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The analysis of Context, a british market analysis specialist, shows that metal 3D printer growth is driven by upstarts like Desktop Metal as more traditional powder bed fusion vendors struggle.
Shipments of industrial* 3D printers priced at $100K+ were up by +8% in Q3 2019 compared to the same period the previous year. This key sector – which accounted for almost 70% of all 3D printer revenues for the period – saw even more impressive shipment growth of +12% on a trailing twelve-month (TTM) basis. “The increase came as a surprise given the headwinds many vendors reported in the second half of the year such as reduced demand from the struggling automotive sector, sluggish European economies and a generally weak global industrial manufacturing market all impacted the bottom line of many companies in the third quarter”, said Chris Connery, VP Global Analysis and Research at Context.

Metal 3D printing over the last 2 years

Metal 3D printing is one of the fastest growing additive manufacturing segments and has seen shipments grow at an average rate of +30% over the last two years. However, the dominant technology – powder bed fusion – began to struggle in the second half of 2019. In the third quarter, -19% fewer metal powder bed fusion 3D printers shipped than in the same quarter the previous year, with market leaders EOS and GE Additive both seeing weaker shipments not only for the quarter but for the trailing 12-months as well. Even so, aggregated shipments of metal 3D printers grew by +11% as a different technology began to take centre stage, driven by Desktop Metal and Markforged. The new crop of material extrusion metal 3D Printers – which saw year-on-year shipment increases of +43% – addresses new markets for prototyping and entry-level metal printing. Since many of these markets are outside the aerospace, automotive and medical sectors that currently use powder bed fusion machines, the growth in shipments of extrusion models was not related to the decline in those of the other type of machine.

3D printers in America, China and Europe

There was good growth in North America and China during Q3 2019, where year-on-year increases in industrial 3D printer shipments were +22% and +36% respectively, while the global #2 market, Western Europe, saw shipments fall by -28%. Sales in this sector of the market tend to be more provincial than in other industries: there is less East–West trade because of logistics (most industrial printers are very large and very heavy) and because of less-than-favourable global trade conditions which make it difficult for emerging technologies like 3D printing to flourish. These trends held true in the third quarter when Chinese vendors flourished in domestic China while US and European vendors again saw most of their business come from the West. *3D printer segment by price class: INDUSTRIAL ≥ $100K, DESIGN = $20K–$100K, PROFESSIONAL = $2.5K–$20K, PERSONAL ≤ $2.5K (excludes do-it-yourself DIY kit printers). (source: Context)

Strong growth in industrial 3D printing sector

Kategorien: |
Autor: Redaktion

Datum: 27. Jan. 2020

Shipments of industrial* 3D printers priced at $100K+ were up by +8% in Q3 2019 compared to the same period the previous year. This key sector – which accounted for almost 70% of all 3D printer revenues for the period – saw even more impressive shipment growth of +12% on a trailing twelve-month (TTM) basis. “The increase came as a surprise given the headwinds many vendors reported in the second half of the year such as reduced demand from the struggling automotive sector, sluggish European economies and a generally weak global industrial manufacturing market all impacted the bottom line of many companies in the third quarter”, said Chris Connery, VP Global Analysis and Research at Context.

Metal 3D printing over the last 2 years

Metal 3D printing is one of the fastest growing additive manufacturing segments and has seen shipments grow at an average rate of +30% over the last two years. However, the dominant technology – powder bed fusion – began to struggle in the second half of 2019. In the third quarter, -19% fewer metal powder bed fusion 3D printers shipped than in the same quarter the previous year, with market leaders EOS and GE Additive both seeing weaker shipments not only for the quarter but for the trailing 12-months as well.
Even so, aggregated shipments of metal 3D printers grew by +11% as a different technology began to take centre stage, driven by Desktop Metal and Markforged. The new crop of material extrusion metal 3D Printers – which saw year-on-year shipment increases of +43% – addresses new markets for prototyping and entry-level metal printing. Since many of these markets are outside the aerospace, automotive and medical sectors that currently use powder bed fusion machines, the growth in shipments of extrusion models was not related to the decline in those of the other type of machine.

3D printers in America, China and Europe

There was good growth in North America and China during Q3 2019, where year-on-year increases in industrial 3D printer shipments were +22% and +36% respectively, while the global #2 market, Western Europe, saw shipments fall by -28%. Sales in this sector of the market tend to be more provincial than in other industries: there is less East–West trade because of logistics (most industrial printers are very large and very heavy) and because of less-than-favourable global trade conditions which make it difficult for emerging technologies like 3D printing to flourish. These trends held true in the third quarter when Chinese vendors flourished in domestic China while US and European vendors again saw most of their business come from the West.
*3D printer segment by price class: INDUSTRIAL ≥ $100K, DESIGN = $20K–$100K, PROFESSIONAL = $2.5K–$20K, PERSONAL ≤ $2.5K (excludes do-it-yourself DIY kit printers).
(source: Context)