Comprising about 7% of the analytical- and life science–instrumentation market, the lab-automation segment covers five categories: liquid handling, microplate readers, management informatics, multiplex and high-throughput (HT) ELISA, and robotics. A medium-sized market, lab-automation techniques increase lab productivity by managing workflow, and increasing the speed, efficiency and accuracy of lab work.

The overall lab-automation market grew slightly in 2014 to nearly $3.5 billion, driven by sales in China and other Asia Pacific regions. An exception to the trend was Japan, which was recovering from currency effects. The US market also grew, albeit more slowly, likely driven by sales of systems intended to help meet new federal regulations. Europe, India, Latin America and Rest of World each posted a small growth in sales, with the European market growing most slowly.

The largest lab-automation end-markets are the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Demand from drug-development labs is an important market segment, particularly for electronic lab notebooks (ELNs) and multiplex and high-throughput ELISA. The hospital and clinical industry also is a significant segment of the overall market, using automation techniques for diagnoses. Demand from clinical-research and molecular-diagnostics labs drives a large segment of the market for liquid-handling products, and demand from CROs is also expected to contribute to market growth.

In 2015, the lab-automation market is forecast to grow 2.9% to just over $3.5 billion. Growth will be primarily due to solid sales for multiplex and high-throughput ELISA. These systems accounted for about 13% of the lab-automation market in 2014. IBO forecasts this market segment will grow 7.7% in 2015 due to strong demand for improving and streamlining traditional ELISA systems. Consumables account for the majority of sales in this market segment. Luminex and Meso Scale Discovery are its leading producers.

Six companies account for nearly half of the overall lab-automation market. Tecan leads with approximately 11% of market share. PerkinElmer accounts for 10% of the market, followed by Molecular Devices (Danaher) and Thermo Fisher Scientific, each with 8%. Eppendorf and Luminex complete the list of the top six companies, with 6% and 5% of the market, respectively. The overall market is expected to grow 2.9% in 2015, a decrease from its growth in 2014.

The largest segment of the lab-automation market is liquid handling, which includes manual and handheld pipettes, and automated workstations. Together, these instruments accounted for 38% of the lab-automation market in 2014, and this market is forecast to grow 0.7% in 2015. Eppendorf and Mettler-Toledo lead the handheld-pipette market, which grew due to expansion in Asia Pacific, while Tecan and Beckman Coulter (Danaher) lead the automated-workstations market.

Microplate readers and washers represent the second-largest segment of the total lab-automation market at 22%. Segment leaders are Molecular Devices and PerkinElmer. Growth in the microplate-reader market is predicted to be 3.7% in 2015, the second-fastest rate of the subgroups.

With 17% of the total market, management-informatics software has the next-largest market share. This segment consists of lab information–management systems (LIMS), ELNs, lab-execution systems (LES) and scientific data–management systems (SDMS). This market is expected to grow 3.2% in 2015, fueled by ELN and LES demand. Posting strong LIMS sales, the top vendors are LabWare and Thermo Scientific.

The lab-robotics market is the smallest segment of lab automation, consisting of automated workcells and platforms, sample storage systems, and robotic arms and stackers. The robotics market accounts for 10% of the lab-automation market and is expected to increase 2.4% in 2015. Product demand stems from clinical-research, molecular-diagnostics and pharmaceutical end-markets. Lab robotics–market leaders are Brooks Automation and Agilent Technologies.