Elizabeth Leigh
The market for electro-optical and infrared systems in the military will be worth $16.35 billion by 2020, according to a new MarketsandMarkets report.
The analysis firm said Monday the figure represents a 7.71 percent year-over-year increase and is prompted by growing demand for EO/IR systems in surveillance platforms.
Electro-optics are becoming popular in naval close-in weapons systems for threat detection and neutralization, the report says.
The report noted defense cuts in the U.S. federal budget would contribute to a market slowdown in North America compared to other regions, and that China is forecast to see growth in the EO subsector.
MarketsandMarkets says countries in the Asia-Pacific region will attempt to find niches in the market space and growing economies, particularly in southeastern countries, will open new opportunities for defense firms.
Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, L-3 Communications, BAE Systems, DRS, Northrop Grumman, Elbit Systems and Harris were among the companies profiled in the report.
