Projected shipments of flowmeters worldwide in millions of dollars, including all flowmeter types, from 2009 to 2014. Residential flowmeters are not included.
The worldwide flowmeter market totaled $4.6 billion in 2009 and is projected for strong upward growth to exceed $5.5 billion by 2014, according to a new research study by Flow Research, Volume X: The World Market for Flowmeters, 3rd Edition.
The new-technology flowmeter markets, including ultrasonic and Coriolis, are expected to show the fastest growth, while positive displacement, turbine, and variable-area flowmeter markets figure to decline slowly. Flow Research projects a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in revenues for the total worldwide flowmeter market of 3.7 percent through 2014, with the most rapid growth in China, the Middle East, and in developing Asian countries.
The search for energy sources is a major driver of the worldwide flowmeter market, with flowmeter growth strongest in the oil & gas industry, according to Flow Research. With crude oil exceeding $80-per-barrel, measurement accuracy and reliability are becoming increasingly important. As a result, Flow Research says Ultrasonic and Coriolis flowmeters for custody-transfer measurement are two of the fastest growing segments.
Flow Research contacted more than 365 people at 270 flow companies for the study, which includes all 14 types of commercial and industrial flowmeters used in the process industries, including such emerging technologies as sonar and optical.
According to Dr. Jesse Yoder, president of Flow Research, the future looks bright for flowmeters. “Although the global recession over the last two years took its toll on the flowmeter market, we see a strong future for the world flowmeter market,” he says. “Many companies report that sales have already been higher this year, with an even brighter outlook for the second half of 2010 and on into 2011.
