Automotive Airbag Market

As traces of the 2008 global economic slump are fading, the automotive market is on course to witnessing a resurgence of sorts. Currently, the automotive segment is regarded as one of the few booming sectors in the world. Over the next few years, the automotive and automobile market is expected to register impressive growth rates. Factors such as passenger safety are coming under the spotlight, especially in non-traditional economies.

In this context, the global automotive air bag market is expected to witness high growth rates. Many of these changes in passenger safety standards will be a result of new legislation that has been recently introduced – or will soon be brought about – in thriving markets. In fact, the installation of certain safety devices is soon to become mandatory in cars and a few other passenger vehicles. Besides the Automotive Airbag Market, other segments such as seat belt restraint systems will attain healthy growth and garner more revenues.

A typically airbag module is composed of the following important elements: Crash sensors, steering wheel connecting coil, an inflator, and diagnostic monitoring units. The size and shape of the airbag varies depending on the specifications of the vehicle itself.

The Three Leading Drivers for the Automotive Airbag Market

There are several factors that prove favorable to the growth of the global automotive airbag market, but here are the three most important ones:

• There have been recent advancements in technology, leading to a wider acceptance of automotive airbags

• Several new regulations have been introduced to ensure the safety of passengers in automotives. The adoption of these regulations has been made mandatory in regions such as Europe and North America (mainly the U.S.). This is also true of some APAC countries, such as Australia and New Zealand.

• There is an overall increase in consumers’ awareness pertaining to their own safety and security when behind the wheel or inside a vehicle. This has proven to be an advantage of the growth of the automotive airbag market.

Asia Pacific was at the Forefront of the Automotive Airbag Market in 2013; Heavy Investments Expected to Flow into the Region

The overall automotive airbag market can be segmented on the basis of the types of airbag safety systems. When segmented thus, the market features: Front, knee, side and curtain airbags. The largest market share in the global automotive airbag market was held by Asia Pacific in 2013. This prominent position held by APAC, largely because of the high automotive demand here, is expected to promote the inflow of investments into the APAC region. A number of high-end air bag development and improvement research initiatives are already underway in the Asia Pacific market, and this will prove favorable to growth.

The other important factor at play in the Asia Pacific market is that of a visible improvement in the lifestyles of consumers. This has led to higher demand for automobiles as well as sophisticate features housed therein. According to the estimates of a U.S.-based market research firm, the Asia Pacific automotive airbag market stood at US$5.91 billion in 2013. The Asia Pacific automotive airbag market will also grow the fastest in the coming years.

The cost factor will play a very important role in the growth of the automotive airbag market - not just in price-sensitive APAC countries, but across other regions as well. Thus, companies will be forced to balance their cost against all other important factors.

Emission Control Catalysts Market

The market is the stringent environmental policies that have been adopted by various governments and environmental protection agencies.Catalytic converters can be classified based on the application that they are being installed for and type of engine. Based on application, catalysts are industrial or automotive.

With the advent of emission regulation policies, such as the Euro standards in Europe, National Ambient Air Quality Standards in the USA and Bharat Stage emission standards in India, there has been a revolution in the production of emission control equipments, specifically catalyst based. Catalysts are used in gasoline or diesel based internal combustion engines. At the onset of the environmental emission regulations, catalysts were only made compulsory for automobiles but with the progress in technology and extent of emissions from production facilities across the world, catalysts were considered necessary for industrial and power plants as well. Emissions occurring from automobiles, heavy duty equipments and industrial plants, besides containing carbon dioxide, also possess certain other compounds, such as carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides and unburnt or partially burnt fuels, which are extremely hazardous for the environment. The regulations have been put in place to curb the emission of such compounds in order to protect the ecology. Catalysts curb the emission of such compounds, convert them to non-hazardous materials and then release them into the atmosphere.

One of the most important drivers for the market is the stringent environmental policies that have been adopted by various governments and environmental protection agencies. These directives guide the market to improve emission control technologies and make them standardized and compliant across the planet. Another driver is the continuous development of new and upgraded catalysts across the market that prompts automobile and industrial catalyst manufacturers to innovate, thus causing replacement of the older catalysts. On the other hand, catalysts face constraints in the form of being expensive to procure or replace. Additionally, since catalytic converters emit carbon dioxide after conversion of hazardous elements, they are faintly responsible for the increased amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. But regardless of the pros and cons of catalysts, market opportunities lie in emerging markets, especially India and China that will affect the market in the near future.

Catalytic converters can be classified based on the application that they are being installed for and type of engine. Based on application, catalysts are industrial or automotive. Under the automotive segment, catalysts can be installed in passenger vehicles, trailers, buses, tractors and earth moving equipment and even aircrafts. For industrial use, the type of catalyst to be installed is decided based on the environmental norms imposed on the particular industry i.e. a petroleum refinery would need the highest grade of catalysts as compared to a food processing unit. Based on the type of engine, catalysts are different for internal combustion engines as compared to spark ignition ones.

Regionally, emission control catalyst market has seen the most growth from North America, due to the highest number of automobiles and industries existing in the region, specifically in the U.S. Due to stringent Euro standards; Europe has also seen increased demand for catalysts, mainly from Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Netherlands, Norway and the United Kingdom. The Asia Pacific expanse is currently seeing a rise in emission control catalyst demand due to the industrialization of emerging economies, essentially from India, China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Pakistan and Japan. Across the rest of the world, heavy demand can be witnessed from U.A.E., Oman, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Libya and Brazil.

Some of the companies involved in the manufacturing of control catalysts are: Tenneco Inc., DCL International Inc., KATCON Global, Eastern Manufacturing Inc., Bastuck GmbH &Co., Bosal Nederland B.V. and AirTek Inc.

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