On September 17, the 28th China International Adhesives and Sealants Exhibition (ASE CHINA 2025) grandly opened at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre. As an industry benchmark event that has obtained UFI authoritative certification, this year's exhibition, under the theme "Connecting the World, Intelligently Bonding the Future," brought together nearly 700 high-quality domestic and international brands, with an exhibition area spanning 40,000 square meters.

The exhibition focused on the entire industrial chain of adhesives, sealants, adhesive tapes, and films, showcasing a series of innovative solutions tailored for high-end application fields such as new energy vehicles, electronics and semiconductors, and rail transportation.

①．Exhibition scale and industry status

Since its inception in 1997, the China International Adhesives and Sealants Exhibition has been dedicated to the industry for 28 years. This year's exhibition occupied three halls (W1, W2, W3) of the Shanghai New International Expo Centre, achieving a record-high scale.

Compared to previous years, ASE CHINA 2024 attracted 635 enterprises from 13 countries and regions, bringing together industry professionals from 52 countries and regions for visits and negotiations. The 2025 exhibition further expanded its exhibition area to over 40,000 square meters, featuring more than 600 domestic and international companies and brands across the industrial chain.

Held concurrently with the 20th China International Tape & Film Exhibition (TF-EXPO CHINA), the 22nd China International Chemical Industry Exhibition 2025, and the China International Rubber Technology Exhibition 2025, this year's event created a tri-expo synergy, establishing a high-quality platform connecting industrial manufacturing and advanced materials.

②．Exhibition Scope and Innovation Highlights

This year's exhibition boasts a wide range of exhibits, covering the entire industrial chain including adhesive products, sealant products, adhesive tapes, film products, thermal management materials, and equipment.

Eco-friendly Products in the Spotlight: The development and application of environmentally friendly adhesives became a key focus, with the industrialization of bio-based adhesives accelerating. Numerous companies launched low-VOC, solvent-free environmentally friendly adhesive and sealant products.

Downstream Applications Driving Innovation: Over 60% of exhibitors presented adhesive technology solutions for new energy vehicles and power batteries, while over 80% showcased solutions for the electronics sector. Exhibitors demonstrated new breakthroughs in the application technology of high-performance sealants under extreme conditions.

Intelligent Equipment on Display: The exhibition also featured dispensing, coating, and application equipment and technologies, highlighting the industry's trend towards intelligent and precise development.

"NextTech Hub" as a Highlight: The "NextTech Hub" emerged as one of the exhibition's highlights, showcasing innovative achievements such as specialty bonding solutions. Participating companies included over 640 representative enterprises like Henkel, 3M, Wacker, Wanhua, and Guibao.

③．Professional Forums and Industry Insights

The exhibition was complemented by a diverse range of concurrent events, featuring over 180 professional forums and technical seminars that brought together nearly 350 industry experts, corporate representatives, and scholars from research institutions, both domestic and international.

Focus on Industry Hot Topics: Forum discussions delved deeply into key industry topics, including technological innovation, market application expansion, interpretation of policies and standards, and sustainable development pathways. Specific forums included the "Summit Forum on Adhesive Technology Development for Emerging Industries" and the "Summit Forum on Electronic Adhesives, Thermal Management Materials, and Adhesive Technology for New Energy Vehicles."

Retrospective on Industry Achievements: A specially curated "Two Decades of Innovation in the Adhesive Industry" exhibition comprehensively reviewed the achievements made by China's adhesive and sealant industry over the past 20 years in areas such as technological R&D, product upgrades, and market expansion.

Outlook on Future Trends: The events provided insights into new trends and opportunities anticipated for the industry's development over the next five years, offering directional guidance for its future growth.

④．Platform Value and Future Outlook

As a bridge connecting buyers and sellers across dozens of industries, ASE CHINA provides a one-stop materials solutions platform for key sectors such as automotive, electronics, new energy, rail transit, building materials/home furnishing, and smart packaging.

Driven by evolving consumer demands and technological advancement, adhesive materials and technologies are rapidly entering a new phase characterized by high performance, intelligence, and green development. Leveraging China's position as one of the world's largest consumer markets for adhesives, the exhibition serves as a significant driver within the dual-circulation development paradigm.

Industry experts point out that the application fields for adhesives continue to expand, with consumption in emerging industries showing significant growth. This opens up historic opportunities for new materials companies across the relevant industrial chain and is also accelerating the domestic substitution process for high-end adhesive products.

The exhibition runs until September 19. Visitors can not only learn about innovative adhesive solutions in areas like new energy battery packaging, automotive lightweighting, and electronic device miniaturization but also gain insights into future industry trends through the concurrent forums.

As global manufacturing transitions towards green and intelligent transformation, the adhesives and sealants industry is redefining its role—evolving from a traditional auxiliary material into a key force driving industrial innovation.

Image source: @ CCPIT