The global market for extrusion machinery grew by 4.7% in volume last year and will continue to achieve stable growth in the coming years. For example, growth is expected to continue at more than 4.5% annually until 2025, according to a study by Interconnection Consulting.

In 2020, the industry suffered greatly from the effects of COVID. In the process, market volume declined by 0.7% in global volume terms. In the meantime, the momentum of the 2021 catch-up process has slowed down a bit again. The forecast global growth up to 2025 is 5.9% per year.

Europe Falling Behind

China & Taiwan continue to act as the growth driver for the entire industry, with average annual growth of 7.1% up to 2025. The market volume in this market region is EUR 1.7 billion, making it the largest submarket examined. India shows even stronger dynamics with average growth rates of 8.1% until 2025, but with a yet still small market volume of around 170 million euros. North America will also show strong growth in the next few years from today’s perspective, with growth rates of around 5% in volume. The current market volume is around 500 million euros. In Europe, we will have to be content with smaller growth. The rising cost of energy and raw materials, as well as uncertainty in supply chains due to the Ukraine war, will cause investments to decline, which will also reduce demand for extrusion machinery, as Yuliia Hrebenkova, the author of the study, explains. However, with these developments, Europe is also losing significant market share to North America and China.

Sheet vs. Pipe

Sheet extrusion machinery is the top-selling product group, accounting for 32% in value. One reason for its popularity is the universal application of these machines in growing industries, such as packaging and medical, as well as construction and advertising.  In comparison, machines for window profiles are used only in the construction industry. Pipe extrusion machines are the leading product group in volume, with a share of 31%, mainly due to the low price as well as a dynamic global construction industry. There is a large difference between regions in terms of market share for each product segment. In Europe, pipe extrusion leads (35%) ahead of window profiles (31.7%) in China, sheet extrusion leads (30%) and in the USA & Canada, pipe extrusion leads ahead of sheet extrusion (37 and 16% respectively).

High Market Concentration

The total global market volume in 2022 in the global core markets was around 4.4 billion euros. The market for extrusion machinery shows a high level of competitive concentration… The seven largest manufacturers share around 60% of the total market. The study examined the following markets: China & Taiwan, India, South Korea, Japan, Latin America, USA & Canada, France & Benelux, Eastern Europe, Central Europe, Northern Europe, Southern Europe.

The pandemic also caused a slump in the global market for blow moulding and blow moulding machines. The decline in sales in 2020 was over 7%. However, 2021 will see an increase of 3.9% for the global market, as a study by Interconnection Consulting shows.

China Is The Growth Engine

Blow moulding can be used to produce hollow plastic components. Important products include plastic bottles, plastic canisters, washing water containers, fuel tanks, etc. The global market for blow moulding & machinery is led by the China & Taiwan region, which accounts for about one fifth of total sales. China will continue to determine the dynamics of the global market in the coming years. The annual growth rate will be 8.6% in value until 2024, as this study shows. With the new 5-year plan, China will invest heavily in the construction of new hospitals and the expansion of medical care. At the same time, further urbanisation will be tackled, which will also benefit the blow moulding industry in many areas. Besides China, India is an important growth market for the industry. The market for blow moulding machines will increase by 4.2% this year, although the sales level of 2019 will not be reached again until 2022 at the earliest. The beverage sector in particular, with a share of around 48%, dominates the market in India. In terms of total sales, the USA & Canada region is the strongest in the world. But even there, the dynamic growth of the industry was abruptly halted by the pandemic. In the long term, however, the market for blow moulding machines will grow by 5.6% annually until 2024. The fastest-growing markets in the USA & Canada are the cosmetics sector, with  an annual growth of 8.2%, pharmaceuticals and food. In terms of machine types, stretch blow moulding machines (linear and rotary) dominate the market worldwide with 50.8%. This is followed by injection blow moulding machines with 21% of the total market and extrusion blow moulding machines with 18.2%. The blow moulding segment reached a market volume of €535.7 million in 2019. Here again, the China & Taiwan region leads with a 19.2% share of sales, followed by India (14.7%) and the USA & Canada region (13.5%). The strongest dynamics in this area can be seen in the Indian and African markets.

Tougher Competition for Market Leaders

The top ten companies worldwide hold about half of the total market (49.2%). Extrusion blow moulding machines were less affected by the crisis. Accordingly, manufacturers in this segment were also able to gain market share, such as Kautex. The Japanese injection stretch blow-moulding machine manufacturer Nissei was also able to strongly expand its market shares. The undisputed market leader, however, remains Krones. Other important manufacturers are SIPA or KHS Corpoplast.

Sustainability Is The Industry’s Key Topic

A major issue for the blow moulding industry is the global trend towards banning the use of single-use plastic materials and the focus on sustainability and recyclable plastic materials. Meanwhile, the trend against the production of single-use bottles and disposable products has reached almost all parts of the world. China bans single-use plastic in some provinces. In the USA, 95 state laws on plastic have been passed. In the EU, at least 25% of PET plastic bottles are to be be made of recycled plastic by 2025. By 2030, this mandatory target is to be raised to 30%. Nevertheless, the market for blow-moulded plastic will continue to grow, especially in the beverage market. “A steadily growing population in India, Africa and China, and the increasing middle class in these regions of the world are responsible for this increase,” explains Daniel Kollar, the author of the study.

The European blow moulding market lost 7.8% of its value last year due to the pandemic. A slight recovery is now forecast for 2021, with an increase of 3.2% compared to 2020, according to a study by Interconnection Consulting.

Blow moulding can be used to produce hollow plastic components. Important products are for example plastic bottles, plastic canisters, washing water containers, fuel tanks, etc. Even before the crisis, the European market had the weakest growth dynamics compared to all other regions worldwide. To make matters worse, the regions of Western and Southern Europe in particular were more severely affected by the pandemic than many other regions in the world and recorded a decline of 11.9% and 9.2% respectively. Consequently, the greatest momentum in the future will not come from these regions, but from the CEE region and Eastern Europe. In the CEE countries, the annual increase forecast until 2024 is 5.3%, with the study also predicting similar dynamics in Eastern Europe. For Western and Southern European countries, it will take at least until 2023 before the market level of 2019 is reached again. In terms of machine types, stretch blow moulding machines (linear and rotary) dominate the market across Europe with 60.9%. This is followed by extrusion blow moulding machines with around a quarter (22.5%) of the total market, and injection blow moulding machines with a share of around one-sixth of the total market. Extrusion blow moulding machines in particular were able to gain market share in 2020, as they lost less than other product segments with a decline in sales of 6.2%.

Tougher Competition For Market Leaders

Accordingly, producers in the extrusion blow-moulding machine segment also gained market share, such as BBM. The Japanese injection stretch blow-moulding machine manufacturer Nissei was also able to strongly expand its market share in Europe. The undisputed market leader, however, remains Krones. The top ten companies in Europe hold more than half of the total market (57.9%).

Sustainability Is An Opportunity For Europe

A major issue for the blow-moulding industry is the global trend towards banning the use of single-use plastic materials and the focus on sustainability and recyclable plastic materials. Especially the highly developed industrialised countries in Europe – favoured by strict laws and regulations – are leading the way. In the EU, at least 25% of PET plastic bottles are to be made of recycled plastic by 2025. By 2030, this mandatory target is to be increased to 30%. “Big brands are being forced to minimise the use of non-recyclable single-use plastic materials,” explains Daniel Kollar, the author of the study. Increasingly strict laws are also leading to bioplastic packaging gaining more and more ground. However, due to the diversity in the material, new blow moulds as well as blow moulding machines are needed for processing, Kollar explains. “The trend is driving the development of the technology and the market.“

Regions analyzed:

Northwestern Europe (UK, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Iceland)

Western Europe (France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg)

Central Europe (Germany, Austria, Switzerland)

Eastern Europe (Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia, the Baltics, Bulgaria, Russia, the Ukraine, CIS)

Southern Europe (Spain, Portugal, Greece, Italy)

On account of the positive economic trends in Europe and China, global sales in the hot runner systems market grew by 8.2% in 2017. However, the intensifying trade war between China and the USA, as well as the EU, is dampening prospects. According to a study by Interconnection, average annual growth through 2021 is expected to be only 5.7%. Overall, the global market volume was EUR 2.4 billion.

Quality Standards on the Rise in China

In spite of the strong growth, the times of double-digit growth rates in the hot runner systems market seem to be a thing of the past. Markets such as Central Europe and the USA have matured to a point that impedes high-level growth. China was once again the clear driving force in the market, with an 11.8% growth rate and a market volume of EUR 735 million. With a 30.7% share of global sales, China thus remains the largest market for hot runner systems – and its dominance is only expected to increase. The Chinese market is benefiting from both lower production costs and rising quality standards. The growth in China is being fueled to a large extent by the auto industry, though it is not just a matter of production. China is also witnessing a rising demand for cars due to an increase in disposable income. So it is not surprising that rising production costs are forcing production to drift more and more to India from China.

Protectionism Helping the US Auto Industry

The North American market grew 6.2% in 2017, a slight increase over the previous year. The market volume was EUR 432.6 million. Nonetheless, the slowing economic trends are showing all the signs of a saturated market. Even if the current economic conditions are sound, forecasts have been downgraded on account of Trump’s protectionist policies. And yet the US auto industry is actually expected to benefit from Trump’s protectionism and will remain the driving force behind the hot runner sector. Interconnection forecasts a 4.8% average annual growth in the sector through 2021.

Eastern Europe Compensates for Brexit

In Europe, the market volume in 2017 was EUR 639.1 million following an uptick in growth to 6.3%. The economic boom in Eastern, Central, and Southern Europe was thereby able to more than make up for the weak developments in Great Britain, which has been stagnating on account of Brexit. Eastern Europe’s growth in 2017 was 8.1% and will continue to stimulate European growth. Average annual growth through 2021 is expected to be 5.9%. In Europe as well, the market for hot runner systems is also being fueled by the auto industry. The higher production volume in Eastern and Southern Europe, along with the increasing number of new car models, is responsible for the upsurge in the industry.

The global market for the use of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) machines and molds will increase by 7.2% in 2018. According to a new study by Interconnection Consulting, this significant growth is expected to continue in the years come, with average annual growth through 2021 estimated at 7.0%.

Beverage Market Enlivening the PET Market

The largest force in the PET market is the food and beverage industry, which continues to replace more and more glass and other materials with PET bottles. With a market value of EUR 1.5 billion and a 7.5% growth rate, beverage packaging represents the largest share of the PET industry. By 2021, the beverage industry’s market share is expected to climb from 54.9% to 57.2%. Though it has a relatively small market share of 9.7%, cosmetics is currently considered the dynamo of the market, with a 7.7% projected annual growth rate through 2021.

Asia the Global Driving Force

The highest growth rates can be found in the emerging markets of China (+9.4%), India (+10.0%), and Southeast Asia (+9.6%). China is the largest market in Asia, and on account of above-average growth in the future, its current global share of 16.7% will to continue to expand and is expected to hit 17.3% by 2021. Chinese growth is largely driven by the heavy migration to the cities. Increased spending on food has led to strong growth in the food and beverage industry, which, with a share of 74.6%, also constitutes the most important segment of the Chinese market.

New Lifestyle Boosts PET Industry

America is the second-largest market for PET machines and molds, with a growth of 6.1% last year. This upward trend is set to continue, reaching a CAGR of 6.4% between 2018 and 2021. New lifestyles and critical consumers are largely behind the sharp rise in the highly diversifying market for PET blow molds especially in the USA and Canada. Europe’s market posted comparatively moderate growth rates of 2.2% at a market volume of EUR 586.7 million. No individual national market in Europe can keep pace with the rate of global growth, even though growth rates are expected to cool back down somewhat in the upcoming years (CAGR of 3.8%).

Tight Competition

The largest producers in the PET mold market hail from Germany, Italy, Japan, France, China, and the USA. The stretch blow molding machine market is dominated by Germany and France. The linear stretch blow molding market is dominated by the Japanese company Nissei ASB.