Seam Tapes Market - Forecast(2023 - 2028)

Seam Tapes Market Overview

The seam tapes market size is forecast to reach US$239.2 million by 2027, after growing at a CAGR of 7.1% during 2022-2027. The increasing availability of a wide range of product items in many designs for various applications such as sportswear, military wear, and regular wear is driving the seam tapes market growth. The inclining production of waterproof clothing, intimate apparel, and the growing pharmaceutical and healthcare industry is surging the demand for surgical, masks, and personnel protective equipment, which is increasing the demand for seam tapes. Additionally, the growing textile and apparel industry, requires seam tapes with backing material such as thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), nylon, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyamide, and others. These seam tapes with backing material are utilized for making the apparel watertight, to hold the weight of the thicker fabrics, and to provide a durable and flexible seal. Therefore, the increasing demand for seam tapes in various end use industries is driving the seam tapes market growth in the forecast period.

COVID-19 Impact

The automotive, textile & apparel, and military and defence industries were widely affected due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Owing to nationwide lockdown, the production process of various goods in these industries declined due to the non-functioning of the manufacturing plants. Economies of each sector got affected and resulted in stagnation of activities across the sectors that use seam tapes. According to the European Parliament, production dropped by 15% for clothing and 7% for textile, and retail sales dropped by 9.4% for clothing and 9.7% for textile, in 2020, due to the decreased interest in buying clothes due to COVID-19. However, overall turnover in the industry is expected to reach about 15% in 2021, with a potential catch-up of consumer spending, thus, once the textile & apparel, and automotive activities get back on track and start functioning fully, the market for seam tapes is estimated to incline.

Report Coverage

The “Seam Tapes Market Report – Forecast (2022 - 2027)”, by IndustryARC, covers an in-depth analysis of the following segments of the seam tapes industry.

By Type: Single Layered, Two Layered, and Three Layered
By Material: Polyurethane, Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU), Nylon, Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC), Polyamide, and Others
By Application: Apparel (Intimate Apparel, Waterproof Apparel, Casual apparel, Sportswear), Medical (Surgical, Masks, PPE Coverings), Tarpaulins, Backpacks, Military Clothing, and Others
By End Use Industry: Automotive (Passenger Cars, Light Commercial Vehicles, Heavy commercial Vehicle), Textile and Apparel, Military and defence, Pharmaceutical and Healthcare, Others
By Geography: North America (U.S.A., Canada, and Mexico), Europe (UK, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Russia, Belgium, and Rest of Europe), Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, Indonesia, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Rest of APAC), South America (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, and Rest of South America), Rest of the World (Middle East and Africa)

Key Takeaways

• The Asia Pacific region dominates the seam tapes market owing to the rising growth and increasing investments in the textile & apparel industry. For instance, according to the Government of Canada, in 2021, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry announced an investment of US$ 28.99 million in Meltech Innovation Canada Inc., this investment will support a US$ 38.754 million project, which includes the manufacturing of the specialized fabric required to produce life-saving respirators and surgical masks.
• Rapidly rising demand for seam tapes in the military and defence industry for manufacturing military apparel has driven the growth of the seam tapes market.
• The increasing demand for seam tapes in pharmaceutical & healthcare sector, due to its usage in the production of PPE kits and masks, has been a critical factor driving the growth of the seam tapes market in the upcoming years.
• However, the availability of alternatives to seam tapes such as seam welding, can hinder the growth of the seam tapes market.

Seam Tapes Market Segment Analysis – By Application

The military clothing segment held the largest share in the seam tapes market in 2021. Globally, the increasing terror threats and attacks have raised the use of military clothing such as bulletproof vest and defensive apparel. Increasing usage of seam tapes in these military apparel is projected to increase the growth of the market. Also, military clothing and protection concerns armors, helmets, and structural reinforcement for vehicles as well. The military clothing of a material is dependent on its ability to occupy energy locally and on the efficiency and speed of transferring the occupied energy. The increasing government investments in military clothing is driving the seam tapes market growth. For instance, according to the U.S. Department of Defence (DoD), in 2022 the government invested US$1.3 million government with Brittany Global Technologies to sustain critical industrial base production of Berry Amendment compliant fabrics for U.S. military uniforms. Thus, with the rising demand for military clothing, the market growth for seam tapes is expected to rise in the forecast period.

Seam Tapes Market Segment Analysis – By End-Use Industry

The military & defence industry held the largest share in the seam tapes market in 2021 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.6% during 2022-2027. In the military & defence segment, protective apparel is used in numerous applications such as bulletproof vest, armours, and other apparels for heat & flame resistance, mechanical, chemical, electrical, and other forms of protection. The military & defence industry is increasing rapidly with the rise in government investment. For instance, according to the Defence and Security Industrial Strategy, in UK, in 2021, the government invested US$ 31.2 billion in defence over the next four years, and the plans for that investment had been set out in the Defence Command Paper. Thus, with the growth of the military & defence sector, the market growth for seam tapes will further rise over the forecast period.

Seam Tapes Market Segment Analysis – By Geography

Asia-Pacific region dominated the seam tapes market with a share of 39.3% in the year 2021. The Asia Pacific region is predicted to continue its dominance in the market during the forecast period due to the increasing requirement for seam tapes in developing countries such as China, Japan, India, and South Korea. China is expected to continue its dominance in the seam tapes market during the forecast period. This is due to the growth of the automotive industry in the country. For instance, according to the International Trade Administration, over 25 million vehicles were sold in 2020, based on the data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, with domestic manufacturing estimated to reach 35 million vehicles by 2025. Seam tapes are applied in apparel, pharmaceutical and healthcare, military, and other industries with materials such as thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), nylon, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyamide, and others. The demand for seam tapes is rising owing to their good properties such as water resistant, high temperature insulation, energy efficiency, and other properties. These properties resulted in the increased applications of seam tapes in various industries. India and Taiwan are also predicted to grow their seam tapes market during the forecast period with the rising growth in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector, the demand for seam tapes is also estimated to rise. For instance, according to Invest India, the Indian healthcare market is expected to reach US$ 372 Bn by 2022 from US$ 190 Bn in 2020. Thus, the increasing growth in various end-use industries will drive the seam tapes market growth in the forecast period.

Seam Tapes Market Drivers

Increasing Demand for Seam Tapes in the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Sector

Investments are being made to modernize the healthcare structure, by the developing countries' governments in various regions, especially after the pandemic. Seam tapes are used to seal seams in non-woven protective clothing used by the pharmaceutical and health-care personnel such as protective covering, surgical, personnel protective equipment (PPE) kits, masks, and other equipment. Globally, with the rising government investments in the healthcare sector, the demand for seam tapes is also estimated to rise. For instance, in China, by 2030, the size of the healthcare industry is expected to reach 16 trillion RMB (US$ 2.3 Million), according to the staff research report on the "US-China Economic and Security Review Commission." Thus, the increasing investments in the healthcare structure is anticipated to drive the growth of the seam tapes market over the forecast period.

Surging Demand for Seam Tapes with the Growth of the Textile and Apparel Industry

The textile & apparel industry uses seam tapes on a vast scale for application to the sewn seams to avert water from leaking through those seams for waterproof clothing. They are utilized to make the garment watertight, can also hold the weight of thicker fabrics, and provide a durable, flexible, and reliable seal. Seam tape is applied by using a hot air taping machine and is utilized in different applications including industrial work wear, tents, outwear, waders, footwear and military clothing’s. Furthermore, with the expanding textile and apparel industry, the demand for seam tapes will also rise over the forecast period. For instance, according to the Indian Brand Equity Foundation, from April 2000 to March 2021, the textiles industry captivated Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), amounting US$ 3.75 billion. Additionally, Indo Count Industries Ltd. (ICIL), invested Rs. 200 crores (US$ 26.9 million) to expand its production capacity in textile and apparel. Thus, the rising demand for seam tapes in the clothing sector is estimated to drive the market growth.

Seam Tapes Market Challenges

Availability of Alternative Will Hamper the Market Growth

In spite of various benefits of seam tapes, the availability of alternatives such as seam welding, which is a stitch-free or seamless method is hindering the market growth. The seam welding technique includes welding two fabrics with ultrasound. Seam welding is also utilized in the making of tents, backpacks, and sleeping bags. For instance, in sleeping bags, the shell fabric is bonded to the baffle for protecting the shell from collapsing. Seam welding is done on fabrics having a coating, to retain the waterproofing integrity of the outer fabric. Welded seams are better than seam tapes as they do not possess any stitch holes for chemicals and water to percolate. Thus, the availability of alternative is hindering the seam tapes market growth.

Seam Tapes Market Industry Outlook

Technology launches, acquisitions, and R&D activities are key strategies players adopt in the seam tapes markets. Global seam tapes top 10 companies include:

1. Toray Industries Inc.
2. Bemis Associates Inc.
3. Himel Corp.
4. R&D Expenditure
5. Essentra PLC
6. Geo-Synthetics
7. Sealon Co. Ltd.
8. Loxy As.
9. Gerlinger Industries
10. Traxx Corp.

Recent Developments

• In August 2020, Bemis Associates Inc. acquired Safe Reflections International LLC, a Taiwan-based operation, and the “play” products of Safe Reflections Inc., a textile products company that develops solutions to enhance the safety and visibility of apparel.
• In May 2020, Framis Italia launched “ProTape 1000” a protective coverall suit against infectious agents and low-pressure liquids.
• In May 2020, in India, Chief Minister of Gujarat launched India’s first hot air seam sealing from Gandhinagar to make the personnel protective equipment PPE, which is used for the protection of doctors-paramedical staff with specialized tape.

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