The Adhesives and
Sealants Market
How will decreased consumer spending and the onset of a
housing crisis impact the adhesives and sealants market?
BY KERRY PIANOFORTE
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
The adhesives and sealants market has not been immune to
the challenging economic conditions over the past year. Limited supplies and rising raw material prices,
coupled with a decrease in consumer
spending indicates that the adhesives
and sealants market is in for another
tough year.
“It’s been a challenging year in the
market due to rising raw material
costs, scarcity of key raw materials
and compressed margins,” said
Rodney Hawkins, general manager,
Momentive Performance Materials,
an exclusive licensee of General
Electric Sealants and Adhesives. “The
residential construction market has
mirrored the condition of the U.S.
economy—with consumer spending
down and the housing sector retreating. According to an article in the
Wall Street Journal, housing starts
are at a 17-year low. And, the inventory of houses is greater than it has
ever been. However, commercial construction has been robust over the
past several years. Despite the issues
with raw materials, the market has
continued to grow and in fact, we’ve
seen an increase from last year.”
According to Hawkins, the Chem-Quest Group, a consulting firm for the
coatings, adhesives and sealants industries, predicts sealants are forecast for
17% volume declines; with revenue
growth of 14% compared to 2007.
Adhesives are forecast for nine percent
volume declines and revenue growth of
12% compared to 2007.
“The market was quite robust during the first half of the year in commercial construction,” said Randy
Korach, president of Tremco’s global
sealants division. “It is now begin-
ning to cool though, as economic conditions worsen and credit tightens.”
A STICKY SITUATION
Escalating raw material and fuel costs
continue to impact the adhesives and
sealants industries. “It will be a continued effort to reach greater levels of
efficiency and to exhaust every appropriate avenue to reduce costs and identify solutions that mitigate these difficult economic times,” said Hawkins.
Tremco’s Spectrem 3 advanced silicone
technology combines the weather-resist-ance of silicone with a polymeric system
that virtually eliminates dirt pickup and
staining.
