Industry News, Adhesives & Sealants & Tackifiers
Today’s manufacturers have unrestrained access when it comes to bonding solutions. Pressure-sensitive tapes and labels have grown as a viable option, but why are these solutions important?
Pressure-sensitive tapes and labels are designed with an adhesive that responds well to pressure. Their versatility and simplicity leaves them well-suited to an expansive array of consumer products. Furthermore, advantages such as convenience, efficiency, diversity, and adaptability are estimated to contribute significantly in augmenting the growth prospects of the global pressure-sensitive tapes and labels market from 2021-2027.
It has been estimated that the global pressure-sensitive tapes and labels market may cross $130 billion by the end of 2027. Three key verticals are expected to emerge as significant business segments for the overall market.
Food and Beverage
Across the overall food and beverage industry, pressure-sensitive tapes and labels are widely used for packaging purposes. Given that the technology has established a strong footprint in the packaging sector, the development of the pressure-sensitive tapes and labels market is massively influenced by the transforming trends of the flexible packaging industry.
For food packaging, it is of utmost importance that none of the ingredients in the adhesives incorporated in tapes and labels negatively impact the quality of the food. The label is typically not directly applied to the food but on the package. Thus, the packaging (e.g., plastic film) stands as a barrier between the food and the label. Such products need to comply with indirect food contact regulations to be certain that the quality of the food is not compromised.
Healthcare and Medical
Pressure-sensitive tapes are easily adapted to a wide range of medical applications, including joining components like panels in medical equipment, fastening parts in handheld diagnostic devices, wound care dressings, and sealing surgical drapes. These tapes are formulated to form high-strength bonds when used in medical devices or to bind different dressings and drape substrates together.
Tapes can also offer gentle adhesion when used in a stick-to-skin application. In these applications, pressure-sensitive tapes and labels boast properties such as nontoxicity, compatibility with different forms of sterilization, adhesion to inorganic and organic surfaces, and more.
Automotive and Transportation
The trillion-dollar automotive industry is yet another profitable business avenue for pressure-sensitive tapes and labels. Growing demand for lightweight vehicles to support increases in fuel economy and reduced emissions is projected to increase the adoption of pressure-sensitive tapes for transportation-related bonding applications in the near future.
New Bonding Solutions
Pressure-sensitive tapes and labels have managed to trade for a larger chunk of industrial and other adhesive applications over the past few years, paving the way for smaller, smoother, and highly aesthetic bonding solutions. By allowing different industrial sectors to experiment with a plethora of design possibilities, pressure-sensitive tapes and labels are on their way to becoming the most trusted and permanent bonding solutions for numerous verticals.