Procurement of base raw materials is critical in terms of consistent quality and competitive rates to stay afloat in the global market.
 When it comes to joining components securely and efficiently, technical adhesive tapes are today’s preferred choice. Lohmann is one of the leading international players in this technology and produces individual adhesive tape solutions to meet the diverse requirements of many sectors. Vinod Hariharan talks about changing role of adhesives and recent trends in industry.
Changing role of adhesives  Adhesives are becoming a rapidly growing trend in the industrial sector. More than liquid adhesives, adhesive tapes are becoming a fad in architectural industry owing to the improved aesthetics it provides by replacing mechanical fasteners, versatility of adhesive tapes, faster work completion, cost optimisation. Speed of work improves with adhesive tapes usage such that contractors can handover the site as per the deadline to the client. There are no waiting times for bonding and curing as in the case of liquid adhesives.
Attraction of German technology It’s the German Engineering technology that makes Lohmann special. Globally there is a fascination for German technology which is time tested and regarded as the best. Lohmann is a 163-year old company in the world market and has been involved in technology upgrades over the years. It strives to develop a solution oriented portfolio. Quality German solutions at affordable price is what the company tries to offer to India market.   “Market has an appreciation for the German technology and that is turning out to be our USP of success,” says Mr Hariharan. “We have seen tremendous growth over the last 3 years and we are quite hopeful that this will sustain for the next few years.”   Various trends There have been observed various trends in the field over the years. They include using adhesive tapes to join dissimilar materials, even those which have a low surface energy. Trends also involve usage of heat activated tapes for very critical applications which are highly durable. Adhesive tape technology shall have to continuously innovate in sync with the other material developments happening in the industry. “Procurement of base raw materials is critical in terms of consistent quality and competitive rates to stay afloat in the global market. The company has experts handling these areas of work,” informs Mr Hariharan. “As adhesive tapes have to perform on highly durable applications, base material consistency is super critical.” Supply chain“Lohmann has been receiving awards from leading companies in India for customer satisfaction wherein our supply chain plays a big role day in and day out,” says Mr Hariharan. “Still as a country with underdeveloped infrastructure capabilities such as road transport, rail transport – we still have to live with delays in transportation.”
Future outlookThe company’s long-term objective is to be known as a leading innovative bonding solution provider in the industry. And its short-term objective is to work on more brand building exercises, brand recall etc.
–  Vinod Hariharan, Managing Director, Lohmann Adhesive Tapes India Pvt. Ltd.