Spunlace Nonwoven Fabric is developing

Spunlace nonwoven fabric -A Developing Marketplace

Explaining the evolution of the wipes market, Susan Stansbury, director, Converting Influence, says, “Wipes came into being because of their convenience—not having to combine wet sprays with paper towels and so forth. Now that they are part of a solid purchase pattern, wipes have evolved into a greater range of task-specific roles.”

Niche marketing is most apparent within skin contact products where new additives and applications are rolled out, she adds. “A walk down retailers’ cosmetics, skin care and lotions aisle shows the diversity. Additives in these products, which strive for a level of functionality such as deep cleansing, add value to these products. And line extensions beyond previous lotions in bottles and jars now find their way into wipes.”

Carolin Weber, sales director, Hygiene and Wipes, with nonwovens supplier Sandler, agrees that wipes are used in an increasing number of applications, including baby care, cosmetics, medical uses, household and industrial cleaning. “The concept of wet wipes imbued with different cleaning lotions, which are primarily used in the baby care and cosmetics markets, has also penetrated the market for automotive cleaning. In this way, these versatile products are likely to continue expanding their areas of application.”

Amy Lee, sales director, KNH Enterprise Co., Ltd., says baby care wipes have been the major growth driver for wipes products for years. “At this moment, personal care/home care wipes are playing as the growing segments in the wipes category.”

Charlotte Castleberry, director of business development, Kleen Test Products Corporation, a leading contract manufacturer of wet wipes, notes that growth has scaled back a bit in recent years. “Kleen Test continues to see growth in the core wipes categories within personal care, such as hand and facial wipes, and with home cleaning and disinfecting wipes. The growth rate seems to have slowed from what it was several years ago. Special purpose wipes—targeted to specific cleaning or personal care applications—are increasingly becoming more popular as well. Wipes that can offer the consumer a benefit are the ones that take hold in the market and grow.”

In terms of market regions, East Asia has contributed strong growth in the wipes market, especially in China, according to Bernard Kerstens, commercial director (overseas business), Nanliu Enterprise (Pinghu) Co., Ltd., a company that operates three spunlace lines (one with cross lapping) and 10 wet wipe converting lines. “There we have seen an annual growth rate of approximately 20% in the last five years. We expect that the rapid growth rate in China would continue for the next five years in view of the continued increase in personal income. Moreover, increasingly, people realize the convenience of using wet wipes.”

Portability and convenience, coupled with the hygiene aspect of their single usage, has popularized wipes among consumers, says Pranay Bhaskar Sahu, senior manager, Nonwovens Business, Welspun India Limited, who gave a presentation about the wipes category at EDANA’s EurAsia Symposium held in May in Istanbul, Turkey.

“Developed regions like the U.S., Western Europe and Japan will continue to lead the global wipes market because of the large affluent population and lifestyle trends focused on time-saving products. Developing regions like China, India and Latin America will show a rapid growth for wipes due to the industrial expansions leading to express economic growth.”

Innovative products will capitalize on new market opportunities, he adds. “Wiping fabric manufacturers should work hard to offer consumers environmentally friendly products—disintegrable, dispersible and biodegradable spunlace—desired by the consumers. Even if the spunlace manufacturers are able to achieve part of the desired properties, it will generate massive interest.”