Sterilization Technology Market Size & Share Analysis - Trends, Drivers, Competitive Landscape, and Forecasts (2025 - 2032)

Sterilization Technology Market Size

Sterilization Technology Market Trends & Growth Drivers

Outsourcing of Sterilization Operations Is Key Market Trend

• The healthcare centers in North America and the Europe are increasingly outsourcing the functions of sterilization technology departments (SPD) to ensure better compliance with infection control standards, which further creates opportunities for the third-party service providers.
• Hospitals and surgical centers outsource the sterilization technology to provide better patient care and reduce the costs associated with instrument reprocessing, skilled professionals, and maintenance of sterilization equipment. Complex medical devices are difficult to clean and sterilize, and require skilled professionals to clean and sterilize them without hampering their quality and chemical and physical properties of raw materials such as plastics, rubber used in these devices.
• With limited budget and high complexity of these medical devices, hospitals prefer to outsource their sterilization technology operations to third party sterilization services, at on-site and off-site facilities.
• Thus, outsourcing of sterilization technology operations is a striking trend observed in the global sterilization technology market.

Rising Incidence of HAIs Drives Market

• HAIs, or infections acquired in healthcare settings, such as hospitals, ambulatory service centers, and clinics, are the most-frequent adverse events in healthcare delivery, globally.
• The increasing incidence of such infections has been leading to significant mortality and financial losses for the overall healthcare system. Out of every 100 hospitalized patients at a given time, around 10 in developing countries and 7 in developed countries are likely to acquire at least one such infection.
• Additionally, the burden of these infections is much higher in low-to-middle-income countries than high-income countries.
• Around 30% of the patients in intensive care units in high-income countries are affected by at least one HAI, whereas this incidence is two to three times higher in LMICs.
• Newborns in low-income countries are at a high risk of such infection, which are responsible for 4% to 56% of all the deaths in the neonatal period, with 75% of the deaths occurring in Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Surgical site infections are the major nosocomial infections in the general patient population in countries with limited resources.
• Further, the average prevalence of nosocomial infections in European countries is more than 7%, and every year, more than 4 million patients are affected by approximately 5 million episodes of nosocomial infections in the region.
• This rising incidence of nosocomial infections is expected to increase the need for equipment sterilization & processing in hospitals since a high incidence of infection is associated with the use of invasive equipment, such as intravenous lines and urinary catheters.

Emerging Economies Offer Growth Opportunities

• The healthcare industry in emerging economies is undergoing rapid changes due to rising health expenditure, increasing number of hospitals, rise in the number of surgeries, and rising healthcare awareness among individuals.
• Healthcare awareness has also increased in these economies owing to factors such as technological progress, demographic structure, epidemiological needs, and change in medical practices.
• Thus, people no longer hesitate to opt for surgery as an option for the treatment of various diseases.
• The government in emerging economies such as India, China, Brazil, and Mexico have been increasingly spending on healthcare facilities.
• According to government sources, India spent INR 5.85 lakh crore on healthcare in FY24. Similarly, China spent USD 1,268.603 billion (RMB 8,532.749 billion) on healthcare in 2022.
• Increasing government and private funding on healthcare in developing countries, has also led to improved medical care and increase in the number of hospitals with better infrastructure.
• These factors have led to an increase in medical tourism in developing countries.
• These nations offer cost-effective services, which is why a lot of people from Europe and North America come here every year for treatment.
• The biggest hubs for medical tourism are Mexico, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Turkey, Costa Rica, Taiwan, and Brazil, all of which are emerging economies.

Sterilization Technology Market Analysis

Offering Insights

Sterilization equipment holds the largest share, of around 55%, in 2024. This was mainly due to the increasing incidence of HAIs, growing number of hospitals, and booming pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries. A variety of equipment are available to provide various types of sterilization for a range of medical equipment, based on heat, steam, low temperature, radiation, and other forms of energy. Additionally, the leading position of the category is attributable to the rising number of surgeries, presence of a large number of semiconductor companies, and growing aging population. Further, many companies are showing higher regulatory compliance to medical safety standards, to offer safe and efficient healthcare.

Services are the fastest-growing category during the forecast period, primarily due to healthcare providers’ increasing preference for outsourcing these operations to third parties. By doing so, end users can cut the staff engaged in equipment sterilization and engage it somewhere more meaningful. Moreover, it is difficult for end users to keep up with the latest advancements in sterilization equipment and consumables, which third-party service providers always stay abreast of. Outsourcing also has a better chance of enabling compliance as the hospital staff is engaged more in patient care.

These offerings are part of the research scope:

• Equipment (Largest Category)
  • Heat sterilizers
    • Depyrogenation ovens
    • Steam autoclaves
  • Low-temperature sterilizers
    • Ethylene oxide sterilizers
    • Hydrogen peroxide sterilizers
    • Others
  • Sterile Membrane filters
  • Radiation-based sterilization devices
• Consumables
  • Detergents
  • Sterilization indicators
  • Sterilization pouches
  • Sterilization containers
  • Lubricants
  • Trays
  • Sterilization wraps
  • Others
• Services (Fastest-Growing Category)
  • Sterilization
  • Sterilization validation services

End User Insights

Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies hold the largest revenue share, of around 30%, in 2024 and they will also witness the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The growing number of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and their increasing production are driving the growth of the sterilization technology market. Due to the advances in technology, the pharmaceutical industry has entered an exciting new era in medicine development. With groundbreaking cell and gene therapies becoming more widely accessible, research methodologies are changing, and there are many intriguing prospects in the near future. Medical advancement both inspires and propels the inventive pharmaceutical sector. It seeks to translate fundamental research into cutting-edge therapies that are widely accessible to patients.

We studied the below-mentioned end users:

• Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies (Largest and Fastest-Growing Category)
• Hospitals
• Medical Device Companies
• Ambulatory Surgical Centers & Clinics
• Academic and Research Organizations

Application Insights

Medical devices dominate the market, with a revenue share of around 55% in 2024. This is due to the increasing rate of hospitalizations and the stringent safety regulations healthcare providers are subject to. Since the pandemic, the focus on hospital-acquired infections has again come to the limelight, forcing hospitals and clinics to make stronger efforts to sterilize their devices. All kinds of invasive and non-invasive medical devices, from general-purpose trays and rubber tubes to cautery and scalpels, need to be kept infection free.

The pharmaceuticals category will witness the higher CAGR during the forecast period. This is attributed to the growing demand for all kinds of pharmaceuticals with the increasing rate of acute and chronic diseases. In pharmaceutical industry, various sterilization processes such as team heat sterilization, filtration sterilization, irradiation sterilization, sterilization chemical are used to obtain a sterile product. All kinds of products used and created in this sector, including disposables, prescription pharmaceuticals, ointments, solutions, containers and drug delivery systems, and active substances, need to be sterile in order to ensure highest levels of patient safety.

Here is the application breakdown:

• Medical Devices (Larger Category)
• Pharmaceuticals (Faster-Growing Category)

Method Insights

The chemical category holds the largest share, and it will witness the highest CAGR till 2032. This is because biocides are the best option to kill bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protozoa accumulated on medical devices. Among the most-common chemicals used for keeping healthcare devices clean are ethylene dioxide, ozone, and hydrogen peroxide. Moreover, chemicals are widely used to sterilize devices and pharmaceuticals that are highly sensitive to heat and UV radiation.

The methods analyzed are listed below:

• Physical
• Chemical (Largest and Fastest-Growing Category)
• Mechanical

Regional Analysis

North America held the largest share, over 40%, in 2021. The growth in the North American sterilization technology market is led by the expanding R&D activities of pharmaceutical companies, increasing healthcare expenditure, proliferating geriatric population, booming number of hospitals, and escalating number of nosocomial infections cases. In addition, due to the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases, healthcare providers in the region are striving to provide sterile environments to patients, to avoid any further risk of infection.

The CDC states that 7 of the top 10 causes of death are chronic diseases. Two of these—heart diseases and cancer—together account for over 45% of all the deaths in the U.S. In addition, more than one in three adults suffers from at least one cardiovascular disease, and it is predicted that around 45% of the U.S. adult population will have some form of cardiovascular disease by 2030.

Moreover, the geriatric population is more prone to infections, and healthcare providers are trying to make sure these patients do not contract any infection during their stay in the hospital, which is further increasing the demand for sterile products. Furthermore, the healthcare expenditure in North America is expanding at a significant pace, thus propelling research and development investment. Much of this investment is accounted for by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, federal agencies, research institutions, voluntary health associations, professional societies, and state and local governments.

The APAC region will experience the highest growth rate during the forecast period, due to the increasing aging population, rising healthcare expenditure, growing pharmaceutical industry, and high pollution levels. People aged 65 years and above are estimated to account for approximately 20% of the region’s population by 2050. The elderly population is more prone to infections owing to its weak immune system, and its wounds heal slowly, due to its reduced regenerative capabilities. This has provoked healthcare providers to take more precautions to provide a sterile environment to the elderly, which is eventually driving the growth of the market in the region.

In addition, the growing medical tourism sector in emerging economies has been continuously improving the healthcare infrastructure, thereby increasing the use of advanced treatments and devices. Countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, India, and Thailand have emerged as lucrative destinations for medical tourism. The growing healthcare infrastructure in APAC is, in turn, creating huge revenue generation opportunities for medical device manufacturers and, ultimately, for entities that reprocess, repair, and sterilize such equipment in the region.

These regions and countries have been studied:

• North America (Largest Regional Market)
  • U.S. (Larger and Faster-Growing Country Market)
  • Canada
• Europe
  • France (Fastest-Growing Country Market)
  • Germany (Largest Country Market)
  • Italy
  • Spain
  • U.K.
  • Rest of Europe
• Asia-Pacific (APAC) (Fastest-Growing Regional Market)
  • China (Largest Country Market)
  • India (Fastest-Growing Country Market)
  • Japan
  • South Korea
  • Australia
  • Rest of APAC
• Latin America (LATAM)
  • Brazil (Largest Country Market)
  • Mexico (Fastest-Growing Country Market)
  • Rest of LATAM
• Middle East and Africa (MEA)
  • Saudi Arabia (Largest Country Market)
  • South Africa (Fastest-Growing Country Market)
  • Rest of MEA

Sterilization Technology Market Share

The market is severely fragmented as it includes a wide array of equipment and consumables. Additionally, even more companies that provide these solutions offer sterilization services, to whom end users are increasingly outsourcing these operations. While sterilization equipment is financially and technically intensive to produce, consumables are not. Consumables include rather common products, such as detergents, trays, gloves, pouches, and lubricants, as a result of which the competitive landscape shows significant fragmentation in the consumables and services segments.

Sterilization Technology Market News

• In November 2024, Getinge AB installed its complete surgical workflows portfolio at UT Health San Antonio Multispecialty and Research Hospital, slated to be inaugurated in December. The installed portfolio includes infection control (sterilizers, ultrasonics, and washers), Digital health solutions (Tegris OR Integration, Torin OR Management, and T-DOC Instrument Tracking), and surgical workplaces (surgical lights, OR tables, and ceiling supply units).
• In June 2024, Stryker Corporation entered into a partnership with Atrium Health subsidiary IRCAD North America to establish a surgical research, education, and training center in Charlotte, NC.
• In April 2024, 3m Company spun off its healthcare business, inclusive of its sterilization solutions, into a new company named Solventum.
• In June 2023, STERIS plc announced an agreement to purchase Becton, Dickinson and Company’s surgical and laparoscopic instrument and sterilization container business for USD 540 million.