Why Should Companies Involved with Advanced Materials Technologies Apply for GVF 2006? |
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Japan is a leader in the field of new materials, actively pursuing new products intended for the aerospace, data communications, energy development, nuclear power generation, and marine industries but also in transportation; automobiles and bullet trains. As it is a front runner in this field, it may seem odd at first glance to consider Japan as a potential export market, but in fact, that’s exactly what it is. The first reason is that although Japan may be a leader in the field of advanced materials, their research has neglected the application of these materials in commercial markets. And also, because of Japan’s long recession which has been continuing since 1992, many companies are withdrawing from this sector because of the enormous R&D costs. Subsequently the development of applications for new materials has been delayed - but the demand for these materials has not. From a public point of view, many Japanese anticipate that the development of certain advanced materials will save scarce natural resources and become more acceptable in terms of environmental awareness. According to the "New Materials" report recently issued by JETRO, there are three distinctive features of Japanese new materials industries. Firstly, Japanese advanced materials are largely intended for the automobile, and electronics industries. Secondly, most of the raw materials used to fabricate new materials, as well as finished products, are derived from imports. Finally, demand for product quality is extremely high. According to Jetro's report, the markets for new materials are rapidly growing, especially for semiconductor and magnetic materials as well as hydrogen absorbing storage alloys, which are used in the fields of personal computers and portable communication devices. The market is also expanding for high-strength alloys, power metallurgy materials, special types of adhesives, materials used for batteries and amorphous silicon for solar cells. On the other hand, future potential growth areas are expected in the areas of housing and construction, medicine, and sports. For example, the market size for super conductive materials is expected to reach $529 billion by year 2020. A strong concern for the global warming will enhance commercialization of this technology. Hydrogen absorbing storage alloys are expected to be very fast in terms of growth (4058% between 2000 – 2020) in next 20 years in the world market, and it is anticipated to be a $90 billion market by the year 2020. This material is used in the hydrogen tank of cars equipped with a fuel cell. Photocatalytic technologies are also anticipated to grow over $30 billion by the year 2020, as well as in construction materials where lighter, stronger, and more functional materials which do not harm the environment. |
