view was supported by the Forum.

NEPSI

The third NEPSI (Negotiation Platform for Silica) reporting took place from 15 January to 14 March 2014. The purpose of this voluntary exercise is to demonstrate the industry’s commitment to and continued im-provement in dealing with respirable crystalline silica and this by adopting good practices and risk manage-ment measures where necessary.

In 2014 the ceramic industry further improved its performance in monitoring risk, training and informing employees. Hence, the KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) show that 97% of the ceramic industry’s employ-ees are covered by a risk assessment. Moreover, the share of employees covered by exposure monitoring increased by 7 percentage points between 2012 and 2014. In the same period, the shares of employees cov-ered by information, instruction and training on General Principles and on Task Sheets respectively in-creased by 6 and 9 percentage points.

The reporting rates remain stable, in line with other industries participating in the NEPSI exercise. The 2014 data collection covers around 18,000 additional employees, that is to say an increase of 24%. However, the total number of employees covered decreased slightly compared to 2012 due to several reasons, among which the economic crisis and the consequent decrease in the number of employees in the ceramics indus-try.

NEPSI is the acronym of the Negotiation Platform for Silica formed by the Employee and Employer European sectoral associations having signed the Social Dialogue Agreement on workers’ health protection through the good handling and use of crystalline silica and products containing it. The agreement was signed in 2006 and covers 15 industry sectors. It aims at protecting employees occupationally exposed to respirable crystalline silica in the workplace and minimising such expo-sure by applying good practices and increasing the knowledge around potential health effects.

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Food contact

The European Reference Laboratory for Food Contact Materials (EURL-FCM) organised a third and fourth workshop in Ispra, Italy in June and December 2014 which was attended by a strong delegation from Cerame-Unie. The meetings discussed the ongoing laboratory tests on the migration of different metals from ceramic tableware. These results will guide the European Commission when updating the current Di-rective on the migration of lead and cadmium for ceramic food contact materials.

As already proposed last year, the legal limits (still to be defined) would only have to be achieved after the third migration test in order to take into account the decreasing migration at repeated exposure. At the workshop in June, results were presented based on different testing methodologies. The meeting concluded that the current testing method (based on 4% acetic acid, for 24 hours at room temperature) could remain. Further discussions took place in December regarding the possible pre-conditioning of the ware to reduce the overall testing time. Work will continue in early 2015.

Refractory Ceramic Fibres

In early 2014, Cerame-Unie coordinated a joint position paper (EN/FR/DE) with 14 European industry associ-ations on why REACH authorisation is not the appropriate way forward for Refractory Ceramic Fibres (RCF). The document explains why the introduction of a Binding Occupational Emission Limit Value (BOELV) under the existing framework of the Carcinogens and Mutagens Directive (CMD) appears to be much more effi-cient and effective than a REACH authorisation to achieve the overall objective of improved risk manage-ment via harmonised workplace controls.

In October 2014, Fifteen European industry associations signed a joint position paper highlighting the socio-economic implications of a potential inclusion of Refractory Ceramic Fibres (RCF) on the REACH Annex XIV (authorisation) list. In this position paper we discuss the potential impact of the inclusion of Refractory Ce-ramic Fibres – often also referred to as Alumino-Silicate Wools (ASW) – on Annex XIV, with a focus on po-tential socio-economic implications.

The European Commission is currently considering the most appropriate way to deal with substances that have only an industrial exposure. A decision on how to proceed will be taken in the course of 2015.

The fifth draft recommendation for substances to require a REACH authorisation was published in June 2013 and included two types of Refractory Ceramic Fibres. Following the public consultation in autumn 2013, the Member States Committee issued a positive opinion on the draft recommen-dation after which the European Chemicals Agency ECHA recommended these substances as pri-ority substances to the European Commission for inclusion in REACH Annex XIV (the authorisation list).

According to REACH Article 55, the objectives of the authorisation process are twofold: to properly control risk (health and environment) while maintaining a well-functioning internal market. This should primarily be achieved via the substitution of substances of very high concern with safer alternatives, provided these are technically and economically suitable. R

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Climate & Energy

Carbon leakage

On 27 October 2014 the European Commission adopted the Decision determining the list of sectors ex-posed to a significant risk of carbon leakage under the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) for the period 2015-2019. All sectors represented by Cerame-Unie were included in the list. Consequently, ETS ceramic installations will be granted preliminary free allocation corresponding to 100% of the benchmark level until 2019 (but adjusted by the cross sectoral reduction factor).

The technical work on the dossier took place in 2013 and in the first half of 2014. Throughout the whole process, the Cerame-Unie Secretariat collected and analysed data for the quantitative assessment of all ce-ramic sub-sectors and cooperated with the consultancy PwC to prepare the qualitative assessment of the sub-sector NACE 2332, notably bricks, roof tiles and other construction materials (i.e. clay pipes). The Secre-tariat also maintained regular contact with both DG Enterprise and DG Climate to receive updates on the dossier.

On 5 May 2014 the European Commission sent the draft list to the Climate Change Committee. The draft list included all sectors represented by Cerame-Unie. The sub-sectors of bricks, roof tiles and clay pipes quali-fied through the qualitative assessment, while all other sectors (abrasives, refractories, sanitaryware, table-ware, technical ceramics, wall and floor tiles and porcelain enamel) met the quantitative assessment crite-ria. The draft list was endorsed by the Climate Change Committee at the beginning of July. Following that, it was subject to three-months of scrutiny by the European Parliament and Council. On 24 September the Eu-ropean Parliament’s Environment Committee rejected an objection to the draft carbon leakage list that had been tabled by some MEPs. The scrutiny period ended at the beginning of October and the final Commis-sion Decision was adopted on 27 October.

Post 2020 Framework

Around mid-2014 the European Commission initiated a public debate on post 2020 climate and energy legis-lation. Firstly, they organised a public consultation on post 2020 carbon leakage provisions between May and July. Furthermore, they organised three stakeholder meetings in June, July and September on the same subject. Cerame-Unie participated in the meetings and the public consultation, highlighting the necessity to continue these provisions beyond 2020. As indicated in the analysis of results of the online consultation, around 80 replies were submitted on behalf of the ceramic industry, making it the sector with the highest number of responses. All replies were in line with the document submitted by Cerame-Unie. This topic was further addressed in a panel debate as part of the EP Ceramics Forum in December, with speakers from the European Parliament, the European Commission and industry (see p.16).

Another element of the debate was the 2030 climate and energy package. Following the Commission pro-posal presented in January, the European Council had a first exchange of views in March and adopted the final position at the meeting of 23-24 October. Cerame-Unie issued a position paper ahead of the Summit in line with the letter from the Alliance of European energy-intensive industries. The adopted package includ-ed the 2030 targets on CO2 emission reduction, energy efficiency and renewables, but at the same time pro-vided the European Commission with clear political guidance for the continuation of carbon leakage provi-sions beyond 2020.

In January 2014 and as part of the 2030 package, the European Commission presented the proposal to es-tablish a market stability reserve (MSR). This instrument was described as a structural solution to address the surplus of allowances available on the EU carbon market. In the course of the year, Cerame-Unie advo-cated jointly with BUSINESSEUROPE and the Alliance of European Energy-Intensive Industries to ensure that the MSR was part of a holistic reform of post 2020 ETS legislation.

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On 28 June 2014 the Environmental and Energy State Aid Guidelines (EAAG) for the period 2014-2020 were published in the Official Journal. The text reflected the agreement reached by the College of Commissioners at the beginning of April.

The new EEAG allow the burden of renewable energy sources (RES) charges to be reduced for a list of ener-gy-intensive sectors identified on the basis of their trade and electro intensity. The list of eligible sectors includes the following ceramic sub-sectors: bricks and roof tiles, wall and floor tiles, refractories, sanitary-ware, clay pipes and ceramic insulators. Highly electro-intensive companies (i.e. electro-intensity over 20% of their Gross Value Added) from other sectors like abrasives and tableware can also be eligible. These pro-visions are essential for the industry’s competitiveness as renewable charges are an increasing proportion of the energy bill.

Furthermore, the guidelines promote a gradual move to market-based support for renewable energy to ad-dress the market distortions related to subsidies granted to RES. In particular, they foresee the progressive replacement of feed-in tariffs by feed-in premiums and the introduction of competitive bidding processes for allocating public support.

Environmental and Energy State Aid Guidelines

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Construction & Sustainability

Two Ceramic PCRs

If a manufacturer of a clay construction product voluntarily chooses to communicate the environmental performance of their product, this can be achieved with an Environmental Product Declaration (EPDs). EPDs are a standardised way to communicate the environmental impact of a product on the basis of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology. EPDs can be used for different purposes. For instance, designers often re-quest EPDs of construction products to use as input when assessing the environmental performance of buildings.

In 2012, Cerame-Unie members TBE (Tiles & Bricks Europe) and CET (European Ceramic Tile Manufacturers Federation) identified a lack of harmonised Product Category Rules (PCRs) for the development of EPDs for ceramic construction products. With common PCR, EPDs developed at national and/or European level will be based on the same guidelines and similar assumptions. The TBE and CET PCRs for clay construction prod-ucts are based on the European horizontal standard EN 15804, developed in CEN/TC 350 “Sustainability of construction works”.

The TBE PCR for clay construction products and CET PCR for ceramic tiles were concluded in March and June 2014, respectively.

ECO Platform label

On 16 October the ECO Platform organised an event to launch the first ECO Platform EPDs.

On this occasion, the first Eco Platform Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) were presented, among which an EPD from a Spanish manufacturer of ceramic tiles, Gres de Aragón, and four EPDs from the Austri-an tiles and bricks industry association – two for blocks and two for roof tiles. The full list is available here.

ECOPlatform EPDs presented © triptyque

In July 2014, DG RTD (Directorate D Key Enabling Technologies, Unit D3) launched a survey aimed at devel-oping a research and innovation roadmap for sustainable construction materials. Entitled Which materials for sustainable construction?, the main goals of this survey were: first, to identify and prioritise research and innovation needs for new advanced materials; and second, to propose solutions to overcome barriers to the exploitation and deployment of research results for materials in the construction industry. Thanks to input from members, Cerame-Unie replied to this consultation and delivered key messages.

Materials for sustainable construction

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The delegated acts to modify the annex III and annex V of the CPR were published in the Official Journal of the EU in late May 2014.

The purpose of the delegated act to amend the annex III of the CPR is to give more flexibility to the manu-facturers of construction products when drawing up a Declaration of Performance (DoP). The delegated act to modify the annex V clarifies the description of the Assessment and Verification of Constancy of Perfor-mance (AVCP) tasks.

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In February 2014, the delegated act to supply Declaration of Performances (DoPs) on the websites of manu-facturers of construction products was finally published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

From now on, the manufacturers of construction products can supply DoPs through their websites instead of supplying them in paper form or by electronic means (e.g. email, fax, QR code, etc). The document pro-vides the rules for placing DoPs on websites.

CPR Annexes III and V

CPR Implementation

DG Enterprise launched a consultation on the implementation of the CPR and all stakeholders were invited to give feedback by 18 December 2014.

UK consultancy company Risk & Policy Analysts carried out the online survey. Although the CPR recently entered into force, the Commission is already keen to analyse how the CPR is being implemented based on the experience of key stakeholders in different member states.

CU replied to this consultation and indicated that a simplified CE marking containing minimum mandatory information is needed to reduce the burdens placed on construction products manufacturers.

The delegated act does not derogate article 7(2) of the Construction Products Regulation (CPR). Hence, the manufacturer shall supply the DoP in paper form if the recipient requests it.

The manufacturer and other stakeholders in the construction chain have the same responsibili-ties as before. The delegated act covers the ways in which the document can be supplied.

Manufacturers cannot alter the DoP once it is placed on the website and it must be accessible for at least 10 years after the construction product has been made available on the market.

Manufacturers need to constantly monitor their website to ensure that the DoPs are always available to the recipients.

Manufacturers shall provide instructions to the recipients on how to access the online DoP.

Manufacturers shall make sure that each product is linked to a given DoP by means of the unique identification code of the product-type.

The website must be free of charge.

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Trade & Internal market

Market access

The EU ceramic industry continues to face over 100 tariff and non-tariff barriers in 39 countries, as reported in the 2014 draft edition of the Cerame-Unie market access and certification requirements (available to CU members).

The EU ceramic industry is challenged on various trade fronts, notably by Ecuador which request-ed the importers of ceramic wall and floor tiles to reduce their trade by 30% in 2014 in order to be allowed to continue importing into the country. Moreover, EU exporters have had to abide by nu-merous burdensome technical requirements representing additional obstacles for EU exports.

Cerame-Unie was actively involved in various Market Access Advisory Committee meetings and in bilateral contacts with the DG Trade to raise the issue. Over the summer EU and Ecuadorian au-thorities agreed to a three-option solution to certification requirements applied to ceramic tiles which should have helped the EU’s exporters and Ecuadorian importers to resolve problems en-countered in the past. Furthermore, the European Commission signed a free trade agreement with Ecuador on 12 December, which Cerame-Unie hoped would bring a swift reduction in tariffs for ceramic tiles exported to Ecuador. Cerame-Unie will continue to monitor the situation and voice the industry’s concerns if the trade impediments persist or any new ones arise.

Regarding refractories, Brazil will maintain the 35% import duty on ceramic magnesia bricks and until December 2015.

Protectionist measures were taken by Saudi Arabia in December 2014, when Saudi Arabian au-thorities required each ceramic wall and floor tile to bear the name or trademark of the manufac-turers. This was not in conformity with the voluntary ISO and EN standards. Although many con-tainers were blocked in mid-late December, thanks to an effective cooperation between the indus-try and national and EU delegations in the capital city of Riyadh, these non-tariff barriers were lift-ed. However, there is still a lack of clarity for business operators regarding which standards will be required in the future.

In response to the illegal annexation of Crimea and in view of Russia's destabilising actions the in Eastern Ukraine, Cerame-Unie informed its members about the EU economic sanctions against Russia that entered into force on 12 September 2014.

Cerame-Unie was also alerted to the impact of the armed conflict in Eastern Ukraine which dis-turbed the export of raw materials relevant for the EU ceramic tiles industry. In the ceramic table-ware sector, EU exporters of porcelain tableware and kitchenware to Ukraine are required to pay new safeguard measures of 35.6% as of 23 May 2014 and for the next three years, in addition to the existing import duty of 10%.

Exporters continue to pay additional import fees to Ukraine, Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan as well as to Armenia, after it joins the Eurasian Economic Union in January 2015. These safeguard measures will be phased out annually until their final removal in September 2016.

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The EU ceramic industry has followed with great interest the eight negotiation rounds of the EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and hopes that peak tariffs of around 25-28% for tableware and 8.5-10% for ceramic tiles will be removed as a result of the trade agree-ment. Cerame-Unie continued to provide its feedback on various occasions on market access is-sues concerning EU trade in ceramic goods with the US and its impact on small and medium sized enterprises.

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Together with CET, the European Ceramic Tile Manufacturers Federation, and FEPF, the European Federa-tion of Ceramic Table- and Ornamentalware, Cerame-Unie continued to monitor the implementation of anti-dumping duties, notably by contributing to legal challenges brought to the European Court of Justice and national courts.

The European ceramic tableware industry took part in a written procedure as well as a hearing on 24 June 2014 in Luxembourg. Cerame-Unie welcomes the Court judgments of 18 November 2014 which clearly re-jected the applicant’s four pleas. Despite this decision, the applicant challenging the case has appealed against this judgment so Cerame-Unie and FEPF continue to follow this case.

The European ceramic tiles industry monitored the partial interim review launched by the European Com-mission in early 2014 and most recently, the Commission’s final disclosure document. In its response to the Commission’s definitive proposal, Cerame-Unie stressed the risk of circumvention of the duties as a result of the split of the two Chinese exporters who had applied for a recalculation of the definitive anti-dumping duty on imports for ceramic tiles from China imposed in September 2011.

According to the definitive findings proposed by the Commission under the partial interim review, the Com-mission confirmed the claim that the two companies were no longer related and could be subject to sepa-rate anti-dumping duties.

Origin marking

Anti-dumping cases

Despite a strong endorsement of the Consumer Product Safety & Market Surveillance (CPSR) package by the European Parliament in April 2014, the Commission proposal is pending approval of the European Council. The Commission hopes to reach an agreement on CPSR in the first half of 2015 under the Latvian EU Presi-dency. To this end, the European Commission was tasked by the Council to prepare a technical study as-sessing the impact of origin marking and the benefits and potential costs for companies and consumers.

In line with its position on CPSR, Cerame-Unie stressed its support for mandatory origin marking for ceramic consumer goods such as tableware, ceramic wall and floor tiles and clay roofing tiles underlining that the cost of applying origin marking on these products is very limited. Furthermore, as outlined in the Ceramic Industry Manifesto, origin marking would provide consumers with reliable and transparent information and strengthen market surveillance.

TDI Modernisation

Cerame-Unie welcomed the positive outcome for European small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the European Parliament Plenary vote on 16 April 2014 on the Commission’s proposal for the modernisation of Trade Defence Instruments (TDI). The European Parliament sent a strong message for an increased level of assistance to SMEs in TDI by strengthening the SME Helpdesk, shortening the timeline of investigations and ensuring translations of questionnaires into official EU languages. The proposal is comprised of a draft legislative proposal, draft guidelines and a communication, which should be adopted as a package. Howev-er, the legislative file is pending a position in the Council.

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Cerame-Unie created a new Working Group on trade in early 2014. The group held its first meeting with DG Trade on 24 June 2014 and discussed important trade policy issues concerning the EU ceramic industry.

The CU Trade WG group consists of more than 40 participants from nine ceramic sectors and various EU member states. The objectives of the CU Trade WG are to inform and consult CU members on trade related issues in a more streamlined way as well as to effectively respond to the Commission’s consultations, notifi-cations and to raise the voice of the ceramic industry at EU level through forums, workshops and meetings with DG Trade.

Trade issues of concern for the EU ceramic industry in 2014 are horizontal market access issues, EU Free Trade Agreements, trade defence instruments and their modernisation and access to raw materials. Trade issues such as intellectual property rights, counterfeiting and enforcement of international trade rules are also of interest to the group.

Geographical Indication

CU participated in the European Commission’s consultation on the protection of Geographical Indica-tion (GI) for non-agricultural products. In its answer, CU outlined that GI protection may be more relevant to artisanal craft producers rather than to industrially manufactured products. Considering that GI protection is fundamentally different from origin marking with regards to its objective, the introduction of mandatory origin marking in the EU for imports and EU-manufactured consumer goods remains a priority for the Euro-pean ceramic industry.

CU Trade Working Group

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Research & Innovation

Cerame-Unie is a proud member of two associations both governing the private part of a public private partnership (PPP) funded under Horizon 2020. The PPP SPIRE focuses on the sustainable process industries and the PPP EeB aims to improve the energy efficiency of buildings. Ceramic companies and research cen-tres submitted project proposals by the March 2014 deadline (unfortunately none were selected).

Cerame-Unie participated in the SPIRE Brokerage event on 23 May, as well as in the various SPIRE Partner-ship Board meetings organised regularly by the European Commission, with the aim to prepare the 2016-2017 calls. Cerame-Unie attended EeB’s E2BA General Assembly in June and SPIRE’s A.SPIRE General Assem-bly in October.

Ceramic FP7 projects

Cerame-Unie is a dissemination partner in two Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) projects which started in October 2013.

Public Private Partnerships

CU Research Working Group

Cerame-Unie members are regularly informed of any updates related to research and innovation (R&I) through monthly telephone conferences. In 2014 Cerame-Unie not only developed an internal vision docu-ment on R&I in the ceramic industry but also organised a public conference during the Ceramic Days 2014 on Research and Innovation in Ceramics: How industry benefits from EU funding (see p.17).

The second project, INSYSME, aims at developing innovative systems for masonry enclosures and involves cooperation between national associations, research institutes and companies from sev-en European countries. Also here, Cerame-Unie attended the two-day meeting which was held in April in Coimbra, Portugal as well as a two-day meeting in September 2014 held in Kassel, Germa-ny. INSYSME has developed three communication documents on the main elements of the pro-ject, namely its framework, objectives and structure. The next INSYSME meeting will take place on 23-24 March 2015 in Athens, Greece. Further information can be found on the project website.

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The first project, ReStaR, aims to improve, promote and ensure the reliability, precision and effi-ciency of the current European refractory testing standards which form the base of the technical data sheets for refractory products. A first project status meeting was held in April 2014 in Höhr-Grenzhausen, Germany. A mid-term meeting was held in October 2014 in Moncel les Lunéville, France. The next ReStaR meeting will take place on 18-19 May 2015 in Gliwice, Poland. Further information can be found on the project website.

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Events

EPCF welcome lunch

On 8 October Cerame-Unie members attended a welcome lunch for MEPs at the European Parliament or-ganised as part of the European Parliament Ceramics Forum. The aim of the event was to introduce the EPCF to the new Parliament so as to continue the constructive discussions between industry and policymak-ers. Hosted by the new EPCF Chair MEP Paul Rübig, the event was an overwhelming success with over 60 participants, including 16 MEPs.

Dr Rübig welcomed participants and introduced the EPCF’s new Vice-Chairs and members (see p.21). Cerame-Unie President Alain Delcourt then gave an overview of the European ceramic industry and the rel-evant policy areas as detailed in the Ceramic Industry Manifesto. Mattia Pelegrini, Head of Cabinet for for-mer Commissioner Ferdinando Nelli Feroci, reiterated the Commission’s commitment to fostering growth and jobs and to manufacturing and SME-driven industries like ceramics.

One of the EPCF’s Vice-Chairs is MEP Antonio Tajani, EP Vice-President and former Vice-President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry. At the lunch he emphasised the im-portance of the EU ceramic industry and the necessity to balance climate and industrial policies so as not to harm the industry. Moreover, he encouraged the EU to pursue free and fair trade and fight against unfair trade practices like dumping.

Ceramic Days

The 2014 Ceramic Days were organised by Cerame-Unie in December in Brussels. Over 150 participants attended sectoral meetings, the Cerame-Unie General Assembly and public events on 3 and 4 December. On 3 December MEP Paul Rübig and MEP Elisabetta Gardini co-hosted the 15th European Parliament Ceramics Forum (EPCF) in the EP, followed by a cocktail reception with a keynote speech by Daniel Calleja Crespo, Director General of DG Enterprise and Industry. On 4 December a conference on research & innovation in ceramics explored how the industry benefits from EU funding. The meetings demonstrated that the ceram-ics industry, a manufacturing and SME-driven sector, plays a key role in delivering much needed growth and jobs for the EU.

“With high-level speakers and fully booked public events, the 2014 Ceramic Days were a resound-ing success,” affirmed Alain Delcourt, Cerame-Unie President. “The ceramic industry, with 80% SMEs and 200,000 direct jobs, is a valuable asset for the EU in terms of growth and employment. Significant steps towards an industrial renaissance must be taken to ensure a 20% share of GDP for the industry by 2020. To this end, Cerame-Unie will continue to provide expertise and policy recom-mendations as laid out in our Manifesto.”

15th EPCF Plenary

The EPCF Plenary session featured panel debates with speakers from the European Parliament, European Commission and industry. Three panels explored topics that impact the ceramic industry and were being discussed at EU level: the circular economy, the international competitiveness of SMEs and the future of the EU Emissions Trading System.

In his contribution to the first panel, Dr Heimo Scheuch, Cerame-Unie Vice-President and CEO of Wiener-berger AG, expressed that “with respect to sustainable construction, the entire life cycle of a clay construc-tion product must be considered when discussing resource efficiency.”

MEP Anthea McIntyre, EPCF Vice-Chair, opened the panel on trade emphasising that EU policies should fo-cus on “facilitating trade and removing trade barriers, as exports play an essential role for the competitive-ness of ceramic companies – particularly for SMEs.”

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On 4 December a conference on research and innovation (R&I) investigated the role of EU funding in the ceramic sector.

Ahead of the EU Competitiveness Council which studied the link between R&I and European competitive-ness, a Commission official from DG Research and Innovation presented the opportunities available to in-dustry through Horizon 2020. In the lively moderated conference, speakers shared facts and figures on schemes available under H2020 as well as tips and tricks for seeking EU funding for ceramic research pro-jects. Panellists disclosed their practical experience with EU-funded projects on earthquake-resistant ma-sonry (INSYSME), standardisation in refractories (ReStaR), innovative heat recovery (financed through SILC I and LIFE) and different projects related to silica.

The conference and the various success stories demonstrated the continued need for EU-funded pro-grammes through Horizon 2020.

R&I in Ceramics conference

On climate and energy, MEP Antonio Tajani, EP VP and EPCF Vice-Chair, commented that “it is possible to celebrate a marriage between industrial policy and climate and energy policies. This is essential to avoid car-bon leakage.”

Daniel Calleja Crespo, Director General of DG Enterprise and Industry, gave the keynote speech at the cock-tail reception. He noted that “as Europe continues to fight its way out of the financial crisis, promoting in-dustrial competitiveness is of the utmost importance. Manufacturing sectors like ceramics have been and will continue to be a vital part of the European economy and the creation of jobs.”

EPCF 2014 © triptyque

Conference on research and innovation © triptyque

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External Events

High Level Forum on Sustainable Construction

Representing the ceramic construction sectors, Cerame-Unie presented the findings of its reply to the ECORYS consultation on increasing market access and business opportunities in select priority markets at a Thematic Group 5–International Competitiveness meeting in October 2014 in Brussels. The meeting and consultation took place in the framework of the High Level Forum on Sustainable Construction and in the follow up of the third meeting of the European Commission TG-5.

Cerame-Unie’s results confirmed the importance of ceramic construction products in external trade. Fur-thermore, Cerame-Unie identified priority export markets both for ceramic construction sectors and individ-ual products and demonstrated where further export potential exists if tariffs and technical barriers to trade are removed.

SME Helpdesks Stakeholder Meeting

In November 2014, Cerame-Unie attended the ASEAN, China & Mercosur SME Helpdesks Stakeholder Meeting. CU was pleased to hear the most downloaded guide is the China IPR guide for European SMEs in the Ceramics industry. Throughout the year Cerame-Unie informed its members about IPR-related webinars and seminars.

World Sustainable Buildings Conference

CU attended the World Sustainable Buildings conference (WSB14), which took place in late October 2014 in Barcelona. The event brought together experts from across the world to answer the economic, social and environmental challenges faced by the building sector.

CERAMITEC Roundtable

Cerame-Unie participated in the CERAMITEC Roundtable on refractories organised in Höhr-Grenzhausen, Germany, ahead of the CERAMITEC 2015 Fair on 20-23 October 2015. The meeting addressed the top-ic Hidden Champions in their User Industries: Market Trends + Innovation Potentials in Europe. Click the im-age below to see a video of the event.

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REF

RA

CTO

RIE

S Sectoral Activities

Global ceramic platforms

In 2014 the major refractory industry associations—both continental and national—and multina-tional companies joined together to create the World Refractories Association (WRA). The WRA constitutes a forum to debate regulatory issues affecting global trade, circulate aggregated indus-try statistics, promote the interests of the worldwide refractory industry and act as a counterpart to other world industry organisations such as the World Steel Association. The Secretariat of the WRA is held by the European Refractories Producers Federation (PRE) and François Wanecq, Presi-dent of PRE, was elected the inaugural President.

Following a successful meeting in London in November, the World Refractories Association will continue the positive momentum with a General Assembly in 2015.

The 21st World Ceramic Tiles Forum (WCTF) was hosted by the China Building Ceramics and Sani-taryware Association (CBCSA) in Shanghai from 12 to 15 November 2014. This year’s edition of the Forum was attended by representatives from 12 countries and the European Ceramic Tiles Manu-facturers’ Association (CET).

Among a number of topics covered, the WCTF addressed key developments in global trade. Mem-bers discussed the ongoing review under the 5th cycle of the World Customs Organisation of out-dated Harmonised System classification, which determines customs codes for ceramic tiles. More-over, this session of the Forum presented an opportunity to discuss developments in standardisa-tion at national and international level. Participants also used this fitting occasion to share key trends, challenges and experiences in trade from their respective countries.

The next meeting of the WCTF is scheduled in Sevilla, Spain, on 12-14 November 2015. The Forum will be organised in conjunction with the ISO TC 189 meeting (9-11 November 2015).

WA

LL &

FLO

OR

TIL

ES

SAN

ITA

RY

WA

RE

The second International Ceramic Sanitaryware meeting was held on 25 September i2014 n Bolo-gna at CERSAIE. The meeting brought together 17 industry representatives from Italy, UK, China, Brazil, Turkey and Ukraine, as well as FECS, the European Federation of Ceramic Sanitaryware Manufacturers. The participants discussed national legislations, EU standardisation and sustaina-bility, the EU Water Label and general information on the ceramic sanitaryware industry in differ-ent countries. The third meeting is scheduled to take place in 2015.

WCTF 2014

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EU Water Label

The European Federation of Ceramic Sanitaryware Manufacturers (FECS) strongly supports the European Water Label (EWL), a voluntary and flexible scheme to measure the water consumption of bathroom prod-ucts. Customers will be equipped with a tool to help them choose the most water efficient product. Prod-ucts that use less water and energy allow customers to keep the energy bills low and save money.

In 2014, FECS experts and the Water Label Company developed the technical aspects for different ceramic bathroom products groups which were recently approved by the FECS board and added to the EWL website. FECS members, the largest EU manufacturers of ceramic sanitaryware, fully back this scheme and the plan to launch a major cohesive marketing initiative in early 2015 at ISH, Europe’s largest exhibition for plumbing and bathroom solutions.

European Masonry Alliance

The founding members of the European Masonry Alliance are Tiles & Bricks Europe (TBE), the autoclaved aerated concrete industry (EAACA), the calcium silicate industry (ECSPA), the precast concrete industry (BIBM) and the European Mortar Industry (EMO). The Alliance was founded in 2013 in order to communi-cate common messages to the EU institutions and stakeholders and to exchange knowledge on different topics. In early 2014, the European Masonry Alliance organised a dinner debate with three MEPs (Malcolm Harbour, Catherine Stihler and Phil Bennion). The European Masonry Alliance also produced a Manifesto containing the industry’s concerns and policy recommendations for the European Parliament’s 2014-2019 mandate.

Sectoral Congresses

TBE

European tiles and bricks executives gathered in Naples, Italy on 19 and 20 June for the 2014 TBE Congress. The Congress, hosted by the Italian brick and tile association ANDIL in parallel to their own meetings, gave members an opportunity to discuss ongoing legislative developments at working and product group meetings, the General Assembly and a public debate. The Congress also provided an occasion to formally welcome Yiannis Maliouris as new TBE President. Outgoing President, Heimo Scheuch, will continue to support TBE as Vice-President.

The 2014 CET Congress took place in Rome, Italy from 26 to 28 June, welcoming ceramic tiles manufacturers from across Europe. Confindustria Ceramica kindly hosted the Congress and organ-ised a programme balancing meetings and touristic activities. José Luis Lanuza, presiding over his first Congress as CET President since his term began in January, thanked Alfonzo Panzani for his contribution. His involvement will continue at association level as CU Vice-President.

CET

P

RE

The European Refractories Producers Federation (PRE) held its 61st annual Congress from 4 to 6 June 2014. The event took place at the Slovenian seaside in Portorož and was kindly hosted by the Slovenian Refractory Producers Association ZPOK, the most recent addition to PRE membership. Over 70 participants from 12 different European countries attended the three day congress.

FEPA

The Federation of the European Producers of Abrasives (FEPA) held its annual Congress in Dublin, Ireland from 11 to 13 June. The Congress was attended by over 80 participants. The various FEPA Committees met on Wednesday, the Management Committee on Thursday and the General As-sembly took place on Friday. On this occasion, FEPA President Steffen Neu handed over the Presi-dency to Alessandro Gallo.

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European Parliament Ceramics Forum

The European Parliament Ceramics Forum (EPCF) is a cross-party discus-sion group with the objective of facilitating dialogue between the Europe-an institutions and the ceramic industry on all relevant policy develop-ments.

It provides a platform for the exchange of views, the identification of key issues, and for taking action on behalf of the industry and of the people working in this crucial EU sector. Participants in this Forum are Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), decision makers from the ceramic industry and representatives from European trade unions. The European Commission actively supports the Forum and Commission officials regularly attend the meetings to provide updates on current and forthcoming issues.

The EPCF has its roots in the 1994-1999 Parliament, when a Ceramics Intergroup was founded by Michael Tappin, former MEP from North Staffordshire, UK. It was re-established by former MEPs Michael Cashman and Malcolm Harbour following their election to the European Parliament in June 1999 until their departure in May 2014. Since his re-election, MEP Paul Rübig has taken over as EPCF Chair for the first part of the 2014-2019 Parliamentary mandate.

EPCF Members

CH

AIR

VIC

E-CH

AIR

VIC

E-CH

AIR

VIC

E-CH

AIR

VIC

E-CH

AIR

VIC

E-CH

AIR

VIC

E-CH

AIR

VIC

E-CH

AIR

V

ICE-C

HA

IR

Paul Rübig

Austria, EPP

Jean-Paul Denanot

France, S&D

Elisabetta Gardini

Italy, EPP

Neena Gill

UK, S&D

Esteban González

Pons

Spain, EPP

Anthea McIntyre

UK, ECR

Inmaculada

Rodríguez-Piñero

Spain, S&D

Sîon Simon

UK, S&D

Antonio Tajani

Italy, EPP

Lidia Geringer de

Oedenberg

Poland, S&D

José Inácio Faria

Portugal, ALDE

Barbara Kappel

Austria, NI

Jude Kirton-Darling

UK, S&D

Werner Langen

Germany, EPP

Jo Leinen

Germany, S&D

Emma McClarkin

UK, ECR

Nuno Melo

Portugal, EPP

Elisabeth Morin-

Chartier

France, EPP

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Structure

Committee of Directors

Board of Presidents

Chemical agents—Working Group Climate & energy—Working Group Environment Committee

Research—Working Group Trade—Working Group Origin marking—Task Force

General Assembly

TBE PRE Feugres FEPF FEPA FECS EuTeCer EEA CET

Yiannis Maliouris

President TBE

B. Maliouris SA

BR

ICK

S & R

OO

F TILES

SAN

ITAR

YWA

RE

Miguel Angel Munar

President FECS

Roca Sanitario SA

AB

RA

SIVES

François Wanecq

President PRE

Vesuvius plc

Gernot Schoebitz

President Feugres

Steinzeug-Keramo GmbH

CLA

Y PIPES

REFR

AC

TOR

IES

WA

LL & FLO

OR

TILES P

OR

CELAIN

ENA

MEL

Kevin Oakes

President FEPF

Steelite Intl.

Alessandro Gallo

President FEPA

Siapi Srl

TAB

LE- & O

RN

AM

ENTA

LWA

RE

Richard Gaignon

President EuTeCer

3DCeram

Joerg Wendel

President EEA

Wendel GmbH

TECH

NIC

AL C

ERA

MIC

S

Jose Luis Lanuza

President CET

Keraben Grupo

Heimo Scheuch

CU Vice-President

Wienerberger AG

Alain Delcourt

CU President

Agrob Buchtal GmbH

Alfonzo Panzani

CU Vice-President

Ceramiche Ricchetti SpA

Presidents

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Staff

External network

Renaud Batier

Director General

CET Secretary General

Astrid Volckaert

Director for Environment &

Technical Affairs

PRE & EuTecer Secretary

General, FEPA Coordinator

Adolfo Aiello

Director for Climate &

Economic Affairs

TBE Secretary General

Nicole Le Poupon

Management Assistant

Simona Vackeová

Trade Policy Manager

FEPF Coordinator

Nuno Pargana

Construction &

Sustainability Manager

FECS & Feugres Coordinator

Ani Deal

Communications &

Events Manager

EEA Coordinator

Anne-Sophie Gerst

European Affairs

Manager (until end 2014)

AEGIS Europe—Advancing EU Employment, Growth, Investment and Innovation, in a Sus-tainable manner

AEII—Alliance of Energy-Intensive Industries

Alliance on industrial emissions

Alliance on origin marking

Alliance on REACH—Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical substances

Alliance on Trade Defence Instruments

A.SPIRE—Association for Sustainable Process Industry through Resource and Energy Effi-ciency

BUSINESSEUROPE

CheMI—Platform for Downstream Users of Chemicals in the Manufacturing Industry

CPE—Construction Products Europe

E2BA—Energy Efficient Buildings Association

ECO Platform

EPCF—European Parliament Ceramics Forum

FAIB—Federation of European and Interna-tional Associations

European Masonry Alliance

NEEIP—Non-Energy Extractive Industry Panel

NEPSI—European network for silica

WCTF—World Ceramic Tiles Forum

WRA—World Refractories Association

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Membership

Cerame-Unie members include national associations and companies from 30 European countries, including 26 EU member states.

As an umbrella organisation, Cerame-Unie represents nine sectors of the ceramic industry (see p.22).

On 1 January 2014, the European Enamel Authority (EEA) joined Cerame-Unie as its newest associate mem-ber. Cerame-Unie is pleased to welcome EEA, a European federation of national associations representing the porcelain and vitreous enamel sector, as its ninth ceramic sector. Representing about 150 companies across Europe, EEA and Cerame-Unie will cooperate on issues of common interest, such as Food Contact Materials.

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Companies interested in becoming a member of Cerame-Unie are warmly welcomed to contact the Cerame-

Unie Secretariat indicating to which sector they belong.

FULL

Membership benefits

Up-to-date and efficient monitoring of European issues relevant for the ceramic industry.

Access to statistical information on the specific sector and the ceramic industry as a whole.

Involvement in all stages of the legislative process, from the development of the proposal to the implementation at national level.

Access to expertise in the fields of climate, energy, trade, environment and construction poli-cies.

Invitations to participate in expert meetings organised by Cerame-Unie or European institu-tions, the Cerame-Unie General Assembly and the European Parliament Ceramics Forum.

Access to up-to-date and efficient monitoring of European issues already covered by Cerame-Unie.

Access to statistical information on the ceramic industry as a whole.

Invitations to participate in expert meetings organised by Cerame-Unie or European institu-tions, the Cerame-Unie General Assembly and the European Parliament Ceramics Forum.

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How to become a member

FULL

According to Article 6.1 of the Cerame-Unie by-laws: “The following may be admitted as full mem-bers of the Association:

professional Federations with a European dimension representing ceramic manufacturers,

National Federations representing national ceramic manufacturers of EU member states, only if no European Federation having the legal personality exists,

private companies manufacturing ceramics with their head office in a EU Member State, only if no National Federation exists. May however become a member private companies having the legal personality and being a member of a European association of ceramic manufacturers lack-ing the legal personality.”

According to Article 7.1 of the Cerame-Unie by-laws, “The following may be admitted as associate members of the Association:

National Federations that do not belong to a member state of the European Union representing national ceramic industries of their country;

in exceptional cases European Federations or, for lack of those National Federations or, for lack of those private companies, whose business is linked to the ceramic industry.”

ASS

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26

Cerame-Unie A.I.S.B.L.

Rue de la Montagne 17, 1000 Brussels

Tel. +32 2 808 38 80

Fax +32 2 511 51 74

sec@cerameunie.eu

www.cerameunie.eu

twitter.com/CerameUnie

Cerame-Unie is the Brussels-based trade association

that represents the European ceramic industry.

We engage in a constructive dialogue with the EU in-

stitutions, international partners and social and envi-

ronmental stakeholders on behalf of our members.

Our members include national associations and com-

panies from nine ceramic sectors and 30 European

countries, including 26 EU member states.

Published by Cerame-Unie No part of this brochure may be reproduced in any form without the prior written permission of Cerame-Unie.