THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
nationthailand

Strong growth tipped for Thai lighting market

Strong growth tipped for Thai lighting market

ASIA IS expected to contribute the highest growth in the global lighting market over the next three years, driven by urbanisation and the increased awareness of LED lighting as a means of promoting energy-savings initiatives, an industry figure says.

Stephan Buurma, a member of the board of management of Messe Frankfurt Group, said that Thailand's lighting market reached US$1 billion in 2017 and is expected to grow by between 3 per cent and 10 per cent every year. 

 “A key characteristic is the increase of LED lighting, a result of government policy and a shift by both the public and the private sectors towards energy saving," he said.

He said that growth in the global lighting market was aided by a rising population and the trend for urbanisation worldwide.

 According to a study by McKinsey & Company, the lighting market worldwide will reach US$130 billion by 2020, with Asia contributing the highest growth.

“Currently, Asia accounts for 35 per cent of the total market share, or around US$45.5 billion, and that is expected to rise to 45 per cent by 2020. One of the key trends is the fast expansion of the LED market," said Buurma, adding that over the last few years, the traditional lighting market in Thailand has been shrinking.

However, the LED lighting market is scaling up, due to declining prices of LED units, higher energy efficiency, and a growing environmental awareness among Thais.

In addition, the government is actively promoting energy-saving programmes and encouraging the use of LED instead of fluorescent tubes.

“In term of business opportunities, with all of the factors that are driving us to shift to LED, if we take a look closely, Thailand's LED lighting market currently accounts for only around 18 per cent of the total lighting market share. That means there are still plenty of opportunities in the Thai LED market,” Buurma said.

He said that consumers remain very price sensitive in the Thai LED market. Prices were cited as consumers' main concern, followed by the luminaries' efficiency. Most consumers are looking for luminaries with higher efficiency, and warranties of at least three to five years for tube lights in commercial projects. Clients are also asking for LED tube lights with wider beam angles.

“As for product trends in Thailand, smart lighting products, systems and applications are growing in popularity. Consistent with on-site surveys during the 2017 Thailand Lighting Fair, it indicated that the industry was optimistic about smart lighting and smart homes,” Buurma said.

He said that with the continuous penetration of the Internet, future lighting products must be connected with the Internet, which will become an essential trend for smart homes.

 “The highest growth potential is seen in household lighting systems that can be controlled by smartphone or tablet applications, as well as smart lighting systems primarily with energy-saving purposes for households, industrial and commercial uses. These will likely be strong performers in the Thai market in the near future," Buurma said.

Messe Frankfurt New Era Business Media Ltd, with the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) and Exhibiz Co Ltd, will host Thailand Lighting Fair 2018 and Thailand Building Fair 2018, from November 8-10 at BITEC in Bangkok’s Bangna district.

 The expo is part of Messe Frankfurt's global Light + Building exhibition brand, which totals 15 fairs around the world. The 2018 edition is expected to feature over 500 booths across 10,000 square metres of exhibition space.

The Thailand Lighting Fair 2018 and Thailand Building Fair 2018 will be held concurrently with Secutech Thailand, a platform that showcases innovations in security, smart homes and fire and safety products. By hosing Thailand Lighting Fair, Thailand Building Fair and Secutech Thailand under one roof, the interconnected lighting, building and safety industries have an unrivalled one-stop sourcing opportunity, the organisers say.

 “Thailand is ranked as the 50th largest country in the world in terms of the economy, and is one of the largest economies in the Asean bloc. Substantial growth in the nation's lighting market is inevitable, and we can discern some very important trends.” Buurma said.

Pakwan Jiamjiroj, general manager of Exhibiz Co Ltd, said that entrepreneurs and manufacturers of lighting products need to adapt their operations to the new era mobilised by digital technology.

“The issue of lighting no longer covers just conventional lighting equipment or light bulbs, but takes in smart devices that work with the lighting system,” she said. 

“It also includes any applications that enhance the lighting system to be more efficient and easy to use and maintain for consumers. Their business strategy from now on is to develop products that are able to comply with the fast-changing technology both today and in the future, with energy savings, and ease of use and maintenance.”

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