The global market for coatings is forecast to reach 8.7 billion gallons in volume and $$107 billion in value by the year 2017 said research firm GIA. Major factors driving growth in the market include the recovery of global economies from the recent economic turmoil, rapid industrialization and increasing demand from end-use sectors, such as automotive and construction. Additionally, growth in the global market would be spurred by the increasing stringency in regulations, rising competition, growth in unique formulations and technological and product developments.

UV-cure coating technology is increasingly being seen as the future technology in the area of industrial coatings, according to the report. The technology represents one of the rapidly growing segments in the coatings industry, and is arguably emerging as the answer to the rising environmental concerns and stringent regulations. Several application related advantages come to serve the technology that include absence of pot life issues, lower energy costs, fast cure speed and reduced environmental impact. As such, one-component UV-cure coating ranks among the fastest coating chemistries available in the present context. Curing through one-component UV-cure coating takes few seconds to minutes, which makes it more ideal for use in applications that require faster turnaround time. Both types of UV-cure coating—waterborne and solids formulation—feature ultra-low VOC (volatile organic compound) levels.