Joint Research Centre (JRC) Taps and showerheads Progress report IPTS - Institute for Prospective Technological Studies Seville - Spain

Task 1 Product Definition Task 2 Market Analysis Task 3 User Behaviour Task 4 Technical Analysis Task 5 Improvement Potential Task 6 Policy Analysis Task 7 Criteria Development Taps and Showerheads

Product Definition Problem: No clear cut definition available in PRODCOM, NACE or COMBINED NOMENCLATURE classifications Consequence: Different statistics, different definition, unclear mixture of products Taps and Showerheads – Task 1 CodesDescription CN Mixing valves for sinks, washbasins, bidets, water cisterns, baths and similar fixtures PRODCOM Mixing valves for sinks, wash basins, bidets, water cisterns etc excluding valves for pressure reducing or oleohydraulic/pneumatic power transmissions, check valves, safety/relief valves CN Taps, cocks and valves for sinks, washbasins, bidets, water cisterns, baths and similar fixtures (excl. Mixing valves) PRODCOM Taps, cocks and valves for sinks, wash basins, bidets, water cisterns etc excluding valves for pressure-reducing/oleohydraulic transmissions, check, safety, relief and mixing valves

Product Definition Problem: Also different definitions available in European standards like EN 1111:1998 (taps) and 1112:2008 (showerheads) and MS standards like the British Standard BS and BS 5388:1976. Also non EU standards are different (e.g. US Energy Policy Act 1992). Definitions exist for: Tap, spray tap, thermostatic mixing valve, shower outlet, spray plate, shower arm, handset holder, slide bar, shower handset, shower, shower head, fixed shower head, swivel shower head, flexible hose, shower hose, rigid riser, flow restrictor, flow rate regulator, spray outlet Taps and Showerheads – Task 1

Product definition Standards as well as product testing procedures have been collected, giving values for leaktightness, pressure resistance etc. at EU level (CEN), at MS level and for non-EU countries. Labelling schemes exist at EU level (tourist accommodation, camp sites) as well as in some MS, although in the majority of cases there is a flow rate determined within the scope of a larger labelling scheme (e.g. for hotels and youth hostels). Taps and Showerheads – Task 1

Definition (after survey consultation to stakeholders): Taps and Showerheads – Task 1 Tap - “a small diameter directly or indirectly manually operated valve from which water is drawn”. Showerhead - either a “fixed overhead or side shower outlet which directs water onto the user” or a “moveable hand held shower outlet which is connected to the sanitary tapware via a shower hose and can be hung directly on the tapware or on the wall with the aid of an appropriate support (also known as a shower handset)”. In both cases the product scope applies to products of the type typically used in a domestic setting (This is not restricted to the use of products for domestic uses only, it also includes similar non domestic uses of the products) Bathtub taps and non-domestic special purpose taps and showerheads which need unrestricted water flow to fulfil the intended function (e.g. laboratory safety taps and showers) are excluded from the product scope.

Task 2 Market Analysis (feedback from stakeholders not yet integrated) Used definition: Taps and Showerheads – Task 2 CodesDescription PRODCOM Mixing valves for sinks, wash basins, bidets, water cisterns etc excluding valves for pressure reducing or oleohydraulic/pneumatic power transmissions, check valves, safety/relief valves PRODCOM Taps, cocks and valves for sinks, wash basins, bidets, water cisterns etc excluding valves for pressure-reducing/oleohydraulic transmissions, check, safety, relief and mixing valves

Production, Sold volume in Thousands kilos/Value in Million Euros– 2008 Taps and Showerheads – Task kgEurokgEuro EU-2720,6431,55094, Available information and assumptions indicate a split of 25% (showerheads) to 75% (taps) Average product Weights (kg) Product Average Weight (kg) Kitchen Taps2.2 Bathroom basin taps1.8 Average for taps2.0 Shower heads0.4 For all figures the MS breakdown is available

Production, Import, Export, Apparent Consumption in Units (thousands of units) Based on Eurostat Taps and Showerheads – Task TapsShowerheads EU-27 Production54,13018,043 EU-27 Imports101,31333,771 EU-27 Exports80,46726,822 EU-27 Apparent Consumption74,97524,992 Total sales/consumption: Around 100 million units total 75 million taps 25 million showerheads

Questionnaire feedback resulted in following average figures for the domestic sector Taps and Showerheads – Task 2 ApartmentHouse Average Number of Taps4,505,50 Average Number of Showers1,25 For the non domestic sector the following assumptions were made TapShowerhead Hospital every 4 beds11 Hospital kitchen tap every 75 beds1 - Hotel: 50% beds are 1 bed rooms11 Hotel 50% beds are 2 bed rooms11 Hotel kitchen tap every 100 beds1- Further assumptions for businesses and schools in EU

Taps and Showerheads – Task 2 Stock figures and future estimates (thousands of units) Calculation base: Population growth rate based on previous Eurostat trends, growth rate for hospitals, schools, hotels enterprises and employees per enterprise based on Eurostat figures Stock in EU Taps66,58068,17769,81077,95183,51395,041 Showerheads26,47527,09427,90830,16232,36537,065 Non-Domestic Stock in EU Taps990,520997,2231,015,2571,069,3671,101,3141,153,998 Showerheads242,530244,171248,587261,836269,658282,558 Domestic

Taps and Showerheads – Task 2 Sales figures and future estimates (thousands of units) Calculation base: Life span and stock Stock in EU Taps6,6586,8186,9817,7958,3519,504 Showerheads3,8433,9334,0514,3784,6985,380 Non-Domestic Stock in EU Taps61,90762,32663,45466,83568,83272,125 Showerheads24,41624,58125,02626,35927,14728,455 Domestic Life spanTapsShowerhead Domestic dwelling1610 Non-domestic sector107 Result model calculation 2007: Around 99 million units total 70 million taps 29 million showerheads Very similar to Eurostat

Taps and Showerheads – Task 2 Data collected related to user expenditure Retail prices Installation, repair and maintenance cost Cost of spare parts Gas, electricity and water prices

Taps and Showerheads – Task 3 Task 3 - User behaviour (feedback from stakeholders not yet integrated) Very limited data Water use in Europe between ~110 and ~180 liter/person/day UK: shower and bath 20%, 25% via taps France: shower or bath 40% NL: shower 40%

Taps and Showerheads – Task 3 User behaviour taps Difficult to measure, even through surveys, as taps are usually not opened to max flow rate. Research from MTP shows that the actual flow rate is similar across different types of taps, i.e. 2,3 liter per use UK: Kitchen taps are used 17 times/day (24 times if no dishwasher is available)

Taps and Showerheads – Task 3 User behaviour showerheads Difficult to measure, as flow rate per model and use time per person are very different UK: Shower on weekdays lasts 7 minutes, on weekends 8 minutes, younger people (<35 years) shower more than 2 minutes longer Water use per model varies between 4 and more than 12 liter/minute. Range is far broader than for taps

Taps and Showerheads – Task 2 Next steps - Technical analysis / Environmental assessment - Improvement potential - Policy analysis - Criteria development

Taps and Showerheads – Task 2 Thank you!