Market for macrofiltration equipment and media to reach $4 billion in 2005
Driven by growth in Asia, the market for macro liquid filtration equipment and media will rise to $4 billion in 2005 from $3.8 billion this year. This revised forecast has just been published in the McIlvaine online report, Liquid Filtration and Media: World Markets. This market segment is the heavy-duty end of liquid filtration. It includes belt filter presses which dewater sewage sludge. It includes filter presses which separate chemical products from slurries. It includes granular media filters which purify drinking water. Also included are drum filters, leaf filters, automatic back wash filters, and bag filters.
The municipal water and municipal wastewater segments are the largest purchasers. China with its large program of expansion has forged ahead, and by 2006 will be the leading purchaser of granular media filters. The U.S. will be second, and the next four countries will be far behind as shown below:
Country Ranking by Subject
Granular Media Filter 2006
Country Revenue $ Millions
China 221
United States 150
Japan 42
India 36
Germany 26
United Kingdom 25
Filter presses are used in a variety of industries. One of the biggest applications is in the chemical industry. In 2006 the U.S. will barely maintain its leadership with China following close behind. Australia will take over 5th place due to its use of presses in the mining industry.
Country Ranking by Subject
Filter Press 2006
Country Revenue $ Millions
United States 103
China 101
Japan 42
Germany 23
Australia 17
Bag filters compete with cartridges and are the one type of filter in this group which is disposable. This creates a media market equal to the equipment market. The combined equipment and media market for bag filters in 2006 will be $600 million.
Belt filter presses remain popular for sewage sludge dewatering although they have lost market share to centrifuges for this application. Large numbers of belt filter presses are being purchased for Chinese wastewater treatment plants.
One of the fastest growing categories is the automatic backwashing filter. This category was limited by the metal elements which could only remove particles larger than 50 microns. The development of sintered metal elements allows these filters to be used for capture of particles as small as 5 microns. With this increased efficiency, they are finding use in drinking water purification and food processing. One promising new application is treatment of ship ballast water.
The technology is driven by media developments. Large suppliers of non-woven media supply roll goods for many applications. Some woven materials are also utilized. Metals are utilized in sintered and woven form for some applications.
For more information on Liquid Filtration and Media: World Markets click on: http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/water.html#n006
Bob McIlvaine
847-784-0012