The global market for AC-DC and DC-DC power supplies rose by a modest 2.4 percent last year, but much of this growth was limited to specific markets, leading to some substantial shifts in the rankings of major players, according to a new report from IHS Technology.
The top 10 in 2013 together accounted for 53 percent, or more than half, of total global power supply revenue of $20.7 billion. Last year the top 10 had a nearly equivalent share of 52 percent, out of total industry revenue worth $20.1 billion.
The top four spots this year were unchanged with Delta Electronics remaining the market leader, even though the Taiwanese manufacturer incurred a slight loss in market share during the year. In the runner-up spot was Missouri-based Emerson, which also lost revenue like Delta.
"The market-share standings for 2013 are quite turbulent with six of the top 10 manufacturers shifting in rank and two companies entering the circle," said Jonathon Eykyn, power supply and storage component analyst for IHS. "It is clear from these results that manufacturers will have to continue to diversify their portfolios in order to remain competitive."
Within the elite ring, the two suppliers that grew the most in 2013 were Finland's Salcomp and Mean Well from Taiwan-both well entrenched in strong, emerging markets. Overall, traditional power supply vendors serving sectors such as industrial and telecom applications continued to experience weaker demand for much of 2013. "Manufacturers of power supplies sold to sectors where demand remained stronger, including smartphones, tablets and LED lighting," Eykyn said. "These vendors experienced much greater revenue growth, allowing them to jump up the market-share rankings."
Meanwhile, a steep decline in demand last year in previously strong growth markets such as notebooks led to a drop in revenue for some of the largest power supply manufacturers in the market. Exchange-rate fluctuations also exerted an effect, affecting the performance of some suppliers, especially those based in Japan such as TDK Lambda and Murata.
These findings can be found in the forthcoming report, The World Market for AC-DC & DC-DC Merchant Power Supplies, from the Power & Energy service of IHS. The full report from IHS includes analysis of the opportunities for commodity AC-DC, non-commodity AC-DC and DC-DC power supplies across 22 applications with forecasts through 2018. It also presents market-share estimates from more than 10 different markets.