Resins Update
“These companies are consistently focusing on expanding
their production capacity to achieve a competitive advantage
and thereby serving the customers more effectively,” the report
states. “New product launches were the most preferred strate-
gies by the top players in 2014 that were driving the demand of
adhesive resins. Their strategy to capture the untapped market
in developing economies includes agreements, collaborations,
and joint ventures.”
Asia-Pacific is the biggest and the fastest growing region for
adhesive resins due to the growing demand for adhesives and
sealants in India, China, Japan, South Korea, and Australia.
North America is a matured market and is expected to grow
with a low CAGR till 2020.
The acrylic resins market is also expected to grow, and has
been predicted to be worth $15,973.8 million by 2019. Markets
and Markets found that Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America
dominated this market and accounted for over 85 percent and
75 percent of the market, by volume and by value respectively.
The developing regions dominate the acrylic resin market
due to growth in related segments, researchers concluded.
“Country wise, China is the top most consumer of acrylic
resins, and is also the largest market for acrylic resins, expected to grow at a CAGR double than the global average for the
period 2014-2019. The U.S. is the second largest consumer of
acrylic resins. On the other hand, the Middle East and Africa is
expected to witness a growth rate, higher than global average,
from 2014 to 2019. The market in this region is experiencing
increased demand in several applications of acrylic resins,” the
report states.
Researchers added that the paints and coatings market is the
topmost application segment for acrylic resins and methyl meth-acrylatedominates is the key raw material in this market. Paints
and coatings account for more than 35 percent of the market,
by volume and by value. The fastest growth rate till 2019 in
the acrylic resins market is expected to come from paints and
coatings used in residential and commercial constructions, decorative coatings and DIY coatings, researchers stated. Acrylic
acid is the main raw material for the acrylic resins while MMA
(methyl methacrylate) dominates the acrylic resins market in
terms of volume and value.
A Market on the Upswing
Existing home sales is the most predictive leading indicator of
architectural coatings demand, according to John J. Hiel, North
America marketing manager for Arkema Coating Resins. The
architectural coatings market showed mid-single-digit growth
in 2014. Those sales, he said, fell short of 2013 totals.
“However, this was offset by continued strong unit turnover
and property upkeep demands in the multi-family market, as
a result of increased mobility of renters. The industrial resins
market continued its slow recovery, with the automotive market
being particularly strong again in 2014,” he said.
According to Julie Fuell, coatings sales director at Reichhold
Corporation, “Certain pockets of the market have continued to
show signs of recovery, while others continue to struggle due
to the low cost of crude oil and derivatives. Automotive has
been exceptionally strong, agricultural and oil field continue to
struggle, and housing and construction continues to trend in line
with GDP growth.”
Michael T. Venturini, global marketing manager, Coatings,
Sun Chemical, said that Sun Chemical Advanced Materials saw
a positive upswing in the global resins market, especially in sales
of UV-curable, waterborne and powder coating resins. Venturini
added that the resins market remains highly competitive.
“Environmental regulations and social change for sustainable
raw materials with less environmental impact are driving rapid
change and innovation in all segments of the coatings market,” he
said. “The trend is well established in Europe and the United States,
but is quickly growing in other regions, including China, which
have developed new regulations designed to improve air quality
and reduce VOC emissions. This has required paint producers to
transition from solvent to waterborne or low-VOC formulations.
The ever growing importance of waterborne technology has created exciting innovation opportunities for resin manufacturers.”
Meeting Demand while Maintaining Prices
In addition to meeting environmental regulations, resins cus-
tomers frequently have technical requests for their suppliers.
Larry Schnieders, technical product manager, Lubrizol
Performance Coatings, said that one frequent demand is for res-
ins that allow customers to formulate coatings that give supe-
rior performance at thinner dry film thicknesses.
“Thinner films dry more quickly, or at lower temperatures,
allowing production lines to run faster and ovens to be set at
lower temperatures. In 2015, Lubrizol introduced Permax
V1000, a vinylidene chloride acrylic resin, to meet this demand.
This resin can be used in coatings that have corrosion protection
at 1.5 mil ( 38 microns) dry film thickness equivalent to other
products that require a dry film thickness of at least 3. 5 mil (89
microns) to achieve this level of performance,” he said.
Schnieders added that another common demand is for res-
ins that are more environmentally-friendly. To meet that need,
the company introduced a non-halogen flame retardant acrylic,
Hycar NH 3069. “This resin imparts flame retardancy to cel-
lulosics without the use of additives or halogenated materials.
Media properly treated with Hycar NH3069 will pass NFPA
701 vertical and MVSS302 horizontal burn testing,” he said.
He added that in the last two years, Lubrizol has also introduced several resins for filtration media that do not contain, or
produce, formaldehyde.
According to Tom Hall, market segment ,manager - Industrial
Coatings, BASF Dispersions & Resins, North America, efficiency is the major driver for customers.
“They are seeking resins that can stick to anything, including poorly prepared substrates. Direct to metal continues to be
a major focus with expectations that single coat systems must
perform at the level of multi-coat systems,” he said.
In order to balance customer demands with rising costs associated with manufacturing resins, Hall said that BASF understands that its customers are “critical to our success.”
