Archive:Renting of construction equipment statistics - NACE Rev. 1.1

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Data from January 2009. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.

This article belongs to a set of statistical articles which analyse the structure, development and characteristics of the various economic activities in the European Union (EU). According to the statistical classification of economic activities in the EU (NACE Rev 1.1), the present article covers the renting of construction equipment, corresponding to NACE Group 45.5, which is part of the construction sector. The activities covered in this article are the renting of construction and demolition equipment with an operator, including cranes and mechanical diggers. It does not cover the simple renting of equipment without an operator, which in NACE is classified as Class 71.32 (see the article on renting and operational leasing).

Table 1: Renting of construction or demolition equipment with operator (NACE Group 45.5). Structural profile: ranking of top five Member States in terms of value added and persons employed, 2006

Main statistical findings

Structural profile

Renting of construction or demolition equipment (NACE Group 45.5) was the smallest NACE group within the EU-27 construction sector (NACE Section F) in terms of the number of enterprises in the sector, as well as its employment, turnover and value added; this sector contributed less than 1 % to the construction total for each of these measures.

Within the EU-27, the United Kingdom dominated this small sector, with its EUR 1.4 billion of value added equal to 35.0 % of the EU-27 total in 2006, and its workforce accounting for 22.0 % of the EU-27 total. Spain and the Netherlands were the next largest Member States by both of these measures. In terms of value added, however, Estonia and Slovenia were the only Member States where this activity contributed 0.3 % or more to the non-financial business economy total.

Expenditure and productivity

Although small in terms of output and employment, this sector recorded a relatively substantial level of tangible investment. Tangible investment in this sector was valued at EUR 1.3 billion in the EU-27 in 2006, which equated to 2.7 % of the total for the construction sector, some 3.5 times as high as its contribution in value added terms. The investment rate, which relates investment to value added, was 32.8 % for the renting of construction or demolition equipment, well above the non-financial business economy average of 18.4 %. Indeed, the investment rate was the sixth highest among the 149 non-financial business economy NACE groups with 2005 or 2006 data available. To some extent these high investment indicators reflect the nature of this capital-intensive activity.

EU-27 personnel costs accounted for 32.1 % of operating expenditure in this sector in 2005, the highest share among the construction NACE groups. At EUR 28.6 thousand per employee in 2006, average personnel costs were also above the construction average, but were lower than for site preparation (2005). Apparent labour productivity was EUR 50.0 thousand per person employed, by far the highest level in construction, and this resulted in a particularly high wage-adjusted labour productivity ratio of 175.0 %. It should be noted that financial costs and depreciation charges constitute the main cost elements (other than personnel costs) in this activity and these are not considered when calculating gross value added on which these productivity measures are based.

Data sources and availability

The main part of the analysis in this article is derived from structural business statistics (SBS), including core, business statistics which are disseminated regularly, as well as information compiled on a multi-yearly basis, and the latest results from development projects.

Context

Building and civil engineering projects typically take much longer from conception to completion than in many other sectors, and often involve a large number of sub-contracting enterprises with various specialisations. Construction projects are often a key factor in urban regeneration, and also in maintaining or developing transport and communication infrastructure. Nevertheless, construction projects impact upon the environment in a number of ways, notably the change in land use, the consumption of materials and fuel, the production of waste, as well as noise and air emissions.

Another characteristic of construction activity is that it is particularly cyclical, influenced by business and consumer confidence, interest rates and government programmes. The level of confidence among construction enterprises, according to the European Commission's Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs is presented in terms of a balance of positive compared with negative responses. This measure turned positive in July 2006 for the first time since June 1990, peaked in September 2006 and then became negative again in November 2007. During 2008, the fall in construction confidence accelerated and fell particularly strongly in the final quarter of 2008, such that by December 2008 the balance was down to -32.3 %. At the time of writing, with overall economic activity declining in many Member States, major public sector funding for infrastructure projects has been proposed by a number of governments as one means of stimulating activity and creating jobs.

See also

• Construction cost index overview
• Construction statistics - NACE Rev. 2
• Industry and construction statistics - short-term indicators

Further Eurostat information

Publications

• European Business: Facts and figures - 2009 edition

Main tables

• Structural business statistics (t_sbs)

Database

• Structural business statistics (sbs)

Dedicated section

• Structural business statistics

External links

• European Commission's Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs - Economic databases and indicators