Pharma factories head for a tech upgrade as a new report spots a multi‑billion dollar MES market by 2030

Big forecast, clear signal: MES demand is rising at drug plants

MarketsandMarkets says the market for pharmaceutical manufacturing execution systems (MES) will grow to about $4.62 billion by 2030. That is a meaningful change for a part of pharma that often runs in the background: the software and tools that track and control what happens on the factory floor.

The headline matters because MES is how factories turn recipes into repeatable products while keeping records regulators expect. If that market is set to grow noticeably, it means many drugmakers are planning upgrades to digital systems that can enforce quality, speed up production changes and make audits less painful.

The report’s number does not mean every plant will rip out old systems tomorrow. But it does signal a steady wave of investment in software, integrations and consulting. For patients, the practical result could be fewer delays in drug production and fewer supply snags. For manufacturers and vendors, it points to new business and tougher competition.

Why factories are buying MES now

Three plain forces are pushing companies to buy or upgrade MES software.

First, regulators and customers expect better records. Pharma is tightly monitored. Companies must prove every step of every batch. Modern MES software automates record‑keeping and reduces manual paperwork, which cuts the risk of compliance problems.

Second, producers want more flexibility. Drug portfolios change as companies add new therapies, biosimilars and vaccine lines. MES helps factories switch between products faster while keeping the same level of control. That makes plants more useful and less likely to sit idle when demand shifts.

Third, the drive to digitalize manufacturing is gaining speed across industries, and pharma is catching up. Integrating MES with analytics, quality systems and shop‑floor equipment can reveal wasted time, recurring defects or capacity gaps. Those insights translate into real savings or faster output.

These drivers combine to create a steady demand for software, services and integration work — the three areas that typically account for most of the spending in a market like this.

Which products and regions will lead the growth

The MES market breaks down in a few logical ways: by product type (software licenses vs. cloud services), by deployment (on‑premises vs. cloud), by end user (large drugmakers vs. contract manufacturers) and by region.

On the product side, software and services go hand in hand. Many buyers still prefer on‑premise systems for sensitive operations, especially when work involves controlled substances or complex biologics. But cloud and hybrid deployments are growing because they make updates and cross‑site coordination easier.

Contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs) are a fast‑moving customer group. CMOs run many different products for many clients, so they benefit from MES tools that can handle changeovers and keep strict separation between customers’ records. Large, vertically integrated drugmakers also continue to invest as they modernize flagship plants.

Regionally, demand is strongest where manufacturing is already concentrated: North America and Europe lead because of dense pharma hubs and strict regulatory regimes. But Asia-Pacific is important for volume growth, driven by expanding capacity and rising exports from places like China and India. In short: established markets buy upgrades, and growth markets add new installations.

Who wins and who should watch out

Software vendors, systems integrators and consulting firms stand to gain the most from a larger MES market. Vendors that offer flexible deployments, strong validation support and tight links to lab, quality and automation systems will be in demand.

CMOs and drugmakers that move early can capture operational gains: fewer batch failures, faster validation cycles and better capacity use. But the transition is not risk‑free. Implementations can be costly and disruptive. Projects that lack clear scope or executive backing often run late or fail to deliver promised benefits.

Smaller vendors and niche consultancies may find opportunities in specialized areas — for example, MES tailored to biologics, sterile manufacturing, or packaging lines. At the same time, larger enterprise software firms could raise the bar on integration and pricing, making competition tougher for newcomers.

Overall, the setup looks positive for businesses that sell or use MES, but the gains will be uneven. Winners will be those that combine strong software with hands‑on integration and regulatory know‑how.

How the forecast was built — and where it may miss the mark

The number in this report comes from a commercial market study produced by MarketsandMarkets. Studies like this typically combine public data, company filings, interviews with industry players and market modelling to produce growth projections and segment splits.

That approach is useful for spotting big trends, but it has limits. Forecasts can be sensitive to assumptions about how quickly factories invest, how comfortable regulators are with cloud solutions, and unexpected shocks such as supply chain disruptions or sudden changes in drug demand. Paid reports also summarize a lot of data in a compact way, which means some local or niche differences may be smoothed over.

If you want the detailed tables, vendor shares or the full methodology, the complete report is available directly from the publisher. For readers following the space, the takeaway is simple: pharma makers are planning steady, real upgrades to factory software, and that creates a larger, more competitive market for MES and services over the rest of the decade.

Sources

• prnewswire.com