According to Composites UK, the usage of composites is growing and the global market for composite products is expected to reach USD 95 billion, globally, by 2020. Increasing need for lighter weight and durable products is increasing the penetration of composites in major industries, such as aerospace, transportation, construction, and wind energy in the global market. However, around 40% of the total production of composites ends up being wasted. They are either dumped as scrap or can be found as defective parts. Apart from the waste generated from production, much of the waste is also generated from end-of-life usage of products. According to various industrial sources, around 12,000 commercial aircraft are due to reach the end of their useful life in the next two decades, and approximately six million cars are scrapped each year, globally. Moreover, in the wind turbine industry, approximately 20% of the composite fabrics used in the manufacture of rotor blades are generally discarded during the production process. Such developments are expected to increase the amount of composite waste generated by these industries significantly.

Expanded polypropylene foam is an environmentally-friendly product, it can be recycled easily, and is 100% non-toxic. Recycling of polypropylene is emerging as an important, and economically viable option on a large scale. The recycling process involves five steps, namely collection, sorting, cleaning, reprocessing by melting and producing new products from recycled PP. Thus, the first three steps are the same as recycling most other commodities. However, the last two are critical. In the reprocessing phase, collected PP products are fed into an extruder, where it is melted at 2,400 °C and cut into granules. These pellets are then ready for use in the production of new products.  Efforts to improve polypropylene recycling have been ongoing which will aid the EPP foam market to expand during the forecast timeframe. Nextek Ltd, a UK-based plastic design and recycling consulting company has invented an innovative process to decontaminate food grade polypropylene for reuse in a closed loop back into food packaging. The Nextek developed process involves two steps: The first phase involves melting PP at nearly 250 °C to get rid of contaminant molecules. The second and last step includes removing residual molecules during under vacuum and solidification at about 140 °C. The products made following this process can be blended with virgin PP at a rate up to 50%.

The construction industry is highly dynamic, and numerous factors, such as overall economy, budgets, and global economic scenario, are influencing the market’s growth. Volatility in these aspects affects the businesses of construction equipment OEMs, as well as construction rental equipment. This, in turn, is leading to price fluctuations of new, used, and rental equipment. The ASEAN region holds significant oppor tunities for the growth in demand for construction machinery. With the prospects of large infrastructure projects and shifting labor dynamics, the construction equipment rental market is expected to witness growth post-2020 during the forecast period. With a sudden outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic across the world, many economic sectors, including the construction industry, have been under lockdown for a few weeks/months in the first quarter of 2020. In the ASEAN countries, the construction sector is expected to grow at a rate of more than 6% post-2020. It is estimated that over the next five years, the combined value of all the megaprojects in the ASEAN region is expected to be valued at USD 2.9 trillion. Of this value, about USD 1.5 trillion is invested in the planning/pre-planning phase.

The compressed air energy storage (CAES) technology includes the storage of energy by compression of air and storing the same in the underground cavern. The power is generated by heating the pressurized air and expansion of the same in a turbine, which drives the generator, leading to the power generation. Since 1870, CAES systems have been deployed to provide effective, on-demand energy for cities and industries. CAES offers the potential for both large- and small-scale, on-site energy storage solutions, as well as larger installations that can provide immense energy reserves for the grid. The first CAES plant of capacity 290 MW was set up in Germany in 1978, and a 110 MW plant commenced operation in Alabama in 1991. The successful operation of these two plants demonstrated the technical viability of CAES technology in supplying ancillary services, load following, and intermediate power generation. Despite its success, the market for CAES is in the nascent phase, due to several reasons, such as lack of investment and lack of technology, which prevented the development of new CAES plants. However, the market is expected to witness growth during the forecast period, owing to the increasing awareness of energy storage and investments on this technology

With increasingly stringent environmental concerns, governments and environment agencies across the world have been continually working toward reducing exhaust emissions. They have also been focusing on improving fuel economy, which, in turn, is expected to aid in reducing exhaust emissions. As a result, automobile manufacturers have been working toward reducing the overall weight of vehicles, as it can ensure prominent reduction in CO2 emissions. Weight reduction of 10 kg is estimated to save 1 g of CO2 emission per kilometer. In this regard, the focus on the adoption of subsystems, like EPS, has increased, as the incorporation of the EPS results in significant weight savings. In EPS, an electric steering system replaces the hydraulic piston and pump with an electric motor. The motor draws electricity from the battery, only when the vehicle is turning. There is no power loss in such systems, which decreases the fuel consumption of the vehicle. In addition, the aforementioned developments aid in weight reduction, in turn resulting in fuel efficiency of up to 3% and less carbon emissions. When compared to the hydraulic power steering systems, increased fuel efficiency is one of the most deserving advantages of the EPS systems. Furthermore, the automotive industr y’s paradigm shift toward electric mobility is projected to shift the focus of the manufacturers toward electric vehicle (EV) production, over the coming years.

The nature of air-based warfare has changed in the recent years with the advent of more lethal, agile and untraceable threats having autonomous capabilities. As threats increase, the countries are compelled to safeguard their territories from potential adversaries at any cost, due to which the emphasis on enhancing the air defense capabilities increased. Major defense exporters, like the United States, Russia, and Israel, are looking at Asia-Pacific as the region with the highest growth potential and are pitching their air defense systems to various countries in the region. The growing territorial disputes in the region are propelling the countries to develop their own air defense systems to reduce dependency. Rapidly emerging technologies have substantially altered the balance of power in recent years. The market is expected to grow primarily due to the growth in air-based threats and the increasing defense expenditures that facilitate both procurement and R&D in newer technologies. However, this growth is subjective to several associative factors, such as allocation of funds, which can be adversely affected due to the projected onset of an economic turndown and various technical factors that may eventually lead to the program delays and cancellations.

The rate at which the development of autonomous vehicles is very astonishing. About a year ago, few would have argued that the existence of these cars is not reality. But at present, these vehicles are being piloted in number of countries and few are running on the public roads as well. The question is, when are all the cars on roads becoming fully autonomous. It is believed that it may take 10 years or 30, the implications are so far-reaching that policymakers need to star t planning now for autonomous vehicles future. Major automaker companies, technology giants and specialist star t-ups have invested more than USD 50 billion over the past five years, in order to develop autonomous vehicle (AV) technology, with 70% of the money coming from other than the automotive industry. At the same time, public authorities see that AVs offer huge potential economic and social benefits.

With 5G networks soon to be rolled out, smartphone OEMs telecom players are rapidly gearing towards the shift. Telecom service providers across the globe are upgrading to 5G networks, which rely on denser arrays of small antennas to offer ultra-high data speeds. At the same time, smart phone manufacturers are working towards equipping handsets with built-in 5G radios, to exploit complete potential of 5G networks. Such efforts are increasing the demand for 5G modem chipsets, which are considered to be the keys that allow devices to support 5G technologies. These 5G modem chipsets, in combination with service providers, largely serve and enhance the capabilities of three major applications: enhanced mobile broadband, ultra-reliable and low latency communications, and massive machine type communications. 5G technology is not yet commercialized, and some countries still face several regulatory constraints. A few pilot countries, however, such as the United States, Japan, South Korea, and China, have reportedly started licensing mmWave spectrums for research and testing purposes.

Multi-layer ceramic capacitors were first developed in the 1970s and 1980s, but their widespread adoption was possible in the last decade with the development of new dielectric materials and fabrication methods. The MLCC (Multilayer ceramic capacitors) possess unique characteristics like flexibility in size or shape, low cost, ability to withstand high voltages and are considered to most reliable. However, the most crucial characteristic that resulted in their widespread adoption was their ability to pack multiple components into a single package. Each MLCC has hundreds of layers and each layer acts as a separate component. This eliminated the use of additional components in the circuitry. MLCC were at the center of all the technological innovations that happened in the last decade, and they can be considered to be one of the enablers of new innovations in consumer electronics, telecommunications, and energy storage. The impact of MLCC has been such that the new technologies, like IoT, 5G, and EVs, are highly dependent on the availability of MLCCs. This has driven the manufacturer to align the product line and production capacities, to serve the requirements of the technologies.

The patient monitoring market’s growth is primarily driven by the rising prevalence of chronic diseases, growing geriatric population, rising popularity of health monitoring devices, and preference for home and remote monitoring devices. According to the World Health Organization, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is expected to emerge as the third leading cause of death across the world by 2030. Majority of the chronic diseases and conditions are linked to an aging society and lifestyle choices, such as smoking, sexual behavior, diet, and exercise, along with genetic predispositions. Moreover, the rising awareness regarding patient monitoring devices, especially remote monitoring and home monitoring devices, are anticipated to witness significant growth rates over the forecast period. The percentage of adults meeting the national guideline for aerobic physical activity increased from 44% in 2008 to 54% in 2017. The rising awareness regarding the benefits associated with healthy lifestyle and increasing usage of health monitoring devices are likely to drive the market’s growth.