A new CONTEXT report reveals that the new ‘Professional’ sub-class has been instrumental in driving a 38 percent growth in 3D printer shipments in H1 2017.
Market analyst CONTEXT has revealed that “3D printer shipments increased 38 percent year-on-year in the first half of 2017, driven by soaring growth in a new Professional sub-category which straddles the traditional Industrial and Personal/Desktop markets”.
While unit shipments in the Personal/Desktop sector seemed to be driving the market, growing by 39 percent, a closer analysis revealed that the new grouping of categories has demonstrated a 64 percent year-on-year growth for 3D printers in the Professional sub-class. This surpassed the 36 percent growth in Personal sub -$2,500 (-€2,120) printers.
Leaders in the Professional sub-class, which has products in both the Industrial/Professional and Personal/Desktop markets, include Markforged, Ultimaker, Leapfrog, Formlabs and MakerBot (Stratasys).
Of the 200, 509 printers shipped in the Personal/Desktop sector in the first half of 2017, 85 percent were in the personal sub-$2,5 00 (-€2,120) sub-class.
“The Professional class of 3D printers has been emerging for some time now, coming both down from the high-end and up from the low-end, but it is now really coming into its own and merits separate analysis,” said Chris Connery, vice-president of Global Market Research and Analysis, CONTEXT. “As the market matures and grows, and price points in the Personal/Desktop market continue to drop, $5,000 is no longer the only defining barrier at the low end of the global 3D printing market.”
Meanwhile, Q2 2017 revealed the “meteoric rise to the top” of Monoprice, “a new leader in the Personal/Desktop segment”. Monoprice shipped 19 percent of Q2’s 107 000 units, and experienced a year-on-year shipment growth of more than 450 percent. This fact is “made even more impressive” by the fact that Monoprice’s market is restricted to the USA.
As well as Monoprice and its main competition, XYZprinting, other “global rising stars” include Wanhao, Markforged, Dagoma and Formlabs Prusa Research.
Despite a “relatively weak first half” for the Industrial/Professional sector of the market, 3D printing is continuing to develop and as it “shifts to focus on production” CONTEXT affirms it “is on track to reach $17 billion (€14.4 billion) by 2021.”
Connery explained, “The second half of 2017 will see a new crop of lower-priced metal printers ship, paving the way for a strong 2018 as metal continues to lead the industry.”