The separations market performed well in 2010, recovering from an anemic 2009. The separations market accounted for 17% of the total analytical and life sciences instrumentation industry, increasing 5.8% to $6.6 billion in 2010. In the first half of 2010, the market experienced exceptional growth due to robust demand for new instruments. Some separations technologies posted double-digit growth for the period, driven by stimulus funding. Growth in the second half of 2010 was fueled by the strengthening pharmaceutical and chemicals industries. This momentum is expected to carry into this year, resulting in the separations market totaling nearly $7.0 billion in revenues for 2011.

Separation techniques are used for analytical and purification applications that span the entire industrial marketplace. The most significant industrial sectors are generally involved in life science–related applications. For 2011, government and the chemicals industry are expected to drive overall growth in the separations sector. Petrochemicals and biofuel research initiatives, as well as environmental regulations, are expected to positively impact demand.

Overall, sales of separations instrumentation are expected to expand in all geographic segments. While China and India continue to garner the most attention, other countries in Asia/Pacific Rim, such as Australia and Singapore, are also driving growth. The strong yen has hurt foreign investment into Japan. However, favorable tax incentives are expected to stabilize the region and provide growth opportunities for separation instrument companies. North America and Europe are expected to post modest growth, while opportunities in Latin America and the rest of the world are becoming more significant.

HPLC represented the largest segment of the total separations market in 2010, accounting for 58% of demand. Demand for UHPLC systems has continued to outpace demand for other HPLC techniques. UHPLC systems are fast becoming the standard tool for research and routine applications. Waters and Agilent led the HPLC market in 2010. Both companies introduced new UHPLC systems last year, including Waters’ ACQUITY H-Class UPLC and Agilent’s 1200 Infinity Series LC.

GC is the second-largest separations technique, accounting for about a quarter of the separations market in 2010. The GC market is expected to post solid growth of 5.5% in 2011, fueled by expansion in Asia and strong demand in the chemical and environmental markets.

Ion chromatography (IC) accounts for about 6% of the separations market and is heavily focused on industrial and environmental markets. IC was the fastest-growing segment in 2010, with double-digit growth. In 2011, the market is forecast to increase 6.1%. In December 2010, Thermo Fisher Scientific announced it will acquire Dionex, the leading IC vendor (see IBO 12/15/10).

Low-pressure (LPLC), which is mostly used to separate biomolecules, accounted for about 5% of the market in 2010. Led by GE Healthcare and Bio Rad Laboratories, the LPLC market is mainly an aftermarket business, with bulk media and chemicals accounting for a large share of revenues.

Other separation techniques represent a small portion of the separations market. The demand for capillary electrophoresis (CE) increased last year by approximately 7%. Overall, growth for CE is expected to remain strong, increasing 6.7% for 2011. Demand from microfluidic-based CE systems, or lab-on-a-chip systems, is expected to drive growth, especially for life science research applications.

Flash chromatography, which accounted for 1.6% of the separations market, is forecast to increase 7.5% in 2011. Together, thin layer chromatography (TLC) and chemical sensors account for only 1.2% of the market and are expected to grow modestly at 3.1% for 2011.

 Pie Chart: 2010 Separations Suppliers Market Shares

 Agilent/Varian 20%

 Waters         16%

 Shimadzu        8%

 Sigma-Aldrich   6%

 Dionex          6%

 Other          44%

 Separations Instrumentation 2010–2011

         Market Share     Growth Rate

 HPLC     57.8%            4.0%

 GC       24.4%            5.5%

 IC       6.4%             6.1%

 LPLC     5.2%             4.4%

 CE       3.4%             6.7%

 Flash    1.6%             7.5%

 Other    1.2%             3.1%

 Total  100.0%             4.7%

 Bar Graph: 2009–2012 Total Separations Instrumentation Market

            2009   2010   2011   2012

 $ Millions 6,283  6,648  6,957  7,235

 Pie Chart: 2010 Separations Market by Product Type

 Aftermarket     48%

 Initial Systems 38%

 Service         14%

 Separations Instrumentation Market Leaders

 HPLC                 Waters, Agilent/Varian

 GC                   Agilent, Shimadzu

 IC                   Dionex, Metrohm

 LPLC                 GE Healthcare, Bio-Rad Laboratories

 CE                   Agilent, Beckman Coulter

 Flash                Teledyne ISCO, Biotage

 TLC                  Camag, Agilent/Varian

 Chemical Sensors     Alpha MOS, Smiths Detection