For more than 30 years, the use of plastics in the automotive field has been increasing continuously. The plasticization of automobiles is the direction of development for modern automotive technology improvements, based on three important reasons: one is energy saving and environmental protection, two is enhancing functionality, and three is simplifying manufacturing processes and technologies. It has become one of the three major research and development hotspots in the international automotive industry.
Currently, plastic component molding techniques have been seamlessly integrated with automotive plasticization. According to Luo Baihui, Secretary-General of the International Mold Association, polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), ABS resins, and engineering plastics and their alloy materials have already been initially applied in the automotive sector. It is estimated that from 2012 to 2015, nano-composite materials, sprayable and non-sprayable plastics, plastic lenses and plastic glass, as well as fiber-reinforced thermoplastics will be fully utilized in automotive materials.
With the rapid development of the plastics industry and the automotive industry, foreign automobiles have begun preliminary trials using high molecular composite materials such as fiber-reinforced composite materials (FRP) for vehicles, thermoplastic composites for vehicles, and carbon fiber-reinforced composites. According to the latest progress in key material and plastic parts manufacturing technology internationally, there have been seven latest technological breakthroughs, and these seven technologies are also about to be introduced into the automotive industry. Domestically, new materials and their key component technologies, as well as the improvement of standard systems, have been set as the work focus for domestic automotive plasticization in the near future.
Entering 2012, China's economy has slowed down to a certain extent, but the automobile market still maintains a steady momentum. Luo Baihui, Secretary-General of the International Mold Association, stated that in 2012, China’s light vehicle sales will increase by 8-10%, higher than last year's approximate 3%. Last year, China's total automobile sales exceeded 18.5 million units, making it the largest automobile market in the world.
Not only that, according to forecasts by the National Office for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products under the Ministry of Commerce, this year China's automobile exports are expected to soar by approximately 50%, continuing the good results achieved in 2011. The increase in total automobile exports is driven by strong demand in developing markets such as Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Brazil, and will be roughly on par with last year's growth rate, reaching about 850,000 units.
Following the first China Automotive Plastics Summit held in Guangzhou last year, which attracted around 150 industry professionals, the bilingual 2012 China Automotive Plastics Summit will open on April 17 at the Kerry Hotel Pudong in Shanghai. This day coincides with the day before the opening of the 2012 China International Rubber and Plastic Exhibition (Chinaplas), where the current number of registered attendees has reached 100,000.
With the government vigorously encouraging the production of energy-saving and environmentally-friendly models, this presents opportunities for plastic material and automotive parts suppliers. The rise of the trend towards reducing vehicle weight, along with the vigorous development of electric vehicles and hybrid cars, prompted the U.S. "Plastics News" to decide to hold the 2012 China Automotive Plastics Summit.
It is anticipated that in the not-too-distant future, the manufacture of plastic automotive components will become an emerging plastic industry, not only expanding the scale of the plastics industry but also determining the development trend of the automotive manufacturing industry in the future.
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