Over the last year, PVC resin prices have been increasing for various environmental and socioeconomic reasons. At PRI Edge Banding, we want everyone to be prepared for what has been happening in the PVC edge banding market so that projects are not quoted with unrealistic pricing for PVC edge banding.
What is PVC Resin and how is it used in Edge Banding?
Edge banding is an extruded product made from resin, which comes in pellet form and is heated and melted in the extrusion equipment. This allows it to be converted into edge banding. Resin, when heated, is also soft and flexible, allowing edge banding to be printed to look like woodgrains. Powders can also be added to match solid colors.
Additionally, there are various types of PVS resins created, based on the type of product being extruded. There are resins specifically designed to extrude ridged PVC, as well as more expensive special resins that are able to extrude flexible 3mm PVC. This type is softer, and used by woodworking facilities when edge band parts need contoured radius edges, as opposed to straight line parts.
There are also other resins besides PVC that are used in extruding certain edge bands. ABS is another plastic that is used to produce ABS edge banding. ABS resins have always been 15%-20% higher in cost compared to PVC resins. The prices have skyrocketed over the last several months, and there have been major shortages from ABS resin suppliers.
The Rising Costs of PVC Resin
A few key factors that have played out in the last year are to blame for the increase in PVC resin costs.
In 2020, hurricanes hit the gulf, and caused significant outages, disrupting feedstock across the resin supply chain. Multiple producers declared “force majeure,” which resulted in tight supply, coupled with high demand.
Export demand for PVC also rose significantly over last year. You will hear that many PVC resin suppliers increased lead times to accommodate the overall high demand and many suppliers were sold out of their capacities entirely. The global COVID-19 pandemic also took the world by surprise. This resulted in rising business operational costs, as well as increased demand on household projects from the “quarantine effect.” All of these factors have resulted in the PVC resin price increase we continue to see.
As a side note, Market Index Pricing (CDI) has increased by 24% over the past 12 months. PVC resin accounts for approximately 65% of the raw material cost of producing edge banding. We hope to see these increases retract in the next four to six months.
How has PRI Edge Banding been affected?
PRI has not been exempted from these increased prices, however, we have made necessary commitments for PVC resin that will guarantee our ability to supply the current market and our customers.
We will do everything we can to limit price increases, but there will need to be adjustments made across the board. Our team is optimistic that prices will settle again this year, allowing for even more opportunities moving forward.
PRI is committed to providing you with top-quality edge banding supplies and expert customer service, even with looming challenges that have yet to be resolved.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the increase in PVC resin and how it could impact your projects, please contact us and we will be more than happy to work with you to ensure your needs are met.