Stratview Research announces the launch of a new market research report on Air Cargo Unit Load Device (ULD) Market By Device Type (Containers and Pallets), By Product Type (LD3, LD 6, LD11, M1, PMC, PAG, and Others), By Material Type (Composites, Metals, and Others), By Deck Type (Lower Deck and Main Deck), By Sales Type (Manufacturing and Repair), By Aircraft Type (Narrow-Body Aircraft, Wide-Body Aircraft, Very Large Aircraft, and Military Aircraft), By Application Type (Passenger Aircraft and Freighter Aircraft), and By Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World), Trend, Forecast, Competitive Analysis, and Growth Opportunity: 2019-2024.
Cargo is an essential part of the airline business today. On an average, it contributes roughly 9% of an airline’s revenue, which is more than twice the revenues from the first-class segment. The biggest benefit of air cargo ULD is that it allows bundling a large quantity of cargo into a single unit. This helps minimize airlines’ operational cost by saving the ground crew’s time and efforts.
The airline industry is looking for lightweight containers with the prime focus to enhance fuel efficiency as well as reduce carbon emissions. In the last decade, the industry has noticed remarkable research and development activities related to light-weighting containers.
Many companies have succeeded in developing lightweight containers by forming strategic alliances with industry stakeholders. Major ULD management companies are opting for composite-made containers by replacing their heavy-weight metal containers.
As per Stratview Research, the global air cargo ULD market is likely to grow at a healthy rate over the next five years to reach US$ 427.5 million in 2024. Growing cargo traffic (freight tonne-kilometers) owing to accelerating urbanization and increasing disposable income, increasing deliveries of commercial aircraft, increasing demand for lightweight ULDs, rising ULD fleet size, and advancements in technology are some of the major growth drivers of the market.
The research’s findings suggest that container is expected to remain the larger device type in the market during the forecast period. High preference over pallets, a safer device to transport cargo, and easy to load and unload are major growth drivers of the containers segment. Pallet is also likely to witness a healthy growth rate in years to come.
Based on the product type, the market is segmented as LD3, LD6, LD11, M1, PMC, PAG, and Others. LD3 is the most widely preferred ULD type on both passengers as well as cargo aircraft and is highly compatible with Boeing and Airbus wide-body aircraft, such as B747, B767, B777, B787, A330, A350XWB, and A380. LD3 can also be interchangeably used by replacing another container type.
Based on the material type, the market is broken down into composite ULDs, metal ULDs, and other materials based ULDs. Composite-based ULD is likely to experience the highest growth during the forecast period. Increasing demand for lightweight containers to increase fuel efficiency is the major driver of the segment in addition to high durability and increased life of containers. Composite-based containers are about 20% to 40% lighter than that of similar-sized aluminum-based containers.
Based on the aircraft type, wide-body aircraft is expected to remain the largest demand generator of cargo ULDs during the forecast period. High number of ULDs per aircraft, increasing share of wide-body aircraft, and increasing demand for wide-body aircraft by cargo airlines are some of the major growth drivers of the segment. The aircraft type is also expected to experience the highest growth for the same period.
The key air cargo ULD manufacturers are Safran Cabin (Zodiac AirCargo Equipment), Nordisk Aviation Products, VRR Aviation, DokaSch GmbH, and Satco Inc. Development of lightweight containers, formation of partnership with ULD management companies, and regional expansion are the key strategies adopted by the major players to gain a competitive edge in the market.
