As capacity growth slows and oil prices swing wildly, the competitive logic of the nylon industry is being rewritten. Since 2026, geopolitical uncertainty and phase-based overcapacity have made supply-demand imbalance a sword hanging over the entire chain. The message from the annual meeting of the Nylon Branch of China Chemical Fiber Association is clear: quality first, efficiency priority, and rejection of ineffective involution. This marks the end of the era of pure volume expansion, ushering in a stock competition focused on technology and efficiency.
Industry Background
The nylon chain is at a crossroads of "slower capacity expansion but intensified competition." Lelong Information's analysis points out that the industry has shifted from scale growth to quality improvement, with high-quality, differentiated, green, and intelligent development becoming the main themes. This view is echoed by association vice president Deng Jun, who noted that after the deep adjustment in 2025, oil price volatility in 2026 has added complexity. Companies must balance qualitative improvement with reasonable quantitative growth.
Overcapacity has directly compressed profit margins, forcing companies to seek differentiation. Leading firms like Hengshen Holding and Shenma Industrial are responding through collaborative innovation across the upstream-downstream chain. Lu Wenjuan, deputy director of Shenma's Nylon New Materials Research Institute, emphasized that achieving stable quality and supply for nylon 66 requires coordinated optimization of raw materials and joint expansion of applications. Single-point cost reduction is no longer sufficient; whole-chain collaboration is key.
Technological Breakthroughs and Industry Impact
Technological advances are opening new space for the nylon industry. Professor Cai Zhengguo's team at Donghua University developed an anionic ring-opening polymerization and melt direct spinning technology that compresses the polymerization cycle from several hours to just over ten minutes, reducing cyclic dimer residue to below 0.01wt%, almost eliminating interference from oligomers. The industrial significance is substantial: it can significantly reduce energy consumption and production costs for nylon 6 while improving consistency. For buyers, this means more stable supply and lower processing losses.
Smart manufacturing is also reshaping production models. Professor Hu Xudong from Zhejiang Sci-Tech University outlined a three-stage path of digitalization, networking, and intelligence, with AI applications already deployed across design, manufacturing, and marketing. Embodied robots are seen as the next core hotspot, enabling less-labor-intensive smart factories. For labor-intensive spinning workshops, this is not only a cost-cutting measure but also a long-term investment to address labor shortages and improve quality stability. Beijing Zhongli's high-speed spinning solutions, deeply partnered with Yongrong Jinjiang, Hengshen, Hengyi, and Shenma, show that equipment-side intelligent upgrades have moved from concept to large-scale application.
Green, low-carbon, and functionalization are another competitive line. Sian New Energy's smart integrated energy solution addresses the pain points of high electricity and heat consumption and dispersed energy use in nylon production, using carbon management platforms and full-scenario intelligent control to help companies systematically reduce costs and carbon. Hangzhou Jiersi's halogen-free flame-retardant nylon chips, with an oxygen index of 30%-32%, can adapt to POY/FDY/BCF processes and, when blended with Lyocell, solve the melt-drip problem. These products directly respond to upgraded flame-retardant standards at home and abroad, clearing technical barriers for nylon to enter high-end home textiles and protective clothing.
The Shantou industrial cluster case demonstrates how clustering amplifies technological dividends. Weng Chuangjie, chairman of Hongjie Underwear, introduced that Shantou has transformed from "scattered and extensive" to "full-chain aggregation," with nylon and nylon-spandex knitted fabric bases showing good momentum. Such regional integration reduces logistics and collaboration costs while allowing SMEs to share R&D and testing resources, accelerating commercialization of new technologies.