Liquid Treatment & Flow Control Market Remains Fractured

Despite considerable consolidation in the last decade, the market for equipment and consumables to clarify and move liquids remains fractured, according to research by the McIlvaine Company. No company enjoys more than a few percent of the total market, and no company has more than 15 percent of any market segment, says McIlvaine Company. In each product segment researched, the market share of the top five companies ranges from 12 to 43 percent. Market shares for the top 30 companies range from 28 to 73 percent in the seven major product segments.

Market share data is based on comparison of the McIlvaine Company’s analyses in market reports it publishes for the product segments including Cartridge Filters; Industrial Valves; Liquid Filtration and Media; Pumps; RO, UF, MF; Sedimentation/Centrifugation; and Water and Wastewater Treatment Chemicals.

McIlvaine research shows GE is one of the few companies in most product sectors. With its acquisition of Dresser, it gained considerable valve market share. The acquisition of Betz decades ago made it a top player in treatment chemicals, McIlvaine says. It has also purchased a number of companies making filtration equipment. Large pump players such as Xylem have small market shares in the other segments.

McIlvaine also notes that Dow Chemical is the leading supplier of membranes for reverse- osmosis systems, but does not supply the systems. And while Dow is a major supplier of chemicals it does not supply filtration equipment.

McIlvaine says one reason for the lack of concentration is the diversity of product requirements, noting, for example, an inexpensive pump to handle 2 GPM of clear water bears little resemblance to a 50,000 GPM slurry pump used in a flue gas desulfurization system. Further, the complex, highly machined and balanced centrifuge is far different than a simple clarifier, but both are included in the Sedimentation and Centrifugation category. McIlvaine says Alfa Laval and GEA enjoy a large market share in the disk stack centrifuge sub sector, but are not leaders in hydro-cyclones, clarifiers, or dissolved air flotation, which is also included in the category.

Market shares in each of the major seven product areas are included in McIlvaine world market reports, which can be accessed at http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/brochures/water.html#nO24.