A report on the polymer foam materials industry in China has been released by Research and Markets. The industry is growing faster and the output has reached 2.414 Mt in 2010 with an average annual growth rate of 18.1% starting from 2001 to 2010.
The report includes profiles of top companies in the polymer foam materials industry, including Fujian Sansd Plastic, Huntsman, BASF, Jianxin Plastic Rubber, Bayer, Changzhou Sanhe Plastic Rubber Company and Quanzhou Sansheng Rubber Plastic Foamed Shoes Materials.
Polymer foam materials are available in different types based on raw materials: expandable polyethylene (EPE), expandable polypropylene (EPP), expanded ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), expandable polystyrene (EPS), expandable polyurethane (EPU) and others.
EPU has potential uses in markets such as solar water heaters, building insulation and refrigeration. Guangdong Wanhua Rongwei Polyurethane and Nanjing Hongbaoli are major Chinese producers of polyurethane hard foam materials. Nanjing Hongbaoli has the largest production capacity of 90 kt of hard foam combined materials in China.
China's production capacity of EPS surpassed 4 Mt in 2010. Wuxi Xingda Group and Loyal Group are leading manufacturers of EPS. The production capacities of both the companies reached 1.34 Mt.
In 2010, more than 1,200 foam plastic manufacturers have been registered. Though China’s polymer foam materials market is established, local producers particularly focus on manufacturing low and medium-end products, while few high-end products are still imported.