Industrial Degreaser Market

Market Overview

The global industrial degreaser market size was valued at USD 19.72 billion in 2022. It is estimated to reach USD 30.93 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 5.13% during the forecast period (2023–2031). The market for environmentally friendly or biologically derived degreasers has experienced significant growth in recent years due to stringent environmental laws.

Industrial degreasers are water- or solvent-based cleaning compounds designed to remove water-insoluble substances from hard surfaces and metals, such as lubricants, corrosion dust, and heavy oils. It is manufactured commercially by combining various constituents, including saponifies, alkalizes, inhibitors, emulsifiers, chelating, and sequestering agents. Various natural ingredients, such as baking soda, citrus, vinegar, liquid soap, and essential oils, can be combined using the do-it-yourself (DIY) technique to create the product.

Industrial degreaser assists in removing contaminants and unwanted substances from various machine parts, protects them from injury to ensure their quality, and offers a unique cleaning experience. Industrial degreasers are anti-corrosive, inexpensive, dielectrically strong, and have superior anti-rusting properties. Consequently, they are used for cleansing concrete and metal surfaces, non-aluminum equipment, motors, appliances, and floors.

Market Dynamics

Global Industrial Degreaser Market Drivers

Growing End-User Industries

The growing end-user industries such as automotive, aviation, and marine, among others, will support the high adoption of industrial degreasers. Automotive industries widely adopt industrial degreasers for cleaning and maintaining the parts of vehicles. Automotive is one of the main industries contributing to every country's GDP.

Additionally, the adoption of industrial degreasers in the automobile and automobile manufacturing sectors has grown considerably in recent years. The demand for industrial degreasers in the automotive sector is rising because of their ability to remove dirt, dust, and oil from vehicle parts, thereby increasing their shelf life. A growing automotive industry will support the growth of industrial degreasers during the forecast period.

Demand for Eco-friendly Products

Due to strict environmental regulations, the demand for eco-friendly or bio-based degreasers has grown in recent years. The demand for bio-based industrial degreasers is rising due to the supporting government regulations. Bio-based industrial degreasers possess zero to low VOC content compared to other degreasers.

Soybean oil solvents produce little harmful emissions or VOCs (volatile organic compounds). A bio-based industrial degreaser that uses a soybean solvent decreases its VOC profile and complies with stringent new VOC regulations. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classifies these chemicals as human carcinogens regardless of the route of exposure. Therefore, there is an increasing demand for environmentally sustainable industrial degreasers.

Global Industrial Degreaser Market Restraint

Low Awareness in Growing Economies

Although the manufacturing industry worldwide uses different techniques to maintain machinery, either by using degreasers or cleaners, some countries across the globe, especially growing economies, are unaware of the benefits of industrial degreasers. The lack of awareness and knowledge is considered the foremost challenge for vendors where efforts can be taken to convey the advantages and benefits of using an industrial degreaser before the price point adjustments.

Furthermore, the product's overall success in the market depends on the availability of technicians with operating knowledge and a workforce to support repair and maintenance work over time. Therefore, vendors are forced to train local technicians and laborers to achieve complete supply chain success. The lack of highly trained engineers also hampers the adoption of degreasers in the market.

Global Industrial Degreaser Market Opportunities

Growing Industrialization in Emerging Economies

Over the last 20 years, the economic and political power has shifted to emerging economies. Many developing countries have become the centers of growth and are significantly raising their contribution to global income. In addition, the rapidly growing industrialization in emerging economies demands setting up factories. The installation of automotive, shipbuilding, aircraft, paints, marine, and other factories in developing countries has supported the growth of industrial degreasers in recent years.

Emerging Asia-Pacific economies with high economic growth, markets with the potential for high consumption, and rising industrial and manufacturing competitiveness have begun to compete with their developed counterparts in global manufacturing over the past few decades. The leading manufacturing industries shifted their base to the Asia-Pacific region because of the availability of cheap labor and the rising population in China and India. Hence, the growing industrialization in the Asia-Pacific region will create opportunities for the industrial degreaser market.

Regional Analysis

North America Dominates the Global Market

Based on region, the global industrial degreaser market is bifurcated into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East and Africa.

North America is the most significant global industrial degreaser market shareholder and is estimated to exhibit a CAGR of 5.68% during the forecast period. The industrial degreaser market in the region is driven by the automotive, aviation, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and other end-user industries. The market also has one of the toughest human and workspace safety laws. Therefore, regulations in this geography also support the growth of industrial degreasers and other cleaning products. The US economy is recovering steadily, as reflected by an uptick in industrial production, consumer spending, and the invention of new equipment. Hence, North America is once again poised to lead in manufacturing high-tech industrial goods.

Furthermore, the automobile sector in the North American region is likely to witness major investments during the forecast period, which is likely to promote market growth. For instance, FCA US, Ford, and General Motors made more than USD 34.5 billion in investments. Their reported spending in US plants is approximately five times more than all the combined Japanese and Korean automakers. Such investments in the automobile manufacturing sector drive domestic production and are expected to boost the demand for industrial degreasers in the region during the forecast period.

Europe is predicted to exhibit a CAGR of 4.76% over the forecast period. Europe is expected to remain one of the significant revenue contributors to the global market during the forecast period. Europe is amongst the largest and wealthiest economies and is home to the most developed countries. The market also has several world-class industries, like automobiles and manufacturing. Since the introduction of the Industrial Revolution, Europe has grown rapidly in terms of standards of living, per capita income, productivity standards, and adoption of innovation and technology, thereby boosting market growth in the region. In addition, the demand from significant end-user industries in Germany, the UK, and France largely drives the industrial degreaser market in Europe. The region is a significant market for industrial degreasers, especially in Western Europe. Institutional users rapidly replace outdated equipment with better, quicker, and higher-performing alternatives, driving the demand for industrial degreasers.

Asia-Pacific has one of the most robust manufacturing and crucial industries, including automotive, chemicals, defense, and aerospace. The region is also home to highly enthusiastic tech-savvy people and is a hub for millennials, boosted largely by the millennial population across major countries like China and India. For instance, China and India have over 409 million millennials as of 2019, over five times the number of millennials in the US. Millennials use tech products in large numbers, and they are the target market for robotics and automation manufacturers, particularly in the B2C sector. In addition, the market in Asia-Pacific is a significant area of interest for manufacturers due to the strong demand for tech products. As a result, there is a high need for manufacturers who provide industrial degreasers for the manufacturing and industrial sectors.

Latin America has a significant share in the overall industrial degreaser market owing to revenue generated from two large economies, Brazil and Mexico. The easy availability of cheap labor, raw materials, and easy access to two of the largest consumer markets, the US and Canada, has accelerated the growth of value-added manufacturing output in Latin America, especially in Brazil and Mexico. In addition, the sales of the automotive industry in Latin America were led by Brazil, with over 1.3 million units sold in H1 2019. However, sales in the automotive industry declined in 2020 on account of the COVID-19 pandemic. The recovery of the Brazilian market aided the development of the automotive market in the region, which can increase the demand for industrial degreasers in the region.

The Middle East and Africa has played a pivotal role in global economic growth over the past two decades as the region has increasingly leveraged the positive economics of crude trade to build record budget surpluses. In order to achieve sustained growth, many Middle Eastern economies are increasingly moving to construction, followed by petrochemicals and value addition, due to low oil prices and the danger associated with being economically dependent on oil. An estimated USD 1 trillion worth of construction and infrastructure projects are planned and are being tendered for execution until 2025 in the Middle East.

Segmental Analysis

The global industrial degreaser market share is bifurcated into type, grade, and application.

Based on type, the global industrial degreaser market is segmented into water-based and solvent-based industrial degreasers. 

The water-based industrial degreasers segment is the largest contributor to the market and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 5.58% over the forecast period. Water-based degreasers have water as the primary solvent. These degreasers remove soils by dissolving contaminants and chemically reacting with the greasy contaminants, making them more readily dissolvable in water. Water-based degreasers are fully biodegradable and VOC-free; hence, they are widely adopted by many industries. In North America and Europe, the limitation for using VOC content products has increased the adoption of water-based degreasers in the region.

Solvent-based degreasers are cleaning agents that use a chemical base to achieve efficacy. The solvent-based industrial degreasers dissolve the heaviest grease and soil from automotive parts and equipment. They are derived from petroleum or natural oils such as orange peel (terpene base). In addition, solvent-based degreasers have an affinity with fats and grease, dissolving them to form an inseparable chemical solution. Solvent-based industrial degreasers comprise chlorinate, fluorinate, CFCs, kerosene, gasoline, alcohols, acetone, and esters. Solvent-based industrial degreasers dissolve dirt, reducing it to smaller particles and transporting them away from the clean surface.

Based on grade, the global industrial degreaser market share is segmented into bio-based, petroleum-based, liquid-based, and others. 

The liquid-based segment is the highest contributor to the market and is estimated to exhibit a CAGR of 5.47% over the forecast period. Liquid-based industrial degreasers are the most common industrial degreasers used in the industry. Liquid-based industrial degreasers clean quickly and thoroughly when used at their full strength. These degreasers can be diluted with water or solvents for lighter-duty cleaning. In addition, chemicals such as trisodium phosphate (TSP) prepare liquid-based industrial degreasers. TSP is recommended for removing built-up grease and wallpaper glue residue from interior walls before painting or repapering. The liquid-based industrial degreaser contains water or highly alkaline detergent for removing tough soils such as grease, oil, grime, soot, and ground-in dirt.

Petroleum-based degreasers are the most effective form, but the only disadvantage is that they are hazardous. Petroleum-based degreasers contain petroleum distillates and ethanol, which makes them the ideal degreaser for cleaning vehicle and engine parts, as they can voluntarily dissolve the grease and sludge left behind by gasoline, oil, and other lubricants in engine and vehicle parts. In addition, the solvent used in the manufacture of petroleum-based industrial degreasers is derived from petroleum products. These include gasoline, naphtha, and acetone, among others. The usage of these solvents makes these degreasers the most aggressive engine degreasers, and they are formulated to remove baked-on grease and oil from hotter-running engines. Petroleum-based products are used to manufacture heavy-duty degreasers, thereby making them hazardous.

Based on application, the global industrial degreaser market is bifurcated into automotive, aviation, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and others. 

The automotive treatment segment dominates the global market and is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 5.55% during the forecast period. Industrial degreasers are widely used in the automotive industry for cleaning the parts of vehicles and engines. Over the last decade, the automobile industry has been undergoing systematic shifts in the context of engine downsizing, vehicle system electrification, pollution control, accessibility, and the production of lightweight vehicles. In addition, the growth of the automotive industry in Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East and Africa was restrained by the lack of strong policies and regulations on emissions and other environmental impacts. In order to take advantage of beneficial foreign direct investment (FDI) and other corporate-friendly regulations, more foreign players are, nevertheless, scaling up their operations and increasing their footprint in several nations due to globalization.

The manufacturing industry is also one of the major contributors to the global industrial degreaser market. The manufacturing segment comprises industries that make products from raw materials using manual labor or machinery. The major manufacturing industries are aircraft, automobiles, chemicals, clothing, computers, consumer electronics, heavy machinery, refineries, petroleum products, ships, steel, and others. In addition, most large-scale production units must ensure complete cleanliness of parts and equipment for further processing, which requires high-quality degreasers. These parts need to be free from different pollutants such as sand, casting sand, metal shaving, lubricants, oils, polishing substances, and other hazardous materials before they can be put into the next phase of the manufacturing process.

Recent Developments

• February 2023- The Home Depot® announced that they are introducing Ecolab Scientific Clean in collaboration with Ecolab Inc., a world leader in hygiene, water, and infection prevention solutions and services. The Home Depot offers in-store and online Ecolab Scientific Clean products such as degreasers, bathroom cleaners, floor cleaners and finishes, etc.
• September 2022- SLIPNOT®, a leading supplier of specialized safety flooring and surface technologies, introduced Foothold by SLIPNOT ("Foothold") to participants at the National Safety Council (NSC) Congress & Expo. Foothold by SLIPNOT is a novel cleaner and degreaser that lifts and suspends heavy soils, salt, fat, and blood from non-damaged water-resistant surfaces.