Central Lab Market Expected to Reach $6 Billion by 2031—Allied Market Research

According to a new report published by Allied Market Research, titled, “Central Lab Market," The central lab market was valued at $3.3 billion in 2021, and is estimated to reach $6 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 6% from 2022 to 2031. 

Central labs play a critical role in the drug development process, providing testing and analysis services to pharmaceutical, biotech companies, and academic & research institutions to evaluate the safety and efficacy of potential new drugs and treatments. The major factors driving the growth of central lab market are rise in number of clinical trials, rise in adoption of central labs by pharmaceutical companies, and globalization of drug development. As more pharmaceutical and biotech companies seek to bring new drugs and treatments to market, the number of clinical trials being conducted has increased significantly in recent years. The demand for central lab services has grown in response to the increasing number of clinical trials being conducted, as pharmaceutical and biotech companies seek to leverage the expertise and resources of specialized laboratories to support their research and development efforts.  

For instance, according to U.S. National Library of Medicine 2023, ongoing number of clinical trials accounted for approximately 444,077 across 221 countries in 2023, thus rise in number of clinical trials is expected to drive the market growth.  

Further, central labs provide a range of testing and analysis services to support drug development and manufacturing, such as raw material and product testing, stability testing, and process validation. These services help pharmaceutical and biotech companies to ensure the safety and efficacy of their products, as well as comply with regulatory requirements. In addition, outsourcing of central lab work is increasingly being adopted by the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, as companies look for ways to streamline their operations, reduce costs, and accelerate the drug development process, thus driving the market growth. Thus, central labs help to increase manufacturing flexibility by providing specialized laboratory services and support the development & manufacture of new drugs and treatments, thereby driving the growth of the central lab market size.  

Moreover, the demand for central lab services is expected to continue growing in the coming years, driven by the need for new and effective drugs to address chronic diseases and conditions, and are also the upcoming central lab market trends. Thus, central labs play a critical role in the drug development process, providing essential testing and analysis services to support the development of new drugs and treatments, thereby driving the market expansion. 

Further, rise in adoption of strategies such as partnerships, expansion, and collaboration to cater to the demand of central labs is expected to fuel the growth of market. For instance, MLM Medical Labs and TruLab have partnered to support clinical trials worldwide through blockchain-powered sample tracking from point of collection to analysis. Thus, such partnership offers a combined solution to eliminate the decades-old industry need for end-to-end sample tracking and digital visibility. 

On the basis of services, the market is bifurcated into genetic services, biomarker services, anatomic pathology and histology, specimen management and storage, and others. The biomarker services segment occupied largest central lab market size in 2021 and is expected to register highest CAGR during the forecast period owing to increasing use of biomarkers in drug development & clinical research, and to measure physiological or disease-related processes, such as response to treatment, disease progression, and patient prognosis.  

On the basis of end user, the central lab market analysis is categorized into pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, and others. The pharmaceutical companies segment occupied largest central lab market share in 2021 and is expected to register highest CAGR during the forecast period owing to rise in number of clinical trials for new drugs, rise in investments in R&D activities, and rise in prevalence of chronic diseases.  

Region wise, North America accounted for a majority of the global central lab market share in 2021, and is anticipated to remain dominant during the forecast period. This is attributed to strong presence of key players along with availability of advanced technologies, large presence of pharmaceutical & biotech companies, and rise in government initiatives promoting research activities for development of novel drugs which majorly drives the market growth in North America. However, Asia-Pacific is anticipated to witness notable growth, owing to increase in number of clinical studies, rising number of central labs services provider companies, increasing investments in pharmaceutical R&D activities, and favorable regulatory guidelines for clinical trials in the region will drive the growth of the central lab market forecast. 

Key findings of the study 

• By services, the biomarker services segment was highest contributor to the central lab industry in 2021.  
• On the basis of end user, the pharmaceutical companies segment dominated the central lab industry in 2021.  
• Region wise, North America generated the largest revenue in 2021. However, Asia-Pacific is anticipated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period.