From 2020 to 2023, the pandemic swept across the world, with many areas in Europe and America deeply troubled by the COVID-19 virus. The global cumulative number of infections has reached 138 million. Even today, although vaccines have gradually become widespread, the pandemic has not been completely subdued, and health has become the keyword of these years.
During the long period of epidemic prevention, health products such as masks, wet wipes, and protective clothing were in high demand. In addition to masks becoming necessary protective equipment when going out, the demand for wet wipes also continued to rise. Europeans and Americans who originally liked to use wet wipes hoarded them in large quantities, and the most scarce item on supermarket shelves in Europe and America was wet wipes. Many households who originally did not use wet wipes also started using disinfectant wipes for convenient and immediate disinfection of their skin.
In addition to disinfectant wipes, a special anti-fogging wet wipe for goggles was also developed specifically for medical needs during the epidemic. In epidemic prevention, wet wipes are not only widely used in the medical and health industry but also become a popular product for the public. In fact, with the improvement of people's living standards, many families have gradually replaced paper towels with wet wipes, and the potential of the wet wipes market in the future is infinite.
Analysis of the Wet Wipes Market
Prior to 2003, the wet wipes industry in China struggled to gain traction, with small market size and low consumer recognition. However, during the SARS epidemic in 2003, the industry experienced an explosive growth, earning its fame as the "one-hit wonder" of the personal care sector. More importantly, the heightened awareness of hygiene among Chinese people after the epidemic did not cause the wet wipes industry to decline, but instead initiated a period of accelerated growth lasting eight years. From 2012 to 2019, the industry continued to maintain a growth rate of over 10%, becoming a high-profit sector approaching a market size of 10 billion yuan. According to statistics, in 2019, the Chinese wet wipes market reached a scale of 8.78 billion yuan, a year-on-year growth of 13.73%.
In terms of global wet wipes consumption regions, Europe and North America remain the main regions, accounting for 22.58% and 37.61%, respectively.
Although the Chinese wet wipes industry has achieved significant development, it is only 25.7% and 39% of the market size in the United States and Europe, respectively. The gap is even more significant when comparing per capita consumption, indicating that there is still enormous room for development in the domestic wet wipes industry. The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 has acted as a second catalyst for the industry's growth.
Looking at the global distribution of wet wipes retail markets, in 2018, the global retail sales of household cleaning wipes amounted to 35.25 billion US dollars, while the retail sales of baby wipes amounted to 57.93 billion US dollars. The retail sales of cosmetic wipes amounted to 16.76 billion US dollars, the retail sales of general purpose wipes amounted to 13.41 billion US dollars, and the retail sales of toilet wipes amounted to 10.90 billion US dollars, while the retail sales of female hygiene wipes amounted to 2.01 billion US dollars.
Thus, the future of the wet wipes market is promising. The main material for wet wipes, non-woven fabric, also has enormous development potential. In addition to wet wipes, non-woven fabric can also produce protective clothing, masks, diapers, and other personal care products, which are essential to human daily life.
What is Non-Woven Fabric?
Non-woven fabric is produced using polyester fiber, specifically polyethylene terephthalate (PET) material, and is made through needle-punching processes to create various thicknesses, textures, and levels of rigidity. Non-woven fabric can be used in combination with other materials or independently for a variety of consumer and industrial products.
Non-woven fabric is designed for specific applications, ranging from thin and lightweight non-woven fabric to durable and robust non-woven fabric. Whether used in consumer or industrial applications, non-woven fabric is combined with other product-specific characteristics through raw material selection, molding, adhesive application, post-processing (such as printing, embossing, lamination, etc.), greatly enhancing product performance.
Non-woven fabric has the characteristics of moisture resistance, breathability, flexibility, lightweight, flame retardancy, non-toxicity, odorlessness, low cost, recyclability, etc., and can be used in various industries such as sound insulation, thermal insulation, electric heating elements, masks, clothing, medical applications, filling materials, and more.
Characteristics of Non-woven Fabric
Non-woven fabric does not have warp and weft threads, making it easy to cut and sew, and its lightweight nature makes it easy to shape, making it a favorite among handicraft enthusiasts. It is a type of fabric that does not require spinning and weaving, but rather orients or randomly arranges short fibers or filaments to form a fiber web structure, which is then reinforced using mechanical, thermal bonding, or chemical methods.
It is not interwoven and knitted from individual threads, but instead fibers are directly bonded together using physical methods, so when you look at the seams on your clothes made of non-woven fabric, you will find that you cannot pull out individual threads. Non-woven fabric breaks through the traditional principles of textile production and has the characteristics of short production processes, high production rates, high output, low cost, versatile uses, and multiple sources of raw materials.
Applications of Non-Woven Fabric
Non-woven fabric has been widely used in various aspects of daily life and society. It is extensively applied in fields such as hygiene and medical care, agriculture and horticulture, automotive transportation, clothing and footwear, construction, electrical and electronics, filtration, food and beverage, household, civil engineering, packaging, protective clothing, wet wipes, and many more.
Non-woven fabric is heavily used in baby diapers, sanitary napkins, adult incontinence, and personal care products, as well as in the production of auxiliary elements for these products, including topsheets/surface materials, leg cuffs, acquisition/distribution layers, core wrap, backsheet, ear tabs, landing zone, dust cover layer, and fastening systems.
Due to its excellent softness, smoothness, leak-proofness, elasticity, strength, and protection, non-woven fabric is very suitable for the production of absorbent hygiene products such as disposable diapers, cotton pads, and sanitary napkins. Absorbent hygiene products made of non-woven fabric possess good double leak-proof ability, penetration capability, stability, tear resistance, stain coverage, and breathability.
As a reputable textile machinery manufacturer with a rich history in automation and intelligent manufacturing technology of textile and warehousing equipment, SUNTECH Textile Machinery possesses cutting-edge core technologies that are recognized globally.
SUNTECH Textile Machinery is a distinguished manufacturer of textile machinery with a rich legacy of automation and intelligent manufacturing technology for textile and warehousing equipment. SUNTECH's state-of-the-art core technologies have garnered global recognition.
SUNTECH Textile Machinery has the range of products encompasses almost all fabric types, including but not limited to pinking machine, non-woven machine, beam truck, meltblown machine, fabric cutting machine, motorized beam trolley, beam storage, and fabric inspection machine. SUNTECH Textile Machinery continues to lead the textile industry with its innovative approach and extensive experience. We welcomes quotes and cooperation opportunities with open arms.
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