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Americanmachinist 1770 87560am0630cimd00000060215
Americanmachinist 1770 87560am0630cimd00000060215
Americanmachinist 1770 87560am0630cimd00000060215
Americanmachinist 1770 87560am0630cimd00000060215

Report Shows NC Software Market Grew 7.6% in 2010

June 30, 2011
CIMdata forecasts return to growth as part of global rebound

CIMdata Inc., a PLM consulting and research firm, reports that the worldwide NC software and related services market grew by 7.6% in 2010. Estimated end-user spending grew from $1.239 billion in 2009 to $1.333 billion in 2010, and CIMData said the growth in 2010 reflected the rebound in the global economy and the return to overall growth of the Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) market.

The size and growth of the NC software and related services market based on end-user payments, since 2001.

CIMData is an independent strategic management consulting firm that advises companies with knowledge, expertise, and best-practice methods on PLM solutions, including business processes and PLM-enabling technologies. Its market analysis is contained in its forthcoming CIMdata NC Market Analysis Report, Version 20.

The market improvements for 2010 also demonstrate the increase in global machine tool sales, which grew 21% to $66.3 billion in 2010 over the 2009 estimate of $57.4 billion. Going forward, CIMdata projected that the rebound in manufacturing will continue, and estimates that end-user spending for NC software will increase by 6% in 2011 to $1.412 billion.

Since 2002, the NC software market has grown modestly, but steadily, as global economies generally improved. There has been worldwide growth in the sale of machine tools and manufacturing output, CIMdata noted. Greater emphasis has been placed on the efficient operation of machine tools as manufacturing firms have strengthened their competitive position, and the overall PLM market, of which CAM software is a component, has continued on strong growth during this period. CAM software purchase increases are related to all of these factor, according to the firm, particularly machine tool sales.

The size and growth of the NC software and related services market based on end-user payments is shown in the nearby chart. It illustrates that approximately one-third of the end-user spending results from reseller revenues, and the other two-thirds are direct payments to software vendors.

Stan Przybylinski, CIMdata’s director of research commented: “2010 saw recovery in the manufacturing sector, and software investments soon followed. This is consistent with our results from our global PLM market analysis.”

Alan Christman, CIMdata chairman and author of the CIMdata NC Market Analysis Report, called 2009 “a difficult year for manufacturers and most providers of NC software.

“Most firms saw good growth in 2010, and CIMdata expects this growth to continue in 2011 and beyond,” Christman said. “The growing strength and importance of global manufacturing powers like China and other emerging economies should result in increased investment in advanced technologies like CAD, CAM, and other segments of the overall PLM market. As importantly, there is some move to bring manufacturing back to the US, which will require still more investment in advanced manufacturing technologies to be competitive with economies with lower labor costs. The next few years should be really interesting for NC and the broader PLM market.”

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