The global specialty polymers market is expected to record a CAGR of over 7% during the forecast period of 2019-2024.
The major factors driving the market studied are increasing applications in the construction and electronic industries, commercialization of lightweight polymers for automotive and aerospace applications, and the increasing availability of feedstock derived from natural gas and crude oil processing.
Key Highlights
Fluctuating operational costs to derive feedstock and technological obsolescence due to constantly changing end-user needs are expected to hinder the growth of the market studied.
Emerging specialty polymer technologies in a myriad of industrial applications and prolific commercialization of engineered polymer and specialty film products are likely to act as opportunities to the market studied over the forecast period.
Market Trends
Automotive & Transportation Industry to Dominate the Market
Owing to their suitable properties, such as excellent thermal resistance, wear resistance, ease of processing and designing, and fatigue endurance, specialty polymers are extensively used in the automotive and transportation industries.
These materials are reliable and safe for use in vehicles, due to their exceptional thermal resistance. They provide sophisticated aesthetic appeal to vehicles, at competitive prices.
With the rise in demand for lightweight and fuel-efficient cars, the use of polymers has increased in automotive parts, for replacing heavy metals in order to reduce weight. It has been estimated that every 10% reduction in vehicle weight results in a 5-7% reduction in fuel usage.
As specialty polymers play a key role in automobile manufacturing, the demand for these materials is increasing with the rising sales of vehicles across the globe.
The automotive polymer composite industry fosters economic activity indirectly throughout the supply chain of a vehicle and through the payrolls paid both by the industry itself and the consumers. The light vehicle industry is an important customer for various specialty polymers and there exists a significant competition, especially with aluminum and steel.
Thus, with the rise in the quantity of polymers being used during the manufacturing of automobile and with the increasing demand for lightweight vehicles, the usage of specialty polymers is expected to increase in the automotive and transportation sector.
Asia-Pacific to Dominate the Market
Asia-Pacific is expected to display the fastest growth in the specialty polymers market over the forecast period. The expanding automotive and electrical industries in China and India, combined with infrastructural development is expected to drive the specialty polymers market in the region. Moreover, economic growth and increasing per capita income are some of the major factors that are triggering the growth of the specialty polymers market in Asia-Pacific.
In Asia-Pacific, the market is dominated by China. As China is one of the emerging economies witnessing healthy economic growth. The Chinese government's policies have been in line with the proposed objectives to implement economic reforms, thus ensuring healthy growth of the country during the forecast period.
Being the largest manufacturing country in the world, the country has become the largest producer of automobiles,and the largest producer of paints & coatings, and the second largest producer of semiconductors. In the year 2018, China produced 27,809,196 units of motor vehicles, and Japan produced 9,728,528 units, followed by India (5,174,645 units produced in the year 2018). Therefore, the automotive segment is growing at a high rate in the Asia-Pacific region which is likley to propel the demand for specialty polymers market in the forecast period.
China is mainly focusing on increasing the production and sales of electric vehicles in the country. For this purpose, the country has planned to increase the production of electric vehicles (EVs) to 2 million a year by 2020, and 7 million a year by 2025. The target, if achieved, is expected to increase the share of electric vehicles to 20% of total new car production for China, by 2025.
Specialty polymers are widely used in the automotive, electronics, and semiconductors industries. Hence, with robust growth in these industries and government support, the demand for specialty polymers is projected to increase at a healthy pace during the forecast period.
Competitive Landscape
The global specialty polymers market is fragmented in nature. The major companies include 3M, Arkema Group, BASF, Evonik Industries, and Solvay.
Topics Covered
1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Study Deliverables 1.2 Study Assumptions 1.3 Scope of the Study
2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
4 MARKET DYNAMICS 4.1 Drivers 4.1.1 Increasing Applications in the Construction and Electronic Industries 4.1.2 Commercialization of Lightweight Polymers for Automotive and Aerospace Applications 4.1.3 Increasing Availability of Feedstock Derived from Natural Gas and Crude Oil Processing 4.2 Restraints 4.2.1 Fluctuating Operational Costs to Derive Feedstock 4.2.2 Technological Obsolescence Due to Constantly Changing End-user Needs 4.3 Industry Value-Chain Analysis 4.4 Porters 5 Force Analysis
5 MARKET SEGMENTATION 5.1 Type 5.1.1 Specialty Elastomers 5.1.2 Specialty Composites 5.1.3 Specialty Thermoplastics 5.1.4 Specialty Thermosets 5.1.5 Others 5.2 End-user Industry 5.2.1 Automotive & Transportation 5.2.2 Consumer Goods 5.2.3 Building & Construction 5.2.4 Coatings, Adhesives & Sealants 5.2.5 Electrical & Electronics 5.2.6 Healthcare 5.2.7 Other End-user Industries 5.3 Geography 5.3.1 Asia-Pacific 5.3.1.1 China 5.3.1.2 India 5.3.1.3 Japan 5.3.1.4 South Korea 5.3.1.5 Rest of Asia-Pacific 5.3.2 North America 5.3.2.1 United States 5.3.2.2 Canada 5.3.2.3 Mexico 5.3.3 Europe 5.3.3.1 Germany 5.3.3.2 United Kingdom 5.3.3.3 Italy 5.3.3.4 France 5.3.3.5 Rest of Europe 5.3.4 South America 5.3.4.1 Brazil 5.3.4.2 Argentina 5.3.4.3 Rest of South America 5.3.5 Middle East & Africa 5.3.5.1 Saudi Arabia 5.3.5.2 South Africa 5.3.5.3 Rest of Middle East & Africa
6 COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE 6.1 Mergers & Acquisitions, Joint Ventures, Collaborations, and Agreements 6.2 Market Share Analysis 6.3 Strategies Adopted by Leading Players 6.4 Company Profiles 6.4.1 3M 6.4.2 A Schulman 6.4.3 Arkema Group 6.4.4 Ashland Inc. 6.4.5 Associated industries Inc. 6.4.6 BASF SE 6.4.7 Braskem 6.4.8 Chemtura Corporation 6.4.9 Covestro 6.4.10 Croda International PLC 6.4.11 Elantas GmbH 6.4.12 Endurance Technologies Limited 6.4.13 Evonik Industries AG 6.4.14 Hexion Inc. 6.4.15 Huntsman Corp. 6.4.16 Koninklijke DSM N.V. 6.4.17 PolyOne 6.4.18 S&E Specialty Polymers LLC 6.4.19 Solvay 6.4.20 Speciality Polymers Pvt. Ltd.
7 MARKET OPPORTUNITIES AND FUTURE TRENDS 7.1 Emerging Specialty Polymer Technologies in a Myriad of Industrial Applications 7.2 Prolific Commercialization of Engineered Polymer and Specialty Film Products
