Low-e Glass and Coating Market - Forecast(2023 - 2028)

Low-e Glass and Coatings Market size is forecast to reach $41.76 billion by 2025 after growing at a CAGR of 6% during 2020-2025. The growth of the market is expected to be driven by the high demand for low-e glass and coatings from the automotive industry. The other growth factor is construction industry which is using low-e glass and coatings for windows panes.

The report: “Low-e Glass and Coatings Market-Forecast (2020-2025)”, by IndustryARC, covers an in-depth analysis of the following segments of low-e glass and coatings industry.

By Type: Hard Coating low e-glass, Soft Coating low-e glass, nano coating low-e glass.

By Coating Type:  Passive Low-e Coating, Solar Control Low-e Coating.

By Application: Exterior window panes, automotive window panes, facades, Sky Lights, Door Glazing, Curtain walls, and others.

By End Use: Automotive, Building and Construction (Residential (Independent Homes, RoW Homes, Large Apartment Buildings), Commercial (Hospitals, Schools, Airports, Restaurants, Hostels, Others), Industries, and Others. 

By Geography: North America, South America, Europe, APAC, and RoW.  

Soft coating segment held the largest share in the low-e glass and coatings market in 2019. a soft-coat low-e application happens after the glass is made. The soft coat is more efficient at reflecting heat energy, but also more delicate. This low-e coating always faces the insulating airspace in double or triple-pane glazing. Since soft coat emissivity can oxidize when exposed to air, argon or krypton gas is often used in the insulating airspace to help preserve the coating. The gas provides an additional benefit: it's got better insulating value than air. Hard coating low-e glass is manufactured by pouring a thin layer of molten tin onto a sheet of glass while the glass is still slightly molten. The tin actually becomes "welded" to the glass. This process makes it difficult or "hard" to scratch or remove the tin. Often this glass has a blueish tint to it.

Passive low-e coatings segment held the largest share in the low-e glass and coatings market in 2019 as it is widely used in construction sector. Passive low-e coatings are designed to maximize solar heat gain into a home or building to create the effect passive heating and reducing reliance on artificial heating.  Passive low-e coatings are used to passive and solar control. Passive low-e coatings are produced by two primary production methods, pyrolytic or hard coating and magnetron sputter vacuum deposition or soft coat. In the pyrolytic process, the coating is applied to the glass ribbon while it is being produced on the float line. The coating then fuses to the hot glass surface, creating a strong bond that is very durable for glass processing during fabrication. In the magnetron sputter vacuum deposition process, the coating is applied off-line to pre-cut glass in a vacuum chambers at room temperature. solar control low-e coatings are designed to limit the amount of solar heat that passes into a home or building for the purpose of keeping buildings cooler and reducing energy consumption related to air conditioning.

Exterior window panes segment of low-e glass coatings segment held the largest share in the low-e glass and coatings market in 2019 as it is widely used in construction sector. In buildings, it is common to apply low-e glass coatings to both tinted and clear glass. Low-e glass and coatings have been developed to minimize the amount of ultraviolet and infrared light that can pass through glass without compromising the amount of visible light which is transmitted, i.e., it protect from single glazing. Construction industry is the major market for the low-e glass coatings. The window panes which are used in the buildings provide ultra violet protection to the buildings. Many of the commercial buildings in the United States and china are incorporating low-e glass and coatings to provide the UV protection to the buildings as per requirement. The growth low-e glass coatings can be taken as directly proportional to the growth of construction industry. by 2020, construction output is estimated to grow by 70% to $12.7 trillion and will account for 14.6% of the world output with some of the larger emerging markets such as china, India, Russia, brazil and Poland driving growth, along with U.S global GDP growth of 3.5% and 3.6% is expected in 2017 and 2018 respectively however the meteoric growth that outpaces global GDP will be concentrated in countries like china, India and U.S. India will overtake Japan as the third-largest construction market with annual growth averaging 7.4% annually in construction.

Automotive sector has been the primary market for low-e glass and coatings market in 2019 growing at CAGR of 7.5%. The window panes use in the automobile is manufactured by using low-e glass and coatings. The growth of the low-e glass and coatings market can be attributed to the rise in production of automobiles. It is expected that the amount of low-e glass and coatings used in the production of automobiles will double in the next 15 years. According to international organization of motor vehicle manufacturers the total production of automobile (commercial as well as personal) globally in the year 2019 was 91,786,861 units compare to 96,869,020 units in 2018. This will drive the market of low-e glass and coatings in the forecast period.

The coronavirus pandemic has had far-reaching consequences beyond the spread of the disease and efforts to quarantine it. South Korea, Italy and Japan are the most affected among the major industrialized economies. Consequently, 80 percent of automotive and related companies report that coronavirus will have a direct impact on their 2020 revenues. 78 percent of companies do not have enough staff to run a full production line. More than 80 percent of the world’s auto supply chain is connected to China. In January 2020 China’s car sales plunged by 18 percent. The China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) considers that the first two-month sales could decline by 40 percent or more compared to the same period in 2019. Production shortfalls resulting from supply chain disruptions in China will impact global automakers. This factor will hinder the growth of market for the year 2020 but after situation became normal it will grow with a steady rate in the forecast period.

APAC dominates the low-e glass and coatings market with a share of 43% followed by North America and Europe. The economy of APAC is mainly influenced by the economic dynamics of countries such as china and India, but with growing foreign direct investment for economic development of south East Asia, the current scenario is changing. Countries in south East Asia are witnessing high growth in the construction and automotive industries. The steady growth of construction industry owing to growing urbanization and increase in renovation activities are expected to boost the demand for low-e glass and coatings market in the region. According to world economic forum the Middle East and North Africa region is undergoing transformation. The rapid urbanization trend will boost the low-e glass and coatings market which is primary thing in construction sector.  

Low-e glass and coatings when applied on the windows helps to block UV light from penetrating the glass from the outside. Therefore the temperature inside the room is maintained. So, there is no requirement of frequent cooling, which limit the energy needs and reduces the expenditure on energy. Low-e glass and coatings are much more energy-efficient, helping you save on heating and cooling costs.

The limitations of using these low-e glass and coatings in all commercial buildings lie in the higher costing which builders are most often reluctant to pay. Conversely, using these glasses as mentioned earlier reduces the utility as well as maintenance costs due to which the cost savings over the life of the building will suffice the initial extra investment made on the façade.

There is also a certain lack of awareness related to the advantages of the low-e glasses and coating which needs to be bridged down by consultants, architects, and designers and promote the use of smart technologies and glasses such as low-e which will end up promoting sustainable practices throughout the Indian building construction sector.

Technology launches, acquisitions and R&D activities are key strategies adopted by players in the low-e glass and coatings market. In 2019, the market of low-e glass and coatings has been consolidated by the top five players accounting for xx% of the share. Major players in the low-e glass and coatings market are Bassr, Bendhei, Cardinal Glass Industries Inc., Central Glass, Ecoline Window and others.