Omnibus Research Report Predicts Blue Skies for UAV Market

Increase and demand coupled with new markets in law enforcement will drive commercial UAV growth to even higher altitudes by 2020, according to a leading market research store.

Dublin-based Research and Markets (dubbed “the World’s Largest Research Store”) recently released Commercial Drones Market by Type, Technology, Application & Geography – Global Forecast to 2020, a gargantuan, $6,000 report that predicts, among other things, that “the global commercial drones market is estimated to grow at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 109.31% to reach $1.27 billion by 2020.”

The report also warns that “slow rate of commercialization, scarcity of trained pilots, security and safety concerns, and air traffic management” could cause nosedive scenarios in the market, as well.

The report (samples with redacted figures are available here, here and here) surveys the entire gambit of industrial uses and determines that, in 2013 the energy and propulsion market was the largest.

Law enforcement use is expected to skyrocket over the next five years but other consumer uses will explode as well. “The exponentially increasing demand for applications such as crime investigation and remote monitoring in the energy and power segment is driving the demand for the drones,” the report states.

Key questions addressed by the report include:

• What is the current state of the commercial drone industry and how will it develop over the next decade?
• What are the key industries and the key applications for commercial drones?
• What are the key drivers of market growth, and the key challenges faced by the industry?
• Who are the key players in the commercial drone industry, what is their competitive positioning, and which ones are best positioned for success in the years ahead?
• What is the size of the commercial drone industry?
• What are the future pricing trends for commercial drone airframe types?

The report correctly points out that, among the segmentation of the UAV market – fixed blade, rotary wing, nano and hybrid – that the rotary wing currently demands the lion share of the market and will continue to grow.

“There is a huge scope for research and development of drones by increasing their operational efficiency and providing complete autonomy in terms of the decision-making process. Investments are being made by the growing regions to adopt the autonomous control systems for various applications,” the report adds. “In the near future, the use of drones for maximum commercial and civilian applications is an imminent”

Not surprisingly, North and South America account for the largest share of UAV use globally with Europe in second place. And, even less surprisingly, the Americas will likely grow at a higher rate with the Asian-Pacific Rim expected to ramp up demand as well. The report accurately points out that “the release of the FAA regulations regarding the use of drones in the civil airspace would further help to expand the commercial drone market in Americas.” Of course, to find out exactly by how much will cost you $6,000.