ALBANY, N.Y. — January 27, 2016 — The global smart textile market is projected to expand at a remarkable CAGR of 30.80 percent during the forecast period from 2015 to 2023, says Transparency Market Research (TMR). In 2014, the global smart textile market was worth $700 million and by 2023, it is projected to be worth $7,730 million. Smart textiles are fabrics that come embedded with electronics that are connected with each other.
Nanotechnology Facilitates Embedding Components in Smart Textiles
Driven by the increasing use of nanotechnology, the global smart textile market will expand remarkably in the foreseeable future. The use of nanotechnology has grown tremendously in the smart textile industry due to its valuable and unique properties. Furthermore, nanotechnology enables textiles to become multifunctional and supports embedding electronic components into the fabric. In addition to this, nanotechnology supports the production of fabrics that come with special functionality such as water and stain resistance, UV protection, and anti-bacterial.
Expanding Application Segments to Drive Global Smart Textile Market
Application-wise, the global smart textile market is classified into military and defense, healthcare, entertainment, sports and fitness, automotive, and others. The demand for wearables in these application segments is driven by the rising miniaturization of electronic components, in turn, driving the demand for smart textiles in these segments. In addition to this, the expanding healthcare, sports and fitness, and automotive segments will drive the demand for smart textiles and wearables further.
The global smart textile market is dominated by the military and defense segment, followed by the healthcare segment and the entertainment segment. In 2014, the military and defense segment accounted for a share of 28.7 percent. By function, the global smart textile market is divided into luminescent, thermoelectricity, sensing, energy harvesting, and others. Some of the products manufactured using smart textiles are coats, gloves, and sportswear. These garments feature sensors used in different applications such as entertainment, health monitoring, and automotive.
Global Smart Textile Market Challenged by Cost Issues
Although the aforesaid trends will drive the global smart textile market, it will be constrained by the high cost of production. Furthermore, the cost of electronic devices and components will add to the price of these textiles. Moreover, the global smart textile market will be challenged by the incompatibility between smart textiles and electronics. To overcome this issue, more collaboration is required to make smart textile technology more effective in the global market.
Global Smart Textile Market Dominated by North America
According to region, the global smart textile market is divided into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Rest of the World (RoW). In 2014, North America held the largest share of 40.1 percent in the global smart textile market. This regional market for smart textiles is projected to expand at an impressive 30.30 percent CAGR during the forecasting horizon.
Some of the key players operating in the global smart textile market are Noble Biomaterials, Gentherm, Schoeller Technologies, Koninklijke Ten Cate, Texas Instruments, Outlast Technologies, and Globe Manufacturing Company. Players in the global smart textile market will benefit from the opportunity presented by the increasing research and development in this market.
Posted January 27, 2016
Source: Transparency Market Research
