Glass & Glass Product Manufacturing

Glass & Glass Product Manufacturing

Brief Excerpt from Industry Overview Chapter:

Companies in this industry manufacture glass and glass products, including glass containers, flat glass, fiberglass, and specialty glass products. Major companies include Corning, Guardian Industries, and O-I Glass (all based in the US), as well as AGC (Japan), Compagnie de Saint-Gobain (France), Fuyao Glass Industry Group (China), and SCHOTT (Germany).

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Demand comes mainly from the construction, auto, bottling, and container industries. The profitability of individual companies depends on efficient operations, because most products are commodities that are bought based on price. Large manufacturers enjoy significant economies of scale in operations, which is why the industry is so concentrated. Small manufacturers can compete effectively by producing specialty products or serving a local market. The US industry is highly concentrated: the 50 largest companies account for about 80% of revenue.

PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Glass products are made by melting silica sand or cullet, or from purchased glass. Specialized glass for windows and doors accounts for about 30% of the US industry revenue. Other revenue sources include glass containers (about 20%), automotive mirrors (about 10%), and flat glass (about 10%).