Instruments for materials characterization provide a number of different methods for measuring and characterizing the material properties of samples, including thermal properties, viscoelastic properties, hardness and particle size.

In total, the global market demand for materials characterization instrumentation is forecast to reach $2.7 billion in 2016, representing growth of 3.4%. This is an improvement over the anemic growth in 2015 but still a relatively lackluster forecast. Many of the individual techniques have important industrial customers, such as chemicals, oil & gas, cement and metals companies. Many of these materials-oriented industries are hampered by the global economic situation, and this is reflected in weak demand for instrumentation. Although life science applications exist, growth will be modest here as well.

Physical testing is the largest individual technology segment within the materials characterization market, representing nearly 30% of total demand. These instruments measure the strength, hardness, durability and fatigue properties of materials, consumer products and components. Last year’s sales were basically flat, but the forecast for 2016 is growth of 2.7%, as total sales will approach $800 million. While industrial applications in the metals, and automobiles & aircraft industries remain fairly stable, there are some increasing niche applications for finer-scale physical testing of medical devices and individual electronic components. These applications are helping to push this product segment into positive growth territory.

Thermal analysis is the second largest materials characterization product segment and is forecast to achieve the fastest growth at 4.3%. Major applications for these instruments include polymers and plastics analysis, as well as pharmaceutical formulations testing.

Better-than-average growth will also be evident in the rheometry & viscometry segment. While low-end systems cater to QC applications, there continues to be demand for research systems in both academic and industrial labs.

Particle characterization and calorimetry will experience growth about on par with the overall materials characterization instrument market average. Particle characterization has fairly broad industrial applications, while calorimetry is crucial to just a few areas of research, including pharmaceutical and related testing. Low oil prices continue to bedevil the petroleum analyzer market. Fortunately, the situation is not completely dire, as weak growth of 1.2% for this segment is expected for the year.

The materials characterization vendor situation is highly fragmented compared to other instrument categories. Although there have been a number of smaller acquisitions over the past year, the general situation remains relatively constant. Because of the size of the physical testing market, several of the top materials characterization vendors are involved primarily in that technology: Instron (Illinois Tool Works), MTS Systems, Zwick Roell and Shimadzu, although the latter company has a fairly broad involvement in several materials characterization categories.

However, the vendor with the largest share in the market is TA Instruments (Waters), which dominates the thermal analysis category and has significant calorimetry and viscometry & rheometry businesses. Malvern Instruments (Spectris) rounds out the top six vendors in the materials characterization market, with strong positions in particle characterization, viscometry and calorimetry. This last business stems primarily from its acquisition of the MicroCal business from GE Healthcare in 2014 (see IBO 6/15/14). Other top vendors in specific technology segments include Anton Paar, Mettler-Toledo, Micromeritics, NETZSCH, PAC (Roper Technologies) and Stanhope-Seta.