An abrasive is a material that when rubbed against a surface, producesthe desired surface finish and shape. Abrasives are usually minerals that are often available in a wide range of shapes, sizes and types. They are usually used to clean, grind, scour, abrade or remove the solid material usually by using impact or by the rubbing action. Abrasives are mainly classified as bonded abrasives, steel abrasives, coated abrasives, loose abrasives grain and raw super abrasives, among others. The abrasives material or the abrasives product finds various applications in industries such as electrical & electronics, machinery, metal fabrication and transportation among others.

Bonded abrasives are the natural or synthetic abrasive grains which are usually bonded into a solid form. Bonded abrasives are usually made of the abrasive grains that are closely sized and molded or pressed to produce a wide variety of the products. Bonded abrasives are usually in the shape of a wheel. The products range of the bonded abrasives also includes the snagging wheel, mounted wheel, grinding and the cut-off wheel, cones and plugs. Bonded abrasives are mainly used for precision grinding, cutting, rough grinding, lapping, sharpening and light grinding among others.

The growing automobile industry is expected to boost the overall growth of the bonded abrasives market. Bonded abrasives are widely used in giving the required surface finish as well as the desired design to the automobiles. The increasing demands for the advanced technology based machineries are further expected to boost the demand for the bonded abrasives. The bonded abrasives help in the super finishing of the machine shaft in order to achieve the required roughness. The bonded abrasives are used in providing the smooth finish to the various tools and the machineries that are manufactured. The bonding abrasives are used in the polishing as well as deburring of the bore holes on the machine blocks. Regular maintenances of the workshops further boost the overall demand for the bonded abrasives market. The increasing use of the bonded abrasives for de-scaling and for the rust and dust removal has augmented the overall growth for the bonded abrasives market. The bonded abrasives are also widely used in the medical sector. Bonded abrasives are used to sharpen the dental tools. The bonded abrasives are also used for smoothening of the edges of the dental tools such that it is extremely convenient for the doctors to use the dental tools on the patients.

The bonded abrasives segment accounts for the largest share within the global abrasives market. North America is expected to be the largest market for the bonded abrasives. The growing demand especially in U.S is expected to boost the growth of the global bonded abrasive market. Europe is expected to be the next largest consumer of the bonded abrasives especially due to the growing demand especially in Germany. Asia Pacific is expected to be fastest growing market for the bonded abrasives market mainly due to the presence of various end-use industries especially in China and India.

Norton, 3M, Baystate, Tyrolit, Treibacher and Noritake among others are some of the key participants of the global bonded abrasives market. Companies are extensively conducting research in order to develop and introduce new products in the market such that they can efficiently cater the needs for the specific application.