Technical Foam Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Growth in automotive lightweighting initiatives: The main driver of the technical foam sales is the growing demand for lightweight materials used in building consumer vehicles to improve fuel efficiency and lower emissions. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently estimated that for every 10% weight reduction in a vehicle, fuel economy improves by 6-8%. One of the primary elements contributing to the demand for technical foams, such as polyurethane and polyolefin foams, is the usage of foams in seat cushioning, headliners, and NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness) products. The growing global trend toward electric vehicles is estimated to fuel the consumption of technical foams, mainly due to the thermal insulation, acoustic management, and battery housing requirements in EVs.
   
• Rising construction and infrastructure investments: Technical foams are also commonly used in insulation panels, sealants, and structural foam components. In April 2025, total construction spending, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, was recorded at USD 2.1 trillion. This marks a substantial increase from the previous year on a year-over-year basis, mainly driven by the residential and commercial projects. Closed-cell expanded polystyrene (EPS) and polyurethane foams are the two main types of technical foams in the construction sector and are an important part of the energy efficiency equation for these energy-efficient buildings due to their thermal insulation properties. As these provide a way to meet green building requirements are likely to gain momentum around the globe. Demand is strongest in Asia Pacific, specifically China and India, where urbanization and major investments in infrastructure as part of their national development plans are gaining traction.
   
• Increasing adoption in healthcare sector: Technical foams are being widely used in the healthcare sector, particularly in prosthetics and equipment. The aging global population and rising healthcare expenditure are the main growth drivers for technical foams. Technical foams such as polyurethane and silicone are widely used from wound care to prosthetics. A high demand for technical foam is also registered from the hospital bedding, cushions, and surgical pad manufacturers. In February 2024, Pregis introduced a new foam technology made with recycled polyethylene resins through its collaboration with ExxonMobil. Such developments are expected to enable end users, including healthcare companies, to achieve their circular economy goals by using recycling plastics.

Challenges

• Raw material price volatility: Volatile prices of petrochemicals, feedstock impact the production cost of technical foams. For instance, despite halting production due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, global ethylene prices increased substantially in 2021. Further, in 2022, the Hanjin Shipping Company crisis also hiked the polyurethane (PU) feedstock prices. Volatile prices impact the foam manufacturer's profitability and restrict OEMs from entering into long-term contracts, particularly in industries such as automotive and packaging. This directly limits market growth and creates financial uncertainty for small to mid-sized foam manufacturers in many regions across the world.
   
• Recycling & disposal challenges: Technical foams, especially cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) foams and PU foams, have limited options for recycling at the end-of-life. Worldwide, there is not yet a cost-efficient set of technologies in place or recycling infrastructure to manage these materials, and their accumulation in landfills has attracted scrutiny from environmental companies and curtailed use in sustainable construction, automotive, and packaging sectors, which espouse a circular economy.