According to the most recent data releases from IHS, the global IT rack and enclosure market is expected to grow 4.7% in 2016 to reach $1.5 billion while the global rack PDU market is forecast to grow 5.6% to reach $999 million. Both markets have been and continue to be negatively affected by the slowness in the markets in Russia, the Middle East, and Brazil due to their respective economic and political struggles. Uncertainty surrounding the impact that Brexit will have on the economies of the UK, and the Eurozone as a whole, is expected to negatively affect market growth through 2017.

Unit shipments of IT racks and enclosures are mainly driven by new data center construction. However, revenue growth rates are predicted to be higher than unit growth rates because of shifts to products with larger dimensions, to premium models over basic models, and increased sales of accompanying airflow and cable management accessories, which customers often want integrated into the rack prior to shipping.

The rack PDU market is driven by shifts toward products with higher power ratings and more intelligent features, especially rack PDUs with switched outlets which saw significant growth in 2015. As demand for more automation within data centers increases, so does the need for power provisioning, capacity planning, and remote control. These functions along with the environmental monitoring and security features that rack PDUs enable drive growth of the rack PDU market as well.

Full market assessments are offered in the Data Center Rack Level Infrastructure Intelligence Service. The rack PDU and IT rack and enclosure research provides in-depth analysis across three world regions: the Americas, EMEA, and Asia. Unit shipments, average unit prices, and revenue are estimated for 2015 and forecast through 2020. The rack PDU market is segmented by sub-region, product type, power rating, form factor, input phase, sales channel, and vertical market. The IT rack and enclosure market is segmented by sub-region, product type, dimension, color, sales channel, vertical market, and application. Supplier market share estimates, and an analysis of the competitive environments, are also provided.