Intelligent Industrial Pump Market Primed for Substantial Growth

ABI Research forecasts a more than fivefold increase in intelligent industrial pump shipment revenues by 2022, topping US$5.3 billion, as companies with industrial and manufacturing operations look to connect their HMI, SCADA, and control networks to higher level enterprise systems as well as the cloud. Industrial pump manufacturers have started to integrate Internet-connected capabilities into their product offerings to improve the collection and distribution of mission-critical ops data. Currently, only 2% of industrial pumps shipped are internet-connected.

These connected pump systems are typically accompanied by a software stack designed to prevent unfavorable operating conditions, optimize maintenance schedules, and minimize downtime. Example first movers include Apache Corporation, Flowserve, Hilcorp, KSB, Liberty Pumps, and Rockwell Automation.

“The confluence of connectivity, app development, data management, and cloud storage capabilities is driving greenfield technology implementation decisions in an otherwise brownfield world,” says Ryan Martin, Principal Analyst at ABI Research. “But the factors driving IoT strategy decisions are complex; companies want to standardize on their service of choice to scale their connected endpoint infrastructure, yet lack a common set of tools to operationalize the intended efficiency improvements. Meanwhile, the 15 to 20-year lifespan of pumping systems is such that original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) may at some point need to support a combination of legacy installations and/or upgrade cycles.”

Growth in the global intelligent pump market is largely attributed to an uptick in building automation and water/wastewater management sectors in North America and Western Europe, which represent roughly 16% and 18% of intelligent pump shipments, respectively, in 2017. These regions along with the Middle East (about 6% of unit shipments in 2017) are also witnessing increased demand for digitalization (particularly in the oil and gas industry, where declining oil prices are compelling companies to invest in OT innovation). Asia, which represents the largest share of shipment volumes at more than 46% over the forecast period, is also anticipated to benefit from peripheral technical innovation in industries such as manufacturing, where replacement opportunities for connected pumps are generally encouraged.

 “The ability to intelligently monitor and control manufacturing and supply chain processes allows companies to get more value from operational assets while improving the lifespan, cost profile, and maintenance schedule of component systems,” concludes Martin. “These are markets where scale is valued and post-connectivity preference goes to automation enablement.”

These findings are from ABI Research’s Assessing Today’s Intelligent Industrial Pump Market report. This report is part of the company’s Industrial Internet research service, which includes research, data, and analyst insights.