Healthcare 3D printing market projected to grow at 16% annual rate till 2020

An analysis conducted by Grand View Research has estimated that the global healthcare 3D printing market will have a compound annual growth rate of 15.6 percent from 2014 to 2020 and is estimated to be worth $1.13 billion by 2020.

With a rising geriatric population paired with the increasing healthcare requirements around the world, the demand for healthcare 3D printing has grown exponentially. Additionally, with an increased rate of orthopedic and cardiovascular disorder in the aged population, the demand for these printing facilities to manufacture medical equipment such as dental implants, prosthetic limbs, hearing aids and orthotic footwear has grown dramatically over the past few years and will continue a steady rate of growth in the years to come.

Some factors increasing the demand of this market include government initiatives to develop healthcare infrastructure and rising investments for research and development as well as the ability this technology has to reduce the risk of anesthesia during longer surgeries.

Healthcare 3D printing includes a variety of manufacturing options for the many different kinds of procedures where this technology can be implemented. Such options include: polymers, which are currently dominating the raw material segment of the healthcare 3D printing industry with 35 percent of the overall market share in 2013 and are primarily used in bio-model printing; ceramics, that are commonly used for manufacturing teeth or mandibles in occurrences of tooth fractures and decays; implants, which accounted for over 60 percent of the global market share in 2013 and are cost effective as well as provide accuracy, which is expected to fuel demand; and photo-polymerization technology, which was valued at over $140 billion in 2013 and estimated to grow 16 percent from 2014 to 2020.

North America accounted for more than 35 percent of the global revenue of the industry in 2013, and with rising awareness among patients, investments for research and development facilities, advanced healthcare infrastructure and the development of 3D printing-based products, the demand is expected to rise over the forecasted growth rate.

“Rising demand for customized medical equipment’s and huge investments in R&D programs in Europe are expected to make it the fastest growing market in the next few years,” wrote Grand View Research, “increasing healthcare investments and expenditures in emerging economies of Asia Pacific are expected to drive demand at a rapid pace over a period of six years.”