Keywords: Automation, Control, Coriolis, Chemical, Flowmeters, Oil & Gas, Magnetic, Vortex, Market Research Study, Refining, Ultrasonic, Water & Wastewater
According to a new ARC Advisory Group study on flowmeters, the flowmeter market in India remained on a steady growth path in 2014. With the economy showing signs of getting back on track, the demand for flowmeters in the chemical & petrochemical, refinery, and water & wastewater industries looks positive. While ARC Advisory Group expects the flowmeter market to grow marginally during 2015, there are expectations of a healthy five-year forecast. Other factors contributing to the growth include the asset management focus of end users and increasing use of advanced measurement technologies in process industries.
The advancement in flowmeters has enabled users to do real-time data monitoring along with higher accuracy in data measurements. Moreover, their low maintenance requirements and ease of use, together with the flowmeters’ wide application range, is driving the flowmeter market in India. Also, the focus on safety regulatory requirements, especially in the oil & gas industry, and rising investment in terminal automation, is expected to further increase the flowmeter shipments according to the new ARC Advisory Group “Flowmeters for India Market Research Study”. “India being a net importer of crude oil, the drop in oil prices is seen to boost refining activities, creating further demand for process instrumentation. Tighter control of process parameters such as flow, and compliance to safety regulations is also driving users to implement advanced field instrumentation,” according to ARC India Country Manager G. Ganapathiraman, the co-author of the study.
Industry Trends
Crude oil and natural gas production improved marginally in 2014 as compared to the previous year. Continuing low cost of oil forced oil companies to slash capital expenditures, resulting in delayed oil and gas projects. The chemical and refining industries, however, benefited somewhat from the low oil prices during 2014. With the low feedstock prices, many chemical companies have made the decision to build new facilities now while they have the margins. Moreover, intelligent field instruments like flowmeters and valves used in areas such as tank farm management and pipeline transfers could boost the safety levels at oil & gas and refinery plants.
Traditional vs. New Technologies
Flowmeters have evolved into highly capable and reliable process instruments, offering users better measurement accuracy than ever, increased visibility into production operations, and low maintenance profiles compared to traditional mechanical or DP technologies. In tight margin industries such as refining, where every dollar counts, pinpoint accuracy and low cost of ownership are “must haves” in an increasingly competitive and ever more tightly regulated business environment. However, despite the premature predictions of the demise of differential producing flowmeters, they continue to grow in adoption.
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