Global Medical Nonwovens Market Expected to Reach $10.05 billion by 2020

Release time:

2018-03-29

According to the latest GrandViewResearch research, the global medical nonwovens market is expected to reach $10.05 billion by 2020. The increasing incidence of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) is driving the growth of this market, and products such as disposable surgical sheets and surgical gowns play an important role in reducing HAIs. Medical products made from nonwovens are more common in developed countries such as North America and Western Europe, but manufacturers are also beginning to see increasing interest in this high-performance material in various markets around the world. "According to independent market research

According to the latest research from Grand View Research, the global medical nonwovens market is expected to reach $10.05 billion by 2020. The increasing incidence of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) is driving the growth of this market, and products such as disposable surgical sheets and surgical gowns play an important role in reducing HAIs.

Medical products made from nonwovens are more common in developed countries such as North America and Western Europe, but manufacturers are also beginning to see increasing interest in this high-performance material in various markets around the world.

"According to independent market research firm forecasts, even developed market demand for medical nonwovens is growing," said Lynda Kelly, senior vice president of Suominen Care. "In North America, demand for medical products for nonwovens is expected to grow by about 5%, while annual growth in Europe is expected to be about 3%. These projections are based on current global human health trends: the increase in epidemics and hospital-acquired infections, and the challenges that the healthcare sector faces with changing business models."

However, she added, emerging markets are currently growing at the fastest rate. In fact, their company recently made an investment in a factory in Paolínia, Brazil, to help the company deliver new products to its customers in the South American medical market.

Dr. Frank Heislitz, chief technology officer of Freudenberg Performance Materials, said that another emerging region that plays an important role is Asia, which has shown strong economic growth rates, leading to improved living standards, and medical nonwovens have become more common. "This development has created a demand for such products that has never been seen in the past."

Plastics Berry has a similar view. "In developing markets, such as China and Brazil, the use of disposable nonwoven medical products is on the rise, with a very high growth rate, but from a small base." David Parks, senior vice president of marketing, strategy and business development for HHS(Health, Hygiene and Specialties) at Berry Plastics, said.

Berry's Plastics strategy

The acquisition of Avintiv by Berry Plastics for $2.45 billion last year complements their existing healthcare market solutions. According to Parks, after combining with the original solution, the company can now provide a comprehensive medical barrier material. They combine non-woven core technology with film lamination. End applications include surgical sheets and surgical gowns, masks, hand clothes, hats and shoe covers, isolation clothing, and medical device disinfection cloths.

"The first Avintiv of nonwovens used in medical products can be a good complement to Berry's film products," Parks said. "This complement can provide customers with a more complete solution to their infection prevention needs. In addition to providing materials for medical products, it also includes packaging materials to protect them and keep them sterile."

While continuing to integrate Avintiv products, Berry is also planning to expand into the North American market to meet the growth of this market. In May of this year, Berry announced an investment that will increase 16000 tons of production capacity to serve North America. Parks said that the geographical location of the investment has not yet been determined. "We will focus on high-quality products for the health and medical markets."

At the same time, the company's recent plants in Tarragona, Spain and Terno, Italy, also received 25 million euros of investment, mainly for the hygiene products market, but the medical market can also benefit from it.

Focus on advanced wound care

Although the vast majority of surgical sheets and surgical gowns made of nonwovens use spun-melt nonwovens, Freudenberg Performance Materials (Codberg Performance Materials) continues to focus its medical products on dry-process nonwovens, including advanced wound care, traditional wound care, ostomy care and transdermal patch solutions.

More recently, the company has implemented significant initiatives in the advanced wound care space with the acquisition of Polymer Health Technologies, a UK manufacturer of foamed polyurethane, thereby expanding its expertise in this medical market.

Dr Heislitz said: "Now we are able to make this nonwoven-foam laminate ourselves. By investing in a clean room laminate production facility in the UK, we have strengthened the synergy between the two materials-nonwoven and foam."

Polymer Health Technology's hydrophilic polyurethane foam system absorbs wound exudate, creating the ideal environment to keep the wound dry to accelerate healing. "Our substrates for advanced wound care dressings can help treat complex and difficult-to-heal wounds, such as feet, legs and bedsores in diabetic patients," he said. "The nonwovens and foams designed by Freudenberg can provide customized and innovative product solutions for advanced wound care: hydrophilic nonwovens, highly absorbent nonwovens, hydrophilic foams and other tailor-made solutions. The newly developed non-woven fabric is only 2mm thick, but it can absorb up to 25 times its own weight of wound exudate."

Fibrella Zorb is a lightweight absorbent topcoat material with a new unique pattern texture

Freudenberg's recent hydrophilic polyurethane foam innovations include customized antibacterial polyurethane foam systems for moderate to strong compression wounds, such as bedsores and second-degree burns. "This antibacterial effect helps reduce the bacterial load of infected wounds. It also acts as a barrier to the wound and reduces the risk of re-infection." Heislitz said.

The rising trend of antibacterial drugs influenced one of Freudenberg's investment decisions on finishing processes. By early 2017, the company will provide advanced and flexible materials for Class III medical devices and will be certified to an ISO 13485 quality management system, which will allow it to meet the market's quality expectations and regulatory requirements.

Investments in Mogul

Turkish manufacturer Mogul produces a large number of non-woven fabrics for the medical market, including polypropylene spunbond nonwovens for masks, hats and shoe covers, polyester spunbond nonwovens for blood filtration, and masks and patients Melt-blown and SMS nonwovens for surgical gowns, spunlace nonwovens for gauze, and new "crossover" technologies for tapes and bandages.

In April this year, Mogul launched a new product range, including Elastex brand polyester-based thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) non-woven fabrics, mainly for the medical market, as well as hygiene products, food packaging, automotive and other non-woven applications.

Mogul ElastexTPU is a highly elastic product that can be used in applications that require good tensile properties, providing maximum elongation and maximum elastic recovery. In addition to high elasticity, ElastexTPU also have the advantages of high breathability and resistance to wear, puncture, aging and ultraviolet light. The product's gram weight ranges from 40 to 400 gsm, and the production process is solvent-free, so it is skin-friendly and can be used in clothing, mattress covers and other healthcare applications.

In addition to expanding its product range, Mogul has also expanded its global footprint. A year ago the company announced its first foreign factory in South Carolina. According to Mogul's CEO Serkan Gogus, the new spunlace production line installed at the plant will be put into operation in the fourth quarter of this year, with a capacity of 14000 tons.

"We have 18 years of experience in the field of nonwovens, and we think it is time to further expand overseas markets." Gogus said, "We decided to invest in the United States for a variety of reasons. The United States has always been our main export market, and we have established a good customer base and reputation here. And South Carolina can be a good export base for the South American and Asia-Pacific markets."

This production line of theirs is a neXline spunlace production line made of Andritz non-woven fabrics (Andritz Nonwoven). This production line is equipped with an in-line carding device and can produce lightweight materials at very high speeds, mainly for medical and hygiene applications (e. g. wet wipes). With this new investment, Mogul will be able to better serve its North American customers.

Another neXline spunlace line from Andritz nonwovens for Mogul will be installed at Mogul's new plant in Luleburgaz, Turkey. The non-woven fabrics produced by this production line are suitable for a variety of end uses, such as automobiles, artificial leather, dry wipes or roofing substrates, and can also be used in the medical market, such as tapes, bandages, and gauze. Mogul has also decided to invest in a new spunjet production line in Luleburgaz for the production of bicomponent filament industrial nonwovens, which can also be used in the medical market. Mogul already has two factories in Gaziantep, Turkey.

These new nonwovens production lines will be equipped with the latest innovations in Andritz nonwovens, such as energy-saving neXecodry systems, which will help Mogul to produce a wide range of innovative nonwovens and thus be one step ahead of the market.

Suominen committed to growth

Finnish suppliers of nonwovens Suominen to continue their three-year investment plan, which began in 2015, focusing on profitable growth and the creation of a more balanced product portfolio, thereby increasing the share of products with higher added value.

The first step of the plan is to invest in existing production lines in Alicante, Spain and Paolínia, Brazil, to expand their range of medical products and increase the added value of their products.

At the same time, it is said that the largest part of Suominen's overall growth strategy is to invest US $60 million in the Bethune of South Carolina to install a wet production line provided by Andritz. Its target market includes medical products. The line employs the latest wet-laid and hydroentanglement technologies.

"With this investment, Suominen take wet-laid technology to a whole new level in the nonwovens industry. The new line will be tailored based on our unique technical expertise, allowing us to provide our customers with proprietary, best-in-class nonwovens products," said Kelly. "This is fully in line with our strategic objectives and will help us achieve market-driven product leadership."

The new line will provide a range of products in the grammages, capable of producing 100 percent nonwovens made of cellulose fibers, reinforced composite products and 100 percent synthetic products with various functions.

At the same time, Suominen further expanded its portfolio in the medical field with the launch of Fibrella Zorb and Fibrella Zorb in November last year, which are used in the operating room for key applications in surgery. Fibrella Zorb is a lightweight absorbent facing material with a new unique pattern texture, while Fibrella Zorb has a highly absorbent structure and is a material specifically designed for the incision site of a surgical drape for fenestration.

"The Fibrella Zorb is a good example of how its fluid management capabilities are ideally suited for critical areas of surgical orders," says Marika M?kil?, product manager for Suominen Medical."

Also in the medical field, Suominen initially launched the wound care and cleaning product Fibrella Perf in South America, but it is now used in markets around the world. The product is characterized by a pore-like structure, which makes it very soft and skin-friendly. It is a suitable solution for traditional and advanced wound care and surgical applications.

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Non-woven fabrics with special mission

In the medical field, accurate and timely delivery of drugs to the affected area in the body is essential. The Freudenberg Group relies on its self-developed "scaffolene" innovative technology to achieve precise drug delivery and control the drug release rate. At the same time, non-woven fabrics made of bioabsorbable materials can be degraded in the human body without secondary surgery. These unique nonwovens open a new wave of innovation in surgery, wound healing and regenerative medicine.

Population growth, longer life expectancy and improved national income levels are generally considered to be the main driving forces for the development of medical services and medical device markets. China is the world's most populous country, and life expectancy continues to rise. With the growth of per capita GDP, people's investment in health has increased, and the demand and feelings for medical services have also increased. At the same time, the aging problem brought about by population growth has become increasingly prominent, and chronic wound care, such as diabetic ulcers and varicose ulcers, which are closely related to the elderly, has become an increasingly serious health problem.

Freudenberg's self-developed "scaffolene" innovative technology has opened a new round of innovation opportunities in the fields of surgery, wound healing and regenerative medicine.

For medical health materials, especially new medical dressings and medical consumables are being innovated, and traditional gauze is gradually replaced by new medical dressings. scaffolene innovative technology was invented by the Freudenberg Group. By using this new technology, Freudenberg develops medical non-woven fabrics for the medical technology and pharmaceutical industries, striving to meet the high-precision requirements of customers. Such non-woven fabrics are made of bioabsorbable materials and can be absorbed by the human body. "For patients, there is no need to go through a second surgery to remove the product from the body, which is a significant advantage," explains Dr. Denis Reibel, the project manager. During the spinning process, components such as drugs, enzymes or growth hormones can be directly mixed into the fiber for later applications in surgery, wound healing and regenerative medicine.

In the dry state, scaffolene products are flexible and tear resistant. Even in humid environments, it can maintain structural stability and effectively prevent agglomeration. Therefore, the product can be safely placed in the accurate position during the operation, and the effect of hemostasis can be achieved. Thanks to its flexibility, this series of non-woven fabrics can also be used in "small incision" minimally invasive surgery. In addition, its application areas include the treatment of surgical sites, the promotion of wound healing or fracture regeneration.

In the process of contact with major clinics and hospitals, the project team deeply understood the needs of doctors in different departments for such innovative non-woven fabrics. "We 've created a platform to bring new treatments to doctors," Dr. Reble said. Many applications of scaffolene technology are inseparable from its spinning process. Such non-woven fabrics are made of natural or artificial bioabsorbable polymer materials. The composition of the polymer material determines the biological and mechanical properties of the non-woven fabric, such as its degradation or tear resistance in the human body. Cordberg adopts scaffolene patented technology and uses modular principles to customize various non-woven products to meet the specific medical needs of customers.

As early as 2007, Cordberg began research and development work on the project. The innovative equipment developed by Cordberg can produce bioabsorbable non-woven fabrics using a rotary spinning process at low temperatures. By using this soft spinning technology, sensitive raw materials such as gelatin can be processed in a clean room environment to meet the stringent requirements of medical products and ensure the safety and quality stability of medical non-woven fabrics.

Several ways of compounding non-woven fabric and PE film

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