Laboratory Fume Hoods Market Parallels Lab Construction, BioPharma Trends
Many chemical and biological processes of a laboratory’s work release hazardous gases into the air and protection for personnel and the lab environment is required. The most common way to do this is with the use of a fume hood. This has created a market of hundreds of millions of dollars, as detailed in our Strategic Directions International (SDi) Global Assessment Report 2019, which covers the markets for analytical and life science instrumentation and techniques. Though the market for these systems may not be as dynamic as complex analytic instruments, demand for fume hoods will experience growth as the entire pharmaceutical and biological laboratory market expands, and as lab construction is boosted in emerging markets.
A typical fume hood is a built-in workspace, enclosed on all but one side. Users carry out their work by reaching beneath an adjustable transparent sash. Air is continuously drawn from the laboratory across the work area by means of a fan, where it picks up the noxious gases and carries them away from the user. The form a fume hoods takes can vary – from large walk-in fume hoods for large pieces of equipment, or more contained systems. There are also specialized systems, such as those with duct-rinsing mechanisms, or specialized hoods designed for radioactive material.
SDi’s report defines fume hoods in two types – exhaust hoods where waste gases go out of the building via ducts, and ductless hoods which filter the air and then release it into the laboratory. The firm’s global assessment report provides market statistics for both. The report says that growth of fume hoods is largely driven by the overall expansion of new pharma/bio labs worldwide, which require fume hoods as standard laboratory equipment in order to protect personnel, products, and the surrounding environment. In its report, SDi defines the sectors and application areas that see the most demand for fume hoods.
A strength of the fume hood business is that these systems are non-optional equipment in labs, which has attracted several vendors to the space. There are challenges – purchase cycles are not as frequent and used systems have a larger presence in the market compared to other markets that SDi’s report covers.
Among vendors participating in the market: HEMCO, Hamilton, Kewaunee, Erlab, ESCO, Thermo Fisher and Labconco. A ranking of companies for this and many lab supply markets is in the report.
Fume hoods are a mature technology, but there is growth from new lab construction. Also, aftermarket and service segments are additional drivers of growth. The systems generate consumables sales for filters, guards and many other types of component products.
According to the report, According to the report, Asian markets will see the greatest increase in demand for fume hoods as will Middle East Markets. This is due to pharma and bio expansion in these areas.
More information, including vendor market share, specific geographic market breakdowns and other info can be found in the Global Assessment Report 2019. The report is used by fume hood vendors and other instrument suppliers to develop strategy and new products.
