North America leads consumption of electroactive polymers projected to grow till 2020

North America is the global leader in the consumption of electroactive polymers and this trend is projected to continue till 2020, as per Reportlinker. USA is the key market in North America, consuming more than 84.9% of the demand for electroactive polymers in the region. USA is followed by Canada and Mexico. North America is home to a number of companies manufacturing electroactive polymers used in various applications. Some of the key manufacturers of electroactive polymers include Celanese Corporation (U.S.), Parker Hannifin Corporation (U.S), Sigma-Aldrich Corporation (U.S.), and The Lubrizol Corporation (U.S.), among others. The electroactive polymers market is lucrative for electronics and semiconductor manufacturers. As, the U.S. has world's largest semiconductor and electronics market, the demand for electroactive polymers in various applications such as electrostatic discharge protection, electromagnetic field shielding, and antistatic packaging increases in the country. Canada is the second-largest consumer of electroactive polymers in North America. Mexico accounts for a very small share of the electroactive polymers market in North America. The huge consumption of electroactive polymers in North America is predominantly driven by industries such as automotive, electronics, polymers, and semiconductors. Major technological advancement in various applications is expected to increase the growth of the North American electroactive polymers market. One such application of electroactive polymers is the actuators and sensors, which is expected to grow at the highest growth rate. Intensive R&D activities are going-on in the actuators segment. One of the major player in North America, Parker Hannifin Corporation, the global leader in motion and control technology, develops dielectric EAP. This product has great potential for use in a variety of medical applications, such as pumps, valves, sensors, and actuators. In addition to this, electroactive polymers are also used in the automotive industry for manufacturing automotive actuators. In North America, the automotive actuators market is dominated by the U.S. Canada and Mexico are also expected to drive the demand for electroactive polymers as many OEMs are planning to set up vehicle production plants in these countries. With the growing application for actuators in various industries, namely, medicals, biometrics, robotics, artificial muscles, optics, and energy harvesting, the EAP market is set expand significantly in the next five years.