3D Printing Industry Grows 9% YoY in Q3 2024, Despite Hardware Sales Slowdown

According to its most recent “3DP/AM Market Insights: Q3 2024” report, Additive Manufacturing Research (AM Research) estimates that the third quarter of 2024 saw the 3D printing market reach $3.47 billion, marking a 9% increase year over year. This growth occurred despite a continuous slowdown in hardware sales.

The quarterly update, which tracks data across various sectors including vendor performance, print technologies, geographies, and applications, highlighted a marginal sequential rise from $3.45 billion in Q2 2024. This indicates resilience in the additive manufacturing (AM) sector, primarily driven by an uptick in AM services, which saw a robust 14% growth from the previous year.

The metal AM segment, including 3D printers, materials, and services, reported revenues of $1.4 billion in the quarter, experiencing a 9.5% year over year growth despite an 8% decline in printer sales. Similarly, the polymer AM market also grew by 9.5% year over year to $2.0 billion, even though printer sales remained flat.

Scott Dunham, Executive Vice President of AM Research, provided insights into the market dynamics, stating, “The financial backdrop has hurt hardware investment, but adoption also continues to be impacted by the complexity of AM design, validation, and qualifications. Certain service providers should stand to benefit in the short to medium term. What hardware sales growth the market may achieve in the next two years, may therefore shift more to service providers.”

The report also discusses significant movements within the industry, including Nano Dimension’s pending acquisitions of Desktop Metal and Markforged, which could disrupt the metal binder jetting markets. This situation may create opportunities for companies like HP and Colibrium to increase their market share.

Additionally, AM Research noted a trend away from integrated print services, with companies like Carpenter Additive, Sandvik, and 3D Systems making strategic changes to adapt to the evolving market landscape. Other firms discussed in the report include: Stratasys, Velo3D, Nikon SLM Solutions, EOS, Trumpf, Farsoon, BLT, HBD, Eplus, Optomec, BeAM, Formlabs, Prodways, DWS, and Carbon.

AM Research offers comprehensive “Core Metals” and “Core Polymers” market data products, encompassing almost ten years of historical quarterly data along with forecasts extending over the next decade. These reports on the metal and polymer AM markets can be purchased either as one-time reports or on a subscription basis through AM Research’s website, and can be tailored to meet specific requirements. The latest “3DP/AM Market Insights: Q3 2024” report is available here.