NEW YORK -- The world market for SMT screen printers will grow from $190.2 million in 2005 to $366.4 million in 2012, a research firm said today. Sales of glue dispensers will grow from $26.3 million in 2005 to $42.1 million in 2012, said Frost & Sullivan.

“The demand for screen printers especially in the Asian region is on the rise,” says Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Lavanya Ram Mohan. “This will boost the total screen printer market. This is a direct result of the explosive growth of the electronics manufacturing service providers market in Asia, especially China.”

For printers, that's an average annual growth rate of 25.2%. For dispensers, it's an AAGR of 2.26%.

Frost also reiterated a June study that forecast the world SMT cleaning equipment to grow from $34.3 million last year to $55 million in 2012, an AAGR of about 3%.

“Lead-free manufacturing has caused process changes in the SMT line that have placed more emphasis on cleaning,” said Frost industry manager Keith Robinson. “With more residue left on the assembly during lead-free manufacturing, industries that did not historically clean are likely to do so between 2006 and 2010, thus creating new market opportunities.”