Polyurethane adhesives occupy a significant position in the Chinese adhesive market due to their excellent bonding performance, flexibility, fatigue resistance and good adaptability to different materials. At present, it has become one of the adhesive categories with the largest market share and the widest application fields.
Market Share and Scale
From the perspective of the overall market structure, polyurethane adhesives rank among the top in terms of both sales volume and revenue share in China. According to industry analysis reports in recent years, polyurethane adhesives account for approximately 25% to 30% of the total sales of adhesives in China. Given that the overall market size of adhesives in China has exceeded 100 billion yuan, the annual sales volume of polyurethane adhesives is expected to be between 30 billion and 40 billion yuan, and the annual growth rate is usually higher than the average growth rate of the adhesive industry, maintaining at around 5% to 8%. This data highlights its position as a leading product in the market.
Data Analysis In Downstream Application Fields
Its huge market share stems from the strong demand from multiple key downstream industries:
1. Packaging and flexible packaging field: This is the largest application market for polyurethane adhesives (especially water-based and solvent-free types), accounting for more than 40% of their total consumption. With the strict control of VOCs emissions, solvent-free polyurethane laminating adhesives have developed rapidly and have a very high popularity rate in high-end food and pharmaceutical flexible packaging.
2. The footwear and textile industry: As a traditional advantageous field, polyurethane adhesives remain the preferred choice in areas such as shoe sole bonding, accounting for approximately 15% to 20% of the total usage. Although some production capacity has been transferred to Southeast Asia, domestic brand upgrades and high-end manufacturing still maintain a stable demand in this field.
3. In the fields of transportation and construction: In the automotive industry, polyurethane adhesives are used for bonding windshields, interior parts, etc., and the usage per vehicle continues to increase. In the field of building energy conservation, it is used for bonding exterior wall insulation boards, and its market share is stable. These two fields together contribute approximately 20% to 25% of the consumption.
4. New energy and electronic appliances: This is the fastest-growing emerging field. In the new energy fields such as wind turbine blade mold closing and photovoltaic module packaging, as well as in the bonding and sealing of electronic components like mobile phones and tablet computers, the application of high-performance polyurethane adhesives is growing rapidly. Although they currently account for about 10%, the growth rate is significant and they will be the main driving force for future market expansion.
Summary
To sum up, polyurethane adhesives, with their comprehensive performance advantages, have occupied approximately one quarter to one third of the Chinese market and are truly the leading category. Its growth momentum is gradually shifting from traditional packaging and shoe-making sectors to more environmentally friendly water-based and solvent-free products, as well as high-tech fields such as new energy and electronics. The market structure is continuously optimizing, and the future development prospects remain broad.
