Market Characterization of the U.S. Structural Composite Preformed Polyurethane Foam Industry for Marine and Trailer Use


'ICF

Market Characterization of the U.S.
Structural Composite Preformed
Polyurethane Foam Industry for Marine
and Trailer Use

Prepared for:

Stratospheric Protection Division
Office of Air and Radiation
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460

Prepared by:

ICF

2550 S Clark St.
Suite 1200
Arlington, VA 22202

February 2021

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Table of Contents

1.	Summary	1

2.	Introduction	1

3.	Market Characterization	1

3.1.	Overview of the Marine and Trailer Industries	2

3.2.	Major Manufacturers	3

4.	Subsector Background and HFC Use	4

4.1.	Blowing Agent Use in Structural Composite Preform Foam	4

4.2.	Projected HFC Blowing Agent Use	6

4.3.	Imports and Exports of Trailer and Marine Foam in the United States	8

5.	References	9

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1. Summary

Structural composite preformed polyurethane (PU) foams are used for increased structural
integrity, weight reduction, and thermal efficiency in marine and trailer applications (Composites
World 2013, Composites World 2019, EPW2020a, EPW2020f, EPW2020h, EPW2020i). The
structural composite foam industry historically used hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) as a
foam blowing agent (i.e., HCFC-22) and transitioned to hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) blowing agents
as replacements for HCFCs in the early 2000s, specifically HFC-134a.

In 2020, approximately 28 metric tons (MT) of HFC-134a blowing agent was used in structural
composite PU foam for marine and trailer use in the United States. The use of HFC-134a
blowing agent in structural composite PU foam for marine and trailer use is expected to continue
until 2040 in the United States due to performance issues with alternatives (e.g., lack of
structural integrity, shrinking); however, by 2040, it is projected that HFC-134a blowing agent
will no longer be used in structural composite PU foam for marine and trailer use as it is
anticipated that alternatives will completely replace HFC-134a throughout the market.

2. Introduction

Structural composite PU foams differ from regular PU foam in that composite foams are
reinforced with fibers and then with polymer resin during the blowing process. The structural
composite foam is then preformed into the required shape (e.g., specific boat or trailer design).
Structural composite PU foams are used in the marine and trailer industries to increase
structural strength, while reducing the weight of such structures (Composites World 2013,
Composites World 2019, EPW 2020a, EPW2020f, EPW2020h, EPW2020i). In the late 1980s,
structural composite PU foams were developed and employed for marine uses (e.g.,
recreational boats, commercial fishing boats). This technology then spread to use in the
manufacturing of truck trailers (e.g., refrigerated trailers for transportation of perishable goods).
It is estimated that this technology expanded into the trailer market roughly five years ago
(BASF 2021).

In marine applications, preformed structural composite PU foams allow boat manufacturers to
replace either heavier traditional foam cores or wood components with a more efficient, lighter
weight, non-decaying product (General Plastics 2021, Composites Manufacturing 2015). In
trailer applications, preformed structural composite PU foams increase thermal efficiency, while
decreasing the overall weight of the system (EPW 2020a). In both marine and trailer industries,
HFC-134a is a commonly used blowing agent. The remainder of this report characterizes HFC
use by the marine and trailer industries in the United States, including key market players and
historical and current use of HFCs and blowing agents.

3. Market Characterization

This section provides an overview of the marine and trailer foam industries as well as the
current market and key manufacturers.

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3.1. Overview of the Marine and Trailer Industries

Typically, system houses develop formulations, such as the HFC-134a formulation currently in
use, for use in manufacturing structural composite preformed foams. These chemical
formulations are then sold to structural preform suppliers who work directly with boat and trailer
manufacturers to create specific molds for their intended application. Finally, boat and trailer
manufacturers install structural composite preforms into the specific boat and trailer models for
sale to consumers (EPW 2020c, EPW2020d, EPW2020e, EPW2020f, EPW2020h).

3.1.1. Marine

In the marine industry, a variety of foams are utilized for comfort, insulation, structure, and
flotation. Structural composite preformed foams are typically used in internal structures of the
boat, particularly stringers and bulkheads (Composites World 2013). Stringers are structures
that run parallel along the boat's hull and provide structural integrity, e.g., keeping the boat from
bending especially when going over waves. Bulkheads are vertical walls that provide structural
integrity and partition the boat into watertight compartments to reduce damage in the case of an
accident.

Historically, stringers and bulkheads were made of plywood and, more recently, sandwich foam
cores (Composites Manufacturing 2015, Composites World 2013). The development of
structural composite preformed foams provided a lighter-weight and more durable alternative,
which resulted in the ability to use less powerful engines and reduce fuel consumption, thus
decreasing the overall purchase and operation cost of boats (EPW2020e, EPW2020f). The
use of structural composite preform foams are estimated to comprise 10% of the marine foam
market (EPW2020f). BASF (2021) estimates that marine applications of structural composite
preform foams make up the majority of the overall structural composite preform foam market.

3.1.2. Trailers

In trailers, foams are used for insulation in two different applications, intermodal containers and
reefer trailers. Intermodal containers are refrigerated containers that allow for uninterrupted
refrigerated storage during transport. Reefer trailers are insulated cargo space that are
designed with a refrigeration system to maintain a certain temperature. These trailers can be
found on vans, trucks, or trailer-mounted systems. Normally, these trailers are used to transport
perishable or frozen goods (Zandstra 2020). Reefer trailers are moveable on their own while
intermodal containers require shipment on a trailer.

Traditionally, both trailer types have used conventional PU foam to provide insulation for their
refrigerated system. After the development of structural composite foams for marine
applications, structural composite preformed foams began to be used in both intermodal
containers and reefer trailers (Composites World 2019). Certain trailer manufacturers have
begun transitioning to trailer bodies within the last five years that replace traditional PU foam
completely (Composites World 2019, Wabash 2019). Structural composite preformed foams are

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estimated to improve thermal efficiency of trailers up to 28% and reduce overall weight up to
10%, compared to traditional foam and aluminum insulation (Composites World 2019).

3.2. Major Manufacturers

As mentioned above in Section 3.1, chemical companies develop formulations, such as the
HFC-134a formulation currently in use, for use in manufacturing structural composite preformed
foams. These chemical formulations are then sold to structural preform suppliers who work
directly with boat and trailer manufacturers to create specific molds for their intended
application. In some cases, the boat and trailer manufacturers buy directly from the system
houses, bypassing the structural composite foam manufacturer (BASF 2021). For example,
BASF and Wabash, a major trailer manufacturer, worked together directly to develop Wabash's
all-composite refrigerated trailer and all-composite reefer trailer in 2016 (BASF 2016,

FleetOwner 2016).

3.2.1. Structural Composite Foam Manufacturers

The major manufacturers of chemical formulations, or system houses, for use in structural
composite preform foam include BASF, Dow, and Carpenter (EPW2020f, EPW2020h).

Companies such as Compsys and Structural Composites buy material for foam blowing from
the system houses to create preformed structural composite foam for use in boats and trailers
(EPW 2020a, EPW 2020b, EPW2020h)

3.2.2. Marine Manufacturers

Major boat manufacturers that utilize structural composite preform foam include, but are not
limited to, Grady White Boats, HCB Center Console Yachts, and Parks Manufacturing, LLC
(EPW 2020c, EPW2020d, EPW2020e). Additional major boat manufacturers include Boston
Whaler, Mastercraft, Sea Ray, Chaparral, Ranger, Cobalt, Contender, and Malibu (Boat Trader
2020). These manufacturers are assumed to use structural composite preform foam as it is
assumed that the majority of the recreational boating market utilizes structural composite
preform foams (BASF 2021).

3.2.3. Trailer Manufacturers

The trailer market is segmented and no one manufacturer has a controlling share over the entire
market. Table 1 shows the estimated market share of each manufacturer in the trailer market.
Manufacturers highlighted in blue represent manufacturers known to use structural composite
preformed foams (EPW2020i, Great Dane 2015, Hyundai N.d.).

Table 1. Major Manufacturers of Trailers in the United States

Manufacturer

Estimated Market Share3

Utility Trailer Manufacturing

31%

Wabash

16%

Kidron Inc.

13%

Great Dane

14%

Morgan Corporation

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Manufacturer

Estimated Market Share3

Hyundai Trailers

Other

15%b

Source: Skeist (2004), Refrigerated Transporter (2010), and Wabash National (2019).
a Totals may not sum due to independent rounding.

b Assumed to be comprised of equal shares of Maersk Container Ind. (5%), Danteco
(5%), and Vanguard National Trailer Corp. (5%).

4. Subsector Background and HFC Use

4.1. Blowing Agent Use in Structural Composite Preform Foam

Structural composite preform foam was first developed for marine applications using HCFC-22
as the blowing agent. In 2005, it is assumed that HCFC-22 began to be replaced with HFC-134a
as the blowing agent for structural composite foams in both the marine and trailer end-uses with
the transition occurring over three years (BASF 2021, EPW 2020a, EPW 2020b, EPW2020h,
EPA 2007).

In 2015, manufacturers began research and development programs to establish alternative
foam blowing agents for marine and trailer structural composite preform foams (EPA 2020a,
EPA 2020f). While most foams used in the marine and trailer industries have transitioned from
HFC-134a to methyl formate and hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) formulations, an efficient alternative
has yet to be developed for structural composite preform foam (EPW 2020f).

Research for structural composite preform foams has been focused on HFO blowing agents, but
has been unsuccessful, as of 2020. Trials by Structural Composites and Wabash with HFO-
blown structural composite preform foams have shown instability and shrinkage in the product
after 14 days, which could cause safety concerns (EPA 2020a, EPA 2020h). It is assumed that
100% of the current structural composite preform foam marine market uses HFC-134a.
Environmental characteristics of the current blowing agent used in structural composite preform
foams are summarized in Table 2.

Table 2. Environmental Characteristics of Current Blowing Agents for Structural Composite

Preform Foam

Blowing Agent

ODPa

GWP

HFC-134a

1,430

Note: GWPs are aligned with the exchange values used in the AIM act.
a Ozone Secretariat (1987).

Overall use of HFC-134a for use as a structural composite preform foam blowing agent is
estimated to be 28 MT in 2020 (EPW2020h). Based on conversations with BASF (2021) about
general market estimates for the structural composite foam market, ICF assumes that marine
and trailer applications of structural composite preform foam make up 95% and 5% of the
overall market in 2020, respectively. Historic estimates of structural composite preform marine
foam were developed using the growth rates of recreational boat registrations from 2015
through 2019 (USCG 2020). Historic estimates of structural composite preform foam in trailer
applications were assumed to transition linearly from 2016, when they entered the market, to
2020. Table 3, Figure 1, and Figure 2 show the historic use of HFC-134a blowing agent used in

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structural composite preform foam in marine and trailer applications in the United States from
2015 to 2020.

Table 3. Historic HFC-134a Blowing Agent Use in Structural Composite Preform Foam in the

United States (2015-2020)



2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

Amount of HFC-134a Used

in Structural Composite Preform Foam (MT)

Marine

28.4

28.1

28.1

27.6

27.33

26.60

Trailer

-

0.3

0.6

0.9

1.1

1.4

Total

28.4

28.4

28.7

28.4

28.47

28.00

Amount of HFC-134a Used

in Structural Composite Preform Foam (MMT C02Eq.)

Marine

0.04

0.04

0.04

0.04

0.04

0.04

Trailer

-

0.0004

0.0008

0.001

0.002

0.002

Total

0.04

0.04

0.04

0.04

0.04

0.04

Note: Totals may not sum due to independent rounding.
Source: EPW(2020h), EPA (2020), USCG (2020).

Figure 1. Historic HFC Use of Blowing Agents for Structural Composite Preform Foam in the
	United States (2015-2020) (MT)	

30.0

25.0

~ 20.0
l-

5

aj

5 15.0

O
u_

X 10.0
50
0.0

2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020

¦ HFC-134a in Marine Applications ¦ HFC-134a in Trailer Applications

5

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Figure 2. Historic HFC Use of Blowing Agents for Structural Composite Preform Foam in the
United States (2015-2020) (Million Metric Tons CO2 Equivalent (MMT CP2 Eg.))

0.05

cr
LU

o
o

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2020

2025

2030

2035

2040

Trailer

1.4

1.7

2.0

2.4

Total

28.0

28.3

28.6

29.0

Amount of HFC-134a Used in Structural Composite Preform Foam (MMT C02Eq.)

Marine

0.04

Trailer

0.002

0.003

Total

0.04

Note: Totals may not sum due to independent rounding.
Source: EPW(2020h), EPA (2020), USCG (2020).

Figure 3. Projected HFC Use of Blowing Agents for Structural Composite Preform Foam in the
United States (2020-2040) (MT)

30.0

25.0

_ 20.0

^ 15.0

10.0

5.0

0.0

2020 2025 2030 2035 2040

¦ HFC-134a in Marine Applications ¦ HFC-134a in Trailer Applications

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Figure 4. Projected HFC Use of Blowing Agents for Structural Composite Preform Marine Foam in
the United States (2020-2040) (MMT CQ2Eq.)

0.05

0.04

cr
LU

o
o

0.03

0.02

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