36 n GEARS AND GEARBOXES January 2024 www.drivesncontrols.com Gearing up for change The global industrial gears and geared motors market experienced a signi cant slowdown during 2023. Preliminary research suggests that global sales of these products were worth around $12.7bn – a slight decrease on 2022. Supply chain and lead time issues have continued to be a serious problem, with many gearbox manufacturers accelerating the construction of local facilities in key regions and building alternative supply chains. Although lead times have greatly improved and demand has fallen during 2023, there is still a long-term trend towards localisation, especially from the leading gearbox suppliers, which have continued to adopt this strategy for key markets. For example, growing opportunities in emerging markets such as Africa, the Middle East, India and Southeast Asia have attracted investments. These include: SEW, which expanded its South African headquarters in 2022; WEG, which built a motor factory in Turkey; NGC Gears, which broke ground on a new facility in India; and Chinese supplier ZD Motor, which is building a factory in Thailand. Increasing numbers of manufacturers have transferred production from China to India, so some gearbox vendors have ramped up their activities in India. At the same time, some of the largest gearbox vendors – including SEW, Bon glioli and Nord – are continuing to expand their facilities in China. These local investments bene t from having supply chains closer to the market, shorter delivery times and improved local services. Some vendors view localised production as a longterm strategy, rather than merely as a stopgap to cope with the Covid-19 pandemic. Energy saving Research and interviews reveal that the market is paying more attention to energy saving than before, turning to technologies such as permanent magnet direct-drive motors instead of gear-motor combinations. Encouraged by policy guidance and regulations, geared motor manufacturers are actively developing and promoting higheciency products. For example, SEW’s new motor factory in China will produce PM synchronous motors and other higheciency motors. The mining industry has always been active in adopting high-eciency motors for duties such as conveying and lifting. Direct-drive motors can also be found in cooling towers and in aggregates mills. The heavy-duty industrial and planetary gearboxes used in mining and aggregates face the biggest risk of being replaced by direct-drive motors. Compared with the traditional motor-andgearbox drives, the biggest advantage of directdrive motors is their ability to save energy, so they are favoured by energy-intensive industries. The mining industry also has signi cant gearbox maintenance costs, so using direct-drives can reduce the need for tedious lubrication. For some end-users, especially in the mining industry, the bene ts of direct-drive motors outweigh the cost premium. In our research we have found that, compared with Europe and the US, Chinese gearbox vendors feel the biggest threat to their products is being replaced by directdrive motors. In the West, these motors are not considered a major short-term threat, with high prices limiting their adoption. The Asia-Paci c market for geared motors and industrial gears saw another sluggish year in 2023, mainly aected by the Chinese market. We observed lower demand from consumer-related industries and delays in heavy industrial projects, impacting both the geared motor and heavy-duty gear markets. Chinese gearbox manufacturers have been looking for export opportunities, especially to India, the Middle East and Russia. The slowdown in the global manufacturing industry in 2023 aected demand for all types of geared products. While gearbox suppliers are developing business in the existing markets, they are also preparing for mediumand long-term trends, implementing localisation plans, and developing higheciency products to meet future needs. For mature markets such as geared products, suppliers are used to going through cycles and adopting long-term strategies. In the European gearbox market, price increases have supported revenues despite the weaker euro. The size of the market has not changed much. In 2023, demand for geared motors from the US logistics sector started to fall, while sales of large gearboxes used in heavy-duty industries such as mining remained relatively stable. n Samantha Mou, a China-based research analyst with Interact Analysis, examines some of the key changes that have been happening in the global market for industrial gearboxes and geared motors over the past year. New facilities for industrial gear and geared motors vendors since 2022. The colours denote di erent companies. Source: Interact Analysis
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