WOOD PLASTIC COMPOSITE MARKET ANALYSIS

Wood plastic composite (WPCs) is one of key product for engineering wood products that has been extensively used in the field of landscape, transportation, municipal engineering, and building construction. Wood plastic composite is gradually being used to replace the conventional wood based composites. There is a growing demand for the wood composite plastic material because of the global shortage of the natural wood.  Wood plastic composite panels are mainly produced by the thermoplastic polymers, biomass particles and fibers from forestry and agriculture wastes (wood, bamboo, straw, stalk, husk, and bast). In the recent years, wood plastic composites began to partially replace the conventional and novel engineering wood products such as wood venner (WV), particle board (PB), and laminated veneer lumber (LVL).

The global wood plastic composite market is estimated to surpass US$ 12.99 billion by the end of 2028 in terms of revenue, exhibiting a CAGR of 12.10% during the forecast period (2021 to 2028).

Drivers

Wood plastic composite (WPC) has significant potential and better future opportunities as a building construction material. The wood plastic composite products are used as sidings, ceilings, windows, and floorings material with the special advantages in the environmental protection and sustainability. WPCs are used in a large amount in the U.S. region for the building construction work as a replacement for the traditional wood panels. The growing reconstruction and remolding of old house in the U.S. region drives the market for wood plastic composite.

Wood plastic is used as a planks and tiles for the garden. The tiles made of wood plastic composite are customizable with desired printing and paints, it is lightweight, durable, and easy for installation and maintenance. For instance, Qingdao lvsen wood plastic composite material Co. is a leading manufacturer of wood plastic composite tiles and other material in China. Moreover, the company seeks huge demand for the tiles due to its interlocking system and durability.

Among region, North America held dominant position in the global wood plastic composite market in 2020, accounting for 52.6% market share in terms of revenue, followed by Asia Pacific, and Europe. The demand for wood plastic composite in the North America is expected to grow significantly due to the rising application scope of wood plastic composite in manufacturing docks, porches, and window frames. In addition, growing demand for bio-based plastics in landscaping and street construction is anticipated to further propel market growth over the coming years. Apart from this, high presence of market players such as Tamco building products, Trex company Inc. and increasing online sales of wood plastic composite are known to further favour the market growth in the U.S.

Figure 1. Global Wood Plastic Composite Market Revenue Share (%), By Region, 2020

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Market Restraints

The high initial cost of the wood plastic composite is likely to hamper the market, countries such as U.S., Russia, Canada, etc. which are rich in wood production won’t go for the wood plastic composite material due to low cost and the availability of the pure wood and plastic at a cheaper cost. Due to which the initial cost of the plastic wood composite is more than the pure wood and plastic separately. The mixing of the wood fibres and polymers used for the production of wood plastic composite is uneven and it has to undergo several physical and chemical treatments, that’s why the resistance to thermal expansion has to be considered while installation, due to which the cost of the product increases.

Market Trends

The wood plastic composite market have a wide range of applications in the decking, automotive, sliding and fencing, technical applications, furniture, consumer goods, and others. The decking segment has the large demand for the wood composite material due to its finished looks and water resistance ability. The usage of wood plastic composite in the decking has many benefits and it improves the concrete quality of the material. It will improve the durability and strength of the decking. It is largely used in the flooring of terrace and balconies due to its lighter weight. The non-corrosive, antibacterial, and durable nature provides its application profound in bathrooms, kitchens, wall claddings, and false ceilings. For instance, in May 2021, researchers at the Wallenberg wood science centre had developed transparent wood composite from the polymer limonene acrylate. This new product is being used in building construction as a glass replacement in several areas. It is also harder than glass, increasing the material's durability.

Figure 2. Global Wood Plastic Composite Market Revenue Share (%), By Application, 2020

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On the basis of application, in 2020, building and construction segment held largest revenue share of 68.9% in the global wood plastic composite market. In building & construction application, wood-plastic composites are widely used in decking, molding & sliding, and fencing. Growing demand for high-performance, low-maintenance, and low-cost building products that are eco-friendly and offer maintenance-free properties is expected to fuel the global demand for wood plastic composites in coming years. In addition, increasing demand for recyclable and biodegradable materials for manufacturing components, along with the superior mechanical strength, weight reduction, and fuel efficiency characteristics of wood-plastic composites are expected to enhance the demand for these composites during the forecast period. Increasing infrastructural development activities, especially in the emerging economies such as China, India, Thailand, and Brazil coupled with the growing demand for aesthetically appealing furniture and flooring solutions across the globe, has surged the demand for wood plastic composite in the construction industry in the recent times.

Global Wood Plastic Composite Market - Impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic

The market was negatively impacted by the effect of COVID-19 pandemic. Given the circumstances, the construction industry came to a halt during the lockdown. For instance, according to Eurostat, construction had decreased by 28.4% in the Euro in the Euro area (Eu-19 member countries) and by 24% in the European union (EU-27 countries) in April 2020 compared to April 2019, leading to a decrease in the demand for the wood plastic composite in the construction sector such as decking. COVID-19 also led to the decrease in the automotive sector which is a leading sector for the wood plastic composite material. There is large amount of usage of the wood plastic composite for the manufacturing of the auto-interior parts which faced declining growth rate. Due to all these factors the demand of the wood plastic composite material faced a downward growth worldwide.

Competitive Section

Tamco Building Products, Trex company Inc, Meghani group, Beologic, Seven Trust, UFP Industries Inc, Fiberson LLC, Axion International, Polyplank AB, TimberTech, Universal forests Products, and Josef Ehrler GmbH & Co KG.