Download or read book Latex 2002 written by and published by iSmithers Rapra Publishing. This book was released on 2002-12 with total page 206 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Both synthetic and natural latices were covered in this conference, including natural rubber latex, high volume synthetic emulsions, such as SBR, as well as specialty products, such as acrylics. Application markets addressed included adhesives and sealants, carpet backing, paper coatings, construction, fabrics, foamed articles, medical gloves, medical devices, textile threads, condoms and others. The latex industry is in dynamic flux at the present time. The supply side has undergone major restructuring. Inter-materials competition has intensified as improved materials become capable of challenging incumbent materials. Many serious issues face the latex industry, such as continuing price depression in some sectors, rising technical demands as well as substantial legislative and environmental pressure. Despite the challenging times facing the industry, the overall prospects for latex are very positive. Substitution of solvent based products continues, the performances of latices continues to improve in such applications as adhesives and the glove industry is responding positively to the setbacks of the allergy controversy. 9 million dry tons and has spread across a wide range of industrial and consumer markets. Growing demand in medical and strong prospects in construction are just two of the positive trends that will continue to fuel the market growth of both natural and synthetic latices. As last year's conference demonstrated, the Rapra International Latex Conference is an unparalleled forum for developing understanding of the latex industry, technical trends and market driving forces, such as new legislation. The 2002 event provided a vital meeting point for the synthetic and natural latex communities of Europe, Asia and America. This conference will be of interest to all latex stakeholders, including: feedstock suppliers, latex producers, compounders, fabricators of consumer, medical and industrial articles based on latex, traders and distributors, machine and equipment suppliers, legislators, healthcare professionals and users of latex based products.