Geotextiles: Highs and Lows Shape the Market

The global geotextiles and geo­synthetics market on the nonwoven roll good level continue to grow as manufacturers continue to depend on a wide range of technologies to meet the needs of civil engineering and other application areas. However, increased polypropylene and other raw material costs as well as escalated energy prices, combined with a failure to pass along these costs have made this market challenging.

    Polypropylene resin costs have climbed 20% or more since the beginning of the year, on top of a series of increases felt during the past several years before that. This has required suppliers to the global geotextiles market—like many companies—to increase prices. For example, last month Col­bond Nonwovens, a key supplier of erosion control, soil reinforcement and drainage materials an­nounced it would increase prices 6-9% across all of its products, joining other key nonwovens manufacturers such as Polymer Group, Inc. and Johns Manville, who also supply the global geotextiles market.

    Also hurting conditions within geotextiles are economic problems, stemming largely from the U.S.