The US medical plastics market is expected to reach almost 1.6m t/y by the end of 2010 and will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 5%, consuming around 2m t by 2015, according to recently published research from BCC Research (Wellesley, Massachusetts / USA; www.bccresearch.com). The report “Medical plastics” says that commodity thermoplastics now dominate the market with just over 55% of total volume and are expected to grow at 4.8% annually to 2015, reaching 1.13m t/y.

TPEs, engineering resins, and thermosets will show the most significant growth rates over the next five years, the researcher says, although they only constitute around 20% of total volume. Of these, TPEs will experience the highest annual growth rate of 6.2%, reaching 42,000 t/y in 2015. The report covers new types of medical devices legislative/regulatory and environmental issues, new products and technologies related to medical devices, sterilisation techniques and impact on polymer selection, polymer usage in medical devices, status of PVC, and medical plastic’s product lines and trade-named products.

The report is also available through information services provider MarketResearch.com (Rockville, Maryland / USA; www.marketresearch.com).