| |NOVEMBER 202119Challenges in ManufacturingThe raw materials used in the manufacturing of insulators include steel and silicon rubber. Since the prices of these materials are highly volatile and fluctuate frequently, the rapid changes in the prices of these materials would have a huge impact on the production of electric insulators. Hence, variation in the prices can be attributed to the fact that China being one of the largest steel producers, has been facing slow economic growth since the last three years. Also, the manufacturing industry in the country is expected to decline further in the future, and this would lead to further fluctuations in prices. Therefore, volatility in the prices of raw materials would pose a major challenge for the electric insulator market.Growth RestraintsWhile the electric insulator market is a combination of the organized as well as the unorganized sectors and players, the organized sector's targets are the industrial buyers, and this sector maintains high product quality, whereas players in the unorganized sector offer cheaper alternatives to increase their market presence and penetrate domestic markets. The market players from the unorganized sector supplying cheap and low-quality products overpower the big players in terms of price competitiveness and the local supply networks maintained by them, which are difficult for global players to achieve. Therefore, the leading market players are facing tough competition from unorganized market players.Technological Breakthrough for InsulatorsSince an essential part of high voltage electric power transmission systems is the high voltage insulators, any failure in the performance of high voltage insulators will lead to huge loss of capital, since numerous industries are dependent on the availability of an uninterrupted power supply, and most of the electric power transmission and distribution is conducted through the overhead lines with insulators rendering mechanical support and electrical protection.While the size and specific design of high voltage insulators will vary according to the line voltage, environmental conditions, material of construction and manufacturer, the insulator service life can be affected by electrical, mechanical and environmental factors and the principle dielectrics used for outdoor insulators are ceramics and polymers.Advent of NanotechnologyNanotechnology describes `creation, analysis, and application of structure, molecular materials, inner interfaces and surfaces with at least one critical dimension or with manufacturing tolerances below 100 nanometers'. The decisive factors include new functionalities and properties leading from the nano scalability of system components which are used for the improvement of existing products or the development of new products and application options.While nanotechnology is rapidly growing as a new technology alternative to creating advanced materials with unique characteristics and performance for different applications in several industrial sectors, in recent years, various nanotechnology-based products have been invented in our day-to-day life. However, on the other hand, industries have also considered nano-concepts to manufacture high-added-value products with superior capacity, reliability, and efficiency.Specialized Coating that Switches from an Insulator to a ConductorWith the proliferation of new gadgets and the surge in demand for ever-powerful batteries to power them, the power of accidental ingestion is growing rapidly, scientists stated. "Ingested disc batteries require emergent removal from the esophagus," said co-first study author Giovanni Traverso, a gastroenterologist at Massachusetts General Hospital and a researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). "The swallowing of these batteries is a gastrointestinal emergency, given that tissue damage starts as soon as the battery is in contact with the tissue, generating an electric current and leading to a chemical burn," adds Traverso."We set-out to create a specialized coating that could switch from an insulator to a conductor when subjected to pressure," said co-author Robert Langer, Institute Professor from Harvard MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology.Future of Insulator marketThe insulator market that is anticipated to be the fastest growing is Asia-Pacific and this is owing to factors such as rapid population growth, rapid urbanization, and the surge in demand for power from industrial sectors in developing economies such as China and India. Since the governments of countries in the Asia-Pacific region are in the plans of developing more and more electrical grid and power generation capacity, this is further anticipated to boost the demand for insulator in this particular region.
< Page 9 | Page 11 >