Automotive Airbags & Seatbelts Market

[134 Pages Report] The automotive airbags & seatbelts market is estimated to be USD 55.77 billion in 2017 and is projected to reach 135.43 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 11.97% during the forecast period. Increasing demand for safe, more efficient driving experiences, and growing stringency of safety regulations across the globe are playing a key role for driving airbags & seatbelts market.  The base year considered for the study is 2017, and the forecast has been provided for the period between 2018 and 2025.

Market Dynamics

Growing demand for safer and more efficient driving experiences

The automotive industry is witnessing a rapid evolution in safety features. The main objective behind the implementation of these features in vehicles is to provide a safer and more efficient and convenient driving experience.

The increase in road accidents is a major concern for automobile manufacturers and governments. According to NHTSA, the total number of fatalities due to road accidents in the US in 2016 was 37,461, which grew by 5.6% from 2015. These statistics plainly illustrate the often-underestimated dangers inherent in driving a car. While these numbers are staggeringly high, they are fortunately in decline. Much of this decline in the frequency of vehicular crashes can be attributed to the widespread adoption of automotive safety systems, such as seatbelts and airbags.

Growing demand for safer and more efficient driving experiences

The automotive industry is witnessing a rapid evolution in safety features. The main objective behind the implementation of these features in vehicles is to provide a safer and more efficient and convenient driving experience.

The increase in road accidents is a major concern for automobile manufacturers and governments. According to NHTSA, the total number of fatalities due to road accidents in the US in 2016 was 37,461, which grew by 5.6% from 2015. These statistics plainly illustrate the often-underestimated dangers inherent in driving a car. While these numbers are staggeringly high, they are fortunately in decline. Much of this decline in the frequency of vehicular crashes can be attributed to the widespread adoption of automotive safety systems, such as seatbelts and airbags.

Growing demand for pedestrian protection airbags

Owing to rapid technological innovations, the automotive industry is expected to witness the launch of autonomous vehicle technologies in the near future. Today, many automotive manufacturers are increasingly focusing on rolling out vehicles with semi-autonomous vehicle technology, which is an intermediate step to autonomous driving. Since there is a growing demand for safe and convenient driving experiences, manufacturers are not only focusing on enhancing the safety features for drivers and passengers but for pedestrians as well. Pedestrian protection airbags have thus been developed to take safety to the next level.

Pedestrian protection airbags mitigate head injuries for pedestrians in the case of an accident. These airbags are automatically deployed when a vehicle is about to collide with a pedestrian. The front sensors of the vehicle deliver information to the connected control unit, which analyzes the information to detect the shape of the object. If the control unit determines that the car is about to hit a pedestrian, it activates an airbag.

Improving socio-economic conditions, rising income levels, and increasing awareness about pedestrian safety are thus expected to drive the market for airbags in the coming years.

Recalls of multiple vehicle models for airbags and seatbelts

In recent years, various vehicle models have been recalled due to faulty airbags and seatbelts. As of December 2016, 400,000 vehicles, equipped with Autoliv’s seatbelts and airbags, have been recalled. Both the airbags and seatbelts failed to deploy during vehicle crashes. Additionally, as of March 2018, 37 million vehicles with 50 million defective Takata airbag inflators have been recalled by 19 manufacturers. These recalls have been registered as the largest recall of safety features in the world.

Faulty airbags and seatbelts could lead to grave injuries and even fatalities in the event of accidents. Thus, recalls of major vehicle models due to faulty airbags and seatbelts are expected to challenge market growth to a certain extent in the coming years.

The following are the major objectives of the study.

• To define, segment, and analyze the global automotive airbags and seatbelts market based on airbags type, seatbelts type, vehicle type, electric vehicle, and region  
• To analyze and forecast the market size, in terms of volume (units) and value (USD million/billion), for the automotive airbags and seatbelts market
• To provide a detailed analysis of various factors influencing the automotive airbags and seatbelts market (drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges)
• To segment and forecast the automotive airbags market size by type of airbags (frontal, side and knee airbags)
• To segment and forecast the automotive seatbelts size by type of seatbelt (2-point and 3-point seatbelts)
• To segment and forecast the automotive airbags and seatbelts market size by type of vehicles into passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, buses, and trucks. 
• To segment and forecast the automotive airbags and seatbelts market size by electric vehicle into battery electric vehicles (BEVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), and fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEVs)
• To forecast the automotive airbags and seatbelts market size in key regions, namely, North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Rest of the World
• To analyze the regional markets for growth trends, prospects, and their contribution to the overall market
• To analyze opportunities for stakeholders and details of a competitive landscape for market leaders
• To strategically profile key players and comprehensively analyze their market shares and core competencies
• To analyze recent developments, alliances, joint ventures, product innovations, and mergers & acquisitions in the automotive airbags and seatbelts market

Research Methodology

The research study involved the extensive use of secondary sources such as company annual reports/presentations, industry association publications, airbags and seatbelts magazines, articles, directories, technical handbooks, World Economic Outlook, trade websites, technical articles, and databases. These sources have been used to identify and collect information for an extensive study of the airbags and seatbelts market. Primary sources such as experts from related industries, automobile OEMs, and suppliers have been interviewed to obtain and verify critical information, as well as to assess future prospects and market estimations. In-depth interviews have been conducted with various primary respondents, including key industry participants, subject-matter experts, technical experts, airbags and seatbelts experts of major market players, and industry consultants to obtain and verify critical qualitative and quantitative information as well as to assess prospects. The following figure illustrates the market research methodology applied to make this report on the airbags and seatbelts market.

The figure given below illustrates the break-up of the profile of industry experts who participated in primary discussions.

The ecosystem of the automotive airbags & seatbelts market consists tier I suppliers such as Autoliv (Sweden), ZF Friedrichshafen (Germany), DENSO (Japan), Aptiv (UK), and Joyson Electronics (China).

To know about the assumptions considered for the study, download the pdf brochure

Critical Questions which the report answers:

• What are the industry trends of the airbags and seatbelts market?
• What would be the impact of government mandates to regularize emission norms?

Target Audience

• Automobile manufacturers
• Distributors and suppliers of automotive airbags & seatbelts
• Industry associations and automotive experts
• Automotive airbags & seatbelts manufacturers
• Automotive component manufacturers
• Electric vehicle manufacturers
• Automotive technology providers
• Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 suppliers

Available Customizations

MarketsandMarkets offers the following customizations for this market report:

• Detailed analysis and profiling of additional regions (up to 3)
• Profiling of additional market players (Up to 3)
• Off-highway segment market
• Competitive Leadership Mapping (Micro-quadrant)

The market is estimated to be USD 61.38 billion in 2018 and is projected to grow to 135.43 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 11.97% during the forecast period. The increasing demand for a safer, efficient, and convenient driving experience and stringent safety regulations across the globe are driving the market for automotive airbags & seatbelts.  

The market has been segmented by airbags type, seatbelts type, vehicle, electric vehicle, and region. The market has been segmented by airbags type into frontal, knee, and side & curtain. Side & curtain airbags are projected to be the fastest growing segment of the market, by type. Side & curtain airbags provide head & neck protection to passengers in side collision crashes. These airbags are effective and give protection to the occupants in case of rollover crash. These factors boost the growth of the side & curtain airbags market.

The market has been segmented by vehicle into passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, buses, and trucks. Passenger car segment is estimated to be the fastest growing segment of the market, by vehicle. The number of passenger cars is growing at a significant rate in the emerging economies of the Asia Pacific region. This can be attributed to the rise in GDP and the population of these countries, resulting in improved lifestyle, increased purchasing power of consumers, and development of infrastructure. Airbags and seatbelts are provided as a standard feature in passenger cars in most of the countries for preventing fatalities due to accidents.

The Asia Pacific region is estimated to dominate the market, in terms of value, in 2018. The rising consumer income levels, increased vehicle production in developing countries such as India and China, and increase in the number of luxury vehicles in countries such as Japan fuel the growth of the market in the Asia Pacific region.

Improving socio-economic conditions, rising income levels, and government initiatives regarding vehicle and passenger safety have helped support airbags and seatbelts market growth.

Frontal Airbags

Provide protection from frontal collisions, mainly for the driver and front passenger, preventing or mitigating damage from head contact with the steering wheel and dashboard. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), frontal airbags have saved 44,869 lives from 1987 to 2015 in the US. Most countries have mandates for frontal airbag installation, including the US, the UK, Germany, Spain, and Italy.

Knee Airbags

Installed in the lower portion of the dashboard directly in front of the driver and the passenger’s knee. In the event of a collision, they inflate to fill the space between the dashboard and the lower part of the legs of the driver and passenger, which reduces the risk of injury to the knee and thigh.

Side & Curtain Airbags

Designed to help protect an adult's chest in a serious side-impact crash. These are mounted on the side of the seat or on the door, usually on the roof rail above the side windows. In the event of a side-impact crash, curtain airbags are used to protect an adult's head.

Critical Questions:

• Where will all these developments take the industry in the mid to long term?
• Will the industry cope with the challenge of the recall of the airbags and seatbelts?

Active safety systems are essentially safety equipment that minimize the chances of accidents before they even occur. Anti-lock braking systems (ABS), electronic stability control (ESC), electronic brake-force distribution (EBD), tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS), lane departure warning systems (LDWS), automatic emergency braking (AEB), blind spot detection (BSD), forward collision warning (FCW), and traction control systems some common active safety systems. On the other hand, passive safety systems are used to protect passengers in the event of an accident. Since active safety systems help prevent vehicle crashes, the increasing development of these systems across the globe is expected to negatively the market for passive safety systems, such as airbags and seatbelts, in the coming years.

The key players in the automotive airbags & seatbelts market are ZF Friedrichshafen (Germany), Autoliv (Sweden), DENSO Corporation (Japan), Aptive (UK), Joyson Electronic (China), Continental AG (Germany), Robert Bosch GmbH (Germany), Toshiba Corporation (Japan), Hyundai Mobis (South Korea), and Takata Corporation (Japan). These players are increasingly undertaking mergers and acquisitions, and product launches to develop and introduce new technologies and products in the market.

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