Clinical Lab Automation Sector at USD 5.4 Billion and Growing

Lab automation systems sold to clinical laboratories reached USD 5.4 billion in sales in 2014. Shortage of personnel will further drive these purchases, as will a need for new systems, according to a new market research report on the status of lab automation in both clinical and drug-discovery lab segments.

The new report “Lab Automation Markets, 4th Edition” by Kalorama Information (New York, NY, USA) says that annually in the US only about 4,000 students graduate in lab technology, while current professionals are reaching retirement age in disproportionate numbers. Among the causes of this labor shortage is increased demand in alternate and complex lab testing facilities. Laboratory personnel are being hired in physicians' offices, central clinical laboratories, veterinarians' offices, industrial laboratories, and research laboratories. Clinical lab work remains a hidden profession: lack of public knowledge about professional lab opportunities is evident when people are questioned about what careers are available in the medical field—few are aware of the variety available in the medical field other than doctors, nurses, and paramedics.

“The shortage of medical technologists is becoming more significant every year as fewer students enter the field,” said Joe Constance, Kalorama analyst and author of the report, “At the same time the aging baby-boomer population is generating increased demand for medical testing. Only automation can bridge this gap.”

Demand for systems is expected to remain strong for the next 5 years. But customers will have specific needs. Interoperability was a key need that vendors report seeing from customers. Miniaturization and increasing volume of screening samples are additional priorities.

“Labs continue to look for more standardization and improved interaction and compatibility among different vendor’s systems,” said Mr. Constance, “Equipment must interface and work with electronic and mechanical components and other systems. Ideally a laboratory automation system should combine the best components from a variety of equipment vendors.”

According to the report, automation is one of the more dynamic parts of the in vitro diagnostics (IVD) industry because competition has equalized in many areas of lab analysis, at least in routine segments. As automation companies seek to find new market opportunities, several companies have established partnerships or other collaborative arrangements with IVD companies, leading to sales that might otherwise not have been achieved. Kalorama’s report includes a list of the top companies in automation and IVD, and has specific market estimates for automation market categories.

Related Links:
Kalorama Information
Lab Automation Markets, 4th Edition (Systems [Sample Transport, Specimen Handling, Plate Readers, Storage & Retrieval, Robotics, LIMS], Key Companies, Forecasts and Trends), report