APAC has the Largest Demand for Optical Metrology Equipment

The optical metrology market will show positive growth in the coming years.  The expansion of the market is attributed to the increasing demand for precise tools and equipment for measuring for inspecting electronic chips in semiconductor manufacturing. The market is segmented into video measuring machines, optical/laser scanners, and optical/laser scanners because of the increasing demand for non-contact measurement for inspecting various aerospace and automotive manufactured parts.

APAC has the highest growth rate in the optical metrology market, and China leading the pack. The main reason for this growth is the increasing requirement for the equipment of optical metrology for surface inspection, and measurement of the parts of the vehicles, supported by the snowballing vehicle production in China, and initiatives of the government for the launch of e- vehicles. China has sold over 2 million electric vehicles till now.

North America was the largest market, contributing over 30% in the past. This is credited to the growing automotive sector in the U.S., snowballing exports of aerospace products from the U.S., and growing spending by the country of the government on the military and defense sector.

The use of portable optical metrology devices has emerged as a key trend in the optical metrology market. Portable handheld optical metrology instruments like handheld optical scanners, portable articulated arms, and smart digital gauges with wireless data transporting capabilities have made the measurement of objects quick and expedient. These systems are largely accepted by the aerospace & defense, automotive, and industrial sectors to upsurge their production ability and lessen defects. These tools are often apt for simple geometric measurements like the measurement of hole diameters or the length and breadth of a component.

There is another tendency noted in the optical metrology market, and that is the espousal of laser scanners by the industries. There is a huge demand for the inspection of intricate and structured objects in the manufacturing sector. 3D laser scanners are used for identifying cracks or holes in factory-made objects and are used to measure the depth and dimensions of multifaceted objects.  They are also used at heritage sites to measure historical structures for drawings and restoration. 3D laser scanners are also used for crime scene investigation helping provide records of the entire scheme of things.

Based on application, optical metrology market is classified into distance measurement, surface inspection, and form measurement. Of these applications, surface inspection held the largest share in 2017 predominately due to increasing use of laser scanners and VMMs in the surface inspection of aerospace parts and manufacturing of automotive parts in automobile industry, respectively. Moreover, inspection of blisks is one of the major driving factors of surface inspection. The market for aerospace titanium blisk was valued at $455.1 million in 2017 and is forecast to touch a value of $597.3 million by 2023.

Based on industry, the global optical metrology market is categorized into automotive, consumer electronics, medical, aerospace and defense, and others, wherein ‘others’ include energy and utility, education, oil and gas, food and beverage, and construction. Among these, automotive held the largest revenue share in the market in 2017. This is due to the growing automotive industry in countries like China, the U.S., and Germany and increasing demand for optical metrology equipment for inspection as well as measurement of manufactured parts for automobiles.

Globally, North America was the largest optical metrology market, contributing over 30% share to the global market in 2017. This is attributed to growing automotive industry in the U.S., increasing exports of aerospace products from the U.S., and increasing spending by the U.S. government on military and defense.

With the beginning of manufacturing 4.0 and the IIoT, there would be an upsurge in mechanization and the requirement for in-line metrology. This would post a lot of worthwhile prospects for players in the optical metrology market players. Optical metrology combined with IoT has the potential to enhance the quality of production quite significantly by providing instant feedback for the examination of quality goods.

The demand for optical meteorology devices is because of the need for precise measuring tools and apparatus for the inspection of electronic chips in the industry of semiconductors.