1) Overall situation of the automotive mold industry

In the downstream application industry of molds, the automobile manufacturing industry uses a large amount of molds. 95% of the parts in automobile production need to be molded by molds. The main types of molds used include Injection mold construction,?

2) Market size of the automotive mold industry

In the past thirty years, China's automobile industry has achieved rapid development, from producing and selling hundreds of thousands of vehicles annually to surpassing the United States as the world's top automobile producer and seller in 2009. In just over 20 years, cars have also transformed from "luxury goods" to affordable and affordable consumer goods for every household. In recent years, due to adverse effects such as sluggish domestic consumption and trade frictions between China and the United States, the growth rate of China's automobile market has slowed down. According to statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, the production and sales of automobiles in China in 2021 were 26.08 million and 26.28 million, respectively, with a year-on-year increase of 3.39% and 3.83%, maintaining the world's first place for 13 consecutive years. Based on China's large population base and low per capita car ownership, China is expected to maintain its position as the world's largest automobile producer and seller for a long time in the future.

Data source: China Association of Automobile Manufacturers

From a global market perspective, the global automobile production and sales in 2021 were 80.15 million and 82.68 million, respectively, maintaining overall stability. Among them, China, Europe, and North America are the world's three major automobile production and sales regions, accounting for approximately 70% of the world's total. The emerging markets represented by India are in a rapid development stage and are expected to bring more incremental demand for automotive consumption in the future.

Data source: Wind

The huge production and sales scale of the automotive industry provides huge market space for the upstream automotive mold industry. According to Wind statistics, the sales revenue of enterprises above the designated size in China's mold manufacturing industry reached 303.5 billion yuan in 2021. Calculated based on one-third of the proportion of automotive molds, the total revenue of enterprises above the designated size in 2021 exceeded 101.1 billion yuan.

According to the "Forecast of Production and Sales Demand and Analysis Report on Transformation and Upgrading of China's Automotive Mold Industry" released by the Prospective Industry Research Institute, the market share of China's automotive mold industry is about one-third; According to the statistics of the China Mold Industry Association, plastic molds account for 45% of the total mold sales.

3) Automotive interior and exterior trim molds and interior and exterior trim parts

Automobile Injection mold construction is mainly used to manufacture automobile interior and exterior trims, seats and other plastic parts, among which the automobile interior and exterior trims are the most popular. The interior and exterior decorations of automobiles are mainly made of various plastics, skins, fabrics or composite materials, and the molds used are mainly plastic molds. The positions of different interior and exterior trim parts in the vehicle body are different, and their functions, appearance, and structural characteristics differ significantly, resulting in different molding processes for automotive interior and exterior trim parts. Currently, the molding processes for automotive interior and exterior trim parts include injection molding, blow molding, and extrusion molding, with injection molding being the most widely used.

Automotive interior and exterior decoration molds are important basic process equipment in the manufacturing process of automotive components, which determine the material, precision, and reliability of interior and exterior decoration components, thereby affecting the safety, power parameters, comfort, and energy consumption level of the car. The configuration level of interior and exterior decoration molds to a certain extent determines the grade of the car.

The automotive interior trim is characterized by safety, environmental protection and comfort. It pursues high matching and consistency with the vehicle body. The instrument panel, seat, headrest, etc. are made of elastomers and foamed plastics that can absorb impact energy and vibration energy, which helps to reduce the injury to human body during collision and improve the Factor of safety of the vehicle, including the automotive seat system, instrument panel system, acoustic system, side trim, soft trim, etc.

From the perspective of segmented needs, the interior modifications of the new model are significant, while the interior modifications of the upgraded model are relatively small; The function of automobile exterior trim parts is mainly to protect and decorate the exterior of the vehicle body or to provide relevant parts with opening functions. By replacing steel with plastic, the application of plastic products in the vehicle body is increased, so as to reduce the weight of the vehicle, save energy and reduce consumption. It mainly includes front and rear bumpers, grilles, radiator trim covers, anti chafing strips, wheel arches and other parts connected to the vehicle body through bolts and buckles or Double-sided tape. Compared to interior parts, exterior parts have higher requirements for product appearance and require the use of fine polishing technology. Whether it is a new model or a modified model, exterior parts undergo significant modifications. The material and craftsmanship level of interior and exterior decorations often determine the grade of the car and are an important carrier for positioning in the mid to high-end passenger car market.

From the perspective of demand characteristics, the overall market demand for automotive interior and exterior molds is closely related to the overall sales volume of the automotive market, but the demand for certain specific products or models only has a linear relationship with the market sales volume of a single vehicle model, and has no direct relationship with the overall supply and demand relationship of the automotive vehicle

?market.

4) Driving Factors for the Development of Automobile Injection mold construction Industry

Automobile Injection mold construction products belong to non-standard process equipment. As an important part of automobile Injection mold construction, the demand for automobile interior and exterior mold is mainly affected by the development of new automobile models and the cycle of model change. When the whole vehicle factory plans to launch a new car or modify the original model, the whole vehicle factory or the supplier of interior and exterior parts of the car need to redesign the interior and exterior parts, and require the mold enterprise to develop corresponding mold products. The demand for interior and exterior decoration molds for new or modified vehicles depends on the richness of the interior and exterior decorations and the requirements of the molding process. If the demand and style of the interior and exterior decorations are more, and the molding process is more complex, the more interior and exterior decoration molds need to be configured. Generally, a new car needs to be equipped with hundreds of sets of interior and exterior decoration molds for the production of various interior and exterior decoration parts.

In addition to the above, consumers' pursuit of automotive moderation, appearance, and personalization determines the demand and value of individual car models for interior and exterior molds by influencing the quantity, style, and molding process of interior and exterior decorations, as well as the requirement for the use of more low-density and high-strength materials for lightweight cars. The analysis of the driving forces for the development of the automotive interior and exterior mold industry is as follows:

① Personalized and high-end automobile consumption

With the improvement of residents' income level, cars have gradually become a necessary means of transportation for every family. On the one hand, due to the different consumption abilities of different groups of people and significant differences in individual needs, China's automobile consumption market shows obvious personalized characteristics. On the other hand, consumers have increasingly high demands for the safety and functionality of automobiles. Against the backdrop of steadily improving residents' consumption capacity, the consumption structure of China's automobile consumption market is tending towards high-end. In order to adapt to the new trend of automobile consumption, both joint venture car manufacturers and independent brand car manufacturers actively seek differentiation, innovate in vehicle design, material and component selection, and electrification, and develop a variety of car models that meet the aesthetic characteristics, consumption habits, and different levels of needs of Chinese consumers.

The increase in the number of car models and the proportion of high-end car consumption have put forward higher requirements for the types and quality of car interior and exterior decorations. The difference in interior and exterior decorations is an important manifestation of automotive differentiation. The power systems of different models are often similar, but the interior and exterior decorations have their own characteristics. Vehicle manufacturers need to adjust the interior and exterior decoration plans according to the different needs of consumers, thereby increasing the demand for different types of interior and exterior decorations. Compared to low-end cars, mid to high-end cars pay more attention to the design, materials, and production process of interior and exterior decorations. By enriching the configuration of interior and exterior decorations and improving the quality of interior and exterior decorations, the overall performance and riding experience of the car are improved.

The personalized and high-end consumption of automobiles requires the supply of more types of interior and exterior decoration parts, which in turn puts forward higher requirements for the types, structural accuracy, and manufacturing process of automobile interior and exterior decoration molds. It is an important driving force for the development of the automobile interior and exterior decoration mold industry.

② The cycle of new car development and old car facelift is constantly shortening

The introduction of new models and the acceleration of upgrading and upgrading of existing models have become important features of the development of China's automotive industry. With the continuous improvement of residents' consumption ability, people's consumption concepts and aesthetic pursuits are also constantly changing, resulting in a gradually shortened best-selling period for a car. In order to better meet consumer needs, gain market recognition, and gain greater market share in fierce market competition, car manufacturers have accelerated the launch speed of new models and shortened the upgrade and modification cycle of old models. The development cycle of new car models has been shortened from about 4 years to 1-3 years, and the modification cycle of old cars has also been shortened from 6 to 24 months to 4 to 15 months.

Whether it is a new model or an old model facelift, it often involves the overall or partial updates of car interior and exterior decorations, and these updates require customization of corresponding car interior and exterior decoration molds. Therefore, the acceleration of new model development and old model facelift provides huge market demand and development space for the development of the car interior and exterior decoration mold industry.

③ Automobile lightweight

Automobile lightweight is an important direction for the future development of automobiles and an inevitable trend in the development of the automotive industry. On the one hand, lightweight cars can reduce energy consumption per unit mileage, save energy, reduce emissions, and conform to the trend of energy conservation and emission reduction. On the other hand, lightweight can improve the range and reduce "Range anxiety anxiety", while the demand for lightweight of new energy vehicles is more urgent. Most countries around the world, including China, have introduced policies, regulations, and industry standards to promote and guide the production and use of lightweight vehicles.

There are three main ways to achieve automotive lightweight: material lightweight, structural design lightweight, and manufacturing process lightweight. Among them, material lightweight is the most obvious and mature way to achieve automotive lightweight effect. Specifically, material lightweight refers to the use of plastics, steel, composite materials, and alloy materials with lower density and higher strength, such as carbon fiber, engineering plastics, aluminum alloys, etc., to replace traditional materials and reduce vehicle weight while ensuring safety, reliability, and comfort. Lightweight structural design achieves layout optimization, shape optimization, size optimization, and topology optimization through innovative design methods such as finite element analysis and local reinforcement design, ultimately achieving the goal of improving structural performance and reducing vehicle weight. Manufacturing process lightweight Through the innovation of manufacturing process, the application of Thermoforming, laser welding plate, hydraulic molding and other processes, lightweight materials can be used to manufacture lightweight vehicles that meet the design requirements. The three ways to achieve automotive lightweight are all related to automotive molds, promoting innovative development in the automotive mold industry.