With the increasing popularity of smart wearable devices, TWS,smart watches, smart bracelets and other wearable devices has led a consumption climax. Apart from traditional headset and watch companies expanding their business, lots of cell phone manufacturers are aggressively joining the competition. The whole wearable product market has larger variety of product types with faster upgrading speed which drives the development of the entire industrial chain and eventually benefits the prosperity of those companies that focus on related materials, devices, product processing and end-customer facing.
From the material perspective, wearable devices are directly touching users’ skin, so it’s required to be comfortable, safe, good looking while durable. Therefore the chosen materials are often skin-friendly, anti-sweat, stain-resistant and resistant to abrasion. As a result, elastomer materials such as TPU, TPE, TPSiV, silicone and fluoroelastomers are widely used in the field of wearable wristband devices.
The advantage of using fluoroelastomers in smart wearable devices
Rubber fluorine (KM) refers to a synthetic polymer elastomer containing fluorine atoms on the carbon atoms of the main chain or side chain. The introduction of fluorine atoms gives fluoroelastomers excellent properties that are incomparable to other rubbers, such as high temperature resistance, oil resistance, chemical resistance, good physical and mechanical properties, weather resistance, electrical insulation and radiation resistance, etc. At the same time, it can be further modified to improve its processing performance and strengthen low temperature resistance, so that it has been widely used in aviation, automotive, petrochemical and other fields.
In the field of smart wearable device, due to its higher density, fluoroelastomer (FKM) can provide better visual and tactile effects than silicone and polyurethane. Apart from those, fluoroelastomer (FKM) also has below advantages that make it favored by high-end mainstream wristband products, including:
- Comfortable, skin-friendly with flexible while resilient texture
- Outstanding resistance to heat tearing
- Great flex resistance
- Good surface finish, strong anti-fouling ability
- Extraordinary physical and mechanical properties
- Good chemical resistance
- Safe and non-toxic
- Easy formulation of popular colors
The watch straps made of fluoroelastomers have compact and excellent texture, they are soft, skin-friendly, anti-allergic, dirt-resistant, comfortable to wear and durable. They can also be easily formulated into various popular colors and are favored by smart watch producers such as Apple, Huami, Xiaomi, Huawei, OPPO and VIVO.
Fluoroelastomer companies’ brief introductions
Most of the fluoroelastomer watch strap manufacturers directly purchase fluoroelastomer compounds for molding and vulcanization. As a result, with the wider usage of fluoroelastomer watch strap in the field of wearable device, those relevant fluoroelastomer compound manufacturers will directly benefit from it. Below we bring to your attention those mainstream fluoroelastomer compound manufacturers: (Based on incomplete statistics, please leave us a message if you notice any omission)
1.Chemours
Chemours Viton™ fluoroelastomer can provide high durability and excellent clean performance, it has good color retention, excellent flexibility, it can withstand sweat, body lotion, moisture and high temperature. The wearable devices made of fluoroelastomers are comfortable to wear and durable with excellent antifouling performance and can remain their flexibility after years of use. Nowadays it has become a key component of many wearable technology devices, including virtual reality headsets, fitness trackers, headsets and smart watches.
Company Website: https://www.chemours.cn/
2.Solvay
Solvay Tecnoflon®FKM has outstanding softness, it can improve fitting degree and comfortableness. It also has excellent coloring and biocompatibility and can provide the elasticity and durability required for daily use. Last but not least it has the property of anti-sweat, anti-fouling and anti-ultraviolet rays. Wristbands and belts of wearable smart devices made of Tecnoflon®FKM have unparalleled tactility, excellent aesthetics as well as soft and silky surface.
Company Website: https://www.solvay.com/en/
3.Daikin Fluorochemical
Daikin Fluorochemical high-performance fluoroelastomer DAI-EL has excellent properties such as flame retardant, heat resistance, hydrophobic and oleophobic, weather resistance, chemical resistance, etc. It has a soft and comfortable touch, excellent durability and stable physical properties, even if it is used for a long time, its appearance and texture are not easy to change, and Daikin's original toning technology can be used to express a variety of colors, which can be used for various of purposes such as automobiles, fashion products, interior decoration, kitchens, and health care.
Company Website: https://www.daikin.com/index.html
4.Zhonghao Chenguang Chemical Research Institute Co., Ltd
Zhonghao Chenguang Chemical Research Institute Co., Ltd. was founded in 1965, mainly engaged in the research and development , manufacturing and operation of new polymer materials such as organic fluorine and organic silicon. At present, Chenguang Institute's fluoroelastomer production capacity ranks first in China (including joint ventures), and PTFE resin production capacity ranks second in China.
Company Website:http://www.chenguang.cn/zhcg/index.htm
Chenguang Chemours Fluorine Materials (Shanghai) Co., Ltd
Chenguang Chemours Fluorine Materials (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. is a joint venture between Zhonghao Chenguang and Chemours Chemicals. It mainly sells fluororubber products in China under the brands of "Morning ®" and Viton ™.
Company Website: http://www.chemourscg.com/
5.Juhua Group Co., Ltd
Founded in May 1958, Juhua Group Co., Ltd. is the country’s largest fluorine chemical advanced manufacturing base and Zhejiang Province’s largest chemical industry base. Its main chemical industry includes fluorine chemical, chlor-alkali chemical, petrochemical materials, electronic chemical materials and fine chemicals, etc.
Company Website: http://www.juhua.com.cn/Index.html
6.Chengdu Daohong Industrial Co., Ltd.
Chengdu Daohong Industrial Co., Ltd. was established in 2002 and has now become a worldwide well-known professional manufacturer of fluororubber premix and fluororubber compound with a production capacity of more than 3000 tons. It mainly serves domestic and foreign fluororubber manufacturers with a wide range of products used in various fluororubber products such as oil seals, O-rings, gaskets, hoses, various seals, smart wearable watch straps, etc.
Company Website: http://www.dowhon.com/
7.Shanghai Dao Fluoro Industry Co., Ltd
Shanghai Dao Fluoro Industry Co., Ltd. was established in 2000. It is a leading domestic supplier of advanced materials and special elastomer compounds. It has a complete range of special elastomer compounds which include fluorine rubber, silicone rubber, fluorine silicone rubber, acrylic rubber, hydrogenated nitrile rubber, perfluoropolyether rubber and epichlorohydrin rubber that are used in many markets such as automobiles, aerospace, petrochemical, electronic and electrical.
Company Website: http://www.dawnhon.com/
8.Chengdu Chenguang Boda Rubber & Plastic Co., Ltd.
Shanghai Dao Fluoro Industry Co., Ltd. was established in 2000. It is a leading domestic supplier of advanced materials and special elastomer compounds. It has a complete range of special elastomer compounds which include fluorine rubber, silicone rubber, fluorine silicone rubber, acrylic rubber, hydrogenated nitrile rubber, perfluoropolyether rubber and epichlorohydrin rubber that are used in many markets such as automobiles, aerospace, petrochemical, electronic and electrical.
Company Website: http://www.dawnhon.com/
9.Fluorotech (Xiamen) New Materials Co., Ltd
Fluorotech (Xiamen) New Materials Co., Ltd. was established in November 2016 and is committed to providing customers with innovative and high-quality special rubber compounding products. Its main products include: fluorine rubber premix and compound rubber, perfluoroether Rubber compound, fluorosilicone rubber and hydrogenated nitrile compound rubber.
Company Website: http://www.fluotechrubber.com/index_cn.html
10.Kleberg Rubber (Suzhou) Co., Ltd
Kleberg Rubber (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. is a subsidiary of the German Kleberg Group, a leading rubber compounding company with a history of more than 70 years. In September 2020, Klaiberg Rubber Suzhou released the high-end FKM rubber compound brand KRAIWEAR™ for wearable devices. The product passed and obtained ISO 10993 toxicity and skin sensitivity test certification.
Company Website: https://www.kraiburg.cn/
11.Changxin Rubber Industry (Shanghai) Co., Ltd
Changxin Rubber Industry (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. is a wholly foreign-owned enterprise invested and established by Rotek International Group LLC of the United States in Songjiang District, Shanghai in August 2003. It develops, produces and processes fluorine rubber, silicone, nitrile rubber, and ethylene propylene. Rubber, acrylic rubber, highly saturated hydrogenated nitrile rubber, styrene butadiene rubber and other synthetic rubber and rubber compound related products.
Company Website: http://www.cxrubber.com/index.aspx
12.China Green New Material (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd
China Green New Material (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd. is a fast-growing supplier of fluorine rubber compounds. Based on the basis of mixing, it provides fluorine rubber, fluorine silicone, hydrogenated nitrile, perfluoroether, nitrile rubber and EPDM Rubber compounds that are commonly used in the seal industry and electronic wearable devices. Various colors of fluorine rubber materials can be customized for customers.
Company Website: http://www.lvpoly.com/index.html
With the improvement of product functions and the blessing of 5G technology, the global smart wearable market, dominated by smart watches, smart bracelets, and TWS, is growing rapidly. It is expected to increase to 302.3 million units in 2023, bringing huge benefits to the industry chain.
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