…says Muralidhar K Shenoy, Country & Commercial Director, Huntsman Advanced Materials Europe, Middle East, Africa & India Region, Huntsman Corporation. In this interaction, he discusses advantages of various types of adhesives and key demand drivers of the industry.

 

Kindly brief us about Huntsman’ business and its products

 

Huntsman enriches lives through innovation by developing and manufacturing products that not only create value for all stakeholders but also make a vibrant world possible for future generations. For over 50 years, in more than 100 countries, our more than 10,000 associates, are using science and ingenuity to deliver practical solutions that play a critical part in the everyday lives of millions of people. Its numerous product offerings are primarily categorised into four major business divisions - Advanced Materials, Polyurethanes, Textile Effects and Performance Products. The adhesives segment is serviced via the advanced materials business.

 

How is the demand for your three main adhesive categories (epoxy, polyurethane and MMA)? Could please highlight the advantages of these adhesives and their key application industries? 

 

We see the demand to remain up. As the customer awareness and technical requirement tends to become more specific, demand of high performance adhesive should continue to increase. Our main chemistries on adhesive are based on epoxy, polyurethane and methyl methacrylate.

 

Epoxy-based (EP) adhesives provide excellent adhesion to metals and rigid substrates such as thermoset plastics or composites, providing high strength, excellent durability, chemical and temperature resistance with low shrinkage. 

 

While polyurethane-based (PU) adhesives are more suitable for thermoplastics and ideal for composites, methyl methacrylate-based (MMA) adhesives are generally faster setting and provide excellent adhesion onto metals, composites and thermoplastics.

 

 

In Industrial Adhesives space, what are your offerings? Which are the major end-user industries for your adhesives?

 

Adhesives in industrial space form a major component for diverse applications in all industries ranging from aerospace & defense to electrical, electronics, auto etc. 

 

The twin modules of Araldite resin and Aradur hardener are used as complete system for adhesives, sealants and matrices for composite materials or fiber reinforced materials. Those products are in turn used in many applications, such as wind turbines, construction and civil engineering, cars, aerospace, flooring, piping, electronics, sport and leisure, and household appliances.

 

How is the market for industrial adhesives in India?

 

The Indian adhesives market is expected to value $ 1 billion and is likely to reach $ 1.5 billion by 2023. The rise of construction industry along with regulatory investment in sectors like power/wind & increasing automotive production etc should continue to drive demand.

 

What are the emerging trends in industrial adhesives (globally & in India)? 

 

Industry may need new products which can reduce curing time, excellent adhesion, superior stress durability, improve cohesion strength and improve high temperature resistance. Emerging trends, which have a direct impact on the dynamics of the industry, include increasing use of composites and lightweight materials in automotive applications in India.

 

 

What are your growth plans for industrial adhesives business? 

 

We will continue to develop need based solutions as well improving overall efficiencies of our adhesive products across the end application areas. We ask our users to rely on us with confidence to bond virtually any substrate. Our know-how and expertise of our worldwide team of experts in bonding technologies enable us besides recommending the best suitable adhesive to also, provide application support to answer specific project requirements.