Market
Information - Rubber Hoses & Tubing
Rubber hoses are used as flexible connections for the movement of
materials like air, oil, water, steam, powdered materials, food etc,
when it is not suitable to use a solid rigid pipe. It can also be
used for pressure or suction applications. Depending on the design
and intended application of the product, hoses can have internal diameter
as small as 5 mm and as large as 500 mm, and working pressure up to
40 MPa.
Malaysia’s Export and Import of Rubber Hoses and Tubing
*2001 - January to September
Local Manufacturers
|
|
|
|
| Company |
Type
of Hoses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Syarikat
Lian Hwa |
A&I |
|
|
Types of Hoses |
Alfagomma
- Mardec |
I |
|
|
A: Automotive
Hoses |
Technomeiji |
A |
|
|
I: Industrial Hoses |
Fudex |
A |
|
|
H: Hydraulic
Hoses |
Good
Rubber Works |
A & I |
|
|
T: Tubing |
Tantex
Rubber |
I |
|
|
|
Linatex |
I |
|
|
|
Pong
Codan |
A & I |
|
|
|
Q-Flex |
I |
|
|
|
| Kinta
Rubber Works |
I |
|
|
|
Tan
Kor Seng |
I |
|
|
|
CWD
Rubber |
I |
|
|
|
Wellcall |
I |
|
|
|
Jetflo
Robin |
I |
|
|
|
Medical
Rubber |
I |
|
|
|
Phoenix
Rubber |
H |
|
|
|
M
Pol Marketing |
T |
|
|
|
|
| Source: MRB Directory 2002 |
| |
|
|
|
|
Majority of the Malaysian manufacturers particularly family-owned entity and
also the SMIs are focused on contract-basis manufacturing. This approach does
not guarantee the sustainability and expansion of market in the long term, but
will create dependence on the main buyer who could end the contract at any time.
Sales & Marketing
| · |
5 Major Market Groups |
| |
° |
Automotive and aeronautical hose and tubing, primarily for
under-the-hood
products such as cooling system and fuel hose |
| |
° |
Hydraulic hoses |
| |
° |
Industrial hoses, with many different types ranging from big applications
like air / multipurpose hose and chemical / petroleum hose to smaller ones
like
fire hose and steam / cleaning hose |
| |
° |
Industrial tubing - applications range from chemical and fuel tubing
to food / beverage, instrumentation and ultra pure
materials tubing |
| |
° |
For the consumer and healthcare subsector, the largest markets are garden
/ similar hoses and medical tubing |
| |
|
|
| · |
Distribution Channels |
| |
The rubber hoses and tubing market is typified by fragmented
national manufacturers and is not dominated by a single manufacturer. This
situation is slowly changing due to mergers and acquisitions of companies.
The increasing competition from other producers is also causing local manufacturers
to consider owning their own distributorship, therefore creating a closer
link between them and the end-user.
Rubber hoses are normally purchased
by overseas agents, and the primary purchase consideration is the cost
per foot. This system favours huge suppliers such as Gates or Goodyear,
who have the volume and market share to operate with minimal margins, thus
making it very hard for smaller producers to compete on a regional or niche
basis in different market segments. |
| |
|
| · |
Competition |
| |
Manufacturers of automotive hoses have expressed
concern over the increasing competition from Thailand companies especially
for the OE market. The production capacities of other competing countries
such as China, India and Indonesia are also predicted to grow significantly
in the coming years.
Repositioning and new product introductions within
certain high performance sectors are expected to be active. The development
of novel technologies will also enable certain producers to gain an edge
over other competitors. |
| |
|
|
| · |
Quality Standards |
| |
Manufacturers supplying hoses to the automotive
industry particularly the OE market are aware of the importance of the
QS 9000 certification. In the industrial hoses subsector, the trend amongst
the manufacturers towards quality systems is slower as compared with the
automotive industry. This could mainly due to the market situation, as
buyers are more concern of the suppliers meeting the required product standards
such as the BS (UK), DIN (Germany) and JIS (Japan).
Multinational companies
dealing with medical tubing producers are also requesting for the ISO standard
to ensure continuous supply of quality goods. |
| |
|
|
World Market for Hose Products
Based on the information extracted from the European
Committee of Standardisation (CEN), the total world market for hose products
(rubber and plastic hoses) is
around Euro 2.2 billion.
|
Region |
Market Size (Euro million) |
| |
Industrial Hoses |
Hydraulic Hoses |
|
Europe |
190 |
300 |
USA |
190 |
380 |
Rest of the World |
520 |
620 |
Total |
900 |
1300 |
|
| Source: European Committee of Standardisation |
| |
|
|
Prospects
The Malaysia's marketing channel and networking need to be revamped and intelligently
planned in order to push the product in this ever-competitive market. With the
intense global competition, rubber hose manufacturers may wish to concentrate
on specialty applications such as those in the chemical and food processing industries
that offer superior product at a premium price. |
