Fab-automation tool market to grow 15%
By Silicon Strategies
08/04/2003 2:00 PM EST
URL: siliconstrategies.com
NEW TRIPOLI, Pa. -- The factory automation tool market, which dropped 8 percent in 2002, will recover and jump 15 percent in 2003, according to The Information Network, a market research company.
Lack of fab investments are expected to force an upgrade cycle even in the absence of robust economic activity. This will equate to 15 percent growth for fab-automation tools in 2003 and 26 percent growth in 2004, said Robert N. Castellano, president of The Information Network.
The market for carrier transport systems, which includes interbay and intrabay equipment and WIP storage, had Daifuku with a 28 percent share in 2002, ahead of Brooks Automation and Asyst Technologies.
"The carrier transport is extremely volatile," notes Castellano. "That market dropped 50 percent in 1998 and increased only 6 percent in 1999, significantly less than the equipment and IC markets. Growth in 2000 was 80 percent. In 2002, the market dropped 8 percent while the entire front-end equipment market dropped 26 percent."
The robotic sector, which saw sales dip 38 percent in 2001 and another 8 percent in 2002, will increase 13 percent in 2003. Brooks Automation led the market in 2002 with a 54 percent share followed by Genmark with a 14 percent share. |
