Market Snapshot
Key Players
Mettler-Toledo International Inc
Optel Vision
TraceLink Inc
Adents International
Antares Vision SRL
Siemens AG
Track and trace solutions allow companies to track an individual product through the supply chain and trace it to its origin. Track and trace (T&T) systems help healthcare companies and organizations manage their supply chains more effectively while also reducing the risks of counterfeit drugs. This process tracks the current and past location of the drug.
Rising concerns on brand protection due to product counterfeiting and theft of drugs in the pharmaceutical industry impact brand image and product reliability to contribute to market growth. Track and trace solutions enable pharmaceutical companies to track and trace compliance mandates with ease, manage recalls better, and increase the overall efficiency of the manufacturing processes.
The global track and trace solutions market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.5% during the forecast period (2021–2028).
Track and Trace Solutions Market Drivers:
Increasing Focus of Manufacturers on Brand Protection to Spur Market Growth
The rising problem of counterfeiting and product theft has been growing worldwide, especially in developing countries such as China, South Africa, and India. The healthcare industry is adversely impacted and is striving to ensure the reliability of its products as incidence of counterfeiting and product theft is increasing. According to statistics, about 60 Pfizer products were counterfeited worldwide until 2016. The International Trade Administration estimated that the global counterfeit drug market size ranged from USD 75 billion to USD 200 billion and accounted for around 50% of all medicines sold in Asian and African countries.
A solution with automatic and non-line-of-sight capabilities is required to combat counterfeiting and identify massive product items. Preventing brand value has become a significant focus for building the business and maintaining product reliability. Thus, the increasing focus of pharmaceuticals and medical devices manufacturers on brand protection is expected to drive market growth.
Track and Trace Solutions Market Challenges:
High Cost for Implementation of Serialization and Aggregation
According to the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), the market's top concerns are cost and implementation delay. Pharmaceutical businesses, medical device manufacturers, contract manufacturers, and packaging manufacturers must make considerable capital investments in the serialization and aggregation of individual items.
While larger drug companies may have the financial resources to deal with serialization's financial obligations, small and medium-sized businesses confront a bigger challenge. Many pharmaceutical firms are aware of the costs of implementing new technology and processes.
Track and Trace Solutions Market Opportunities:
Government Regulations and Standards for Implementation of Serialization to Boost Market Growth
Governments in many countries are working to approve specific laws to implement serialization in track and trace systems to ensure supply chain efficiency in the healthcare sector. Also, government bodies focus on increasing serialization solutions in all pharmaceutical industries to reduce drug counterfeiting. Serialization is the significant step in ensuring compliance with new ePedigree regulations required for product traceability during the supply chain.
Many countries have set standards and regulations for serialization and aggregation implementation. Track and trace solutions in the supply chain for healthcare products are increasingly being adopted in China, Turkey, India, and the U.S. In China, China Food and Drug Administration exist for the pharmaceutical supply chain, in which serialization requirements involve the use of government-issued serial numbers, which are reported back to the database of their central government.
Impact of COVID-19
COVID-19 is a viral infection that has been declared a global pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. Due to the pandemic, most countries worldwide have shut down their borders and limited transportation to contain the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, thus, imposing restrictions on international trade and transportation since the beginning of 2020. It affected the supply chain for the track and trace solutions market.
The virus has highlighted the importance of product tracking and tracing, resulting in a supply chain that helps minimize costs for pharmaceutical companies and reduces the cases of counterfeiting and black-marketing.
The move-in demand for medical devices forces the key players operating in the market to strategize their manufacturing capabilities, focus on new product development, and provide optimum supply chain strategies concentrated on COVID-19 essentials. Also, increasing pharmaceutical development, manufacturing, and packaging is expected to drive the adoption of track and trace solutions during the forecast period. Furthermore, players dealing in the medical devices market are modifying their long-term and short-term growth strategies by developing innovative products to combat the pandemic.
On the other hand, although the impact of COVID-19 on the track and trace solutions market is lower than on other medical devices markets, the timely development and the implementation of contingency plans are essential for business operations. It will most likely be affecting vulnerable business models and growth opportunities for development.
Segmental Analysis of Track and Trace Solutions Market
The global track and trace solutions market is classified based on product, technology, application, end-user, and region.
The global track and trace solutions market has been segmented into software solutions and hardware systems on the basis of product. The software solutions segment accounted for the largest share USD 1,386.0 million, in 2020 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.5% during the forecast period. Growing awareness about secure packaging, increasing counterfeit drugs and associated products, and rising concerns about brand protection are all driving up software system adoption in the healthcare industry.
In addition, government regulation is further supporting the growth of the market. Wide applications of software solutions for continuous management of manufacturing facilities, product lines, case and bundle tracking, and warehousing and shipping are some factors accounting for the maximum share of the segment in the market.
Based on technology, the global track and trace solutions market has been segmented into barcodes and RFID. The barcode technology segment accounted for the largest share, valued at USD 2,129.1 million in 2020, and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.7% during the forecast period. The substantial revenue share can be attributable to technological developments and greater acceptance of 2D barcodes in pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical product packaging.
Based on application, the global track and trace solutions market has been segmented into serialization solutions and aggregation solutions. The serialization solution segment accounted for the largest revenue share, valued at USD 1,418.2 million in 2020, and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.7% during the forecast period. Improved and increasing focus of government bodies on the implementation of serialization solutions in supply chain and packaging in pharmaceutical companies drive the segment growth.
Based on end-user, the global track and trace solutions market is segmented into pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies, medical device companies, other healthcare end-users, food and beverage industry, consumer goods, and luxury goods. Pharmaceutical companies accounted for the largest share, valued at USD 732.3 million in 2020, and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19.4% during the forecast period. The rising rate of drug counterfeiting resulted in the high adoption of track and trace solutions by pharmaceutical companies.
Significant Growth in North America and Asia-Pacific Regions
Based on region, the global track and trace solutions market has been segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa, and Central and South America. North America dominated the global track and trace solutions market. It accounted for 38.0% of the market share, owing to this region's highly regulated serialization and aggregation standards. Advanced healthcare infrastructure present in the U.S. is driving market growth in the region. Also, the presence of big pharmaceuticals companies such as Abbott, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, and Roche, which have implemented track and trace solutions in their business model, is responsible for market growth.
The revenue share of North America in the global market was valued at USD 959.9 Million in 2020 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.0% during the forecast period.
The market in Asia-Pacific is expected to show the highest growth rate over the forecast period due to the high incidence rate of drug counterfeiting. According to INTERPOL, in 2015, illicit and falsified medicines worth over USD 7 million were seized in Asia. Thus, the need for track and trace solutions to protect against product counterfeit is high. In addition, untapped opportunities in this region are expected to contribute to market growth. The Asia-Pacific track and trace solutions market was valued at USD 394.7 Million in 2020 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 21.3% during the forecast period.
Competitive Players in the Track and Trace Solutions Market
The major players in the track and trace solutions market are Axway, Mettler-Toledo International, Inc., Optel Vision, TraceLink, Inc., Adents International, Antares Vision srl, Siemens AG, Seidenader Maschinenbau GmbH, ACG Worldwide, Systech, Inc., and IBM. The presence of other local vendors, offering products for track and trace, is resulting in intense competition among vendors.
Recent Developments by the Key Players:
- TRACE LINK- In May 2021, TraceLink Inc. announced that Yangtze River Pharmaceutical Group selected TraceLink’s multi enterprise compliance applications and digital supply network to comply with track and trace requirements in multiple markets, including the US and Europe.
- In April 2021, the company introduced Opus, a digital supply network creation platform that enables industries to work together with collective intelligence.
- ANTARES VISION S.P.A.- In March 2021, Antares Vision acquired RFXCEL Corporation. RFXCEL specialized in the development of software for the life science and F&B sectors in order to ensure the safety of medicines along the distribution chain
- OPTEL GROUP- In January 2021, Optel Group collaborated with Bureau Veritas for addressing the critical issue of traceability and reliability in COVID-19 vaccine logistics.
- KORBER MEDIPAK SYSTEMS GMBH- In December 2020, the company started offering its track and trace solution for APAC region in regional languages and short response times. With this, it strengthened its geographical presence in the region.
- ADENTS- In May 2019, Pharmascience, a Canada-based pharmaceutical manufacturer chose software from Adents for ensuring European FMD and US DSCSA serialization compliance regulations.
Track and Trace Solutions Market: Segmentation
By Product
- Hardware Systems
- Printing & Marking Solutions
- Monitoring & Verification Solutions
- Labelling Solutions
- Others
- Software Solutions
- Plant Manager Software
- Line Controller Software
- Bundle Tracking Software
- Others
By Technology
- Barcodes
- RFID
By Application
- Serialization Solutions
- Label Serialization
- Bottle Serialization
- Carton Serialization
- Data Matrix Serialization
- Aggregation Solutions
- Bundle Aggregation
- Case Aggregation
- Pallet Aggregation
By End-User
- Pharmaceutical Biopharmaceutical Companies
- Medical Device Companies
- Other Healthcare End-Users
- Food and Beverage Industry
- Consumer Goods
- Luxury Goods
By Region
- North America
- Europe
- Asia-Pacific
- Middle East and Africa
- Central and South America
