The global atomizing metal powder market is characterized by the presence of many global, regional, and local players. The market is highly competitive with all the players competing to gain maximum market share. Rapid advancement in processes, fluctuations in raw material prices, frequent changes in government regulations, and increasing application of atomizing metal powder in end-use industries are the key factors that confront the global market growth. The vendors compete based on cost, product quality, availability and reliability of the products. It is crucial for vendors to provide cost-effective and high-quality products to compete in the market. To maintain and strengthen their market position, the key players are adopting advanced manufacturing techniques for powder production and introducing innovative and efficient products for additive manufacturing applications.
Höganäs AB, Sandvik AB, Hangzhou Yitong New Material Co., Ltd, Kobe Steel Ltd, JFE Steel Corporation, Kymera International, Makin Metal Powders (UK) Ltd, GKN Sinter Metals Engineering GmbH, Pometon S.p.A., SAFINA a.s., Mitsui Mining & Smelting Co., Ltd, Laiwu Feilong Powder Metallurgy Co., Ltd are some of the leading market players in the global atomizing metal powder market. These players account for a majority of the global market share owing to their global revenue base, availability of raw material at competitive prices, and wide distribution network.
The growth of market players is dependent on market conditions, government regulations, and industry development. Thus, the players should focus on expanding the production capacity to meet the demand and enhancing their services. These players are primarily focusing on the development of sophisticated and advanced blends of atomized metal powder. Although the international players are dominating the market, regional and local players with small market shares also have moderate presence. The international players with presence across the globe, with established manufacturing units or sales offices, have expanded their presence across major regions such as North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.
COMPETITIVE DYNAMICS
The key players operating in the global market have large and advanced manufacturing facilities at the domestic and international levels. This helps them to supply metal powders to various end users across the globe within less time as compared to the small-scale manufacturers, providing a competitive edge in the global market. The factors influencing competition vary by region and end-use market. The primary factors which form the base of competition include price, product quality, range of products offered, the ability to meet customers’ specifications, technical support, and customer service.
The competitive market strategy analysis is expected to be highly inclined toward direct and secondary competition during the forecast period. However, tertiary competition from tier-3 players is expected to intensify the competition from moderate to high for the tier-1 and tier-2 players during the review period. The business sectors of the tier-3 companies are tangentially related to the market, however, with the significant growth of the atomizing metal powder market during the forecast period, the tier-3 companies are expected to expand their business and product portfolio, which is expected to be highly concentrated toward the production of atomizing metal powders. These factors are expected to influence the market dynamics in the coming future and intensify the competition during the review period.
The high competition among the players have encouraged the players to produce atomized metal powder which could be unique in the market and have multiple applications. The technologies and process used are different with different companies. Thus, mergers, acquisitions, and product development by companies help to develop new and innovative techniques and process for better efficiency and higher performance. The players operating in the global atomizing metal powder market are adopting various strategies such as expansion, mergers & acquisitions, alliances, joint ventures, and expansion to maintain the position and increase the geographic presence.
KEY DEVELOPMENTS
Date
Approach
Developments
May 2019
Collaboration
ExOne, a global provider of three-dimensional (“3D”) printing machines and 3D printed products & services, announced a collaboration with Sandvik Additive Manufacturing, a division of the Sandvik AB. This material collaboration will help to increase the productivity and enhance product performance of metal powders.
April 2019
Investment
Makin Metal Powders announced the plan to invest USD 9 million to establish the first manufacturing site in Lawrence Township, Pennsylvania, US. This development will help to cater to the demand from the regional customers through a local base.
March 2019
Joint Venture
GKN Sinter Metals along with BMW Group's Additive Manufacturing Center in Munich, Germany, initiated its project IDAM, which is focused on the production of automotive series through metallic 3D printing, with an automated AM production line. GKN Powder Metallurgy’s factory will serve as a major supplier of metallic powder for this production process of least 50,000 components annually and around 10,000 spare and individual parts.
March 2019
Expansion
Hangzhou Yitong completed the production line of high-performance atomized steel powder for automobile applications. The annual production capacity of this production line is 20,000 tons.
February 2019
Expansion
Kobe Steel expanded the current steel powder production capacity in Takasago, Hyogo, Japan, from 96,000 tons to 110,000 tons annually.
September 2018
Collaboration
GKN Sinter Metals collaborated with HP Inc to use its HP Metal Jet in the manufacturing of functional metal parts for auto and industrial leaders, including Volkswagen, Wilo, and others. This collaboration is expected to further boost the company’s additive segment in the coming years.
February 2018
Expansion
Mitsui Mining & Smelting announced that it will increase the production capacity of ultra-fine copper powder by approximately 40%. This expansion will help the company to meet the growing demand for multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs).
December 2017
Acquisition
Höganäs acquired Metasphere Technology AB in Sweden, which developed a new technology for atomizing that allows manufacturing of metals, ceramics, titanium, and carbide at very high temperatures. This technology uses plasma and centrifugal forces in the reactor, which helps in atomizing and melting of various metals at high temperatures.
Michael Porter’s Five Forces model offers a framework to study the global atomizing metal powder market. Business managers, trying to gain a competitive edge for their brands over peers in the market, can utilize this model to comprehend better in the industry in which the firm operates. The components of each of the forces and the degree of impact of each component in the context of the global atomizing metal powder market have been broken down and analyzed.
THREAT OF NEW ENTRANTS
The players willing to enter the global atomizing metal powder market to capture the growth opportunities are new entrants. Atomizing metal powder is majorly manufactured using various metals such as iron & steel, aluminum, copper, zinc, nickel, bronze, brass, and tin, with other alloying additives such as molybdenum, tungsten, and chromium. In this market, metal being a major raw material, the companies that import raw materials will face high procurement costs, which is likely to be a major entry barrier for the new entrants. The fluctuating and high nickel prices are also likely to contribute to this situation. However, as the market is highly consolidated in North America and Western Europe, the new entrants have immense opportunities to explore in the rapidly growing Asia-Pacific, Latin American and the Middle East & African markets. The robust growth of the aerospace & defense, energy & power, and chemical industries in these regions is likely to pave way for new entrants in the market. Considering all the above factors, it can be concluded that the threat of new entrants in the market is likely to be moderate to high.
INTENSITY OF COMPETITIVE RIVALRY
The intensity of competitive rivalry in the global atomizing metal powder market is projected to be high. There is a substantial number of major atomizing metal powder manufacturers across the globe, with their major consolidation in North America and Europe. The increasing application of atomizing metal powder in industrial manufacturing, aircraft components, turbine blades, and automobiles is likely to boost the global market growth in the coming years. To cope up with the increasing demand for the product, the major players are undertaking various initiatives to expand their business in the market. The major key developments undertaken by some of the leading market players include collaboration, investment, capacity expansion, and agreements.
For instance, in May 2019, ExOne, a global provider of three-dimensional (“3D”) printing machines and 3D printed products & services, announced a collaboration with Sandvik Additive Manufacturing, a division of the Sandvik AB. This material collaboration will help to increase the productivity and enhance product performance of metal powders. During the same year in March, Hangzhou Yitong completed the production line of high-performance atomized steel powder for automobile applications. The plant is located in Daciyan Town, Jiande City, China. The annual production capacity of this production line is 20,000 tons and the total investment was around USD 2 million.
THREAT OF SUBSTITUTES
Atomizing metal powder exhibits excellent mechanical strength and the products made from it pose excellent durability, reliability, and exceptional abrasion and corrosion resistance for a significantly long period of time. This makes it a suitable raw material for manufacturing various components of aircraft, turbines, medical implants, and industrial tools and equipment. However, the use of metal powders manufactured using other methods such as solid-state reduction, electrolysis, and chemical may pose a threat to the growth of the market for atomization powder. Nevertheless, the atomizing metal powder holds over 65% share of the overall metal powders market. Considering all these factors, it can be concluded that the threat of substitutes in the global atomizing metal powder market is estimated to be moderate to low.
BARGAINING POWER OF SUPPLIERS
The global atomizing metal powder market comprises a large number of manufacturers and distributors with a vast distribution network across the globe. The product finds a wide range of applications in almost all the major end-use industries, namely aerospace & defense, automotive, medical, chemical, pharmaceutical, electronics, and industrial manufacturing. The cost of production of atomizing metal powders varies with its end use and is expensive as compared to the other metal powder production methods, which impact the selling price of the finished product. Moreover, fluctuating prices of some non-ferrous metals is also a challenge for the market players and suppliers. Considering the aforementioned factors, it can be concluded that the bargaining power of suppliers is estimated to be high to moderate during the assessment period.
BARGAINING POWER OF BUYERS
Atomizing metal powder finds applications in aerospace & defense, automotive, energy, chemical, and medical industries and requires a large number of metals as raw materials. There is a substantial number of market players and suppliers spread across the world, however, as the threat of new entrants is relatively moderate to high, the buyers rely on the existing players, which limits their bargaining power. Considering all the above factors, the bargaining power of buyers in the global atomizing metal powder market is estimated to be moderate to low.
