Opportunities for Process Automation in US

The Global Foresight Group™ has identified several industry segments that will generate growing demand for Process Instrumentation and Automation (PI&A) products in 2010 and beyond. In the white paper Growth Opportunities 2010 and Beyond, they describe seven areas where PI&A suppliers will find much better North American growth opportunities in 2010 and beyond.

These opportunities highlight a number of industry wide and niche applications for PI&A products and services including:

Stimulus spending - provide opportunities for PI&A bookings directly in the electric utilities and water & wastewater industries as well as indirectly through road and bridge construction, and buildings projects through increased demand for primary metals, chemicals and mining products.

Oil & gas industry - the development of unconventional gas sources and continuing deepwater projects will result in PI&A bookings opportunities.

Field instrumentation and valve services - will become a significant revenue source for suppliers as the installed base of PI&A products ages and core skills leave the process industries and are not replaced.

Other areas that will see growth are the food and beverage, pharmaceutical, and semiconductor equipment industries.

The Global Foresight GroupTM estimates that the North American PI&A market size fell by over $1B in 2009, from its historic high of $7.2B in 2008. The Group expects 2010 to be flat or only slightly up over 2009 with more significant annual growth beginning 2011.

Mike Willey, Managing Partner at the Global Foresight GroupTM, said "PI &A suppliers need to make changes in their business planning to avoid wasting resources in stagnant markets and, more importantly, identify and exploit growth opportunities for 2010 and beyond."