Major differences in the level of sustainability in projects of electrical installers

Buildings and building construction are major contributors to annual CO2 emissions. That is why sustainability is a hot topic in the construction and especially in the installation sector. One way to make buildings more climate-neutral is to kit them out with more sustainable and energy-efficient installation systems, which need to be installed by professional installers. That makes installation companies excellent sources to indicate how often these sustainable products and solutions are used in projects.

The installation sector is broad though, and installers can differ significantly in their specialisations and installation activities. That is why USP developed two monitors for the installation sector, of which one focuses on companies mainly involved in HVAC installation and plumbing, and the other on electrical installers.

In a previous article we discussed the role of sustainability in the projects of HVAC installers. With the Q1 2022 report of USP Marketing Consultancy’s European Electrical Installation Monitor, which focuses on sustainability in the electrical installation market, we can compare previous sustainability figures with the influence of sustainability in the projects of electrical installers.

Major differences in the level of sustainability in projects of electrical and HVAC installers

According to electrical installers in the Netherlands, sustainability is of influence in half of their projects, which is the highest share of the seven countries involved in the research. They are followed closely by installers from Spain and the UK, with 48% of electrical installation projects involving sustainability in some form. Sustainability has the least influence in projects of electrical installers in Germany, where they see its influence in only 26% of their projects.

When comparing with projects of HVAC installers, similarities occur next to major differences. The share of both electrical and HVAC installation projects in which sustainability plays a role is highest in the Netherlands, for instance. When you look at the UK, however, those shares seem opposite, with one of the highest shares of electrical installation projects and the lowest share of HVAC installation projects in which sustainability is of influence in some form or other.

Know your installer

Such a difference illustrates that it is essential for manufacturers of sustainable installation products to know the segment of installers you aim to target. From our monitor research we know there is an overlap of activities of HVAC installers and electrical installers. On average, about a third of European electrical installers report to also do some HVAC and or plumbing activities, for instance.

But installers’ core activities determine their perspective the most. For electrical installers, the installations that occupy most of their agenda, the clients who ask for sustainability and the product groups they work with the most in those projects, determine their perspective on sustainability and what makes a project or product sustainable.

To find out how electrical installers from seven major European markets perceive sustainability, and what sustainable products they are using in their projects the most, we refer you to the Q1 2022 report of USP Marketing Consultancy’s European Electrical Installation Monitor.