Mrs. Wang Wanxu from China Daily Chemical Industry Research Institute has written this article to analyze the impact and opportunities brought by the Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) to daily chemical business and especially to the detergent industry. The original article is in Chinese and OKCHEM has translated it into English to share with idea with you. 

1.   Detergent industry is one of the main supporting industries to overcome major social disasters including the coronavirus.

On January 23, 2020, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China held a meeting on supply and demand of epidemic prevention and control materials. The China Washing Products Industry Association participated and reported the production, inventory and active response of disinfection and disinfection supplies in the detergent industry. To the production and inventory information of 134 kinds of disinfection products from 50 companies in the industry, these companies actively take social responsibility and work overtime to produce and stock. Since then, more companies have joined the battle to secure supply and eliminate the epidemic. On the one hand, to protect the market, and on the other hand, to donate goods and materials, it shows the industry's determination and action to take the overall situation into account and protect the market and the epidemic. Another way to overcome the epidemic is to wash your hands frequently. Direct supplies are hand sanitizers and fat (scent) soaps produced by the detergent industry. Industry companies have ensured market supply and made positive contributions.

 

2.   Reflections on the detergent industry in the context of a new coronavirus pneumonia epidemic
Any major social event in history will become a catalyst for social progress and change. Take the events of the past 20 years as an example. The SARS incident in 2003 promoted the rapid development of liquid detergents in China; the Songhua River water pollution incident in 2005 accelerated the closed disposal of rainwater and sewage from chemical companies, and initiated the centralized management, disposal, and supervision of overall wastewater by chemical companies; 2015 The Tianjin Big Bang and the Xiangshui Big Bang in 2019 accelerated the upgrading of management, supervision and construction standards for hazardous chemicals and chemical parks. The outbreak of this epidemic will also give birth to and promote a series of social changes and progress. The detergent industry is also only among them, it is worth analyzing and thinking.
Our life is inseparable from chemical industry, and our technology is inseparable from chemical industry. It should be said that chemical industry has penetrated into almost every industry and every aspect of life. The epidemic broke out suddenly. The masks, protective clothing, disinfectants, washing supplies, etc. needed to overcome the epidemic were not led by chemicals. Imagine how we could defeat the epidemic without chemicals. Therefore, life cannot be separated from chemical industry. Through this epidemic, the competent government departments at all levels have again and again learned and strengthened our washing industry. Generally speaking, after each major disaster, the focus is to return to the economy and return to the development of physical enterprises. With the contribution of the washing industry in fighting the epidemic, it is time to start a new project by hitting iron while it is hot. At the same time, it is a good time to seek the competent department to give some concern and care to the industrial enterprises for their new projects and production and operation.
In the fight against the epidemic, the detergent industry has provided two types of products for washing and disinfection. After decades of development, the industrial system of the surfactant and detergent industry in China has been relatively perfect. A relatively complete system of categories has been established to meet the daily needs of the people, but its overall capacity is excessive. When social emergencies occur, production is rushed under emergency conditions, and supply can be satisfied when it is turned into production. A tight supply situation is possible, but it will soon return to normal. This is mainly based on the overcapacity of detergent and disinfection products, and the two types of products have a lot in common, and the production line is relatively easy to convert, and the threshold for new equipment is not high. This is a feature and a reality.
The disinfection and sterilization products used during the epidemic were the most conventional sodium hypochlorite (84 disinfectant solution), chlorine dioxide, peracetic acid, and alcohol. Many varieties are short-lived as commodities, and expired. What should I do? Alcohol is a flammable and volatile liquid at room temperature, and its vapor can form an explosive mixture with air. Under the normal social situation, in addition to the enterprises that take the medical and health channels as the audience, companies that do daily chemical products should consider the product category, classification, qualification, product production, storage and transportation, use safety, and enterprise hazard level Otherwise, losses and regulatory risks are inevitable.
3. Changes and Opportunities in the Detergent Industry in the New Pneumonia Epidemic
From the perspective of industry organizations at all levels, they should take an active part in proposing that governments at all levels should start from public health emergencies in terms of industrial and product planning, and there should be a certain number of backbone enterprises in a region with production of conventional washing and disinfecting products And reserve capacity. Although the entire industry has excess capacity, the layout of production capacity is extremely unreasonable and varies widely. There are basically no such industries in some provinces and cities. In the event of an emergency, you can only rely on foreign aid. If it is a local disaster, it can be deployed. Such as this national disaster, it can't help it.
Industry organizations at all levels and enterprises take advantage of this epidemic to prevent and control the epidemic in an all-round way for the general public, and continue to follow up on the consumption of disinfection, disinfection, and washing, and continue to follow up, promote consumer awareness of disinfection, disinfection, and washing products, and scientific washing, disinfection, and disinfection. To further increase awareness and leverage the advantages of resources to promote the further development of the washing, disinfection and sterilization industry, market expansion, and product upgrades.
Speed ​​up technological innovation. Colleges, universities, research institutes, and companies should further intensify technological innovation, and research and develop a number of new washing, disinfection and sterilization technologies and products in a targeted manner. From the perspective of disinfection and sterilization products, how to transform the consumer demand and market in the emergency state into the disinfection and sterilization daily chemicals under normal conditions, enhance the public's awareness and demand for such products under normal conditions, and open up a larger market. space. This area focuses on research, research on long-term, safe, low-toxic (or non-toxic) new disinfection and sterilization technologies and products, research on compliance with daily chemical products' policies and regulatory requirements, and consumer acceptance and evaluation standards for daily chemicals. Products, so that disinfection and sterilization products can enter daily life like ordinary daily chemical products, and become regular daily epidemic prevention products. Institutions in this area have done preliminary research and made many technical breakthroughs. For example, the "new-type guanidine-based surfactant fungicide" developed by the China Daily Chemical Industry Research Institute has long-term, safe, and easy biodegradability. , Environmentally friendly and other characteristics, it can kill or inhibit bacteria, fungi and viruses, and belongs to green products.
Through this outbreak, gain insight into consumer demand and potential demand. It is the company's responsibility and obligation to develop marketable products and cultivate and expand new markets. Making disinfection and sterilization products into common daily chemical standards is the key to the product's ability to enter daily life and a prerequisite for achieving a large market. The key lies in two aspects. On the one hand, it must have long-lasting, safe, and green characteristics; on the other hand, it must have a pleasant smell and a color that consumers love. Color and odor are not attributes of commodities, but they are also key elements for consumers to choose. In the future, "cationic quaternary ammonium salt fungicides" and "new guanidine-based surfactant fungicides" are worthy of industry attention and development as conventional daily fungicides. From the perspective of washing products, products with integrated decontamination and protection combined with decontamination and protection are a good direction for the market, and are more suitable for normal society and high-paced living needs.
The impact of this new type of pneumonia epidemic is huge, and the losses and difficulties caused to our economy and society are difficult to estimate. But it has little effect on the detergent industry. There may be greater improvements at some nodes in the short term. In the long run, liquid detergents will further increase in washing products. After the epidemic, some functional washing products may be more popular with consumers. Due to its special properties and the consumer inertia used by some consumers, there is also room for slow growth of soap products, especially products with added functional ingredients, which will be more popular.
The washing industry is a rising sun industry. It is believed that under the unified leadership and deployment of the party and the government, and with the concerted efforts of the whole people to fight the epidemic, the epidemic will be extinguished soon. I wish our motherland prosperity and stability, and people's happiness and well-being, and we wish our detergent industry a healthy and rapid development.

Check out chemical raw materials used in detergent industries.