Track And Trace Solutions Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product, By Technology (Barcodes, RFID), By Application (Serialization, Aggregation), By End Use, And Segment Forecasts, 2020 - 2027

Report Overview

The global track and trace solutions market size was valued at USD 2.2 billion in 2019 and is anticipated to exhibit a CAGR of 18.5% during the forecast period. Associated advantages of track and trace solutions, such as continuous transparency, packaging and logistics management, and product ID verification services facilitating hassle-free product movement within the distribution channel, is a key growth driver for this market.

The market is anticipated to be fueled by the rising deployment of track and trace solutions by pharmaceutical and medical devices companies. Drug counterfeiting is a major problem faced by pharmaceuticals and biopharmaceuticals companies. Thus, companies are adopting track and trace solutions for supply chain monitoring. It has been found that the influx of substandard/counterfeit medications is more prevalent in low to middle-income countries such as India and Africa. According to the United States Trade Representative (USTR) report in 2019, around 20% of all sold drugs in India were counterfeit.

Moreover, stringent regulations and standards pertinent to serialization implementation and aggregation is expected to drive the market for track and trace systems. In July 2019, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) imparted new guidelines on product coding in order to reduce counterfeiting in Australia. However, the high cost connected with track and trace implementation and lack of unified global standard regulations for serialization and aggregation could hinder the market growth.

There are numerous small and large vendors offering a plethora of tracking and trace solutions, resulting in intense competition. The North American market is primarily driven by the presence of highly regulated serialization and aggregation standards, as well as advanced healthcare infrastructure. The Asia Pacific is anticipated to exhibit the fastest growth due to increasing pressure to curb the incidence of counterfeit drugs in developing Asian countries like China and India.

Product Insights

Software solutions held the largest share in the market for track and trace solutions in 2019 due to its growing adoption in healthcare companies, including pharmaceuticals, biopharmaceuticals, and medical device companies. These software solutions are used for continuous management of manufacturing facilities, product lines, case, and bundle tracking, and warehousing, and shipping. Companies developing this software are investing in R&D for better product development, which is expected to propel market growth.

Hardware solutions are expected to show lucrative growth over the forecast period. The printing and marking solutions segment held the largest revenue share among track and trace hardware systems. This system plays an important role in the production and supply chain to ensure product quality and authenticity. Rising demand for serialization and the need to achieve regulatory compliance is fueling segment growth. Printing and marking equipment is expected to play a crucial role in meeting the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) requirements by 2023.  Moreover, advancement in coding technologies such as laser marking systems, large character marking (LCM), and thermal transfer overprinting (TTO) is expected to fuel the market for track and trace hardware systems in the coming years.

Application Insights

Serialization solutions held the dominant revenue share in the market for track and trace solutions as of 2019 due to the increasing focus of regulatory bodies on implementation of the same. Federal agencies, country governments, and the healthcare industry are taking measures to decrease product diversion and drug counterfeiting. Serialization is a major step to comply with new ePedigree regulations that are required for product traceability during the supply chain. In addition, increased focus on patient safety and brand protection by manufacturers is expected to propel segment growth during the study period.

Manufacturers are facing numerous challenges due to growing complexity and diversity in serialization requirements, primarily in the pharmaceutical industry. Variations in standards and regulations across countries, as well as the management of aggregated complex data, makes it difficult for manufacturers to implement serialization in track and trace. However, the increasing rate of counterfeiting of pharmaceuticals and other healthcare products drives the adoption of serialization in the supply chain.

Technology Insights

Barcodes technology accounted for the largest revenue share in the track and trace solutions market in 2019. 2D barcode is the dominant sub-segment and is expected to maintain its position throughout the study period. Increased application of 2D barcodes in pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical product packaging is a major factor that contributed to the high revenue share. Moreover, the ample data storage capacity of 2D barcodes over linear barcodes, as well as its higher popularity in the industry, boosts the demand for 2D barcode-based track and trace solutions.

Government regulations and an increase in counterfeit drugs sale led to the implementation of barcode technology in the healthcare industry. For instance, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade issued a notice announcing the execution of a track and trace system integrated barcode technology for pharmaceutical products exported from India since 2011. Thus, demand for barcodes technology in track and trace solutions has increased and is expected to remain high during the forecast period.

End-use Insights

Pharmaceutical companies dominated the market by end-use as of 2019. Ensuring safe product track and trace abilities across various entities throughout the supply chain by implementing serialization is a crucial step to address the challenges faced by pharmaceutical companies. Currently, it is mandatory for pharmaceutical manufacturers to comply with federal and state regulations for track and trace solutions, which is fueling the demand.

In September 2013, the Drug Quality and Security Act H.R. 3204 was approved by the Senate as the U.S. federal law. According to this bill, manufacturers are required to incorporate a product identifier number on each package and case of prescription drugs. Thus, demand for track and trace solutions for the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical supply chain was high in 2019 and is expected to increase further during the forecast period.

The demand for track and trace systems in the consumer goods segment is expected to show significant growth over the forecast period. Common counterfeit goods include clothing, handbags, footwear, watches, OTC products, household products, books, batteries, cigarettes, and video games. According to the Office for National Statistics, counterfeit trade in the U.K. was worth 9.3 billion in 2017. Consumer safety, brand retention, and product recalls are some of the major concerns owing to disorganized supply chain logistics. The growth of e-commerce globally has led to a rise in counterfeit production as consumer demand for these goods increases. Therefore, a rising number of manufacturers are adopting the use of track and trace solutions to provide consumers with authentic products.

Regional Insights

North America accounted for the largest revenue share in the market for track and trace solutions in 2019, primarily due to the presence of highly regulated serialization and aggregation standards, as well as advanced healthcare infrastructure. Automatic identification technologies, including barcoding and RFID, are recommended to pharmaceuticals and other healthcare companies by the FDA. Furthermore, the presence of highly developed healthcare infrastructure and the adoption of this technology in the U.S. is expected to drive the market.

Europe is the second-largest market for track and trace solutions, in terms of revenue share, and this trend is expected to continue until 2027. The growth can be attributed to the presence of developed economies, such as Germany, Turkey, the U.K., France, and Italy, in the region. The European Union aims to progressively implement track and trace solutions in the healthcare supply chain to deal with drug counterfeiting and theft. According to the Falsified Medicines Directive, manufacturers failing to comply with drug serialization regulations would not be allowed to market their products in Europe.

The market for track and trace solutions in the Asia Pacific is expected to exhibit the fastest growth due to rising pressure to curb the high incidence of counterfeit drugs in developing Asian countries like China and India. China’s track and trace laws and regulations mandated serialization and tracking throughout the supply chain and compulsory compliance reporting to the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) for all pharmaceuticals since December 31, 2015. The stringent regulations are expected to boost the market in these countries in the near future. In addition, untapped opportunities in this region are expected to contribute to the growth of the sector.

Key Companies & Market Share Insights 

Major players catering to the demand for track and trace solutions in the market are Axway; Mettler-Toledo International, Inc.; Optel Vision; TraceLink, Inc.; Adents International; Antares Vision SRL; Siemens AG; Seidenader Maschinenbau GmbH; ACG Worldwide; and Systech, Inc. There are multiple small and large manufacturers offering a host of solutions for tracking and tracing applications, resulting in intense competition among vendors.

Vendors are increasing their focus on strategic partnerships with their consumers and are collaborating with other players in the sector. For instance, in May 2019, Optel collaborated with Nelipak Healthcare Packaging in order to improve the seal inspection technology and increase its market penetration by speeding up logistics activity. In March 2019, Axway acquired Streamdata.io in order to improve its portfolio in API management. In July 2019, Tracelink collaborated with Excellis in order to comply with Russia’s track and trace requirements. This initiative is expected to help the company increase its share in the regional market.

Track And Trace Solutions Market Report Scope

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional, and country levels and provides an analysis on the latest industry trends and opportunities in each of the sub-segments from 2016 to 2027. Grand View Research has segmented the global track and trace solutions market report by product, technology, application, end-use, and region:

• Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Hardware Systems

    • Printing & Marking Solutions

    • Monitoring & Verification Solutions

    • Labeling Solutions

    • Others

  • Software Solutions

    • Plant Manager Software

    • Line Controller Software

    • Bundle Tracking Software

    • Others

• Technology Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Barcode

  • RFID

• Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Serialization Solutions

    • Bottle Serialization

    • Label Serialization

    • Carton Serialization

    • Data Matrix Serialization

  • Aggregation Solutions

    • Bundle Aggregation

    • Case Aggregation

    • Pallet Aggregation

• End-Use Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Pharmaceutical Companies

  • Medical device Companies

  • Healthcare Others

  • Food and Beverage

  • Consumer Packaged Goods

  • Luxury Goods

• Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • North America

    • The U.S.

    • Canada

  • Europe

    • The U.K.

    • Germany

    • France

    • Italy

    • Spain

    • Switzerland

    • Belgium

    • Russia

  • Asia Pacific

    • Japan

    • China

    • India

  • Latin America

    • Brazil

    • Mexico

    • Argentina

  • Middle East and Africa

    • South Africa

    • Saudi Arabia

    • Egypt