Adhesives are the invisible ingredient in countless products — from the shoes on your feet to the packaging on the shelf. For footwear and industrial adhesive manufacturers, performance comes down to the raw materials: the resins that provide tack, the rubbers that provide strength, and the solvents and monomers that make it all workable. This guide covers the key inputs.
Adhesive types and what they need
Different applications call for very different chemistries:
- Hot-melt adhesives — solvent-free, applied molten; built on EVA, tackifier resins and waxes
- Footwear / sole-bonding adhesives — chloroprene (neoprene) rubber, polyurethane and tackifiers, applied in solvent
- PVC cementing solutions — PVC resin and chlorinated polyethylene dissolved in solvent for pipe and material bonding
- Pressure-sensitive adhesives — acrylic monomers and tackifiers for tapes and labels
- Industrial adhesives — a broad mix depending on substrate and strength requirements
Tackifier resins — the source of "grab"
Tackifiers give an adhesive its initial stickiness. The common families are:
- Hydrocarbon resins (C5 and C9) — the versatile workhorse tackifiers
- Hydrogenated hydrocarbon resins — for lighter colour and better stability
- Terpene resins — excellent tack for pressure-sensitive and hot-melt systems
- Chlorinated rubber — used in specific bonding and coating adhesives
Rubbers and elastomers — the source of strength
The elastomer backbone gives the bond its flexibility and holding power:
- Chloroprene (neoprene) rubber — the classic for footwear and contact adhesives
- Ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) — the base of most hot-melts
- TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) resin — high-performance footwear bonding
- SIS and SBS block copolymers — for pressure-sensitive and hot-melt adhesives
Reactive monomers
For polymerised and acrylic adhesives, manufacturers use monomers such as vinyl acetate monomer (VAM), styrene, butyl acrylate and methyl methacrylate (MMA) to build the polymer in-house.
Solvents and additives
Solvent selection controls drying, viscosity and open time. The footwear and adhesive industry commonly uses MEK (methyl ethyl ketone), MIBK, toluene, cyclohexane, solvent naphtha, ethyl and butyl acetate and ethylene dichloride (EDC). Additives such as fumed silica (Acrosil 200) control viscosity and prevent sag.
One partner for every adhesive formulation
Whether you make footwear adhesives, hot-melt glues, PVC cementing solutions or industrial bonding agents, sourcing every input from one reliable partner simplifies procurement and keeps production supplied. Aleemsons supplies the complete adhesive raw-material toolkit — tackifier resins, rubbers, monomers, waxes and solvents — from reputable global manufacturers.
See the full adhesives range, or tell us what you are formulating and we will help you source the right grades.
Source these materials with confidence
Aleemsons supplies the raw materials in this article, with technical data sheets on request.
