Sales of machine vision components and systems grew to $2.3 billion in North America in 2016, which is the highest total to date, according to the AIA.
Total machine vision sales include sales of machine vision components and systems, and this figure grew by 0.5%. The machine vision components category saw growth of 1% to $320 million in 2016, and leading this category was camera (3% growth), lighting (1%), and software (1%). The machine vision systems category was flat in 2016 at $2 billion. Within this category, sales of smart cameras increased by 13% to $326 million, while sales of application-specific machine vision systems (ASMV) contracted by 2% to $1.6 billion.
Growth in 2016 was helped largely by a strong fourth quarter that saw increasing sales in smart cameras (20% growth over the fourth quarter in 2015), component cameras (17%), and ASMV systems (17%).
"Forty-seven percent of industry experts are expecting the market to continue its growth in the first half of 2017, 43% believe sales will remain flat, and 10% percent expect a contraction," said Alex Shikany, AIA’s Director of Market Analysis. "Regarding the largest category, machine vision systems, 46% of survey respondents believe the category will increase, 44% expect stagnation, and 10% expect a decline. Stronger optimism is present regarding vision component markets, where 57% think sales will increase, 36% are expecting sales to be flat, and only seven percent expect declines."
Jeff Burnstein, AIA President, also commented: "Vision and imaging technology is playing a key role in the next wave of industrial evolution," he said. "In today’s world of connected manufacturing, the industrial internet of things, and cloud-based computing, vision technology is providing critical data to these advanced automation systems and driving productivity up for manufacturers of all sizes across the globe."
Industry growth can be reflected by increased attendance at shows like the upcoming Automate in Chicago, noted Burnstein.
"With four weeks to go, the exhibit floor at Automate 2017 is over 40% larger than our 2015 event," he said. "This growth is attributed to the fact that leading automation companies are reaching out to small and medium sized customers, many of whom are just now beginning to explore automation."
He added, "Automate attendees come from a wide range of industries to see in person how the latest automation technologies can benefit their operations. They bring specific problems and are looking for real solutions in order to remain competitive in today’s global marketplace. Automate is where these critical business decisions can be made."
View more information on the AIA.
View more information on Automate.
Share your vision-related news by contacting James Carroll, Senior Web Editor, Vision Systems Design
To receive news like this in your inbox, click here.
Join our LinkedIn group | Like us on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter
Learn more: search the Vision Systems Design Buyer's Guide for companies, new products, press releases, and videos
