Entry-Level 3D Printer Shipments Soar Globally

Second-quarter results for global 3D printer system shipments mirrored the trend from Q1, with year-on-year (YoY) declines in the industrial, midrange, and professional price segments, while entry-level devices continued explosive growth, according to insights reported by global market intelligence firm Context.

The industrial sector struggled through weak global shipments of polymer systems, especially polymer vat photopolymerization systems. As in Q1 2024, metal systems performed better, with China's domestic metal powder bed fusion (PBF) shipments standing out, growing 7% year on year, according to Context.

“The latest insights into global 3D printer system shipments highlight very different trends at the high-end and the low-ends of the hardware market,” says Chris Connery, vice president of Global Analysis at Context “The slowdown in new equipment shipments in the all-important industrial segment has allowed companies which focus in that space—particularly Western companies—to take a step back to look at their own financial health, with many then moving forward with long-coming consolidation. Conversely, the continued acceleration of the consumer-centric entry-level has allowed companies which focus on this segment to thrive in the moment.”

Three key developments marked Q2 2024:

The industrial segment saw a deeper decline, with shipments dropping −25% year on year, marking the fourth consecutive quarter of decline.

The professional segment showed improvement.

The entry-level price class experienced more robust growth, with shipments soaring 65%.

The 7% year-on-year increase in global 3D printer revenues for the quarter was driven by the surge in entry-level shipments, with revenues 58% higher than in Q2 2023. Revenues in all other segments declined compared to the previous year, with the sharpest drop in the professional segment (down −21%), though the −17% decline in industrial printer revenues is the most concerning. Entry-level printers accounted for 48% of global system revenues during the quarter, surpassing industrial systems (38%) to become the top-grossing price class.

Following is data from certain segments of the market.

Industrial Polymer Systems

The biggest challenge in this $100,000+ category, where total shipments dropped −36% YoY, came from low levels of vat photopolymerization shipments. These were down −47% in aggregate with weak shipments from Chinese vendors (UnionTech saw a notable YoY decline) as well as from Western original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). In particular, 3D Systems continues to struggle as its top customer has been stymied by weak downstream demand as inflation has shifted consumer spending away from cosmetic dental procedures. UnionTech remained dominant in the global industrial vat photopolymerization market, with 3D Systems leading in the West.

Industrial Metal Systems

In Q2-24, −7% fewer industrial metal printing systems were shipped across the globe than in the year before although, on a trailing-12-month (TTM) basis, shipments were up marginally (by 2%).

Powder bed fusion (PBF) remained the most popular technology, accounting for 78% of metals units shipped and 85% of metals revenues. This modality also represented the best-performing category as shipments were essentially flat YoY (down only −1%) and completely flat on a TTM basis. 

Western vendors saw YoY shipments of industrial metal PBF machines improve slightly but they were still −2% down YoY. There were improvements for some vendors—notably TRUMPF (shipments up 22%) and Colibrium/GE Aerospace (35%)—while others experienced a more challenging quarter. Nikon SLM Solutions shipped fewer printers in the period but saw very strong YoY revenue growth (over 30%) as end-market attention has largely shifted to their NXG systems and shipments of these ultra-advanced systems continue to accelerate. 

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.