LIQUID HANDLING SYSTEMS MARKET ANALYSIS

Market Challenges And Opportunities

Global Liquid Handling Systems Market Drivers:

• Automation: Automation is significantly impacting the global liquid handling systems market as it allows for greater productivity, precision, and efficiency. With automated liquid handlers, tedious and repetitive manual tasks can be performed quickly and accurately by machines. This enables researchers and lab technicians to focus on more complicated tasks that require human insights. Automated systems can handle tiny volumes of liquids with high accuracy and transfer them between multiple wells of plates at an extremely fast pace. They minimize human errors and ensure consistency in experimental results. Many industries like healthcare and pharmaceutical that rely on complex research and development (R&D) have greatly benefited from automated liquid handling systems.
• Growing demand from pharmaceutical & biotechnology companies: The demand for liquid handling systems is witnessing significant growth from the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector. The nature of work in drug development and precision laboratory research requires a high degree of accuracy when handling tiny volumes of liquids. Liquid handling automation allows for consistent delivery of micro-liter volumes of reagents and samples in a way that minimizes errors. This helps improve productivity and reliability of experimental outcomes in fields like genomics, proteomics, and drug discovery. Pharmaceutical companies are engaged in complex processes like high-throughput screening that requires loading thousands of well-plates accurately with different compound mixtures for testing. Liquid handling systems can complete such repetitive tasks far more efficiently than manual methods, thus saving valuable time and resources. As drug development cycles continue to shorten with increased competition, automation offers a means to expedite the drug discovery workflow.
• Increasing R&D investments in life sciences: Growing investments in research and development (R&D) activities in the life sciences sector is a major factor fueling the demand for global liquid handling systems market. Life sciences R&D heavily relies on automation and precision afforded by liquid handling equipment to process large volumes of samples efficiently and accurately in various applications such as genomics, drug discovery, clinical diagnostics, and regenerative medicine. As biopharmaceutical and biotech companies pour more money into developing innovative drugs, therapies, and diagnostic tests year-over-year, their dependency on liquid handling systems has increased substantially. Moreover, in June 2023, according to data published by the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations, the pharmaceutical industry invested more than US $ 45,621.2 million (€42,500 million) in R&D in Europe in 2021.
• Technological advancements in liquid handling systems: Technological innovations are improving the accuracy, efficiency, and automation of liquid handling systems. Advanced electronic pipetting systems offer greater reproducibility and throughput as compared to older manual methods. Integrated liquid handling workstations combine with multi-channel electronic pipettes, microplate washers and stackers, thereby providing fully automated processing and freeing up labor for other tasks. As assays become more complex and high-throughput screening grows in pharmaceutical research and medical diagnostics, demand is increasing for systems that can precisely dispense numerous reagents across thousands of samples simultaneously.

Global Liquid Handling Systems Market Opportunities

• Emerging markets in Asian countries: Rapid growth and development of biotechnology and healthcare sectors across various Asian countries has significantly boosted the demand for liquid handling systems in recent years. Rising incomes and growing investments in scientific research and development, nations like China, India, South Korea, Singapore, and others are emerging as important hubs for biotech innovation and medical breakthroughs. This has prompted pharmaceutical, diagnostics and research organizations across Asia to augment their in-house research capabilities through investments in advanced laboratory automation technology including liquid handling equipment. Several Asian governments have also been encouraging domestic biotech firms through favorable policies and funding to contribute towards developing affordable healthcare solutions and addressing public health priorities.
• Integration of robotics with liquid handling systems: Global liquid handling systems market has traditionally relied on manual labor intensive processes for applications like fluid transfer, dispensing, pipetting, and microplate handling. However, with advances in robotics, there is a possibility to automate these repetitive tasks through integration of robotics with liquid handling equipment. Robotics can help improve precision, accuracy, and throughput while reducing human errors in applications like high-volume dispensing and screening of chemical and biological samples. Researchers are working on developing affordable robots with advanced vision capabilities that can seamlessly coordinate with existing liquid handlers to form a fully automated workflow from start to end. This level of integration can significantly boost lab productivity and efficiency
• Product Launches: Product launches present a major opportunity for growth in the global liquid handling systems market. As the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries continue to advance, the need for precise and automated liquid handling is paramount. New product lines that enhance accuracy, throughput, and functionality can fill important needs as lab workflows become more complex. Moreover, increasing launches of liquid handling systems by key market players are expected to propel the market growth over forecast period. For instance, in September 2023, Scientific Laboratory Supplies Ltd (SLS)., a U.K. based independent supplier of chemicals, laboratory equipment, and consumables, e-launched the Eppendorf epMotion range for automated liquid handling systems, a leap forward in liquid handling technology. In a landmark decision, SLS had earned the unique privilege of being the exclusive distributor for this eagerly awaited product line.

Global Liquid Handling Systems Market Restraints:

• High capital investments required for liquid handling systems: The high capital investments required for liquid handling systems is significantly restraining the market growth. Liquid handling systems involve costly equipment, machinery, and instruments that automate the processing of liquids in laboratories. These systems consist of standalone instruments such as micropipettes, dispensers, liquid handlers, and robotic systems as well as their associated consumables like tips, plates, reagents, and others. Setting up a fully automated liquid handling system can cost anywhere between half a million to few million dollars depending on the workflow automation levels, integrate equipment and throughput requirements.
• Budget constraints in research laboratories: Budget constraints in research laboratories are significantly restraining the growth potential of the liquid handling systems market. Most public and government funded research institutes have seen stagnant or reduction in their research budgets over the past few years. With inflation, the real value of budgets is eroded and the researchers have had to make tough choices and prioritize essential equipment and consumables over relatively expensive new technologies. Liquid handling systems, which automate several fluid transfer, dispensing and storage tasks, demand substantial upfront investment running into several tens of thousands of dollars. While they offer advantages like higher throughput, reproducibility and reduced manual errors over the long run, the high initial cost makes them difficult to justify for labs struggling with constrained resources. Expanding the scope of research or taking up additional projects would require new liquid handlers, but limited budgets have prevented many labs from procuring these capital intensive instruments.
• Lack of skilled professionals: Global liquid handling systems market has been witnessing steady growth over the past few years. However, lack of availability of skilled professionals who can efficiently operate advanced liquid handling equipment has emerged as a major challenge restricting the faster growth of this market. Liquid handling systems are becoming more complex with integration of robotics, automation, and software control and data analysis. Their efficient operation requires professionals with expertise and hands-on experience in fields like laboratory medicine, life sciences research, and bioprocessing. Unfortunately, there is a severe shortage of such skilled technicians, researchers and engineers available in the market. According to data published by American society for microbiology in 2021, the need for laboratory professionals is expected to grow by 11% between 2020 and 2030, a rate of growth considered faster than the overall average of all other healthcare occupations.