The recent arrival of dual-core processors will help to propel the European market for industrial PCs to nearly €750m by 2010, says a new report.

"These processors, which deliver considerably more processing capacity, without a comparable increase in power consumption, will allow a more efficient use of industrial PCs," explains Mark Watson, a market analyst with IMS Research, which produced the report. "Benefits to end-users include reduced cooling requirements and lower running costs."

According to IMS, the IPC market will grow at a CAGR of 8% through to 2010. The biggest share of the market is held by panel IPCs, which account for almost half of all sales (by revenue).

Most PC suppliers are adopting a modular approach to enhance the flexibility of their products, the report adds.