Doctor Blade Market Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Industry Analysis Report

by Susan Hill Business Consultant

The global doctor blade market size is anticipated to reach USD 192.90 million by 2024, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. It is expected to expand at a CAGR of 2.3% during the forecast period. The market is driven by rising application of doctor blade in flexography, rotogravure, and offset printing systems. The use of plastic materials, such as polyethylene and polyester for manufacturing doctor blade is expected to further fuel the growth. Plastic blades are lightweight, economical, and safer to use than their metal and composite counterparts, which is expected to bode well for the demand in near future.

The rise in demand for high-quality packaging in Asia Pacific and North America is expected to positively influence the overall demand for doctor blade. The trend of coating blades with nanoparticles has helped enhance product durability, corrosion resistance, and smoother cross-sectional edges. The companies focus on technological innovations, novel coatings, and new raw materials to cater to the specific consumer requirements for printing labels, film packaging, shopping bags, tissue papers, laminates, corrugated boxes, and books and posters.

Doctor blade is a vital component used in printing. It is used to remove excess ink from the outside surface of the gravure cylinder in gravure printing. Carbon steel is preferably used for manufacturing the product for majority of the applications, but plastic blades are also used occasionally with worn cylinder, which prolongs its life.

The availability of superior quality steel in the European countries has made manufacturing high-quality doctor blade easier. However, in terms of regional growth, Asia Pacific is expected to remain the largest market during the forecast period due to rapidly expansion of the end-use industries.

Flexography printing application segment held more than 50% of the market share in 2018, majorly used for designing flexible packaging. The offset technique is used for printing corrugated boxes, posters, flyers, legal documents, and newspapers.

The doctor blade market is consolidated with the presence of major players including Kadant, Inc.; FUJI SHOKO CO., LTD.; Allison System; PrimeBlade Sweden AB; Swedev AB; TRESU Group; Daetwyler SwissTec; AkeBoose GmbH; and Röchling Leripa Papertech Gmbh & Co. Kg. The companies are currently ramping up capacities to meet the future demand.

Further key findings from the report suggest:

The market is expected to rise at a CAGR of 2.3%, in terms of revenue, from 2019 to 2024 due to growing demand for efficient packaging system in the emerging economies of Asia Pacific
North America doctor blade market is anticipated to exceed 56.30 million by 2024 owing to the presence of a large number of printing companies and rapidly increasing demand for flexography in flexible packaging
Rotogravure process is the second most popular product application, widely used for printing magazines, books, wallpapers, plastic laminates, and newspapers
The market is comparatively concentrated in nature owing to the presence of small and medium enterprises with robust distribution channels
In March 2019, TRESU Group appointed Vernitech as an agent to sell the products of TRESU Ancillary, a business area of TRESU Group, in the corrugated industry of France. Vernitech is now engaged in the sales of TRESU’s sealed chamber doctor blades and ink supply systems for corrugated and flexo applications