The global motion control and motor market experienced record growth in 2018, with $3.827 billion in shipments, up 8 percent over 2017. According to the Motion Control & Motor Association, part of the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), shipments were up 3 percent in the last quarter of the year, at $946 million, contributing to the overall annual growth of the market.
 
“Motion control and motor technologies are getting smarter, more capable and more productive, and as a result, are playing pivotal roles in increasing the overall productivity of any given operation,” said Dana Whalls, vice president of A3. “As these technologies continue to advance, especially those targeted at progressively smaller devices, the industry will see even more growth.”
 
The largest categories within the overall market were motors (40 percent), actuators and mechanical systems (19 percent), and electronic drives (17 percent). Those three categories grew 11 percent to $1.508 billion, 12 percent to $735 million, and 7 percent to $641 million respectively, which contributed to the overall growth. The strong performance in these markets highlights the substantial role motion control and motor technologies play in growing automation worldwide.