The Man-Made Fibre Industry in Western Europe: A New Structure, A New Strength
A Textiles Intelligence research report on the restructured West European man-made fibre industry and its producers
This Textiles Intelligence report examines the man-made fibre industry in Western Europe after a period of deep restructuring. Its contents run from the background of the industry — processes and products, the history of man-made fibres and related sectors — through changing structure, production and consumption, raw materials and equipment, to profiles of thirteen major producers, downstream processing and end uses, speciality products, and future prospects. The restructuring story is told fibre family by fibre family: restructuring synthetic fibres in Western Europe, restructuring cellulosic fibres in Western Europe, and polyolefins and other fibres, with production and consumption measured by country and fibre consumption tracked through exports and imports. Textiles Intelligence, formed in 1992 as a spin-off from the Economist Intelligence Unit, provides global business information to the international fibre, textile and apparel industry, with customers in more than 60 countries.
Background, Structure and Production
Part 1 sets the scene in five chapters. Chapter 1 introduces the man-made fibres industry, its processes and products, its history and its related sectors. Chapter 2 examines the changing structure of the industry: man-made fibre production trends, the restructuring of synthetic fibres and of cellulosic fibres in Western Europe, and polyolefins and other fibres. Chapter 3 covers production and consumption — general trends, production by country, exports and imports, and fibre consumption by country. Chapter 4 deals with raw materials and with plants and equipment, and Chapter 5 sets out the structure of the West European man-made fibre industry itself: producers, products and capacities, and company size.
Thirteen Producer Profiles
Part 2 profiles the producers one by one, each with the same discipline — the group, its position in fibres, its fibre products, its restructuring and investment, and its research and development. The companies are Bayer, Courtaulds, Du Pont, EniChem, Enka (within the Akzo group), Hoechst, ICI, Lenzing, Montefibre (within the Montedison group), Moplefan, Rhone-Poulenc, Sateri (within the Kemira group) and Snia (within the Snia BPD group). Read together, the profiles show an industry consolidating inside large chemical groups, with fibre divisions being restructured, invested in or repositioned group by group — the new structure of the report's title made concrete at company level.
Downstream, Specialities and the Future
Part 3 follows the fibres downstream: texturing, with its processes, companies, production and trade; spinning of man-made staple fibres, with fibre consumption patterns and technology; and end uses for man-made fibres, covering consumption by end use, fibres for apparel, home furnishings other than carpets, floorcoverings and industrial end uses. Part 4 covers speciality products: a speciality fibres chapter running from polyester specialities, polyamides, polyacrylics and viscose rayon to PTFE, aramids, polyimide, PBI, polyacrylate, high modulus polyethylene and PEEK; a polypropylene chapter on production, producers, consumption, end uses, technology, raw materials and properties; and a nonwovens chapter on process routes, end uses and the market for fibre and fabric producers. Part 5 closes with future prospects — fibre producers' plans, threats to the industry and conclusions — followed by a glossary.
Common Questions
Which producers are profiled in the report?
Bayer, Courtaulds, Du Pont, EniChem, Enka, Hoechst, ICI, Lenzing, Montefibre, Moplefan, Rhone-Poulenc, Sateri and Snia — each covering the group, its fibre products, restructuring and investment, and research and development.
How is the restructuring of the industry organised in the report?
By fibre family — restructuring synthetic fibres in Western Europe, restructuring cellulosic fibres in Western Europe, and polyolefins and other fibres — with production and consumption measured by country.
Which speciality fibres are covered?
Polyester specialities, polyamides, polyacrylics, viscose rayon, PTFE, aramids, polyimide, polybenzimidazole (PBI), polyacrylate, high modulus polyethylene and PEEK, plus full chapters on polypropylene and nonwovens.