Global Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Market Research Report: Forecast (2022-27)

Market Definition

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Healthcare are clothing materials manufactured to provide protection to the healthcare professionals & avoid transmission of infections or diseases during medical procedures. PPE includes masks, gloves, full-body suits, helmets, & protection shields, among others. When properly used, PPE acts as a barrier between materials like viral & bacterial contaminants and skin, mouth, nose, eyes, etc.

Market Insights

The Global Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Market is projected to grow at a CAGR of around 7.8% during the forecast period, i.e., 2022-27. The market is driven primarily by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, increasing awareness about the need for PPE for healthcare workers to avoid the spread of infections & diseases, and rapid technological advancements in the healthcare sector. 

Rapid innovations like lightweight & comfortable equipment using premium quality fibers & fabric shall further drive the global market during 2022-27. Besides, the demand for PPE comprising safety, aesthetics, and manufacturing using premium products, coupled with the emergence of several PPE manufacturers based on consumer requirements, are other crucial aspects likely to augment the global market growth during 2022-27.

Key Trends in the Market

• Burgeoning Adoption of Biodegradable & Recyclable Materials to Manufacture Personal Protection Equipment 

With the surging focus on sustainable practices to address several environmental concerns like carbon emissions, pollution, waste management, etc., numerous PPE manufacturers are seeking different methods to produce eco-friendly, safer, & cleaner PPE. In fact, many companies are introducing biodegradable nitrile gloves to encourage green developments.

Impact of Covid-19 on the Global Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Market

The Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 had a decelerating effect on most industries globally. The Healthcare Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) Market observed a few challenges when governments of different countries worldwide imposed stringent movement restrictions & frequent lockdowns, which resulted in the shutdown of most PPE manufacturing units. But the market witnessed an overall positive impact. Besides, the entire supply chain got hampered, which disrupted the distribution of PPE & brought immense pressure on the healthcare sector across different regions.

However, due to the criticality of the pandemic, governments of different countries worldwide started allowing the manufacturing of PPE kits by categorizing them under essentials. Besides, with the gradual improvement in the pandemic situation by a declining number of Covid-19 cases, limitations were uplifted, resulting in a swiftly improving transportation & logistics sector.

Moreover, with the prevalence of the Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for Personal Protection Equipment is anticipated to remain spiking during the forecast years. Several leading players are likely to witness a plethora of growth opportunities in the coming years.

Market Segmentation

Based on the Material:

• Plastic/Fiber
• Cloth

Of them all, Plastic/Fiber materials for PPEs are anticipated to observe increasing demand across the healthcare sector and drive the global market during the forecast period. The demand for these materials is rising since medical equipment must be resistant to soaking blood or body fluids & penetrate microorganisms carried by these fluids while providing comfort when worn & removing moisture.

Besides, since healthcare providers must have PPE handy at all times since they have to wear it most of the time at the healthcare facility, it must be made up of fibers that provide protection & comfort. Basic PPE includes gloves, masks, & goggles made up of natural or synthetic rubbers. For instance:

• To deliver utmost safety to the medical personnel deployed at the Covid-19 treatment centers, the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) collaborated with MAF Clothing Private Limited to develop cost-effective & quality Certified PPE.

Based on the Type:

• Protective Gloves
• Protective Clothing
• Respiratory Protective Equipment
• Eye & Face Protective Equipment

Of them all, Protective Clothing is anticipated to dominate the market with the largest share during the forecast period. Since workers rely on personal protective equipment to protect themselves & their patients from being infected & infecting others, the demand for protective clothing is rising substantially worldwide. Therefore, numerous industry players & governments of different countries are swiftly working on producing, supplying, & putting measures in place to avoid hoarding & speculations. For instance:

• In April 2020, Burlington incorporated Ralph Lauren to enhance the production of isolation gowns for the frontline workers across New York, New Jersey, & North Carolina.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 89 million medical masks are in demand to address the Covid-19 spread each month. Besides, according to the Food & Drug Association (FDA), Protection clothing consists of surgical isolation, non-surgical, & surgical gowns, which are primarily to protect oneself from spreading infection, thereby contributing to the mounting demand for protective clothing.

On the other hand, the demand for Protective Gloves is projected to witness significant growth during the forecast period. It owes to gloves being the most preferred PPE to protect users & others from spreading infections and enable healthcare workers to avoid infections during medical examinations & procedures. Protective gloves are generally disposable and are likely to gain momentum during the forecast years owing to the increasing use of disposable gloves, soaps, & sanitizers.   

Regional Landscape

On the Geographical front, the Global Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment Market expands across the following regions:

• North America
• South America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• Middle East & Africa

Of them all, North America acquired the largest market share in recent years & shall prevail the same trend during the forecast period. It owes to the swiftly increasing government expenditure on strengthening the healthcare infrastructure & increasing participation by the prominent players through enhancing their production capacities across the region.

In North America, the US is anticipated to remain a leading market country due to its well-developed healthcare infrastructure & high adoption of new technologies for product developments. Moreover, with stringent regulations & heft penalties to ensure the safety of both healthcare workers & patients, the demand for PPE is rising exponentially in the country. Furthermore, the swiftly surging number of Covid-19 cases in the US is propelling the demand for PPE across the healthcare sector for medical professionals.

Back in 2020, when the US registered a dramatically rising number of Covid-19 cases, the demand for masks & respirators rose dynamically. In fact, the government also laid out several stringent regulations associated with the safety of the patients, doctors, & paramedics working in the healthcare sector and further augmented the demand for protection gloves & full bodysuits, which was when numerous leading players began to increase their production capacities. For instance:

• In May 2020, 3M planned to increase the production of N95 masks by 3 times in the US.

On the other hand, the Asia-Pacific region is projected to observe the fastest market growth during 2022-27. It owes principally to the rapid economic growth & increasing focus on developing the healthcare infrastructure across the region.

In Asia-Pacific, China is anticipated to dominate the market with the largest share in the coming years. It owes to the high demand for PPE like masks, gloves, full-body suits, etc., in the country, i.e., the epicenter of SARS-CoV-2. China is amongst the largest producers & exporters of healthcare PPE globally, which gives Asia-Pacific an edge over other regions in the global market.

On the other hand, India has been swiftly ramping up its production capabilities, especially for equipment & gear for protection from Covid-19, and reducing dependency on foreign export of these products. In India, the market shares moderately segment among numerous small & medium-sized companies.

Nevertheless, Europe is anticipated to demonstrate a significant market expansion during the forecast period. It owes primarily to the flooding cases of Covid-19 across countries like Russia, Italy, Spain, Germany, France, among others. Since vaccines were not available till 2021, the demand for PPE skyrocketed in 2020 across the region. Even with the advent of vaccines, precautions were well-taken care of, which, in turn, shall lead to the mounting demand for gears like masks, gloves, full-body suits, etc., in Europe over the forecast years.

Recent Developments by Leading Companies

• In May 2021, the market leader Kimberly-Clark Corporation invested in face masks & hygiene products for numerous public schools across Roswell, United States.
• In March 2020, another leading player, Ansell, proclaimed their partnership with Modjoul, IoT solutions & analytics-based in South Carolina, to produce hand protection solutions using motion ergonomics.
• In the same month, Honeywell expanded the production of the N95 face masks to suffice the exponentially growing demand. This operation exists at the Honeywell Aerospace site allowing the company to produce more than 20 million masks per month across the US.

Market Dynamics:

Key Driver: Increasing Production Capacities by Prominent Players to Drive the Market

• Due to the massive support from the governments of different countries worldwide, numerous leading companies are actively participating in the market & increasing their production capacities to suffice the rising demand for personal protective equipment for healthcare professionals. 

Possible Restraints

• Increasing Sales of Cheap & Low-Quality Products

Unawareness among consumers about the hazards accompanied by low-grade healthcare PPE might hamper the market growth. Moreover, increasing instances of duplicate & substitute products are further challenging the growth of the Global Healthcare Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) Market.

• Rising Skin Allergies Using PPE for Long Hours

Since the Covid-19 virus is highly dreadful, healthcare workers are compelled to wear masks for longer hours to avoid the spread of the virus. Consequently, a majority of people have faced several skin allergies & injuries related to the long usage of PPE products. Hence, this aspect might also as a growth restraint for the Global Healthcare Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) Market during 2022-27.

Key Questions Answered in the Market Research Report:

1. What are the overall statistics or estimates (Overview, Size- By Value, Forecast Numbers, Segmentation, Shares) of the Global Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Market?
2. What are the region-wise industry size, growth drivers, and challenges?
3. What are the key innovations, opportunities, current & future trends, and regulations in the Global Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Market?
4. Who are the key competitors, their key strengths & weaknesses, and how do they perform in the Global Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Market based on the competitive benchmarking matrix?
5. What are the key results derived from surveys conducted during the Global Healthcare Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Market study?