Domestic airbag technology has set a new world record. The airbag for a 115,000-ton oil tanker has been successfully launched. High-performance airbags have been exported to shipyards in the Middle East and Southeast Asia in large quantities.
Previously, Taizhou Shipyard completed the airbag launching operation for the 115,000-ton Aframax tanker, setting a new record for the largest tonnage of a ship launched with an airbag in the world. It marked that domestic large-scale high-strength rubber airbag technology has entered the top international level and broke the monopoly of traditional slide launching technology in Europe and the United States. This batch of ultra-large launching airbags uses a multi-layer winding high-strength nylon skeleton + a special rubber formula that is resistant to seawater corrosion. The pressure load of a single airbag exceeds 2,000 tons, and it is resistant to high and low temperatures - 30℃~70℃. It is suitable for flexible launching scenarios of large oil tankers, bulk carriers, and engineering ships.
In the first half of 2026, the export sales data of Qingdao airbag manufacturers are impressive. About 70% of high-performance CCS certified airbags are sold to new shipyards in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Africa. With the expansion boom of small and medium-sized shipyards along the “Belt and Road”, the demand for airbag procurement for topside maintenance of old ships and emergency shipwreck salvage continues to rise; after the implementation of the new version of maritime regulations, 500 domestic It is mandatory for ships above gross tonnage to be equipped with emergency salvage airbags, and the domestic replacement market is steadily expanding. The annual market size of the airbag industry is expected to exceed 2.8 billion yuan.