Global Wood Adhesives Market Size, Share, Market Research and Industry Forecast Report, 2025 (Includes Business Impact of COVID-19)

                                          
Industry Insights, Market Size, CAGR, High-Level Analysis: Global Wood Adhesives Market


The global wood adhesives market size was valued at USD 4.60 billion in 2018 and is predicted to grow at a CAGR of 4.7% from 2019 to 2025. Growing global engineered wood-based panel production is a significant factor driving the market.

Engineered wood-based panels such as plywood, oriented strand board, and particle board consume significant volume of adhesives during their manufacturing process. For instance, plywood is produced by binding veneers with adhesive.

The global wooden furniture market is expected to grow over the forecast period owing to the increasing demand for eco-friendly and green furniture. Rising concerns among people regarding the abatement of trees and global warming have led to a surge in the use of engineered wood-based panels. Rapid urbanization coupled with increase in disposable income has contributed to a higher demand for engineered wood furniture. This is estimated to be a significant factor in influencing the product demand.

Wood panel manufacturers, especially in Asia Pacific, rely on in house production capabilities to produce adhesives for their products. Adhesive production is considered to be a part of wood-based panel manufacturing in the woodworking industry. However, most small to medium panel manufacturers do not have adequate adhesive production and quality control capabilities. Adhesive formulation and monitoring of quality is solely dependent on operators knowledge, skill, and experience.

The market is characterized by the presence of a stringent regulatory framework associated with the emission levels of formaldehyde during wood-based panel manufacturing. This is expected to open new growth avenues for soy-based, polyurethane, and polyvinyl acetate adhesives over the next seven years.

Product Insights of Global Wood Adhesives Market

Urea formaldehyde (UF) dominated the market with a revenue share of 37.8% in 2018. Urea-formaldehyde is widely used as non-transparent thermosetting resin for wood. It exhibits superior properties includes high tensile strength and flexural modulus. Fillers and extenders are added to the resin to control flow, viscosity, and resin penetration in wood. They are widely used in the manufacturing of interior grade plywood and particleboard. A major drawback of UF adhesives is their poor water resistance.

The melamine urea-formaldehyde (MUF) resins possess superior water resistance properties as compared to other resins. Recent trend indicates the development of MUF resin adhesives for finger jointing of saw mill waste timbers and also for manufacturing flooring tiles from bamboo and bamboo laminates. These resins are the popular choice for exterior and semi-exterior panels.

Soy-based adhesives are expected to witness the fastest CAGR of 7.5%, in terms of revenue, from 2019 to 2025. They are largely replacing petrochemical-based adhesives in the woodworking industry. These adhesives are environmental friendly and improves the overall performance of the wood panel.

Isocyanates exhibit excellent resistance to moisture and are used to bond agricultural cellulosic wastes such as bagasse and straw. Most commonly used isocyanates are methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) and toluene diisocyanate (TDI). However, the product causes irritation of skin, eyes, and respiratory tract when used in high concentration.

Application Insights of Global Wood Adhesives Market

Furniture was the dominant application with a revenue share of 47.2% in 2018. Wood-based panels find wide application scope in furniture as they are lightweight, well finished, and durable as compared to traditional wood. Unlike glass, these panels can be used to manufacture sturdy and durable interior decoration items which is expected to have a positive impact on the segment growth over the next seven years.

Flooring application is poised to observe the fastest growth with a CAGR of 5.4%, in terms of revenue, from 2019 to 2025. Increasing per capita disposable income coupled with growing demand for residential space is anticipated to fuel the demand for flooring. Plywood floors enable customers to achieve enhanced aesthetics at lower cost. Increasing number of restoration & refurbishment projects in developed economies are likely to augment the demand for wooden flooring, thereby propelling the adhesives market growth.

Wood adhesives are increasingly being applied on residential and commercial doors & windows for waterproofing and enhancing the overall texture & appeal. The product is also used during the manufacturing of window films as it enhances the UV filtration of the films.

Housing components including studs, joists, rafters, sheathing, and siding are made from wood. Increasing demand for residential space owing to rapid urbanization along with higher living standards is expected to drive market growth significantly over the forecast period. New residential & commercial construction activities are also propelling the demand for engineered housing components to ensure energy sustainability, attractiveness, and efficiency.

Substrate Insights

Plywood dominated the market in 2018 with a volume share of 29.5%. The segment is predicted to witness the fastest growth from 2019 to 2025. Plywood is mainly comprised of a bunch of veneers that are stuck together with an adhesive. Proliferation in the production of plywood, especially in Asia Pacific, is predicted to support the market growth over the coming years.

Oriented strand board (OSB) is yet another significant segment for the product. The logs are sliced into strands of a specific size and assembled in wet bins until they get ready to be dried. The dried strands are mixed with adhesive to construct the board and a minimal amount of wax to improve the resistance to water absorption and moisture. Increasing demand for oriented strand board (OSB) as an alternative to plywood and solid boards, especially in North America and Europe, is projected to drive the demand for the product in OSB over the forecast period.

Wood adhesive consumption in particle board (PB) is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 4.2%, in terms of volume, from 2019 to 2025. Particleboard is manufactured by mixing flakes and wood particles with adhesive and transforming the sticky mixture into the shape of thin sheets. Particle boards are vastly popular in Europe.
Particle board has the ability to substitute its counterparts, such as plywood, owing to its lower cost. It is denser, cheaper, and uniform as compared to plywood. This is expected to have a positive impact on the product demand over the forecast period.

Medium density fiberboard (MDF) finds extensive application scope in construction and furniture industries. Rising demand for wood furniture, flooring, and cabinetry is expected to drive the market over the forecast period. The rapid growth of residential and commercial building & construction sector in Asia Pacific is expected to have a positive impact on the segment growth over the forecast period.

Regional Insights of Global Wood Adhesives Market

Asia Pacific dominated the market with a volume share of 57.8% in 2018. The region is also anticipated to be the fastest growing market over the forecast period. The construction industry in this region is anticipated to expand at a rapid rate, especially in emerging economies such as China, India, Indonesia and Vietnam. This is predicted to stimulate the demand for engineered panels, which in turn is expected to benefit the wood adhesives market growth.
Europe was the second largest market in 2018. Extensive R&D, especially on bio-based chemistries and new product development with low VOC emissions is expected to provide ample growth opportunities. The European market has witnessed shift in focus towards increased recovery of used wood and fiber-base products in order to reduce energy output and optimize energy management. These trends are likely to prove conducive towards market growth over the forecast period.

North America wood adhesives market is characterized by rapidly growing non-residential construction along with increase in consumer spending for furnishing homes. According to the American Institute of Architects (AIA), spending on non-residential buildings in 2019 is predicted to grow by 4.4% from 2018. The construction spending is poised to witness positive growth over the forecast period. This factor is expected to significantly drive market growth over the forecast period.

Central & South American market is expected to be driven by rising demand from diverse end-use industries such as furniture, flooring and housing components. Rising awareness and shift in consumer preference towards bio-based adhesives are propelling the demand in the region. The governments in Latin American countries have implemented monetary policy normalization efforts in order to align domestic inflation which is likely to increase disposable income of the consumers and benefit the market growth.

Wood Adhesives Market Share Insights

The global market is fragmented with presence of numerous global and regional players. The market is characterized by the presence of key companies such as HB Fuller, Henkel AG & Co., KGaA, Bostik SA, and 3M and other small to medium regional players.

The global players face intense competition from each other as well as from the regional players who have strong distribution networks and good knowledge about suppliers & regulations. Companies in the market compete on the basis of quality offered and the technology used for the manufacturing of the product.

p2 Segments covered in the report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional & country levels and provides an analysis on the industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2014 to 2025. For the purpose of this study, this market research report has segmented the global wood adhesives market on the basis of product, application, substrate, and region

Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, Volume, Kilotons 2014 - 2025)

  
Urea-formaldehyde (UF)
  
Melamine urea-formaldehyde (MUF)
  
Phenol-formaldehyde (PF)
  
Isocyanates
  
Polyurethane
  
Polyvinyl acetate (PVA)
  
Soy-based
  
Others

Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, Volume, Kilotons, 2019 - 2030)

  
Flooring
  
Furniture
  
Doors & windows
  
Housing components
  
Others

Substrate Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, Volume, Kilotons, 2019 - 2030)

  
Solid wood
  
Oriented strand board (OSB)
  
Plywood
  
Particle board (PB)
  
Medium density fiberboard (MDF)
  
High density fiberboard (HDF)
  
Others