Switching power supply products, with their excellent performance advantages, have become the largest category of power supply products. Their market size has grown rapidly with the growth of China's power supply industry. The market size of China's switching power supply has increased from 121.5 billion yuan in 2016 to 183.2 billion yuan in 2020.
With the arrival of the "low-carbon era" with the goal of peaking carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality, electronic devices are tending towards miniaturization, thinness, and energy conservation, further driving the growth of the switch mode power supply market.
In the future, as downstream enterprises such as new energy electric vehicles and new energy generation (photovoltaic) further increase their requirements and demands for switch mode power supply products in terms of energy conservation, environmental protection, and higher performance, the demand for some high value-added switch mode power supply products will continue to increase, which will drive the development of switch mode power supply product types. It is expected to reach 253.2 billion yuan by 2025.
2. Development trends in segmented markets of the switching power supply industry in China
① Industrial automation power supply
As the largest downstream application field of switch mode power supply products (accounting for over 50%), industrial automation power supply's good development trend and broad market prospects have a significant impact on the market growth of industrial control power supply. The scale of China's automation and industrial control market has increased from 139 billion yuan in 2015 to 205 billion yuan in 2020, with a compound annual growth rate of 8.08%. In 2020, the year-on-year growth rate was 9.92%, indicating a good growth trend. With the increasing aging population in China, the demographic dividend is gradually weakening, and the rise in labor costs will help improve the automation level of China's manufacturing industry. It is expected that the market size will exceed 300 billion yuan by 2025.
② Communication power supply
The development of the communication industry has provided a good opportunity for the development of domestic communication equipment manufacturers, while also driving the rapid development of the power supply industry. According to statistics from the China Power Supply Society and the China Electronics Group, the size of China's communication power supply market reached 22.5 billion yuan in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 28.57%.
③ LED lighting power supply
As one of the strategic emerging industries, the LED industry is becoming a growth point for China's green economy, and has formed a complete industrial chain of substrates, epitaxial wafers, chips, packaging, applications, and supporting equipment materials. In recent years, China's LED lighting industry has faced multiple pressures such as intensified industry competition, global economic downturn, and trade frictions between China and the United States, which have hindered the growth of China's LED lighting market. But with effective domestic epidemic prevention and control, China has become the most important supplier in the global industrial chain, and the recovery trend of the industry is promising.
According to the 2022 annual report of SZ. 300582, a leading company in the segmented field, and data from Global Industry Analytics, the global LED driver power market was approximately $16.3 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach $52.6 billion by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 21.56%.
3. Trends in technological development of switching power supply industry
① The development of high-frequency technology
At present, the rapid development of society undoubtedly puts forward new requirements for the development of switch mode power supply technology. At present, the switching frequency of switching converters has been significantly increased compared to the past. At the same time, with the increasing frequency, the volume of switching converters is also in a decreasing trend, which provides opportunities for the continuous improvement of switching power supply technology. However, the emergence of high-frequency switching technology undoubtedly accelerates the loss of internal components in switches and can also lead to a series of problems.
② The development of digital technology
For traditional switching power supplies, analog signals play a guiding role in the operation of the control part. At present, digital control has become the control method adopted by the vast majority of equipment, and switch mode power supply is also the main field for the future application of digital technology. At present, the research on digital power supply technology has become the main direction of research for researchers, and has also achieved many scientific research results, which undoubtedly plays a key role in promoting the development of digital technology for switching power supplies. In the future, digitalization will become one of the hot topics pursued by the market.
③ Development of Low Output Voltage Technology
As is well known, semiconductors play an extremely important role in switching power supplies, and the rapid development of semiconductor technology will directly play a positive role in the development of switching power supply technology. At present, for microprocessors and portable electronic devices, the stability of their operating voltage plays a crucial role in their use. Therefore, it is required that in the future, semiconductor device converters can use lower voltage to ensure the high-quality operation of microprocessors and electronic devices, while also clarifying the direction for the development of switching power supplies.
④ The development of modular technology
Modular technology can be divided into two aspects: power devices and power units. Through modular technology, the volume of switch mode power supplies can be greatly reduced, and all hardware can be integrated into a unit in the form of chips without compromising the reliability of the power system.
⑤ Small integrated switching power supplies will become the mainstream of modern power supply equipment
The miniaturization and weight reduction of power supplies are particularly important for portable electronic devices such as mobile phones, digital cameras, etc. Therefore, improving the power density and power conversion efficiency of switch mode power supplies, making them miniaturized and lightweight, is a goal that the industry is constantly striving to pursue. High frequency, soft switching technology, and modularity are the main technical means for miniaturization of power supplies, which will become a technological hotspot in the industry.
⑥ Energy saving, low-carbon, and environmentally friendly products have become a hot topic in the market pursuit
Low carbon economy has gradually become a consensus in global economic development. While adjusting its economic structure, China is also elevating low-carbon and environmental protection to a new level. With the determination of energy-saving and environmental protection goals in various fields, green switching power supply products will be widely applied, specifically reflected in the significant energy-saving performance and the characteristic of not polluting the public power grid of switching power supply products. National industrial policies will continue to promote the development of switching power supplies.