The MEA rugged phones market is expected to grow from US$ 152.39 million in 2019 to US$ 216.00 million by 2027; it is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 4.6 % from 2020 to 2027.
Notable growth opportunities for rugged phones in developing countries is expected to upsurge the MEA rugged phones market. The growing trend of industry and factory automation and digitalization across industries and rising investments in industrial development and government expenditure in MEA countries are a few of the key drivers fueling the demand for semi-rugged and ultra-rugged phone in military & defense, commercial, and industrial sectors in the region. Based on these factors, MEA countries are anticipated to be the fastest-growing markets for the adoption of rugged phones in the coming years. Huge population growth, rising disposable income, growing urbanization & industrialization levels, high adoption of smartphones/mobile phones, favorable government policies to promote industrial growth, and high investments in R&D activities related to mobile phone technologies and communication technologies are among the other key factors that are expected to boost the growth of MEA rugged phones market in coming years. Hence, the growing automation trend and high industrial growth is anticipated to offer lucrative growth and expansion opportunities for rugged mobile phone manufacturers in the MEA region.
Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, and Kuwait are the worst-affected countries due to the COVID-19 outbreak across MEA. MEA is witnessing a decline in telecom infrastructure development activities, temporary shutdown of businesses, disruptions in supply chain and manufacturing activities, and impact on sales & marketing activities of rugged phone companies. The region comprises many growing economies that are prospective markets for the demand of the rugged phones owing to the huge investments in industrial development, growing IT & telecommunication infrastructure, and high defense expenditure. Due to these factors, the demand for rugged phones is anticipated to increase across the region in coming years. On the other hand, the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak may hinder this demand due to decline in industrial activities and planned investments in various sectors. The estimated decline in economic growth of MEA due to uncertainty in oil prices and impact of COVID-19 on the growth of various industries in the region is expected to restrain the demand for rugged phones to some extent.
Based on end-user, the industrial segment led the MEA rugged phones market in 2019. The industrial sector includes transportation & logistics, construction, manufacturing, energy & utility, and facility management. As the demand for reliability, ease of use, significant intelligence, and advances in mesh networks in the industrial sector is expanding, the penetration of robotics, process control, automation, and Industry 4.0 is booming, which would play a vital role in boosting the adoption rate of rugged phones in coming years. In transportation sector, rugged phones play significant role. These phones are majorly beneficial for long-haul truckers, who might cover 100,000 miles per year on roads of different smoothness. The automation industry is heavily benefited from rugged phones in the manufacturing sector, as they can manage and control manufacturing requirements with minimal downtime and failure rates. In addition, manufacturing sites are surrounded with harmful chemicals, unpleasant and unwanted sounds, and heavy equipment. Use of rugged phones is receiving traction in these scenario, as it can allow workers to work in loud working conditions as well as keep them safe and comfortable, while ensuring an uninterrupted supply chain. The use of rugged phones is gaining high momentum in the industrial sector across MEA because of environment and climate-sensitive surroundings present in the industrial sector, which would drive the MEA rugged phones market during forecast period.
The overall MEA rugged phones market size has been derived using both primary and secondary sources. To begin the research process, exhaustive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the market. The process also serves the purpose of obtaining an overview and forecast for the MEA rugged phones market with respect to all the segments pertaining to the region. Also, multiple primary interviews have been conducted with industry participants and commentators to validate the data, as well as to gain more analytical insights into the topic. The participants of this process include industry experts such as VPs, business development managers, rugged phones market intelligence managers, and national sales managers, along with external consultants such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leaders, specializing in the MEA rugged phones market. Caterpillar Inc.; DOOGEE; Juniper Systems Inc.; Sonim Technologies Inc.; Unitech Electronics Co., LTD; and Zebra Technologies Corporation are among the players operating in the market.