Polypropylene Nonwoven Fabric Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product (Spunbonded, Staples), By Application (Hygiene, Industrial), By Region And Segment Forecasts, 2023 - 2030

Report Overview

The global polypropylene nonwoven fabric market size was estimated at 27,445.2 million in 2022 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.5% from 2023 to 2030. The product demand is expected to witness significant growth over the projected period on account of rising product demand in end-use industries including hygiene, medical, automotive, agriculture, and furnishing. High demand for polypropylene non-woven fabric in the hygiene industry for manufacturing sanitary products for babies, women, and adults is likely to drive industry growth.

Spunbonded technology is the most widely used manufacturing process for polypropylene non-woven fabrics. Low cost and easy production process associated with this technology have been the key factor for a higher market share of these products. The demand for meltblown and composite products is expected to grow in geotextiles and industrial applications on account of their high moisture barrier and high strength properties. However, the high cost associated with meltblown polypropylene nonwoven fabrics is expected to hamper their market growth over the projected period.

The U.S. held the largest share in terms of revenue and accounted for 65.5% of the total market share in 2022. The U.S. emerged as one of the largest markets for polypropylene nonwoven fabric, in 2022, owing to huge demand from the healthcare industry on account of the COVID outbreak in the country. The country witnessed an increase in demand for disposable polypropylene nonwovens, which are primarily manufactured using spunbonded technology, owing to its wide usage in personal protective equipment.

The market is highly fragmented due to the presence of a large number of small players operating worldwide. It is characterized by high competition on prices that places a heavy demand on the development of innovative products and production efficiency thereby increasing competitive rivalry in the market. In addition, major manufacturers of polypropylene nonwoven fabric work together with their customers, raw material suppliers, and machinery manufacturers to research, develop, and implement new products to compete based on product differentiation and low-cost technology.

The largest polypropylene nonwoven producers are Berry Global, Freudenberg, Kimberly-Clark Corp., Ahlstrom-Munksjo Oyj, and Johns Manville Corp. The top 10 polypropylene nonwoven producers accounted for more than 50% of the total market share in 2022. Furthermore, prominent players in the market are focusing on enhancements in business by expanding their geographical reach and introducing application-specified products. Mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, and agreements are considered by these players to expand their portfolio and business reach.

Product Insights

Spunbound led the market and accounted for a revenue of USD 12,419.6 million in 2022 as it is the simplest and the most cost-efficient technology used for manufacturing polypropylene nonwoven fabrics. Excellent properties offered by spunbonded nonwoven fabrics coupled with high process efficiency associated with this technology are likely to drive the product demand in various applications. These applications include geotextiles, hygiene, medical, packaging, and shoe manufacturing among others. Spunbonded is the most widely used technology for manufacturing nonwoven fabrics.

The characteristics offered by these products vary from lightweight, flexible structures to highly stiff and heavy structures, thus offering wide application scope across end-use industries. The spunbonded nonwoven fabrics are characterized by random fibrous structures, high opacity, high tear strength, low drape ability, high liquid retention capacity, and excellent fray and crease resistance. The spunbonded nonwoven fabrics offer excellent tensile strength and filtration properties on account of their ability to resist chemical attack and provide a moisture barrier.

Staples polypropylene nonwoven fabrics are gaining importance in medical applications over other polypropylene nonwoven fabrics on account of their finer filtration and low-pressure drop properties. Increasing staple polypropylene nonwoven penetration in medical applications such as gloves, medical packaging, surgical gowns, masks, drapes, and covers is expected to augment the market growth. Surgical drapes, gowns, and masks are expected to be primary products driving demand for staples polypropylene nonwoven fabrics. Therefore, stapes polypropylene nonwoven fabric demand is expected to further increase around the world.

Composite had a revenue of USD 1,124.1 million in 2022 as they exhibit high strength owing to the rise in the sanitary and hygiene industry. The polypropylene nonwoven composite fabric is used to manufacture baby diapers, sanitary napkins, and adult diapers. In addition, these fabrics are also used to manufacture medical and surgical products such as drapes, masks, caps, and gowns. Growing demand for these products as filtration material and oil absorbents is expected to further bolster its market growth in the future.

Application Insights

The hygiene application segment accounted for the largest share in 2022 and is expected to be USD 27,957.2 million over the forecast period from 2023 to 2030. Nonwoven fabric materials offer excellent smoothness, softness, comfort, stretchability, fluid-barring capacity, and absorption as compared to traditional textiles. Thus, are gaining high demand for manufacturing hygiene products.

These products help in retaining fences inside the fabric and retain and absorb urine thus isolating wetness from the skin. These products are odorless and offer excellent smoothness unlike traditional fabrics, thus are likely to gain high demand over the projected period. The increasing geriatric population, leading to the rising occurrence of chronic diseases such as diabetes is likely to drive demand for adult incontinence products, over the forecast period. Thus, positively influencing the demand for polypropylene nonwoven fabrics.

The industrial application segment accounted for the fastest-growing segment in 2022 with a CAGR of 9.2% over the forecast period. Polypropylene nonwoven fabrics are used for manufacturing coated fabrics, display felts, tapes, conveyor belts, cable insulation, air conditioner filters, semiconductor polishing pads, noise absorber felt, etc. in industrial applications. Thus, resulting in increased demand for polypropylene nonwoven fabric in industrial applications.

Medical emerged as the second largest application segment for the industry and it reached USD 6,082.9 million valuation in 2022. Polypropylene nonwoven fabrics are used for manufacturing surgical caps, gowns, masks, drapes, bed linen, gloves, shrouds, underpads, heat packs, ostomy bag liners, incubator mattresses, etc. in the medical industry. The increasing number of surgical procedures is expected to act as a major driving factor for the demand for polypropylene nonwoven fabrics in the medical industry.

Regional Insights

Asia Pacific dominated the polypropylene nonwoven fabric market and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 6.5% in terms of revenue during the forecast period 2023-2030. This growth can be attributed to the growing demand for durable polypropylene nonwoven fabrics in industries such as construction, agriculture, and automobile over the forecast period. In addition, polypropylene nonwoven fabrics are majorly used in consumer products such as disposable diapers, adult incontinence products, and feminine care products, thus driving product demand.

The demand for polypropylene nonwoven fabrics in North America is likely to witness moderate growth over the projected period owing to the continuous demand from the hygiene, medical, and automotive industry. The industry growth in recent years is likely to grow at a slower pace over the forecast period owing to the market achieving maturity.

The nonwoven industry in Europe is witnessing growth in terms of production on account of the presence of several established nonwoven fabric manufacturers in the region. The nonwoven industry in well-established economies such as France is expected to witness steady growth, whereas countries including the U.K., Romania, Russia, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic are expected to gain traction in terms of production growth. This is expected to fuel the growth of the industry for polypropylene nonwoven fabric industry over the forecast period.

Central & South America was valued at USD 2,245.8 million in 2022 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.4% over the forecast period. High consumer awareness regarding health, hygiene, and safety is expected to positively impact the polypropylene nonwoven fabrics industry over the forecast period. The economic recovery in the region is expected to support the modest growth in the polypropylene nonwoven fabrics industry. Furthermore, increasing healthcare expenditure in the region is expected to drive the hygiene and medical segment’s growth over the forecast period.

Key Companies & Market Share Insights

Key players in the market are entering into agreements with emerging and small-scale players to expand their distribution capacities and increase the geographical presence of their products. Furthermore, manufacturers are focusing on other efficient and effective distribution channels. As a result, companies are likely to establish partnerships with e-commerce portals to ensure that buyers have timely access to polypropylene nonwoven fabric products.

The innovation, development, and production of polypropylene nonwovens are influenced by the presence of major players, which contribute to a large share of the market. While many of the leading companies are based in developed regions such as North America and Europe, many companies based in emerging economies in Asia continue to invest and grow, increasing their share in the market. Some prominent players in the global polypropylene nonwoven fabric market include:

• Kimberly-Clark Corporation

• Berry Global, Inc.

• Lydall, Inc.

• First Quality Nonwovens Inc.

• PFNonwovens a.s.

• Schouw & Co.

• Mitsui Chemicals Inc.

• FITESA

• Toray Industries Inc.

• Freudenberg Group

• Ahlstrom-Munksjo Oyj

• Johns Manville Corporation

• Suominen Corporation

• Asahi Kasai Corporation

Recent Developments

• In July 2023, Berry Global partnered with Deaconess Midtown Hospital and Nexus Circular for an initiative to recycle sterile, non-hazardous, plastic packaging as well as nonwoven fabric safely and effectively from the hospital’s surgical center. As a result, approximately 500 pounds of clean, used plastic, majorly consisting of the exterior packaging of surgical tools and unused nonwoven surgical gowns and cloths, will be diverted from landfills weekly

• In February 2023, Asahi Kasei announced an agreement with Mitsui Chemicals regarding the establishment of a new joint venture company through the integration of their nonwovens businesses. The new company would be named Mitsui Chemicals Asahi Life Materials Co. and would be based in Tokyo, Japan. The resulting company’s sites in Japan would include Mitsui’s Nogoya Works plant in Aichi and its Sunrex subsidiary in Mie. Outsourced production will be provided by Asahi Kasei’s Moriyama plant

• In September 2022, Suominen launched its tri-layer nonwoven, ‘FIBRELLA Strata’, for various industries and applications, particularly in the baby market. The tri-layer structure of the product is stated to offer high levels of softness and an exceptional cleaning performance

• In September 2022, Toray Industries announced the creation of a persistently hydrophilic spunbond nonwoven fabric suited for various applications, including feminine hygiene products, disposable diapers, masks, and other sanitary segments. The product makes use of polyester instead of polypropylene, because while the latter needs an application of hydrophilic agents that can lose their hydrophilicity on usage, polyester offers the benefit of inherent continued hydrophilicity

• In September 2022, Berry Global announced the formation of a closed-loop recycling ecosystem for supplying the manufacturing of its Endura spunbond and melt-blown nonwovens product line with post-industrial recycled materials. The ecosystem allows Berry to supply nonwoven materials to customers, receive post-industrial waste through conversion processes, and utilize the recycled material in the Endura nonwovens line

• In September 2022, Fitesa announced a collaboration with LifeSavers for the development of  high-performance nonwovens that can detect irregular health markers, through the incorporation of LifeSavers’ award-winning technology that can signal abnormal levels of glucose in the urine into the substrates of Fitesa

• In February 2022, Mitsui Chemicals announced its plans regarding the expansion of meltblown nonwovens production facilities at its subsidiary Sunrex Industry Co., Ltd. This move came on the back of a steadily growing demand for meltblown nonwovens from the industrial sector, which has effectively increased the overall production capacity for the material by 30% 

Polypropylene Nonwoven Fabric Market Report Scope

Global Polypropylene Nonwoven Fabric Market Segmentation

This report forecasts revenue growth at the global, regional, and country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2018 to 2030. For this study, Grand View Research has segmented the global polypropylene nonwoven fabric market report based on product, application, and region:

• Product Outlook (Volume, Kilotons; Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

  • Spunbound

  • Staples

  • Meltblown

  • Composite

• Application Outlook (Volume, Kilotons; Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

  • Hygiene

  • Industrial

  • Medical

  • Geotextiles

  • Furnishings

  • Carpet

  • Agriculture

  • Automotive

  • Others

• Regional Outlook (Volume, Million Square Meters; Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

  • North America

    • U.S.

    • Canada

    • Mexico

  • Europe

    • U.K.

    • Germany

    • France

    • Spain

    • Italy

    • Russia

  • Asia Pacific

    • China

    • Japan

    • India

    • South Korea

    • Oceania

    • Taiwan

    • Thailand

    • Malaysia

  • Central & South America

    • Brazil

    • Argentina

  • Middle East & Africa

    • Saudi Arabia

    • Turkey

    • South Africa

    • Egypt

    • UAE