profile
Gonzalo is Wienerberger’s Director of Sales and Customer Experience, responsible for driving business growth and delivering commercial excellence whilst improving customer experience in key segments. Previously Gonzalo held the position of Category Director, responsible for Wienerberger’s portfolio of building solutions that support the construction industry in delivering a healthier, sustainable built environment for the future. Gonzalo has an MBA from Manchester Business School, MSc Sales & Marketing Management and BSc Industrial Engineering, 20 years’ experience with blue-chip companies within Construction, Chemical and Packaging industries in Latin America, Europe and the UK. Having worked for companies like DuPont, Sherwin-Williams and Hilti in the past, his areas of expertise are B2B marketing, product and category management, business development, strategy and leadership of cross-cultural and cross-functional teams.
Wienerberger
Wienerberger offers UK customers one of the broadest product portfolios in the business, including clay facing bricks (stock and wire-cut), specialist engineering bricks, the Porotherm clay block system, façade solutions including SVK fibre cement panels, the Corium cladding system and a wide range of brick slips. We also offer a full range of Sandtoft and Koramic clay, concrete and slate roofing products, Keymer handmade roof tiles, bespoke heritage products and a range of domestic and commercial pavers.
We are about more than just our products, it is also the ‘extras’ that we provide that makes us different. Our commitment to service and ensuring that our customers find it easy to do business with us is what differentiates us from the rest of the industry. We provide full technical support for all our products, CPD sessions for architects, product training, bespoke products and merchant services. As well as an in-house Design Services team to assist with projects, we also have an array of online tools designed to help with specification.
Visit www.wienerberger.co.uk
Twitter: @wienerbergeruk
Launched in 2015, the award winning monthly Builders Merchant Building Index (BMBI) report is the only reliable measure of repair, maintenance & improvement (RMI) activity in the UK. Filling an important gap, it can be widely used in construction, and by economists, Government, national media, commentators and influencers outside the industry.
Wienerberger Comment: Q4 2023
Last year closed with the newbuilding sector still sluggish. Operators in the brick and tile sector remain cautious for 2024 however with interest rates flatlining and inflation reducing since September, there is optimism that housebuilding activity will pick up. To stabilise and protect future business, many manufacturers streamlined their production lines and some closed factories for an extended Christmas period in an attempt to align capacity to demand.
With manufacturers making use of these levers the outlook feels more promising. During Q4, the Labour Party outlined its ambitions to build 1.5 million new homes, making the ‘dream of home ownership a reality.’ Anyone in the building business cannot help but be intrigued by the pledges of planning reform to quickly boost housebuilding, the next generation of new towns complete with green spaces and infrastructure, and a ‘planning passport’ for urban brownfield development. The industry will be interested to see how this might stack up against The Conservative Party’s commitment to deliver 1 million net new dwellings during its term until the end of 2024 which looks unlikely to be met without major planning reform.
While the political pressure to improve rates of housebuilding remains headline news, the housing developer volumes look to be similar in 2024 to the prior year, as many still await clarity on the rollout and enforcement of the Future Homes Standard. The Prime Minister’s decision to roll back pre-agreed net zero policies, although confirming the UK is still committed to its targets, has sent a confusing message to the industry.
The Code for Construction Product Information (CCPI) is gaining significant momentum and importance in the industry. Manufacturers are working hard to ensure their product information is built around 5 ‘acid tests’ where information must be Clear, Accurate, Up-to-date, Accessible and Unambiguous. The CCPI will help organisations drive higher standards in the presentation of construction product information. It prioritises building safety and is designed to give users greater confidence. Some national housebuilders have indicated they’ll only buy from CCPI-certified suppliers in the future and many have committed their support for CCPI by requiring strategic suppliers to be CCPI verified or undergoing the verification process.