Is PU a Plus to Street-stall Economy?

The year 2020 is full of crises and full of challenges. Chinese people have witnessed the breakout of COVID-19 at the very beginning of this year when face masks and forehead thermometers once became popular for export. Several months later, people start snapping up motorcycle helmets to meet the latest traffic laws.

These products involve more or less other kinds of plastics. Thermometers use normal and cheaper plastics almost in the shell. Facemasks require high-quality PP fabrics. Plastic helmets are often made of PC, ABS, EPP, or EBS. However, all these have nothing to do with PU until the revival of the street-stall economy in June.

Dry Cargo Box Panel

After the dry cargo box issued by Wuling, many other CV manufacturers began to produce similar types. Regardless of the NVH, lightweight, and comfort, the PU consumption of a dry cargo van for stall-retailing is under 6kg. However, the street-stall economy will greatly promote the logistics industry including last-mile delivery and long-distance transportation. Useful in car seats and steering wheels, the booming demand of various cargo cars, dining cars, tricycles, delivery cars, stall cars will surely bring a new opportunity to the PU foam market.

Wholesale & Retail Goods

Street-stall commodities are almost small goods at a low price. Most of them involve the usage of polyurethane, including synthetic leather bags and boxes, PU shoe soles, cell-phone shells, cushions, dolls, elastic toy balls, toy car wheels, and so on. The recovery of the street-stall economy will increase the demand for PU material.

Temperature-controlled Transportation

Catering is also an important part of the street-stall economy. Many street stalls sell fast foods and ice-creams. They need reefers and insulation boxes. Traditional insulation boxes use PP foam panels. Stacked up with some fabric clothes or ices, these boxes can keep warm for 4 hours, or cold for 12-24 hours. A 30L foam panel box costs only RMB 7-8. However, these boxes are too thin and fragile. They are easy to damage in transportation. This will increase the long term cost.

Comparatively, PU foam sandwich panels are more solid and strong enough that a PU box can even carry a man. As to the insulation property, PU foam is also much better. It’s never a problem that a PU panel box can keep warm for 8 hours or cold for 24 hours.

For the lightweight and strong insulation property, PU foam panels are active in the temperature-controlled transportation field. Reefer trailers, cold van, and refrigerated truck bodies made of PU sandwich panels are becoming hot sales these years.