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London − The power supply market for medical applications grew 4.0 percent last year, and is projected to grow 3.7 percent in 2013, according to IMS Research, now part of IHS Inc. Strong annual growth is forecast for medical power supplies over the next five years, projecting an additional $100 million during this period, according to the market researcher.
The medical sector is one of the bright spots for power supplies. The largest segment is clinical care, accounting for 60 percent of revenue last year. Applications include anesthesia devices, patient monitor devices, and neonatal incubators. The medical imaging market accounted for one-third of the revenue, while the remaining share came from the consumer market.
Growth is primarily driven by Asia and America, with the Americas representing the largest sector, offsetting the struggles in the Europe-Middle East-Africa (EMEA) region, according to IMS’ report, The World Market for Power Supplies in Medical Applications. The market researcher expects the EMEA region to recover in two years, helping to fuel growth in the market.
“The BRIC countries of Brazil, Russia, India and China are going to be the key drivers in this market over the next few years,” said Jonathon Eykyn, power supply and storage component analyst for IHS, in a statement. “Meanwhile, recovery in the EMEA region is forecast to drive increased spending on medical equipment from 2015, raising demand for accompanying power supplies.”
The report finds that the power supply market for medical applications can be complex for power supply manufacturers due to several factors. One key reason is that the market is driven directly by the medical equipment markets that are affected by factors like demographic and social trends, reimbursement legislation, and trends in healthcare provision, according to IMS.
In addition, due to a variety of applications that range from low-power consumer devices to MRI scanners, there are a broad range of products with widely differing power demands, said IMS, and there are several additional standards in place for power supplies in medical applications.
“With growth set to remain stable for the foreseeable future, the medical market provides a strong opportunity to manufacturers looking to diversify their product ranges, especially as demand for power supplies in other sectors remains low,” stated Eykyn.
