Commercial Water Purifier Market

The global commercial water purifier market is expected to register significant growth over the forecast period. The growth of the global commercial water purifier market is driven by various factors such as the rising awareness of water-borne diseases and technological advancements in commercial water purifiers. However, the growth of the global market can be hindered by the high operating costs.

The World Health Organization (WHO) organizes many campaigns to raise awareness regarding health and safety issues among individuals. Such campaigns are often aimed at educating the population about the causes of illness. According to WHO, unsafe drinking water and the lack of sanitation and hand hygiene, lead to approximately 4 billion cases of diarrhea, each year, across the globe. The consumption of contaminated water is directly linked to diseases such as cholera, diarrhea, dysentery, and typhoid. Rising cases of cholera and other serious illnesses such as Guinea-worm disease, typhoid, and dysentery have also pushed individuals to drink filtered water, creating a demand for water purifiers.

Governments across the world are taking initiatives to ensure the supply of clean and purified water. For instance, in its Budget 2018, the Government of Canada proposed the investment of an additional USD 172.6 million over three years, starting from 2018–2019. This would ease the consumption of clean and safe drinking water. Furthermore, the government bodies across the world are taking efforts to establish water distillation programs and water treatment initiatives for making used water clean and reusable. Under such schemes, water purifiers will be installed in commercial areas that use contaminated water.

The awareness regarding water-borne diseases is high in developing regions, such as Asia-Pacific and the Middle East & Africa. However, this awareness is expected to grow over the forecast period, specifically in India and countries in Africa. Thus, the impact of the rising awareness of water-borne diseases on the global commercial water purifier market is expected to shift from moderate to high during the forecast period.

Emerging economies such as India, China, and Indonesia are continuously investing in infrastructure development projects. Asia-Pacific is the most attractive market for commercial water purifiers due to the high cash inflows from the construction industry. Due to the high investments in manufacturing industries, there is a greater opportunity for the players in the commercial water purifier market to increase their presence in emerging nations. The commercial sector is the largest application area for water treatment systems, especially in emerging markets. Various industries such as construction, water treatment, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, dairy, pulp and paper, breweries, sugar & food processing, and power & energy are rapidly growing in developing countries in Asia-Pacific. These industries require distilled and processed water during various production processes. Due to the rapid industrialization and urbanization in emerging economies, there has been a rise in the need for commercial water purifiers that remove bacteria and fulfill the requirement for sterilized and filtered water in food & beverage and pharmaceutical industries. The growing population, technological developments, rapid urbanization, and growth in infrastructure has augmented the need for commercial water purifiers in emerging markets. Thus, the rapid industrial growth in Asia-Pacific creates opportunities for the players in the global commercial water purifier market.

There are several costs associated with the adoption of water purification systems in commercial spaces. The high operating costs of the commercial water purification systems can be attributed to factors such as the complexity of technology, advanced features, and periodic maintenance of such systems. These systems use purification and filtration technology such as UV technology, carbon filter, and RO, which have evolved over time. The operating costs of the water purification systems vary according to the application of these technologies. Furthermore, the price of the water purification systems depends on the technologically advanced features, such as touchscreen display, use of sensors, and Bluetooth connectivity, incorporated in the systems.

Additionally, there are several other costs associated with the water purification systems, including maintenance costs. Post-installation, the components of water purifiers, such as the reverse osmosis membrane and filters such as sediment filters and carbon filters, require regular maintenance at fixed intervals. Thus, the high operating cost is restraining the adoption of water purifiers for commercial applications, hindering the market growth.

Currently, the high operating costs associated with commercial water purifiers has a high impact on the sales of commercial water purifiers, globally. However, the development of advanced commercial water purifier components might increase the maintenance and replacement cycle Additionally, the growing spending capacity of the population is expected to decrease the impact of the high operating costs on the adoption of commercial water purifiers. Therefore, the impact of the high operating costs of commercial water purifiers on the global commercial water purifiers market is expected to shift from high to low over the forecast period.

Setting up a commercial water purifier requires high initial investments and overall maintenance of the water purification system. The small-scale commercial customers or end users such as offices, restaurants, schools, and other commercial places do not invest high amounts in these systems. The changing lifestyles and the increase in preference for water infused with vitamin and minerals is driving end users to use bottled water as it ​is ​portable and ​convenient. The water purification systems in most commercial water purifiers purify only 30% of the water while 70% of the water is wasted during the purification process. This is a major concern for commercial water purifier users. The ​rise in ​ ​awareness about ​waterborne ​diseases, such ​as malaria, ​typhoid, ​diarrhoea, and food ​poisoning, has prompted individuals to use bottled drinking water. According to the WHO, 65% of individuals around the world prefer bottled water than tap water as it is convenient, safe, and portable. Furthermore, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has set several stringent regulations regarding the use of commercial tap water in food & beverage industries, which is boosting the demand for bottled water in this industry. According to Beverage Marketing Corporation (BMC), the consumption of bottled water grew from 12.8 billion gallons in 2016 to 13.8 billion gallons in 2017, with a 9% increase, annually. Thus, the growing bottled water market is a challenge for commercial water purifier manufacturers.