Wohlers Report 2021 finds 7.5% growth in AM industry despite COVID-19 pandemic
March 17, 2021
Wohlers Associates, Inc., Fort Collins, Colorado, USA, has published its Wohlers Report 2021, marking the twenty-sixth annual instalment of the industry-leading report on Additive Manufacturing. The study provides trends, perspectives and forecasts as a tool for decision making, education and knowledge acceleration. The report offers readers new to AM a comprehensive understanding of the technology and industry, and veterans of the technology can benefit from up-to-date information.
The 375-page report discusses the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) on the AM industry, most notably that, despite the pandemic, the industry expanded 7.5% reaching near to $12.8 billion in 2020. Growth was down considerably, compared to the average growth of 27.4% over the previous decade. Most established manufacturers of AM systems saw a decline in equipment sales, but many less-established companies grew in 2020. An increase in business by AM service providers supported industry-wide growth. There was a 7.1% growth from independent service providers worldwide, resulting in nearly $5.3 billion of revenue from this group.
The report includes commentary on seventy-four early-stage investments and thirty-five acquisitions and public offerings. Wohlers Report 2021 was created with the support of 124 service providers, 113 manufacturers of AM machines, and twenty-four producers of third-party materials. Eighty-eight co-authors and contributors from thirty-four countries provided expert views and perspectives.
New and expanded features of Wohlers Report 2021 include:
- Additive Manufacturing of food, medicine, and electronics
- Pricing of metals and polymers and the hidden costs of AM
- Methods of AM part inspection
- Pandemic’s impact on the AM industry
- Compilation of expert reports from thirty-four countries
- Tables of AM systems, software tools, service providers, and third-party materials
The report includes fifty-four charts and graphs, 104 tables, and 397 images and illustrations. It also includes eighty pages of supplemental online content available exclusively to the buyers of the report.
