Adhesives & Sealants Industry Top Stories

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I recently took the Bonding with ASI podcast on the road, sitting down with Joe Tocci, president of the Pressure Sensitive Tape Council (PSTC) at Tape Week in Orlando, Fla. Postponed twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the inaugural Tape Week was held May 3-5, 2022.

For both specialty chemicals and adhesives and sealants, quality training is paramount. Ensuring the safety of employees and their ability to successfully operate equipment is the number-one priority. In these unprecedented times, workforce development issues seem to compound each other, making onboarding new operators and training long-term employees a necessary and integral part of a chemical plant’s success—in safety and in business.

The global market for bio-adhesives reached nearly $2.2 billion in 2021. These bio-based materials find extensive applications across numerous industries, including medical, packaging and paper, construction, wood, and personal care.

Additive manufacturing/3D printing has grown into a $14 billion industry since its inception, according to McKinsey, and the market’s annual growth rate is 22%. Many can agree on the potential 3D printing has when it comes to innovation and being able to create prototypes and items with minimal material use, but its value is extending beyond that original purpose.

Automobile manufacturers have identified approximately 200 sensor areas around the vehicle that will be instrumental in achieving commercialization and meeting safety goals for autonomous vehicles. The main commonality is the need to protectively seal these key sensor platform areas from the heat, cold, moisture, and stress that result from the rigors of the automotive environment.

The global epoxy adhesives market is expected to reach $11.6 billion by 2026. These adhesives offer high shear strength while bonding efficiently to substrates like wood, glass, and metal. They also provide minimal shrinkage, superior thermal and chemical resistance, and cohesive strength.

Market studies indicate that the use of structural adhesives will continue to show significant growth in the coming years. Whether for first joining operations, maintenance, or repair operations, the use of paste adhesives offers many advantages compared to welding or traditional mechanical fastening, including ease of use, environmental resistance, sealing, stress distribution, and joining dissimilar materials.

RadTech will hold its RadTech UV+EB 2022 conference and exhibition May 9-12, 2022, at the Hyatt Regency Orlando in Orlando, Fla.

Adhesives will play a defining role in the future of packaging development, with the post-COVID marketplace providing a spur to sustainable technology. In 2021, the packaging industry is estimated to have consumed 5.40 million metric tons of adhesives. A forecast CAGR of 3.4% will push global consumption of packaging adhesives to 7.90 million metric tons in 2027.

Pressure-sensitive tape has a high degree of functionality, which in turn often results in savings of time and money, quality improvements via enhanced performance, and improved aesthetics. In multiple examples across several markets, process improvements such as reduced preparation time and decreased downtime add to the overall value generated by pressure-sensitive tape use.