Protective Clothing Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Prevalence of Industrial Accidents – Recent industrialization has propelled the expansion of numerous industries. On the other hand, the number of fatalities and accidents has also increased considerably. To protect the employees, the demand for protective clothing is expected to increase rapidly. The total number of fatal work injuries in the United States was calculated to be around 5,000 in 2020.

• Rise in Instances of Structure Fires – Protective clothing is required in emergencies such as fires and is worn by personnel such as firefighters and first responders. Moreover, the flame-resistant fabrics are used for the manufacture of protective clothes in order to protect the employees from the fire work. Therefore, it is projected to increase the growth of the global protective clothing market. The recent statistics reported that in 2020, there were almost 500,000 structure fires in the United States, an increment of 2 percent from 2019.

• High Investments by Companies in R&D Activities – The development of new technologies and improvements in protective fabrics are undoubtedly a very important factor, that is expected to spur the growth of the global protective clothing market. The World Bank showed the data on Research and Development expenditure to be 2.63% of total GDP in 2020, up from 2.13% of total GDP in 2017.
• Rapid Industrialization and Urbanization – People working in industries such as construction and manufacturing often need to wear protective garments to help mitigate the risks associated in their lie of work. According to the United Nations Organization released the data stating that about 55% of the global population was living in urban areas in 2018, which is forecasted to increase to 68% by 2050.

Challenges

• Concerns Related to Wearability Issues

• Requirement for High Initial Investment

• Constant Fluctuation in Costs of Raw Materials – With global economic instability and volatile changes in the prices of crude oil, which indirectly or directly affects the prices for synthetic fibers, such as nylon or rayon. These factors affect the costs incurred in the manufacture of protective clothing. Hence, it is expected to restrain the growth of the global protective clothing market.