Structural Steel Fabrication Global Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2033

This report describes and explains the structural steel fabrication market and covers 2018-2023, termed the historic period, and 2023-2028, 2033F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global structural steel fabrication market reached a value of nearly $153.85 billion in 2023, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.44% since 2018. The market is expected to grow from $153.85 billion in 2023 to $233.54 billion in 2028 at a rate of 8.71%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 9.20% from 2028 and reach $362.7 billion in 2033.

Growth in the historic period resulted from the growth of the automotive industry, rising demand for energy and power, increased demand for maritime transport, expansion of the oil and gas industry and growing construction industry. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period include limited availability of skilled labor and increasing raw material costs.

Going forward, the rise in demand for primary steel, increasing investments in renewable energy projects, increase in mining activities and increasing industrialization will drive the market. Factors that could hinder the growth of the structural steel fabrication market in the future include supply chain disruptions.

The structural steel fabrication market is segmented by service into metal welding, metal forming, metal cutting, metal shearing, metal rolling, metal stamping and other services. The metal welding market was the largest segment of the structural steel fabrication market segmented by service, accounting for 29.03% or $44.66 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the metal cutting segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the structural steel fabrication market segmented by service, at a CAGR of 10.33% during 2023-2028.

The structural steel fabrication market is segmented by product into carbon steel, alloy steel, stainless steel and tool steel. The carbon steel market was the largest segment of the structural steel fabrication market segmented by product, accounting for 55.43% or $85.28 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the stainless steel segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the structural steel fabrication market segmented by product, at a CAGR of 9.46% during 2023-2028.

The structural steel fabrication market is segmented by end-users into automotive, construction, defense and aerospace, electronics, energy and power, manufacturing and other end-users. The construction market was the largest segment of the structural steel fabrication market segmented by end-users, accounting for 35.74% or $54.99 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the construction segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the structural steel fabrication market segmented by end-users, at a CAGR of 10.12% during 2023-2028.

Asia-Pacific was the largest region in the structural steel fabrication market, accounting for 37.16% or $57.17 billion of the total in 2023. It was followed by Western Europe, North America and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the structural steel fabrication market will be Africa and Asia-Pacific, where growth will be at CAGRs of 14.67% and 11.60% respectively. These will be followed by South America and the Middle East, where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 9.48% and 7.44% respectively.

The global structural steel fabrication market is highly fragmented, with a large number of small players operating in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up 1.06% of the total market in 2023. Mayville Engineering Company, Inc. was the largest competitor with a 0.18% share of the market, followed by BTD Manufacturing Inc. (Otter Tail Power Company) with 0.16%, SME Steel with 0.14%, O’Neal Manufacturing Services with 0.13%, IMS Companies, LLC with 0.12%, Ironform Corporation with 0.11%, AT&F with 0.08%, Tenere Inc. (Cadrex) with 0.06%, MERRILL Technologies Group with 0.06% and Morton Industries LLC with 0.03%.

The top opportunities in the structural steel fabrication market segmented by service will arise in the metal welding segment, which will gain $26.24 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the structural steel fabrication market segmented by product will arise in the carbon steel segment, which will gain $43.85 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the structural steel fabrication market segmented by end-users will arise in the construction segment, which will gain $34.05 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The structural steel fabrication market size will gain the most in China at $16.1 billion.

Market-trend-based strategies for the structural steel fabrication market include expansion of steel fabrication services to enhance capabilities, strategic partnerships transforming the structural steel fabrication industry and focus on increasing investment in cutting-edge fabrication technology.

Player-adopted strategies in the structural steel fabrication market include focus on strengthening business capabilities through opening new manufacturing facilities.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends the structural steel fabrication companies to focus on expanding steel fabrication services for enhanced precision and efficiency, focus on investing in cutting-edge steel fabrication technology, focus on metal cutting and metal welding segments for strategic growth, focus on stainless steel and alloy steel segments, expand in emerging markets, continue to focus on developed markets, focus on strategic partnerships, provide competitively priced offerings, participate in trade shows and events, continue to use B2B promotions and focus on construction and automotive end user segments.