Infection control market: Leading infection control companies include Getinge, Steris, Advanced Sterilization Product, Belimed, Medivators and 3M

The infection control market has experienced an increase in demand for contract sterilisation services as a result of stringent regulatory requirements from agencies such as the AMMI and ISO. Outsourced sterilisation services have been the preferred option for OEMs due to the cost reduction and the fact that it allows them to concentrate on their core competencies. However, it is anticipated that sterilisation services will be brought in-house mainly due to the advent of hydrogen gas plasma and vapour hydrogen peroxide which will ultimately place increased competition on outsourced alternative services. By bringing in sterilisation services in-house, it will provide companies with better quality assurances and just-in time facilities for their products. Gamma and E-beam services are also poised to report stronger growth over ETO in the near future as the technology can be applied across numerous sectors including food, pharmaceutical, medical devices, life sciences and cosmetic products sterilisation.

The global infection control market is forecast to be worth US$14.0 billion by 2017. North America represents the largest regional market of the infection control industry although Asia is forecast to report the strongest growth due to a rise in awareness for sterilisation, the growth in an ageing population, the increased number of surgeries forecast and the growth in income per capita over the next few years.

The largest players operating in the global sterilisation or infection control market are Getinge (Sweden), Steris (U.S.), Advanced Sterilization Product (U.S.), Belimed (Switzerland), Medivators (U.S.), 3M (U.S.), Cardinal Health (U.S.), Kimberly-Clark (U.S.), Synergy Health (U.K.), and Sterigenics (U.S.).

The sterilisation industry in the food and pharmaceutical industries represent important areas in controlling disease and maintaining health and safety procedures and standards. The hand disinfectant market represents the fastest growing market sector as hands are considered to be the primary cause of cross infection. In terms of equipment usage, the endoscope reprocessing market is forecast to report strong growth over the next few years as minimal invasive surgery procedures become more prevalent. The disinfectant market is also expected to be influenced by the increased usage of single-use technology products such as medical non-wovens and face masks.

In terms of sterilisation, there has also been a strong shift in the use of low temperature sterilisers such as VHP, hydrogen gas plasma and ozone. There has been reduced use of steam sterilisation practices.
With a rise in awareness of food quality and increase in exports of exotic fruits and vegetables across countries, there has been a rise in food sterilization and disinfection. Pharmaceutical sterilization plays a vital role and help in making drugs safe for patient use. This is majorly done using filtration technologies and gamma irradiation of the pharmaceutical components and powders like APIs. The role of sterilization in medical packaging has been of crucial importance, especially of finished products such as saline bottles, needles, syringes etc.

The global infection control market is forecast to expand at a steady rate of 6% per annum during the period 2012 to 2017 a hospitals and clinics focus more on controlling cleaning standards and the spread of disease. The increase in hospital acquired infections or nosocomial infections have forced the medical authorities to take stringent regulatory actions to curb these infections with the use of sterilized and disinfected medical devices.
This report studies the global infection control over the forecast period of 2012 to 2017.

The report focuses on sterilization (heat, chemical, radiation and filtration) and disinfection (disinfectors, endoscope reprocessing, disinfectants, medical non-wovens and disinfectant wipes) technologies. It also studies sterilization services market, which includes healthcare solutions, hospital sterilization services, and applied sterilization technologies. The sterilization applications market includes medical device, pharmaceuticals, life sciences, food, and other applications such as cosmetics.

This research report categorizes the global sterilization market on the basis of technology, services, and applications. The disinfection market is categorized on the basis of various equipment and disposables used. These markets are broken down into segments and sub-segments, providing value analysis for 2010, 2011, and 2012, as well as forecast up to 2017. Each market is comprehensively analyzed by geography (North America, Europe, Asia, and Rest of the World) to provide in-depth information on the global scenario.

To view more information and research on the global infection control market, click here: Infection Control Market