By the year 2010, penetration of waterborne industrial coatings will reach a level of over 30%, according to a new study by Irfab Chemical Consultants. The European waterborne industrial coatings industry was over 500,000 tonnes in 1999, and will reach the one million tonnes mark by the year 2010. Overall, the penetration of waterborne coatings in the industrial paint sector is currently around 20%. When considering individual market segments, penetration varies from 3% to 70%.

Irfab reports there is still plenty of room for increased penetration of waterborne coatings in the world coatings industry. The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of waterborne coatings will outpace that of the overall industrial coatings market by at least four times. Selected industrial coatings sectors, having low penetration of 3% in 2000, will reach up to 15% by the year 2010 at the expense of solventborne paint and other non-environmentally friendly systems. The study also covers competitive technologies to waterbornes, including powder coatings and radiation curables.

These are among some of the conclusions presented in the study “WATERBORNES 2000: Trends in Waterborne Coatings 1999–2009 — Looking for New Markets,” conducted by Irfab and sponsored by major chemical, coatings and raw material manufacturers worldwide. The report contains detailed forecasts by market segment for the years 1999, 2000 and 2009.

The report is a document for decision makers and provides tools for strategic decision making to identify untapped opportunities and explore new geographical markets. The study is based on primary research, and includes analysis of these strategies and the benchmarking of the major coatings companies. Architectural/decorative, automotive OEM, vehicle refinishing, wood finishes, plastics coatings, can and coil coatings, protective and marine coatings, ACE, commercial transport, and several other market segments are studied for supply and demand of the main waterborne resin systems analyzed that include: acrylics, epoxies, alkyds/polyesters, polyurethanes, and alkyd emulsions.

Irfab Chemical Consultants is an international and global marketing consulting company, involved exclusively in highly specialized market assessment and long-term technology forecasting in the coatings sector and related raw materials.

For more information, contact Franco Busato, Managing Partner at Irfab Scrl, phone +32-2-657-35-85; fax +32-2-657-90-21; or e-mail franco.busato@irfab.com.