Written on: January 1, 2022 by Nicholas Georges
From all of us at the Household & Commercial Products Association (HCPA), we wish SPRAY readers a happy and healthy New Year. Here’s hoping the challenges we’ve faced over the last two years are behind us.
Industry faced a unique set of challenges in 2021. While experiencing a global pandemic, companies had to navigate inflation, workforce shortages and significant supply chain disruptions.
This year wasn’t the first time the aerosol industry has faced challenges. To determine the impacts of various challenges, the industry has turned to the Aerosol Pressurized Products Survey, which provides robust and accurate data about the unit production of aerosol products, valves and containers in the U.S. The resulting report helps aerosol companies gauge their overall growth in comparison to the industry, identify potential opportunities within product categories and reassess their sales strategy, production planning and future investments. The data is also used to communicate with legislators, regulators and other key stakeholders about the economic impact of the aerosol industry.
This report is essential to analyze the condition of the aerosol industry. Unfortunately, participation by aerosol fillers was low this past year due to competing priorities and resource constraints caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. For this reason, we did not have sufficient data to publish a Production Data Report.
We know from other sources that some aerosol product categories—such as cleaning and disinfectant products—were very successful, while others, such as personal care products, lagged behind. However, we do not know this information to the level of specificity that the Survey typically provides. Most significantly, this lack of data prohibits us from recognizing the contributions the aerosol industry made to helping consumers and workers keep their homes and workplaces safe from COVID-19, since many cleaning and disinfectant products use the aerosol delivery form.
The Aerosol Pressurized Products Survey is the only tool that can be used to measure the impacts of the aerosol industry. This is especially important when legislators and regulators ask how big the industry is and the significance of an issue. We always point to our Production Data Report as the answer, but that won’t be possible for production levels in 2020.
Participation by aerosol fillers in this year’s Survey is critical so we can better understand the impacts of 2021 and prepare for 2022. Increased participation improves the accuracy of the results and makes it easier for the Aerosol Survey Committee—which is composed of volunteers from valve, container and propellant companies—to estimate the remaining totals and generate the final results. As we experienced last year, if there are too few participants, the Aerosol Survey Committee cannot make its estimates.
Without this data, the aerosol industry cannot explain how certain laws and regulations impact production and the economy. It also hurts the industry’s ability to identify year-over-year changes in the market, as well as determine how current market influences and demand impact specific product categories.
One of the common questions the Aerosol Survey Committee receives is how confidential information is protected. HCPA contracts a third-party survey firm—Association Research, Inc. (ARI)—to conduct the survey and collect the results. Using ARI ensures that everyone’s information remains confidential. Only the aggregate information is shared with HCPA and the Aerosol Survey Committee. Individual data is never shared.
While the Aerosol Survey Committee makes every effort to get each and every aerosol company to participate, there are still some companies who don’t respond to the survey. ARI identifies the non-responding companies and the Survey Committee uses their sales data and market knowledge to estimate the missing production for each product category. For most product categories, estimates are based on valve sales. However, when valve sales cannot be used, container sales data is used. These estimates are provided directly to ARI to ensure confidentiality.
ARI also protects confidentiality of respondents by withholding subcategory data from the Survey Committee if there are too few respondents or if a single manufacturer reports a majority of the market. Again, no individual company—whether they are an aerosol filler, valve or container supplier—is ever singled out or specifically named.
The Aerosol Pressurized Products Survey is for the aerosol industry, by the aerosol industry. It cannot be done without you.
HCPA will host a free webinar about the Aerosol Pressurized Products Survey on Jan. 13. Check back at spraytm.com for further details.
For more information or if you have any questions, please contact me at ngeorges@thehcpa.org. SPRAY
