Plastics Industry and Automotive
Car manufacturers increasingly rely on automotive custom plastic molders to engineer and fabricate vehicle components. With each passing decade, more and more of the average vehicle is made of plastic, as opposed to traditional metal castings like iron and steel. In fact, the automotive plastics market is expected to be worth over $51 billion (CAD) by 2020.
Car interiors currently consist of about 50% plastic pieces, and a car’s total mass currently consists of about 10-15% plastics. Though there are many polymers utilized in vehicle parts production, polypropylene, polyurethane, and PVC make up nearly two thirds of the plastics utilized in a single car. With polypropylene alone accounting for over 30% share of the automotive plastics market.
A major driving factor in the industry growth projections for automotive custom plastic molders is the increasing demand for both interior and exterior plastic furnishings. Examples include:
Benefits Of Parts Made By Automotive Custom Plastic Molders
Parts manufactured by automotive custom plastic molders are durable, tough, and resilient, but also offer manufacturers the chance to produce vehicles that are more environmentally and consumer friendly.
First, the use of plastics in cars reduces the overall weight of a vehicle, which, in turn, reduces fuel consumption and makes the car more energy-efficient. For every pound of weight eliminated from a vehicle, manufacturers prevent over 11 kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions. Lightening our collective environmental footprint is a goal for many car manufacturers who are tasked with increasingly stringent fuel economy and emissions standards. On a similar note, the use of recycled plastics in the vehicle manufacturing process can help reduce global waste.
Safety is also a foremost consideration shaping innovation in the use of plastics in vehicles. Take crumple zones, for example. These zones occur in the front and rear ends of vehicles and are included for the purpose of protecting passengers seated inside the cabin. Such crumple zones, when reinforced by plastic, can absorb 6-12 times the energy of steel. Plastic fuel tanks also help lower the risk of combustion since the plastic helps dissipate potential electrostatic charges that would otherwise cause the fuel to catch fire. Even things like headlights become safer when plastics are used, since polycarbonate headlight lenses are more shatter and heat resistant than traditional glass lenses.
Baytech Plastics Poised To Lead Automotive Plastics Market
Automotive custom plastic molders are in growing demand because plastics offer car manufacturers high performance at a low cost. While the automotive plastic market’s regional outlook has traditionally been led by Asia Pacific, North America is expected to increasingly lead the industry due to increased automotive production and growing passenger car exports.
Baytech Plastics leads Canada’s automotive custom plastic molders in both expertise and facilities. To obtain a quote for our low cost manufacturing services, contact Baytech Plastics at 705-526-7801 or email us at bpsales@baytechplastics.com.
