Novel technologies and rise in usage of polymers in new areas of applications are likely to spur the growth of plastic manufacturing sector in the coming years. 

 

Plastic industry makes significant contribution to the economic development and growth of various key sectors in the country such as automotive, construction, electronics, healthcare, textiles, and FMCG. Government initiatives such as Make in India, Skill India, Digital India, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, etc are opening up opportunities for accelerated growth in the plastics industry, as the industry is contributing in a big way in the success of these programs. For example, for Digital India program, plastic is one of the major components required in the production of electronic gadgets, which are mostly imported at present in the country. In the next 5 to 10 years, most of the products in the electronics industry are proposed to be made in the country, thus reducing imports from China & other countries – making India an emerging sourcing hub.

 

“Smart cities, rapid urbanisation, increase in sale of packaged products through retail and e-commerce mode, low per capita consumption, shifting consumer lifestyles, large young population, majority of population of middle income group, many manufacturing segments adopting higher percentage of plastics, etc are contributing towards the growth of plastics industry. Indian plastics industry has geared itself to take up the challenges of quantitative and qualitative growth for serving the nation and its citizens and also to take the country to a higher growth path,” said K K Seksaria, President, Plastindia Foundation, during the formal launch of Plastindia 2018 – a mega trade fair for plastics industry to be held next month in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

 

Indian plastics industry is emerging as one of the fastest growing global markets with 12% growth rate. By 2020, plastics consumption of the country is expected to increase from the current 12 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) to 20 MMTPA. 

The centre of gravity is rapidly shifting to India as the country offers huge opportunities for the global plastics industry. India is the world’s next plastic destination by virtue of both, its sheer size and tremendous growing domestic demand. The industry is likely to play a significant role in helping government to achieve its goal to raise exports to $900 billion by 2020. The export of plastics finished goods is expected to nearly double from $ 7.9 billion currently to $15 billion in next 5 years. 

 

“Accelerated globalisation, rapid change in technology and growing consumerism have brought with it sweeping changes and abundant opportunities in the packaging industries, resulting in innovative plastic packaging products, which are lighter in weight, durable and cost effective. Going ahead recycling and reuse of plastics could be a foremost step towards fostering innovation and sustainability,” said Plastindia Foundation in a press statement.

 

Petrochemicals: The backbone of plastics industry

 

Global economic growth is generally interlinked to petrochemical consumption where plastic is an important partner. A wide variety of plastics raw materials (polymers) are produced to meet the material needs of different sectors of the economy. 

These polymers are broadly categorised as commodity, engineering and specialty plastics. Commodity plastics, which account for bulk of the plastics and in turn for petrochemical industry, comprise of polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polystyrene (PS). On the other hand, engineering and specialty plastics exhibit superior mechanical and thermal properties in a wide range of conditions and are used for specific purpose. These include styrene derivatives (PS/EPS & SAN/ABS), polycarbonate, poly methyl methacrylate, polycarbonates, poly oxy methylene (POM) plastics etc. While major plastic materials like PE and PP are derived from ethylene and propylene respectively, other plastics such as PVC, PS & ABS and PC are produced from benzene, butadiene and other feedstock.

 

Though India is currently net importer of PE, the commissioning of new PE units in the country is expected to bring down imports significantly. India observes significant regional diversity in consumption of plastics with Western India accounting for 47%, Northern India for 23% and Southern India for 21%, according to a joint report of FICCI & Tata Strategic Management Group (TSMG).

To manufacture finished products, polymers are processed through various types of techniques namely extrusion, injection moulding, blow moulding and roto moulding. 

 

According to the FICCI-TSMG report, extrusion process is the most commonly used process in India, accounting for about 60% of total consumption by downstream plastic processing industries. Injection moulding is the other popular process accounting for 25% of the consumption. Blow moulding is used for about 5% while rotomoulding accounts for 1%. The rest of the plastics is processed through other processes.

 

Plastics machinery: Aiding growth

 

To meet the growing requirements of plastic products, India is estimated to deploy 180,000 machines by 2020 as compared to the current 113,000. Eyeing to corner larger pie of the increasing market, many companies (Indian as well as global) are entering the market, thus helping the plastics machinery industry grow dramatically over next 3-4 years. “Indian plastics machinery industry is steadily growing at a rate of around 15%. Many global players from Europe, Japan and China have set up or are in process of setting up shop with significant investments in manufacturing facilities in India,” said Mahendra N Patel, Chairman, Plastics Machinery Manufacturers Association of India (PMMAI).

 

As the customers become quality conscious, the plastics machinery makers are developing machines to meet the customer’s changing needs. Energy efficiency is the prime factor for evaluating machine economics. User-friendly machine controls interface, which integrates auxiliaries on a single screen is the next important factor. There is the trend to use servo technologies for all motions to reduce mechanical components for easier control and better energy efficiency. There is a trend to focus on output speeds or cycle time for processing speed with consistent output quality, which leads to better productivity per unit of energy used and rupee invested for the customer.

 

“Reliability of machine is equally important coupled with service and replacement part costs in case of an unlikely breakdown. There is a trend for more comprehensive warranties and to encourage AMC agreements for better up-time of machines,” said Patel. Outlook for Indian plastics machinery industry is positive given global growth prospects of plastics consumption. At the same time, acceptance of Indian plastics machinery is increasing globally as Indian machines are seen to offer better ‘value-for-money’, thus successfully competing with its biggest competitor - China. In addition to traditional African markets, almost all PMMAI members have reportedly experienced a rise in their exports to more advanced markets like East Europe and beyond. 

 

The future holds bright

 

Globalisation, rapid change in technology and growing consumerism have brought with it sweeping changes and abundant opportunities for plastic companies to grow locally and globally. Per capita plastic consumption in India is about 10 kg per person compared with about 90-100 kg in the US and 50 kg in Europe. The industry will witness significant investments in the next few years as per capita consumption goes up. The growth will be aided with rise in availability of polymers as petrochemical companies increase their capacity and range of products. 

 

Indian plastic industry faces environmental myths and lacks in technology. Going ahead recycling & reuse of plastics are expected to increase, thus fostering innovation and sustainability. New technologies and rise in usage of polymers in new areas 

like construction, agriculture, health and others are increasing the demand for plastic products. With this, the per capita consumption of plastics is set to rise spurring the growth of plastic manufacturing sector in years to come.
 

Table 1: Classification of plastic products by type of process

Processes	Products manufactured
Extrusion	Films and sheets, fibre and filaments pipes, conduits and profiles, miscellaneous applications
Injection moulding	Industrial injection moulding, household injection moulding and thermoware/moulded luggage
Blow moulding	Bottles, containers, toys and housewares
Roto moulding	Large circular tanks such as water tanks