Europe's growing market for composites underpins its attraction as a comparatively safe haven for market investors. Nations of the European Union are among the most diversified and technologically advanced nations. Yet, the vulnerability of the regions is visible, as Asia and the US continue to dominate the world composite market. In an analysis of the global composites market, Lucintel, a leading global management consulting and market research firm, revealed that the global composites market is anticipated to grow at Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 6 per cent and reach approximately $ 35.1 billion, or € 25.6 billion, by 2019.

The Asian region is also expected to further secure its leadership with a market share of approximately 49.5 per cent by volume in 2019. North America is expected to trail second in growth, with an estimated market share of 28.4 per cent in 2019. In the midst of the competition, EU's composites market is creating opportunities to flourish by creating a lasting success. It is believed that the improving economic conditions in Europe may drive the global composites market towards strong growth.

For Europe, a tensed market graph of the previous years is still a background concern. In the region, the last five years have been marked by a decline in GDP, slow growth of the residential construction segment, and low access to foreign markets, which weakened the market for textile composite applications. The recovery of the market has already started, but Europe's concerns run deeper, as the cost of raw materials is on the rise and has led to a rise in the prices of textile composites. The plan to pass a portion of these costs to the consumers, or raising prices in a marketplace with markedly high competition, can backfire for Europe's recovering textile composites.

However, the current market conditions are promising. According to the latest market reports, the European composites market witnessed growth by 2 per cent in the glass-reinforced plastic (GRP) segment. This growth has surprised the global players. Europe is expected to produce 2.2 million tonnes of GRP by the end of 2014 against the global production of 8.5 million tonnes during the corresponding period.

Though Europe's textile composite market still lags behind many other countries that have proved their mettle around the world, positive changes in composites' global market dynamics could come to aid to the EU's composites market recovery. The opportunities for highly specialized European firms are mounting, and innovation is the key to surpass the competitors. The research and development potential of Europe's textile composites firms are far from exhausted. The European Union has already invested in research of plastics reinforced with textiles.

This innovative composite will provide strength without adding weight to the product. Commercial use of this innovation is expected to open the aero industry's market for EU textile composites. Still, finding ways to combine different materials remains a major challenge for the future. Developers and the textile composite industry in Europe are increasingly working on solutions that are based not on single materials but on efficient and elegant combinations.

So far, progress made by Europe in the composite segment is largely due to the result of stable and above-average markets of Germany, UK, Ireland and other eastern European countries. This growth can also be attributed to the escalating demand for textile composites in the construction and transport industries. Germany's automotive industry has escalated the consumption and production of composites, whereas, the flourishing construction sector of the UK has pushed up the demand of composites. Spain, Portugal and Italy have also shown slight improvement in the composite market, mainly the GRP production.


Another promising segment of the European textile composites is thermoplastic. Thermoplastics are mostly required in the automotive industry for weight saving purpose and to increase fuel economy at the forefront of any design. The volume of European thermoplastic has also grown by 3 per cent this year. This momentum is expected to continue for the next five years.


The steady market for composites has led to a 25 per cent increase of visitors and 7 per cent increase of exhibitors in this year's Composites Europe event, compared to the previous event. In spite of these constructive changes, Europe's textile composite market is yet to settle down. The demand of composites is likely to be affected by the preference of material required by automotive and construction industry. These sectors are eyeing materials that not only promise superior performance, but are also cost effective. As of now, further expansion of this sector is not going to yield profit for Europe. The region needs to concentrate on developing cost, manufacturing and robustness of textile composites, in an effort to meet the market demand.


Meanwhile, Europe is eyeing on a new international conference organised by the trade association, Composites Germany, in order to boost the sector's internal and external performance. The larger picture for Europe's composite sector looks promising, as the industry continues to register higher than average sales. Now, the region is placing its efforts in the direction to ensure that the future of composites is marked by continuous growth in the existing, emerging and new market segments.



References:


1. Business-standard.com

2. Cordis.europa.eu

3. Composites-germany.org

4. Innovationintextiles.com