The areas examined in the study at field, control and company level show significantly stronger growth than the Chinese economy as a whole. For the industrial automation sector as a whole, STM expects average annual growth of around 15% between 2015 and 2020. In other words, the market volume will almost double in the next five years. The consultants see the highest growth rates in the business with 3D printers, sensors, optimization software and robots. The Lörrach-based consultancy expects the largest nominal gains in the areas of sensor technology, robots and drives.