Hot melt market growing at 3% rate.

U.S. sales of "hot melt" products will grow from $1.7 billion in 1993 to $1.96 billion in 1997 at an average annual rate of 3.5%, projects a new study just released by Frost & Sullivan.

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The fastest growing applications for the products through 1997 are projected to be road marking paint, averaging 10% annually; diapers, incontinence pads and feminine hygiene products, 6%; and footwear 6%, forecasts the report, "U.S. hot melt markets: Technology is geared for fast-packaging applications."

Hot melt traffic paint has penetrated some 22% of the total road paint market. Its strong growth outlook is due to hot melt paint's longer expected lifetime than that of conventional road marking paint, and its lower cost. Packaging is by far the largest single hot melt application, using some 79% of all hot melts, mainly in the form of adhesives and coatings.

The largest hot melt segments, projected at 1997 volume levels, are in corrugated folding boxes, 348 million pounds; cups, 269 million pounds; pressure-sensitive adhesives, 209 million pounds; and tapes, 108 million pounds.

The key advantages of hot melts are rapid bond formation, environmental acceptability and cost-effectiveness. Hot melts are substances that are low-viscosity liquids at temperatures above 200[degrees] and solids at room temperature. They are applied in thin layers as coatings or adhesives, or poured as sealants without addition of solvents or other liquid carriers that must be removed later.

Since solidification of hot melts requires only cooling to normal temperature, they bond quickly, which makes hot melt adhesives suitable for fast packaging operations. Since they don't contain volatile carriers requiring subsequent removal, their processes do not require special equipment to comply with environmental restrictions against release of volatile organic materials. These advantages, coupled with the low cost of some materials, has brought acceptance and growth for hot melts in many industrial applications.

Hot melts are classified into three major categories - adhesives, coatings and sealants - based on their application, and according to their composition into regular and specialty products. Specialty hot melts consist of more costly materials like polyesters and polyamides, used for more demanding applications. At the low price-performance end, by contrast, are materials consisting mainly of waxes.

Frost & Sullivan is an international high-technology research firm. Reports are based on extensive interviews with marketing and technical experts from selected companies in each market segment.

U.S. rubber consumption increases over '93 levels

Consumption of natural and synthetic rubber in the United States totalled 1.58 million metric tons for the first half of 1994, according to figures of the International Rubber Study Group.

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The 1.58 mmt consumption figure for the first six months of the year is nearly 70,000 tons more than the same period in 1993. Consumption for all of 1993 was 2.9 mmt. At the current pace, 1994 consumption should be more than 3.1 mmt.

Worldwide production and consumption of rubber is running slightly higher in 1994, according to the IRSG. If production in 1994 continues at its current pace, which is 30,000 tons above last year's same period, it will reverse a downward trend that began in 1989 when 10.1 million pounds of rubber were produced worldwide. Production in 1993 was 8.5 million tons. Worldwide consumption for 1994 is 50,000 tons ahead of last year when 8.7 million pounds were consumed.