Technological innovations driving the naval vessels MRO market

Friday 17 August 2012, Amsterdam

The Naval Vessels MRO market consists of four categories: Destroyers MRO, Frigates MRO, Submarines MRO and Aircraft Carriers MRO. The value of the market is expected to increase at a CAGR of 9.68% during the forecast period (2012-2022) (reference see graph).

Recent years has witnessed various countries upgrading their fleet of naval warships including frigates, cruisers, destroyers and amphibious ships with ballistic missile defense capabilities. With various countries currently involved in border disputes and other geo-political conflicts, governments are now upgrading their naval vessels with anti-ballistic missiles to combat existing threats. Specifically, a ballistic missile threat currently exists in Europe, Asia and the Middle East and the governments of these countries are spending robustly to equip their warships with integrated air defense combat systems.

Navies around the world are increasingly outsourcing the maintenance and logistics support contracts, both to maintenance specialists and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). This is primarily to increase their ability to respond to crisis situations and adapt to the dynamic nature of technology changes in the industry. The various blue water navies such as the Royal Navy, US Navy, Royal Australian, Hellenic and Royal Norwegian navies, as well as others in South America, have decided to adopt a strategy to focus their budgets on their field of expertise which includes managing fleet deployment and ensuring ships have a technological edge.

The naval vessels MRO sector is currently witnessing a phase of moderate M&A activity in keeping with the trend of sector consolidation when military demand falls. As defense spending has leveled off in recent years, companies operating in all areas of defense are looking to diversify their offerings in order to compete for the various contracts on offer, and add more revenue streams to their existing lines of business. Additionally, growing financial pressure, an overabundance of MRO companies and pressure from original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), is also expected to force a consolidation of the industry and a change in the MRO business model.