Researchers Expect a Marginal Increase in Laboratory Product Budgets for 2013, Finds Frost & Sullivan

- Academic labs had the smallest budgets in 2012, with the highest anticipated growth for 2013

MOUNTAIN VIEW, California, March 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Among laboratory types, including academic, biopharmaceutical, industrial, patient care, government and others, patient care had the largest product budget on average in 2012, followed by pharmaceutical labs. Furthermore, when putting the budgets to use, Frost & Sullivan's analysis finds that researchers are most keen on acquiring laboratory products such as chemicals and general lab supplies, while life science reagents and kits are at the bottom of their lists.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan's (http://www.lifesciences.frost.com) 2013 Projected Global Laboratory Products Budgets research, which is based on a survey of laboratory researchers, finds the average budget for lab products was $257,500 in 2012, up by 1.0 percent from 2011. On average, researchers anticipate budget growth of 1.2 percent for 2013. This analysis establishes the size of laboratory budgets for the purchase of products in seven categories: instruments, equipment, chemicals, life science reagents and kits, glass labware, plastic labware, and general laboratory supplies. Service and repair budgets for instruments and equipment also are covered.

For more information on this research, please email Britni Myers, Corporate Communications, at britni.myers@frost.com, with your full name, company name, job title, telephone number, company email address, company website, city, state and country.

The budget cuts imposed by the Sequestration Act could reduce academic and government laboratories' budgets by as much as 10.0 percent and lower products' uptake. Meanwhile, cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will result in 2,300 fewer grants, which will bring grant applicant success rates to an all-time low. Nonetheless, respondents from both academic and government labs expect their product budgets to increase in 2013.

"Academic labs had the smallest budgets on average in 2012, but respondents from this segment forecast their 2013 product budgets will grow by 3.0 percent, more than any other lab type," said Frost & Sullivan Life Sciences Principal Analyst Jonathan Witonsky. "Academic labs anticipate an unparalleled 6.0 percent increase in spending on instruments, which is also the biggest lab expense."

Respondents from government labs expect a mere 0.1 percent growth in their 2013 product budgets. However, their intention to spend more than they did in 2012 is encouraging, given the bleak outlook for federal funding.

Respondents from biopharmaceutical labs aim to increase their product budgets by 0.6 percent in 2013. This is a modest hike, considering Frost & Sullivan forecast a 4.6 percent growth in the overall biopharmaceutical market. Due to continued industry consolidation, R&D spending is not commensurate with revenue growth.

Respondents from industrial labs also expect an ordinary product budget increase of 1.1 percent in 2013. Industrial labs deal with a broad range of applications -- from chemical and petrochemical to food and beverage -- and so, product budgets vary accordingly. Overall, industrial lab product budget growth rates mirror economic growth, which is forecast to remain below 3.0 percent.

"Patient care labs are the only type to report an anticipated budget decline in 2013," noted Witonsky. "Survey respondents expect their product budgets to shrink by 0.6 percent in 2013, but it is unlikely the trend will persist, as the Affordable Care Act in 2014 will add 19.5 million patients."

In the service and repair sector, laboratories allocate most of their budget to manufacturer service contracts, but in-house service departments and do-it-yourself services are also widely used. The latter appears to be much more cost-effective, resulting in fairly low revenues relative to the degree of use.

2013 Projected Global Laboratory Products Budgets is part of the Life Sciences Growth Partnership Service program, which also includes: Global Quantitative and dPCR Instrumentation and Consumables Purchasing Trends, Overview of the In-vitro Diagnostics Market in India, Analysis of European Hepatitis B and C Diagnostics Market, and Global Life Sciences Trends and Opportunities 2012-2015. All research services included in subscriptions provide detailed market opportunities and industry trends evaluated following extensive interviews with market participants.

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2013 Projected Global Laboratory Products Budgets
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Contact:
Britni Myers
Corporate Communications -- North America
P: +1.210.477.8481
F: +1.210.348.1003
E: britni.myers@frost.com
Twitter: @Frost_Sullivan
Facebook: Frost & Sullivan

SOURCE Frost & Sullivan