With the continuous advancement of globalization and the increasing demand for high-quality food and pharmaceuticals from consumers, the cold chain industry is playing an increasingly important role in global logistics. To ensure precise temperature control during transportation and storage, the cold chain industry relies on high-performance insulation materials. Among various materials, polyurethane (PU) has become the ideal choice for the cold chain industry due to its excellent insulation performance, light weight, and environmental friendliness. This article will explore the application of polyurethane in the cold chain industry, the growth trend of market demand, analyzing its huge potential in the future market.
What is Cold Chain Logistics
The cold chain industry refers to the logistics model that ensures perishable goods such as food, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals remain in their optimal state through temperature-controlled transportation and storage throughout the entire process. As consumers’ demands for food safety and the effectiveness of pharmaceuticals continue to rise, the global cold chain market is expanding rapidly. According to the “Global Cold Chain Logistics Market Research Report”, the global cold chain logistics market size was approximately 255 billion US dollars in 2023 and is expected to reach 452 billion US dollars by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 12.3%.
Among them, the food cold chain accounts for the largest market share, approximately 60%, followed by the pharmaceutical cold chain (about 20%) and other cold chains (such as biological products) (about 10%).
In the cold chain industry, polyurethane materials have become an indispensable and important material due to their excellent insulation performance. The emergence of polyurethane foam, polyurethane boards, and other materials has made cold chain transportation and storage more efficient and economical.
Main Applications of Polyurethane in the Cold Chain Industry
Refrigerated Transportation: Ensuring Precise Temperature Control
In cold chain logistics, the transportation stage is of utmost importance. Polyurethane is widely used in refrigerated trucks, freezer trucks, and containers as an insulating material. Polyurethane foam has an extremely low thermal conductivity, effectively isolating the temperature changes in the external environment and ensuring that the goods remain within the preset temperature range during transportation. Whether it’s food, medicine, or chemicals, polyurethane can provide the necessary temperature control during transportation. UREXCEED® has professional PU glue dispensing machines specifically designed for making refrigerated trucks. We offer both manual and automatic models for customers to choose from, and the flow rate of the machines can be adjusted according to the size of the customer’s panels and production volume. If you just want to make refrigerated transportation, contact us for more details.
Insulation Packaging: Extending the Freshness Period of Goods
The application of polyurethane materials in cold chain packaging is also increasingly widespread. Polyurethane foam is often used in cold chian packfood packaging, vaccine transportation, and pharmaceutical product packaging to ensure that the goods remain at a low temperature and prevent temperature fluctuations from affecting their quality. This efficient insulation performance can effectively extend the freshness period of goods, reduce losses, and enhance customer satisfaction.
Insulation Equipment: Storing or Transporting Temperature-Sensitive Items
Polyurethane is also widely used in the insulation layers of refrigerators for food and beverages, pharmaceutical products, and portable insulated boxes to ensure the temperature requirements of temperature-sensitive goods such as food, medicine, and vaccines. Both UREXCEED® high pressure foam injection machines and low-pressure PU foam machines can meet customers’ needs in the production of insulated boxes and refrigerators. We also offer mold customization services. As long as customers can provide drawings or samples, we can help them replicate them 1:1, and we can sign a confidentiality agreement to ensure that the customer’s drawings will not be leaked. Of course, if you don’t have your own design, it’s no problem. We have professional drawing designers who can help design the drawings based on customer needs and then modify the molds. So if you have such need, contact us right now.
Cold Storage and Warehousing: Improving Storage Efficiency and Cost-effectiveness
Cold chain warehousing is another key area where polyurethane is applied. As a lightweight and strong insulating material, polyurethane is often used for insulation treatment of cooling room walls, roofs, and floors. Compared to traditional materials, polyurethane not only has better insulation performance but also reduces the energy consumption of cold storage, thereby significantly lowering operating costs and improving overall storage efficiency. UREXCEED® cyclopentane high-pressure foam injection machine is a polyurethane foaming machine specifically designed for cold storage panels. Compared to ordinary foaming machines, it uses cyclopentane foam agent, which is more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly, and the produced cold storage panels have better insulation and heat preservation performance. If you have requirement of pu machine to make coldroom panel, contact us, we can provide customized projection solutions.
Market Trend Analysis
The Rapid Growth of the Global Cold Chain Industry
The cold chain industry is experiencing unprecedented development opportunities. With the increasing global demand for cold chain logistics, especially in the expansion of food safety, pharmaceutical transportation, and biopharmaceuticals, the market demand for the cold chain industry is constantly growing. According to market reports, the cold chain logistics market is expected to continue expanding in the coming years, especially in emerging markets such as Asia and Latin America. With rapid economic development and rising consumption levels, the demand for cold chain logistics will increase significantly.
Rising Demand for Polyurethane Materials
The demand for polyurethane in the cold chain industry is also growing in tandem. As the volume of cold chain logistics increases, the demand for efficient, environmentally friendly, and economical insulation materials continues to rise. Polyurethane, with its excellent thermal insulation and good physical properties, has become the preferred alternative to traditional insulation materials.
According to the “Global Cold Chain Insulation Materials Market Analysis Report”, the market penetration rate of polyurethane rigid foam in the cold chain logistics sector is approximately 35% to 40%, making it the most widely used insulation material in the cold chain industry.
According to the latest research, the market share of polyurethane materials in cold chain logistics has shown significant growth. With the increasing demand for environmentally friendly materials, the development of low GWP (Global Warming Potential) and fluorine-free polyurethane foaming agents is becoming a major trend in the industry. According to the analysis of market research company Mordor Intelligence, the market for low GWP polyurethane is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 12%, reaching a market size of $2.5 billion by 2027.
Environmental Trends Drive Material Innovation
As global environmental requirements continue to increase, the modern cold chain industry’s demand for energy conservation, emission reduction, and environmentally friendly materials is constantly growing. The polyurethane industry is also promoting material innovation. Many enterprises are beginning to develop polyurethane materials with lower carbon emissions and higher recyclability. Some polyurethane foam products have already started to use low GWP and fluorine-free chemicals. The promotion of these new materials is expected to bring more opportunities for the application of polyurethane materials in the cold chain industry.
Market Prospects of Polyurethane in the Cold Chain Industry
Regional Markets: Cold Chain Demands in Different Regions
The demand for polyurethane in the global cold chain market shows significant regional differences. In North America and Europe, due to strict food safety regulations and high requirements for the transportation of pharmaceutical products, the demand for polyurethane materials in these regions continues to grow. In the Asia-Pacific region, especially in China and India, with the rise of the economy and the improvement of consumption levels, the demand for cold chain logistics is also constantly increasing, which drives the expansion of the polyurethane market.
Facing Challenges: How Polyurethane Helps the Industry Break Through Bottlenecks
Although the cold chain industry is developing rapidly, high energy costs and the need for technological innovation remain the main challenges it faces. Polyurethane, with its excellent insulation performance, can significantly reduce energy consumption and improve the overall efficiency of cold chain systems, helping the industry break through bottlenecks.
Future Development: Innovation and Opportunities in Polyurethane Technology
The continuous innovation of polyurethane technology brings new opportunities to the cold chain industry. With the increasingly strict environmental regulations, low-carbon and recyclable polyurethane materials will become an important direction for the development of the industry. In addition, with the rise of intelligent cold chain technology, polyurethane will play a more critical role in efficient and precise temperature control.
Conclusion: Polyurethane is an Indispensable Key Material in the Cold Chain Industry
Polyurethane, with its outstanding insulation performance, light weight, and environmental friendliness, has become an indispensable important material in the cold chain industry. As the cold chain industry continues to develop, the demand for polyurethane materials will further increase, especially in key areas such as food and pharmaceuticals. Investing in polyurethane technology not only enhances the efficiency of cold chain logistics but also helps enterprises gain an edge in the fierce market competition.
With the continuous changes in the market and the development of technology, polyurethane will play a greater role in the cold chain industry, promoting it towards a more efficient, environmentally friendly, and sustainable direction.
UREXCEED® is committed to helping customers solve all polyurethane-related problems they encounter in the cold chain industry. We design and develop different polyurethane equipment based on customers’ different needs, including ordinary PU high and low pressure foaming machines, cyclopentane high pressure machines, PU foam spraying machines, etc. At the same time, we also provide cold chain solutions. As long as you inform us of your budget, your expected production volume, your product size, etc., we can tailor a cold chain production line solution for you, including raw materials, molds, foaming machines, production lines, and production auxiliary equipment. If you are interested in the cold chain industry, feel free to contact us directly. We will provide the most professional consulting services to help customers smoothly carry out cold chain projects.
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