Zion Research has published a new report titled “Polyurethane (Flexible Foam, Rigid Foam, Coatings, Adhesives, Sealants, and Elastomers) Market for Furniture, Building & Construction, Electronics, Automotive, Footwear, Packaging and Other Applications – Global Industry Perspective, Comprehensive Analysis and Forecast, 2014 – 2020.” According to the report, global polyurethane market was valued at around $49.5 billion in 2014 and is expected to reach $77.0 billion in 2020, growing at a CAGR of around 7.5 percent between 2015 and 2020. Polyurethane polyols can be manufactured by the reaction of isocyanates such as toluene diisocyanate (TDI) or diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI) and polyols. Polyurethane foams (PU) such as rigid PU foam, flexible PU foam, semi rigid foam, molded foam, etc. are some of the major product types of PU. Coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers (CASE), etc. are some of the other product types of polyurethane. Construction, automotive, footwear, electrical and electronics are among the major end user industries of polyurethane. The polyurethane market is mainly driven by strong demand of polyurethane in the form of sealants, thermal insulators and flooring materials from construction industry. Growing end-use industries like automotive, footwear, electrical and electronics in emerging nations is expected to drive the market for polyurethane.

Polyurethane has a broad range of applications such as transportation, furniture, textiles, fibers and apparel, packaging, etc. These applications plays vital role in driving polyurethane market. Additionally, the rapidly expanding market of footwear in the emerging countries is also expected to surge demand for polyurethane in the years to come. However, manufacturers are expected to face some challenges such as growing cost of raw materials associated with manufacturing of polyurethane. On the basis of product type polyurethane market can be segmented as flexible foam and rigid foam, coatings, adhesives and sealants, elastomers. Flexible foam was the largest product segment in 2014 and accounted for over 35% share of the total market. Globally increasing usage of flexible foam in furniture and interiors, cushioning, and automotive seat applications are expected to enlarge growth over the next years. However, rigid foam is expected to exhibit rapid growth owing to demand from insulation application. Key application markets for polyurethane include furniture, building and construction, electronics, automotive, footwear, packaging and other applications. Bedding & furniture application segment is likely to be the fastest-growing application in coming years.

Additionally, some functional properties like abrasion resistance, environment sustainability are expected to increase demand of polyurethane over the next few years. The polyurethane market was dominated by Asia Pacific with account significant share in total 2014. Asia Pacific is followed by Europe and North America. Asia Pacific is expected to witness significant rise in polyurethane market due to large demand from emerging countries like China, India for various end-use industries like construction and automotive. Key players operating in this market includes The Dow Chemical Company, Bayer AG, BASF SE, Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd., Nitto Denko Corporation, Compagnie De Saint-Gobain S.A., Huntsman Corporation, Wanhua, Chemical Group Co., Ltd. (Former: Yantai Wanhua Polyuretanes Co., Ltd.), Trelleborg AB, Tosoh Corporation (Nippon Polyurethane Industry Co., Ltd.) and Chemtura Corporation