Automotive Glass Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Rising Penetration of Sunroofs – The majority of sunroofs are made of tempered glass, often known as safety glass which is four times stronger than regular glass and shatters into little, comparatively harmless shards rather than sharp shards. Automotive sunroofs, whether electrically or manually operated, have grown in popularity among consumers owing to glass's unique capacity to divide the vehicle's interior from the elements.

According to estimates, the global automotive sunroof sales were recorded at just less than 50 million units in 2021.

• Increasing Glass Damage in Accidents- Road accidents can be devastating and are one of the most common causes of auto windscreen glass damage that can be caused by the collision of rocks and stones. Moreover, the strong power of an impact in the accident can produce fractures or brakes in the glass, which necessitates the use of replacement and repairmen of windscreen glass at any garage/workstation.

As per estimation a global loss of USD 1.5 trillion is expected owing to road accidents between 2015 and 2030.

Challenges

• Fluctuating Cost of Some Raw materials and Energy Utilization – Several raw materials including silica sand (SiO2), sodium oxide (Na2O), and feldspar (Al2O3) amongst which the Silica sand (SiO2) accounts for the majority of float glass' raw material inputs, with over 70% share are required to produce automotive glass. Moreover, Silica prices keep fluctuating as a result of uncertain demand situations and a slowing economy, and the principal source of silica (SiO2) in groundwater is water-rock interaction the cost of which depends on several factors including labor, and energy cost.
• Concern about the Growing Shortage of Glass
• Need for Huge Research & Development Expenditure