The 2009 downturn will wipe more than $700m off the value of the global market for small motor markets, and sales of some motor technologies – such as brushed DC motors – may never recover to their previous peaks, says a new report.

IMS Research says that global sales of small motors peaked in 2008 at just over $3bn, and predicts that the market will take until 2012 to return to these levels.
 
The market contraction will be most severe in sectors that rely on capital expenditure – such as industrial automation. This sector is expected to be overtaken as the largest market in terms of sales, by medical applications.
 
Motor manufacturers looking for growth should consider focusing on the brushless DC motor market, IMS suggests. It expects this market to recover at the fastest rate, due in part to the trend for machine-builders to produce machinery with higher levels of energy efficiency.

Rules governing the energy efficiency of equipment such as HVAC and vending machinery are being introduced and updated by bodies such as the US Department of Energy and the European Commission. These will have a direct bearing on the future development of the small motors market and will benefit the market for brushless DC motors, IMS says.