In a report released by Additive Manufacturing Research (AMR), the global additive manufacturing (AM) market has faced a one per cent estimated sequential decline in the third quarter of 2023 compared to the previous quarter.
This marks the third consecutive quarter of slowed growth, primarily impacting hardware sales, AMR revealed in a media release.
However, data show the market continues to exhibit a robust 13 per cent year-over-year growth, reflecting the resilience of the additive manufacturing industry.
Scott Dunham, AM Research EVP, highlighted the notable influences on the current market trends, stating, “The impacts of the macro environment and higher costs of capital are being seen in AM market numbers, mainly in hardware sales, while materials sales remain healthy.”
In particular, the report encompasses various facets of the AM market, including printers, print materials, and print production services, covering both polymer AM and metal AM markets.
Despite the challenges, demand for print services in the quarter demonstrated mixed results, with companies grappling with ongoing supply chain disruptions.
However, shorter backlogs have reduced the opportunity costs of not adopting new solutions like AM.
Dunham continued, “Additionally, product development spending appears to be down, which impacts AM services.”
Looking forward, AMR said it anticipates some market softness to persist through 2024 due to factors such as interest rates.
However, growth in the AM sector during this period is expected to be fueled by influential users who continue to scale up their activities.
The dynamics of the market indicate a shift in focus from new entrants to established players expanding their operations.
The report includes data from prominent companies in the AM sector, including 3D Systems, Stratasys, Markforged, Desktop Metal, Velo3D, Nikon SLM Solutions, EOS, GE Additive, Trumpf, Farsoon, BLT, HBD, Eplus, Optomec, BeAM, HP, Formlabs, Prodways, DWS, and Carbon.
