Europe LiDAR Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Europe LiDAR market is expected to register a CAGR of 24% during the forecast period (2021 - 2026). Light detection and ranging (LiDAR) mapping and detection are becoming an established system of generating detailed geo-referenced spatial information of a surrounding and its characteristics. Some of the benefits of using LiDAR include the ability to capture large amounts of area in a relatively small amount of time and the low requirement of manual labor.

Key Highlights

• LiDAR-based mapping solutions are agile and can be used on a stationary or moving vehicle. Due to this, they are being adopted by a growing number of industries, especially for application in engineering, construction, environment, and exploration, proving the effectiveness and, therefore, demand for this technology. The technology was invented for military use but was first adopted widely by meteorologists to study clouds in the early 2010s. ​
• Nowadays, it has also been adopted for the planning of field campaigns and mapping under the forest canopy. Spain-based scientists improved the accuracy of the annual and seasonal mapping with LiDAR data (from 73% to 83%). Another major driving factor for the LiDAR market is the increasing use of drones for multiple applications, such as aerospace and defense and automation, leading organizations to invest in drone research.​
• LiDAR systems are also helping scientists and mapping professionals to examine both natural and artificial environments with precision, accuracy, and flexibility. For instance, the Environment Agency National LIDAR Programme aims to offer accurate elevation data at 1m spatial resolution covering all of England by 2021; the program has divided the country into approximately 230 logical blocks with a survey in 2016. ​
• The COVID-19 outbreak has affected industries across the globe. The automotive industry is one of the significant adopters of LiDAR. The outbreak has led to the shutdown of various production plants.​ According to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA), the region-wide production losses in the automotive industry due to factory shutdowns amounted to at least 2,446,344 motor vehicles, including passenger cars, trucks, vans, buses, and coaches.

Key Market Trends

Increasing Adoption of LiDAR in the Automotive Industry​ to Drive the Market Growth

• With the growing consumer propensity toward electric vehicles and the growing adoption of autonomous technology in the industry, the LiDAR market is expected to attract significant investments in the region. For instance, Ouster, a provider of LiDAR sensors for autonomous vehicles, mapping, and robotics, announced its expansion into Europe with a new office in Paris. ​
• To meet the growing demand for LiDAR sensors, various automobile OEMs have started working on new electric cars and presenting them at auto expos. Additionally, these OEMs have started setting up multiple factories across the region to gain a competitive advantage in terms of first-mover advantage in the marketplace. ​
• Moreover, self-driving and autonomous cars are becoming a reality soon, with major giants, such as Google, Tesla, and BMW, already releasing their prototype models. The Canadian car components supplier, Magna, and an Israeli LiDAR technology developer, Innoviz Cooperated, will provide BMW with its innovative sensor and system. It is expected to offer high-resolution LiDAR technology, which generates a 3D point cloud in real-time of the vehicle's surroundings, under all kinds of weather conditions.
• In January 2020, Bosch announced its plans to produce long-range LiDAR sensors for the LiDAR system suitable for automated driving. The company's sensor will be used with cameras and RADAR sensors to detect long and short ranges for the highway and cities. Such developments are expected further to enhance the demand for 3D sensors in the industry. ​
• With the recent technological advancements in reducing both size and cost of the sensor, LiDAR sensors are expected to be used in autonomous vehicle technology. They have become commonplace in mass-market vehicles such as cameras, radars, and other low-cost safety technology. ​
• For instance, in January 2020, Velodyne Lidar Inc., a supplier of sensing systems for the autonomous vehicle (AV) industry, launched a new LiDAR unit at CES 2020, which costs USD 100 and comes in a compact size smaller than a deck of cards to be embedded in a range of various solutions in the industry. ​

Engineering​ Industry to Hold Significant Market Share

• Surveying and civil engineering find crucial importance in the LiDAR technology for the aerial and terrestrial scanning to provide valuable insights as to the existing architecture or details regarding the stability of the inclinations and other factors, which could play a vital role in the development of the plans for construction and other operations. ​
• UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) are also being used for surveying applications as they eliminate the challenges faced by technicians who use fixed solutions in hazardous areas. Also, considering cost reduction advantages compared to helicopters with LiDAR technologies, UAVs integrated with LiDAR are expected to gain traction.
• The remote operation of the ground-based LiDARs has further ensured a safe investigation of the locations by the authorities for monitoring the rock mechanics for the rock mass characterization and slope stability. Geomechanical details hold critical importance in establishing safe locations for laying the roadways and other modes of ground transport.​
• LiDAR is widely used in the railroad industry to monitor the asset health reports for efficient asset management and the responsible government authorities to assess the pathway conditions due to increasing passenger traffic. LiDAR is frequently used to understand the riverbed's depth and flow strength to create appropriate designs for the dams and other flow control constructions. They also play a vital role in designing stormwater or flood management systems as they help analyze the possible complications, which could arise as a consequence of an environmental disaster. ​
• The LiDAR products and technology usage in construction and restoration applications are expected to proliferate during the forecast period, as awareness about their safe and easy operation spreads through the regions. ​In addition, using aerial LiDAR for construction applications is also preferred over other methods, like photogrammetry (data collected from high-resolution cameras to create either a 2D or 3D survey of an area), considering the technical limitations, i.e., the technology cannot be used to get past brush or ground cover.​

Competitive Landscape

The European LiDAR market is competitive owing to various players. Players focus on strategic activities such as new product launches, partnerships, mergers, and acquisitions to capture the highest market share. Some of the key developments in the market are:

• June 2020, Quanergy Systems, which offers LiDAR sensors and smart perception, announced a partnership with Milexia, a distributor of RF and microwave components for the electronics industry, to expand its offerings in Europe.
• January 2020 - Atlantic used Teledyne Optech's new Galaxy T2000 and G2 sensor system to enhance its airborne capability by accommodating two of its Optech Galaxy Prime airborne LiDAR sensors.

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