Bearings

Market Overview–Global Bearings Market

The global bearing market was estimated to have declined by 1 to 3% in 2019 as compared to the previous year. This decline was mainly due to weak demand in the automotive market, but also in off-highway and machine tool markets. However, strong growth was witnessed across renewable energy and railway sectors in the same year.

Asia-Pacific is the biggest market for bearings due to strong demand from multiple industrial sectors such as, machinery, construction, automotive, aerospace, defence, etc.

Suppliers

●      The top suppliers of the bearing market include Schaeffler, SKF, NTN, and JEKT among others.

Market Dynamics–Drivers & Constraints

Drivers

Growth of Automotive Industry

• The global automotive industry is currently, one of the highest revenue generating industries in the world. The rising production of vehicles worldwide is pushing the growth of bearing market
• In the coming years, automotive bearings demand is expected to rise in Europe, Americas, Africa, and Asia-Pacific especially. This is because the demand for vehicles, mainly passenger cars and two wheelers are witnessing a constant rise worldwide

New Technological Developments

• The technology oriented industries such as, aerospace and defense, robotics, medical, etc. have witnessed a huge demand for effective, heavy-duty, SMART, and durable bearings in order to meet industry standards and demand across critical and hi-tech applications. So, a rising demand for bearings from these industries are also expected to drive the demand for bearings globally

Investments and Improvements in Renewable Energy

• In the wind energy sector, bearings are the most important components used in wind turbines. These bearings require designs that can optimize reliability and provide economic efficiency depending on the applications
• The present wind energy market is witnessing a lot of investments due to ongoing projects and innovations in wind power generation and transmission such as power transmission.. The market for wind energy is driven by China and India significantly in the Asia-Pacific region

Diversification Expansion

• The end user markets served by bearings distributors have witnessed wild swings in demand since the recession. As a result, many distributors have been expanding their target markets. Key targets for growth areas includes; food and beverage, automation, manufacturing, and energy

Constraints

Dropping Market Share

• The influx of new players with aggressive pricing and lower cost structures has caused bearing prices to drop considerably
• Manufacturers from the USA are facing increased competition from low cost imports from developing countries, especially from APAC
• The turbulence in the global industrial sector has restrained the bearing market growth. The market witnessed a decline in 2016, however, there was a recovery of the bearings market in 2017

Increasing Concern over counterfeit products 

• Nearly every major bearing manufacturer has been hit over the last few years by counterfeiters – and as a result, they're working with channel partners to combat the growing issue (e.g. SKF )
• For example, NSK provides training to its distribution network on “how to identify and address counterfeiting activity of  bearings”

Market Outlook

●      Bearings are used in a wide range of applications. They are used in machinery and equipment. They are used in household appliances, automobile parts, and farm equipment among others. The automotive bearing market and engine bearings market will likely see an improvement in demand. 

●      The ball bearings, including groove bearings, are being increasingly used in the automobile market.

●      Roller  bearings, both taper bearings and needle bearings, are one of the fastest growing in the global bearings market according to industry intelligence.

●      According to experts, the bearings which have low maintenance and are highly efficient will witness a growth in demand from various industries.

●      Industry-specific bearing solutions can help propel the growth of bearings in the next 10 years. India and China will emerge as leaders in propelling the growth of the bearings market due to continual high growth in these regions. These regions will specifically be focused on vehicle-production and industrial-machinery.

●       The bearings industry can also be impacted by Capex and MRO because MRO is directly linked to the bearings industry.

●      Manufacturers of high performance products are increasingly using lightweight materials and in this case the bearings industry will get a boost too.

●      Technological innovations and advancements, especially in seal and lubrication technologies, will witness a growth according to bearings industry experts.

●      Specialized bearing solutions are likely to witness a high growth due to an increase in the demand.