Electroplating Market Trends

Key Emerging Trends in the Electroplating Market

The spotlight is on the electroplating market as now all industries including diverse industry sectors are heavily influenced by the dynamic trends currently sweeping the market. Increasingly, Electroplating, which is the process of depositing a thin layer of one metal onto another metal object with the use of electrolysis, has been extended with improvement and a trend of shift in demand. Specifically, one noticeable trend is the expansion in the use of ecologically safe alternatives to the electroplating process. Industries become more and more environmentally friendly as the concerns about the environment gain point and it results in the substitution of chemicals with the ones less harmful and in the decrease in the waste generation. This shift towards sustainable electrodeposition not only is under the influence of legislative demands, but also the greater social awareness of many companies on the involvement in the fields of corporate social responsibility.

One of the most important factors that drives the growth of the electroplating industry is the increased demand for high-specification coatings. One of the most important sectors using electroplating solutions are automotive, electronics, and aerospace industry which most require more durable, corrosion resistant and attractive looks that help increase the efficiency of a product. While technology goes on evolving, regulation-compliant and on-purpose coatings are becoming even more essential for every industry, particularly for such heavily regulated ones as automotive or healthcare. Now as this phenomenon is pushing investigation and development activities in the sector of electroplating and as a result, they discover new coating solutions that differ according to each application goal.

The world is moving towards the adoption of e-cars. Besides, it is one of the factors that make it more and more popular. The switching from ICE vehicles to the electric vehicles in the automotive industry goes hand in hand with the increasing need of electroplated parts for electric vehicles. Connectors and terminals as well as all electroplating elements like battery components utilizing these methods to improve product conductivity, corrosion resistance, and overall performance is just one aspect of what electroplating plays in improving the quality of these products. Consequently, the trend will be extended alongside the development of EV market. In turn, the market will get more and more suppliers both of electroplating manufacturers and others.

Different too be mentioned are geopolitical factors and trade dynamics and the impact they are having on the electroplating sector. The industry has little tolerance to the vagaries of the supply and prices of raw materials, in particular the changeability of metal prices such as nickel, copper, and chromium. Trade policies and international relations that undergo movements directly affect the supply chain and this affects the respective cost structure of electroplating processes. The players of this market are seeing political risk now and they are managing their supply chains in a way that their raw material procurement process is less costly and more stable.