The global fiber laser market is expected to witness significant growth on account of growing R&D activities. Increasing adoption of fiber lasers to improve efficiency of manufacturing process in industries can drive the market in the coming years. They are used in a wide range of industrial applications, such as marking, metal cutting, and welding of automotive and aerospace components. Moreover, increasing use of the product in surface treatment, 3D micro milling, optical pumping, micro-cutting, blind hole machining, microscopy, and defense applications is likely to stimulate market growth. Several advantages, such as low cost and power consumption, eco-friendly nature, roughness, compactness, and exceptional beam quality, are expected to boost product demand in future.
Growing need for high-power pulsed lasers is one of the key driving factors in the market. Non-destructive testing of material is considered to be a prominent application of these lasers. They are also used in industries, such as electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, civil engineering, and aeronautical engineering.
Growing trend of green manufacturing is also expected to present growth opportunities for the market. This could be attributed to increasing concerns among material manufacturers regarding impact of their product on the environment. In addition, energy efficient and automated fiber laser systems are gradually replacing conventional techniques, such as ink-based printing and chemical etching, used for machine marking. Furthermore, product developments, such as ultra-fast and ribbon core, are expected to widen their application scope. Constant technological advancements and introduction of the product with high beam quality and lower ownership cost are likely to boost market growth in coming years. For instance, nLIGHT, Inc. introduced Corona, a fiber laser with programmable beam quality. It delivers cutting speeds for thin metals and CO2-like edge quality for thick metals. The company has also introduced a compact fiber laser, which are available in power levels from 3kW to 10kW.
However, reduction in cutting speed while processing thicker material using laser technology can restrain market growth.
Different types of fiber lasers include ultrafast, ultraviolet (UV), infrared, and visible. UV fiber lasers hold a prominent share in the market due to their use in marking white plastics and cables. They are increasingly adopted in precise marking and cutting of hard materials due to their ease of integration, precise tuning, reliability, and high performance. They are also suitable for applications, such as micro drilling, micro machining, surface cleaning, thin-film sputtering, and stripping.
Fiber laser technology finds its application in marking, high-power cutting and welding, micro processing, and fine processing. High-power cutting and welding is a leading application in the market. This could be attributed to increasing use of the product in tube cutting, flat sheet cutting, 3D cutting, car body scanner welding, power train welding, and tube welding.
North America and Europe are expected to witness steady growth in the coming years. Mexico is the fastest growing regional market in North America. Asia Pacific is likely to witness lucrative growth in the years to come due to increasing adoption of the product in a wide range of industrial applications. In addition, increasing investment by foreign companies due to low labor costs and obtainability of raw materials at affordable prices are expected to boost regional growth. Developing countries, such as Taiwan, India, and South Korea, are anticipated to contribute significantly to the growth due to increasing automotive and mining applications.
Some of the prominent players operating in the fiber laser market are Coherent Inc.; Apollo Instruments Inc.; Sigma Mechatronics Pvt. Ltd.; Toptica Photonics AG.; and Quantel Group. Increasing automobile and mobile electronic applications are expected to create several opportunities for the players. For instance, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and Tada Electric Co. jointly developed a fiber-laser welding technology, which can cut flying molten metal (spatter) by 95 percent or more. It is suitable for various industrial applications, such as electrical equipment installations, automobile production, and steel processing.
