Pentair has emerged as the new leader in the market that treats and controls liquids and gases (including air). Ecolab/Nalco has moved into second place. This is the conclusion reached in Air/Gas/Water/Fluid Treatment and Control: World Markets published by the McIlvaine Company.
With the addition of Tyco valve revenues, Pentair pump and filtration revenues generated a combined $7 billion in sales in 2012. The corporation anticipates a 3.5 percent increase in 2013. This will create revenues of $7.2 billion in the treatment and control sector.
Ecolab has acquired Nalco. With an expected revenue increase of 5 percent in 2013, the company will move into second place with treatment and control revenues of over $5.2 billion. The former leader, Flowserve, will drop to third place.
There was another significant merger last year. Colfax acquired Howden. Most of the Howden revenue is in control (fans) and some is in treatment (heat exchangers). Colfax supplies pumps, but also has substantial business outside the treatment and control sector. So Colfax only moved to number ten in the ranking.
Xylem is a divestiture of ITT. It is, therefore, a smaller player now than previously. GE is the largest company in the sector. Its acquisition of Dresser boosted its treatment and control revenues. Nevertheless, treatment and control is a small portion of total revenues.
The total market for treatment and control is forecasted to rise five percent to $340 billion in 2013. The leader will only garner two percent of the market, so the market will remain quite fractured.
The treatment and control is increasingly being recognized as a discrete market. Various players, however, view the market slightly differently. Parker Hannifin sees a $100 billion market in which it is the largest player at $13 billion. With its filtration, hydraulics and pneumatics products, it is a major participant in treatment and control but is not among the top five.
