Carbon Fiber Prepreg Market Leaders Research Insight & New Revenue Pockets

New product launches and agreements are the key development strategies adopted by the leading players to drive the growth of the carbon fiber prepreg market.

The use of carbon fiber prepreg is becoming crucial in the aerospace and automotive industries due to increase in demand for lightweight materials that possess high strength and increased operational stability at high temperatures. The carbon fiber prepreg market is projected to reach USD 7.20 billion by 2021, growing at a CAGR of 11.0% from 2016 to 2021.

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The key companies of operating in the carbon fiber prepreg market are mainly involved in new product launches and agreements to strengthen their position in the market. They have adopted these strategies to improve their distribution channels and strengthen their presence in developed as well as emerging economies.

From 2012 to 2016, new product launches and agreements were the key strategies adopted by industry players to maintain growth in the carbon fiber prepreg market. These strategies accounted for shares of 33% and 23%, respectively of the total strategies adopted by market players between 2012 and 2016. The market players concentrated mainly on new product launches and agreements to increase their market shares and enhance their sustainability.

The key companies profiled in this report are SGL Group (Wiesbaden, Germany), Gurit Holding AG (Wattwil, Switzerland), Park Electrochemical Corporation (Melville, U.S.),Toray Industries, Inc. (Tokyo, Japan), Teijin Limited (Osaka, Japan), Royal TenCate N.V. (Almeo, Netherlands), Hexcel Corporation (Connecticut, U.S.), Cytec Solvay Group (Brussels, Belgium), Mitsubishi Rayon Co., Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan), and Axiom Materials (California, U.S.),  among others. These companies have adopted various organic and inorganic growth strategies, such as new product launches, agreements, and expansions to expand their global presence and increase their penetration into the carbon fiber prepreg market.

Toray Industries, Inc. (Tokyo, Japan), Teijin Limited (Osaka, Japan), Hexcel Corporation (Connecticut, U.S.), and Cytec Solvay Group (Brussels, Belgium) are the major companies, which reported maximum developments in the carbon fiber prepreg market between 2012 and 2016. Cytec Solvay Group (Brussels, Belgium) is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of carbon fiber prepreg materials. It accounted for the largest share of all development activities that took place in the carbon fiber prepreg market between 2012 and 2016. The company follows dynamic growth strategies, such as agreements, new product launches, acquisitions, and joint ventures to strengthen its geographic presence and customer base. For instance, in July 2016, Cytec Solvay Group entered into a joint venture with Mubadala Development Company (Abu Dhabi, UAE), which is an investment and development company, to supply empennage and floor beams for 777X program of Boeing.

Hexcel Corporation (U.S.) is one of the leading providers of carbon fiber prepreg for the aerospace & defense and various other end-use industries. The company primarily focuses on expansions, new product launches, and agreements to expand its distribution networks. For instance, in May 2015, the company invested in weaving and prepreg facilities of the new carbon fiber plant established in Roussillon, France. It helped the company to cater to the growing demand for carbon fiber prepregs from prominent aircraft manufacturers, such as Airbus (France) and Dassault Aviation (France) in the European region.

Increasing demand for lightweight and high strength materials from the aerospace & defense and automotive industries is expected to boost the growth of the carbon fiber prepreg market during the forecast period.

The North America carbon fiber prepreg market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period, 2016 to 2021. The key countries in this region, namely, the U.S. and Canada are witnessing increased demand for carbon fiber prepregs for various applications. The growth of the North America carbon fiber prepreg market can be attributed to increasing demand for both, fuel efficient vehicles as well as lightweight and high strength materials for aerospace applications. Moreover, with the advancements taking place in the mass production technologies, the demand for carbon fiber prepregs is expected to increase in coming years, owing to their increased use in commercial vehicles. Furthermore, the leading players in the carbon fiber prepreg market are considering the North American region for expansion of their businesses through various strategies, such as new product launches and agreements.

In 2015, the U.S. led the North America carbon fiber prepreg market. The U.S. is one of the largest consumers of carbon fiber prepregs for various applications at the global level. The use of carbon fiber prepregs for different applications is leading towards increased demand for carbon fiber prepregs in the U.S.

Among resin types, the epoxy segment of the carbon fiber prepreg market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR from 2016 to 2021 due to increasing use of epoxy resin-based carbon fiber prepregs in the aerospace & defense and automotive applications. Epoxy resins do not expand at high temperatures and exhibit good mechanical and heat resistance properties. They are durable, have high tensile strength, exhibit operational stability at high temperatures, and are resistant to corrosion. Epoxy resins offer excellent moisture barrier properties when reinforced with fibers. Epoxy-based carbon fiber prepregs can successfully replace metals and other composites in a wide range of primary and secondary components used in the aerospace industry. Thus, the benefits offered by epoxy resins are expected to drive the growth of the epoxy segment of the carbon fiber prepreg market during the forecast period, 2016 to 2021.

Among applications, the aerospace & defense segment is leading the carbon fiber prepreg market, in terms of volume and value. The growth of this segment can be attributed to increased use of carbon fiber prepregs in the aerospace & defense application segment as they provide more structural strength as compared to metallic alloys and are light in weight. Carbon fiber prepregs are used for constructing various interior and exterior components of aircraft. Carbon fiber prepregs possess high strength. They increase fuel efficiency, decrease emission of greenhouse gases, and are able to work at high temperatures and in wet environments. The aerospace & defense application segment of the carbon fiber prepreg market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period, 2016 to 2021. Carbon fiber prepregs help to minimize corrosion, thereby enhancing the life of products manufactured using carbon fiber prepregs. Furthermore, as carbon fiber prepregs help to increase shelf-life of products with low maintenance requirements, their demand is growing in the automotive and sports & leisure end-use industries.

Hot melt and solvent dip manufacturing processes are used for producing carbon fiber prepregs. These processes offer good surface quality and are environment-friendly. The carbon fiber prepregs developed and manufactured using these two manufacturing processes have different mechanical and physical properties. Among manufacturing processes, the hot melt segment is leading the carbon fiber prepreg market. The hot melt manufacturing process when used offers both, fabric as well unidirectional carbon fiber prepregs for various applications.

The key players in the carbon fiber prepreg market have adopted strategies of agreements, new product launches, acquisitions, and expansions to strengthen their position in the market. The major companies operating in this market are SGL Group (Wiesbaden, Germany), Gurit Holding AG (Wattwil, Switzerland), Park Electrochemical Corporation (Melville, U.S.), Toray Industries, Inc. (Tokyo, Japan), Teijin Limited (Osaka, Japan), Royal TenCate N.V. (Almeo, Netherlands), Hexcel Corporation (Connecticut, U.S.), Cytec Solvay Group (Brussels, Belgium), Mitsubishi Rayon Co., Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan), and Axiom Materials (California, U.S.), among others.