For seemingly everyone, the past few years have been turbulent in one way or an- other, as governments, industries, and individuals grappled with the consequences and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which, although better understood and managed, persists. In some respects, the lab and analytical instruments market has been buffered from these effects; the industry, as a whole, has maintained its positive growth trajectory.
With the continuation of the pandemic in 2022, the global economic recovery from COVID-19 has been hampered by periodic port shutdowns in China, continued supply-chain disruptions, and staffing challenges across industries. Since TDA’s 2022 Outlook was published, the war in Ukraine began, its being felt worldwide. Additionally, Europe is facing an energy crisis resulting from Russia’s cutting its supply of natural gas to Europe and resulting soaring energy costs. These factors are contributing to global Inflation, which threatens to curb economic growth worldwide.
In 2021, the process analytical instruments (PAI) market and PAI worldwide enterprise (which also includes the value of analyzer-related services) reached $4.7 billion and $7.5 billion, respectively. Over the next few years, demand from many end-user markets is expected to increase 5%–7% per year driven by solid growth from the pharmaceutical industry.
With the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing attempts to reestablish normal operations, 2021 was a year of ups and downs. The global economy began to improve, with vaccinations against COVID-19, declines in death rates, and resumption of activity in many slowed or stalled areas pointing toward steady economic recovery. However, new SARS-CoV-2 variants, continued supply disruptions, and elevated inflation have tempered these gains. The lab and analytical instruments industry has been somewhat insulated from these changes—many of its technologies underlie processes or operations in our society and economy that persist except in the case of lockdown.