Why Are Evaporative Cooling Pads Booming in 2026? Real-World Cases Across Agriculture, Livestock & Industry Reveal the Answer
Why Are Evaporative Cooling Pads Booming in 2026? Real-World Cases Across Agriculture, Livestock & Industry Reveal the Answer
As global temperatures rise and sustainability mandates tighten, the evaporative cooling pad market is booming—projected to grow at a 6.6% CAGR from 2025 to 2031, reaching USD 10.65 billion by 2031. Cost-effective and energy-saving, evaporative cooling pads (wet curtains) have expanded beyond single sectors, widely used in agriculture, livestock, industry, and data centers. Real-world cases highlight their value, driving upgrades in the cooling pad production line industry.
In agriculture, evaporative cooling pads stabilize greenhouse yields amid extreme heat. A 10,000㎡ multi-span tomato/cucumber greenhouse in Shouguang, Shandong, once suffered crop wilting at 38–42℃. With evaporative cooling pads, longitudinal ventilation, and negative pressure fans, temperatures stabilized at 26–30℃ (humidity 60–75%), boosting tomato fruit setting rate by 15%, yield by 12%, and using only 10% of traditional AC energy. In Kunming’s rose/carnation seedling base, the pads solved high-temperature seedling burning, lifting survival rate from 75% to 92% and improving export qualification.
The livestock industry relies on evaporative cooling pads to combat heat stress. A 100,000-bird broiler farm in Guangdong saw reduced mortality and feed waste after adopting the pads with longitudinal ventilation, stabilizing house temperatures at 27–29℃, cutting heat stress mortality by 60%, lowering feed conversion rate by 0.08, and adding over 500,000 yuan annually. A U.S. Iowa pig farm reduced gestation/delivery house temperatures from over 32℃ to 26–28℃, increasing sow litter size by 8%, piglet survival by 10%, and saving 200,000 yuan in annual electricity.
In industry, the pads are an energy-saving alternative to AC. A 2,000㎡ Shaoxing textile workshop, once 35–40℃ due to equipment heat, cooled to 28±2℃ in 10 minutes with evaporative cooling pads and negative pressure fans (humidity 65–75%), eliminating heatstroke, boosting efficiency by 15%, and saving 180,000 kWh yearly. A Cambodia garment factory also improved working conditions, keeping interiors comfortable even at 37–38℃ outdoors.
High-tech and commercial sectors are also adopting the pads. A Jingmen data center integrated them with indirect evaporative chillers, reducing PUE to below 1.25 and saving over 1 million yuan annually. A 5,000㎡ Shanghai e-commerce warehouse cut temperatures to 28–30℃ with 70% less energy than AC, saving 200,000 yuan in annual electricity.
Industry insiders note that widespread evaporative cooling pad use is upgrading the cooling pad production line, with more manufacturers adopting fully automatic equipment for better consistency and capacity. As global demand for eco-friendly cooling grows, evaporative cooling pads—supported by advanced production lines—will play a key role in sustainable heat adaptation, benefiting multiple sectors.
