Real-time Location Systems Market Size, Share & Industry Trends Growth Analysis Report by Hardware (Tags/Badges, Readers/Trackers), Technology (RFID, Wi-Fi, UWB, BLE, Infrared, Ultrasound, GPS, Zigbee, RuBee), Application (Inventory/Asset Tracking, Personnel Monitoring), Region - Global Forecast to 2029
Updated on : Sep 13, 2024
Real-time Location Systems Market Size & Share
[274 Pages Report] The global real-time location system market size is projected to grow from USD 6.03 billion in 2024 to USD 15.79 billion by 2029, at a CAGR of 21.2%.
An RTLS is a system that comprises hardware and software to track or locate the real-time location of personnel or assets in a facility. RTLS solutions are integrated with several technologies, such as RFID, Wi-Fi, UWB, GPS, BLE, and infrared (IR), to ensure real-time tracking of assets or personnel. These solutions typically consist of several components, including tags or badges attached to objects carried by individuals, readers, or sensors deployed throughout the area.
Additionally, there is a central software platform that processes and displays the location data in real time. RTLS solutions automatically locate and identify objects, people, or targets within a designated area. Furthermore, factors such as the increasing development of cost-effective and application-specific RTLS solutions by startups and the growing emphasis on maintaining patient and staff safety in healthcare facilities are driving the market growth. Additionally, the rising need for efficient resource utilization and workflow optimization and the increasing popularity of hybrid RTLS solutions are likely to create opportunities for market players.
Real-time Location Systems Market Forecast to 2029
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AI Impact on Real-time Location Systems Market
The real-time location system industry in Asia Pacific is projected to reach USD 4.55 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 26.1% from 2024 to 2029. The healthcare sector in the region is prominently focused on adopting advanced products to automate critical processes, including asset (medical equipment), staff, and patient tracking, hand hygiene monitoring, and vehicle tracking in hospitals and healthcare facilities. Similarly, the rising adoption of RTLS solutions in the automotive and manufacturing sectors will make the region a lucrative market in the coming years.
Real-time Location Systems Market Trends
Driver: Rising adoption of RTLS tags for asset tracking to improve return on investment
Several organizations in almost all sectors, such as healthcare, manufacturing, and retail, rely on RTLS solutions to track asset location. For instance, the RTLS helps accurately record when an item is out of service and under maintenance, allowing an organization to limit its purchase and avoid owning more equipment than necessary. Thus, it helps provide a high return on investment.
Further, the RTLS system also helps increase the productivity of the organizations by readily locating and monitoring the assets in real-time, thereby minimizing the time taken in equipment search, reducing paperwork, and contributing to the increased efficiency and productivity of the organizations. Furthermore, RTLS asset tracking is also used in supply chain operations to save time by improving the inventory turnover ratio, capturing the asset-related data, and significantly tracking the location. Further, by analyzing this data, the enterprises effectively manage their assets and hence increase their productivity along with a high return on investment.
Restraint: Data security and privacy issues
The most critical concerns regarding the industry, such as healthcare, are based on data security and privacy. Cyberattacks are a big threat; therefore, it is vital for an organization to have a secure entry point into their networks and systems, which can act as the limiting factor for the implementation of RTLS.
Another fear expressed by professionals in different industries is that an RTLS solution may be used to monitor the activities of individual workers, such as their breaks and work timings. This makes people afraid of losing their freedom. Electronic data in the US doubled in three years and could be attributed to the rise of internet use, smartphones, social networks, machine-generated data, etc.
However, it can be seen that most of the regular healthcare activities, including credit card payments for co-pays and over-the-counter medications, often tend to reveal patient medical and health data outside HIPAA protection. With the constant growth in the digital world, public concerns about privacy seem to grow. Despite efforts by companies to educate their customers and staff about RTLS, data privacy and security remain a huge concern.
Opportunity: Rising need for efficient resource utilization and workflow optimization
Many organizations struggle to manage resources in the best possible way to optimize workflows, increase production, track assets, and monitor them to reduce costs. This is exactly where an RTLS comes into play as a tracking system for assets and personnel.
Enterprises can save costs and consequently increase profits if existing resources are utilized efficiently. An RTLS implements real-time tracking and asset management, consequently decreasing inventory and stock management costs. Asset tracking benefits the healthcare sector in terms of better patient safety and improved bed utilization ratios.
The technology also facilitates supply chain operations by rendering them error-free and less time-consuming than manual stock-and-inventory-based work. Increasing awareness about different advantages associated with automatic asset tracking and management is due to expected growth within the healthcare sector in the next few years.
Challenges: Interoperability issues due to lack of standardization
RTLS solutions are offered to end users in various sectors, but the existence of several protocols does not allow for integration. The infrastructures used in various organizations are not the same, and they lack interoperability which presents a challenge for end users.
A few companies, such as Zebra Technologies Corporation (US) and Securitas Technology (US), deliver RTLS solutions that support more than a single protocol, but the majority of the market players are focused on providing a solution that supports one protocol. As there are several technologies operating on different protocols and frequency bands, such as the frequency band for Wi-Fi is 4 GHz and 5 GHz and that of UWB is 3.1 to 10.6 GHz, there is limited or no interoperability among RTLS solutions.
Thus, the main challenge in the real-time location system market is to combine multiple interoperable technologies in solutions. Organizations deploying RTLS solutions also need to make drastic changes in their infrastructure, which include installing more servers and middleware. This includes the installation of location readers in various doorways and hallways within the premises and the modification of the existing asset location protocol. Failure to standardize these protocols will hinder interoperability with different providers. Furthermore, vendors’ non-compliance with existing standards and the use of proprietary technologies, such as specialized tags or custom readers, for tracking have been identified as significant barriers to adopting RTLS technology.
Real-time Location System Market Ecosystem
The RTLS ecosystem comprises key components, such as hardware and software, which include tags, readers, antennas, and positioning software, utilizing RFID, UWB, BLE, Wi-Fi, and GPS technologies. These systems are applied in asset and personnel tracking, workflow optimization, and inventory management across healthcare, manufacturing, logistics, and retail industries. It involves various services, including installation, integration, maintenance, and data analytics. The hardware components include tags, sensors, gateways, and handheld readers, all working to deliver real-time location data, enhancing visibility and operational efficiency.
Real-time Location System Market Segment
Services Segment to Grow at Significant CAGR During Forecast Period.
The services segment in the real-time location system market is expected to record a significant CAGR during the forecast period. This growth is directly linked to the increasing demand for customized solutions that meet the specific needs of businesses. In addition to customization, there is a strong need for comprehensive installation, ongoing maintenance, and robust support services.
These elements are crucial in ensuring that RTLS solutions not only meet the high standards required by modern enterprises but also maintain optimal performance over time. As organizations continue to realize the substantial benefits of customized RTLS solutions in terms of enhanced efficiency, improved safety, and cost savings, the services segment emerges as a key driver of growth and innovation in the real-time location system market. Additionally, the rise in complex RTLS deployments across several industries, such as healthcare, manufacturing, and logistics, drives the demand for professional services, fueling segmental growth.
Wi-Fi Technology to Hold Major Market Share During Forecast Period.
Wi-Fi RTLS is anticipated to dominate the market across all technologies. This can be attributed to the large number of installations, its cost-effectiveness, and seamless integration with the existing infrastructure. RTLS solutions enabled by Wi-Fi fully cover indoor environments in accurate location tracking, including warehouses, hospitals, and retail spaces, making them preferable for many applications, such as inventory or asset tracking and access control & security.
Moreover, their compatibility with a wide range of devices and systems in an existing Wi-Fi infrastructure in the vicinity increases their adoption across many sectors, such as manufacturing and automotive, logistics, and retail.
Real-time Location System Market Regional Analysis
Asia Pacific to be Fastest-growing market During Forecast Period.
Asia Pacific is one of the key future potential regions for the real-time location system market. The market in this region is expected to exhibit the highest CAGR during the forecast period.
Asia Pacific is witnessing advancements in the healthcare, manufacturing, automotive, and logistics sectors as several facilities in these sectors adopt newer technology-based products to improve their performance and automate certain processes.
Japan is the early adopter of RTLS in this region and has witnessed the highest growth in the real-time location system market. Countries such as South Korea, China, and Australia are expected to witness high growth in the market. The growing healthcare sector of China is expected to be the driving factor for the development of the real-time location system market in China.
Real-time Location Systems Market by Region
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Top Real-time Location System Companies - Key Market Players
Major players in the Real-time Location Systems companies
- Securitas Technology (Sweden),
- Zebra Technologies Corp. (US),
- HPE Aruba Networking (US),
- Impinj, Inc. (US), and
- Savi Technology (US). Other notable players in the market include TeleTracking Technologies, Inc. (US), CenTrak, Inc. (US), GE HealthCare (US), and UBISENSE (UK), among others.
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Report Metric |
Details |
| Estimated Market Size | USD 6.03 billion in 2024 |
| Projected Market Size | USD 15.79 billion by 2029 |
| Growth Rate | CAGR of 21.2% |
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Market Size Availability for Years |
2020–2029 |
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Base Year |
2023 |
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Forecast Period |
2024–2029 |
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Forecast Units |
Value (USD Million) |
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Segments Covered |
By Offering, Technology, Application, Vertical, and Region |
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Geographies Covered |
North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and RoW |
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Companies Covered |
The major players include Securitas Technology (Sweden), Zebra Technologies Corporation (US), HPE Aruba Networking (US), Impinj, Inc. (US), Savi Technology (US), TeleTracking Technologies, Inc. (US), CenTrak, Inc. (US), GE HealthCare (US), UBISENSE (UK), Alien Technology, LLC (US), AiRISTA (US), Sonitor Technologies (US), Midmark Corporation (US), and Others (Total 34 players have been covered). |
Real-time Location Systems Market Highlights
This research report categorizes the real-time location system market by offering, technology, application, vertical, and region available at the regional and global level
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Segment |
Subsegment |
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Based on Offering |
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Based on Technology |
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Based on Application |
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Based on Vertical |
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Based on Region |
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Recent Developments in Real-time Location System Industry
- In June 2024, Twinzo, a provider of no-code live digital twin technology, partnered with Quuppa to revolutionize the location-based services market with innovative technologies that enhance efficiency and innovation across various industries, such as manufacturing, logistics, and healthcare.
- In March 2024, Sonitor Technologies launched SonitorONE, the latest advancement in locating technology. It offers more flexibility than existing real-time locating systems by giving customers a choice of tags and accuracy levels to enable their desired use cases.
- In November 2023, Impinj, Inc. launched the R720 RAIN RFID reader. It has more processing power and memory than Impinj’s prior-generation reader and helps meet the most demanding requirements of large-scale enterprise deployments.
Key Questions Addressed in Report:
Who are the key players in the real-time location system market? What growth strategies they have followed to strengthen their position in the market?
Major players in the real-time location system market include Securitas Technology (Sweden), Zebra Technologies Corp. (US), HPE Aruba Networking (US), Impinj, Inc. (US), and Savi Technology (US). These companies adopted strategies such as acquisitions, product launches, collaborations, agreements, and contracts to withstand the competitive landscape of this market.
What are the new opportunities for emerging players in the real-time location system value chain?
The rising need for efficient resource utilization and workflow optimization and the escalating adoption of healthcare IoT solutions are among a few major drivers and opportunities for the real-time location system market.
Which vertical of the real-time location system market is expected to drive the market's growth in the next five years?
The healthcare vertical is anticipated to experience a more substantial expansion during the projected timeframe. The growth of the healthcare market can be attributed to the growing need for patient safety and asset tracing.
Which region to offer lucrative growth opportunities for the real-time location system market by 2029?
During the projected period, it is anticipated that North America will lead the real-time location system market.
Which application of the real-time location system market is expected to drive the market's growth in the next five years?
Inventory/Asset – Tracking & Management application is anticipated to drive the market growth in the coming years.
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The study involved four major activities for estimating the real-time location system market size. Exhaustive secondary research has been conducted to collect information relevant to the market, its peer markets, and its child market. Primary research has been undertaken to validate key findings, assumptions, and sizing with industry experts across the value chain of the real-time location system market. Both top-down and bottom-up approaches have been employed to estimate the complete market size. It has been followed by the market breakdown and data triangulation methods to estimate the size of different segments and subsegments of the market.
Secondary Research
The research methodology used to estimate and forecast the size of the real-time location system market began with the acquisition of data related to the revenues of key vendors in the market through secondary research. Various secondary sources have been referred to in the secondary research process for identifying and collecting information for this study. Secondary sources include annual reports, press releases, and investor presentations of companies; white papers, journals, certified publications, and articles by recognized authors; websites; directories; and databases. Secondary research has mainly been used to obtain key information about the supply chain of the real-time location system market, the value chain of the market, key players, market classification, and segmentation according to the industry trends to the bottom-most level, geographic markets, and key developments from both market and technology-oriented perspectives. Secondary data has been collected and analyzed to determine the overall market size, further validated through primary research. The secondary research referred to for this research study involves the RFID Journal, Healthtech Magazine, UWB Alliance, and others. Moreover, the study involved extensive use of secondary sources, directories, and databases, such as Hoovers, Bloomberg Businessweek, Factiva, and OneSource, to identify and collect valuable information for a technical, market-oriented, and commercial study of the real-time location system market. Vendor offerings have been taken into consideration to determine market segmentation.
Primary Research
In the primary research, various primary sources from both the supply and demand sides have been interviewed to obtain the qualitative and quantitative information relevant to this report. Primary sources from the supply side include the key industry participants, subject-matter experts (SMEs), and C-level executives and consultants from various key companies and organizations in the real-time location systems ecosystem. After the complete market engineering (including calculations for the market statistics, the market breakdown, the market size estimations, the market forecasting, and the data triangulation), extensive primary research has been conducted to verify and validate the critical market numbers obtained. Extensive qualitative and quantitative analyses have been performed during the market engineering process to list key information/insights throughout the report. Extensive primary research has been conducted after understanding the real-time location system market scenario through secondary research. Several primary interviews have been conducted with market experts from the demand and supply-side players across key regions, namely, the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Rest of the World (Middle East, Africa, and South America). Various primary sources from both the supply and demand sides of the market have been interviewed to obtain qualitative and quantitative information. Following is the breakdown of the primary respondents.
Primary data has been collected through questionnaires, emails, and telephonic interviews. In the canvassing of primaries, various departments within organizations, such as sales, operations, and administration, were covered to provide a holistic viewpoint in our report. After interacting with industry experts, brief sessions were conducted with highly experienced independent consultants to reinforce the findings from our primaries. This and the in-house subject matter experts’ opinions have led us to the findings described in the remainder of this report.
To know about the assumptions considered for the study, download the pdf brochure
Market Size Estimation
The total size of the real-time location system market has been estimated and validated using both top-down and bottom-up approaches. Furthermore, these methods have also been used extensively to estimate the size of various subsegments in the market. The research methodology used to estimate the market size is as follows:
- Identifying different entities influencing the value chain of the real-time location system market
- Identifying major companies, system integrators, and service providers operating in the market
- Estimating the size of the real-time location system market for each region based on demand for RTLS.
- Tracking the ongoing and upcoming real-time location system projects to forecast the market size based on these developments and other critical parameters
- All percentage shares, splits, and breakdowns have been determined using secondary sources and verified through primary sources.
- Qualitative aspects such as market drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges have been taken into consideration while calculating and forecasting the market size.
Global Real-time Location System Market Size: Bottom-Up Approach
Global Real-time Location System Market Size: Top-down Approach
Data Triangulation
After arriving at the overall size of the real-time location system market from the market size estimation process explained above, the total market has been split into several segments and subsegments. Data triangulation and market breakdown procedures have been employed, wherever applicable, to complete the overall market engineering process and arrive at the exact statistics for all segments and subsegments of the market. The data has been triangulated by studying various factors and trends from both the demand and supply sides. Along with this, the market size has been validated using both top-down and bottom-up approaches.
Market Definition
An RTLS automatically locates and identifies objects, people, or targets within a designated area in real time. RTLS systems typically consist of several components, including tags or badges, attached to objects or carried by individuals, readers, or sensors deployed throughout the area, and a central software platform that processes and displays the location data in real-time. RTLS tags/badges/sensors attached to objects or worn by people communicate wirelessly with readers/trackers/access points installed in the vicinity.
RTLS solutions utilize various technologies, such as radio-frequency identification (RFID), wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi), ultrasound, infrared (IR), or global positioning systems (GPS), to determine the position and movement of assets or individuals with a high level of accuracy. The primary purpose of RTLS is to provide real-time visibility and monitoring of assets or people in industries such as healthcare, manufacturing, logistics, warehousing, and transportation. It enables organizations to track the location of valuable items, monitor the flow of goods, enhance operational efficiency, improve safety, prevent theft or loss, and optimize resource allocation.
Stakeholders:
- RTLS Hardware Providers
- RTLS Software Providers
- RTLS-related Service Providers
- Government Bodies and Policymakers
- Industry-standard Organizations, Forums, Alliances, and Associations
- Market Research and Consulting Firms
- Raw Material Suppliers and Distributors
- Research Institutes and Organizations
- Testing, Inspection, and Certification Providers
- Distributors and Resellers
- End Users
Report Objectives
- To define, describe, segment, and forecast the size of the real-time location system market by offering, technology, application, and vertical in terms of value
- To describe and forecast the market for four main regions, namely, the North America, Asia Pacific, Europe, and RoW, in terms of value
- To provide detailed information regarding the drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges influencing the growth of the market
- To provide a detailed overview of the value chain of the real-time location system ecosystem
- To strategically analyze micro-markets with respect to individual growth trends, prospects, and their contributions to the overall market
- To strategically analyze the ecosystem, Porter’s five forces, regulations, region-wise regulations, upcoming technologies in the market, revenue shift model in the market, patent landscape, trade landscape, and case studies pertaining to the market under study
- To analyze opportunities in the market for the stakeholders by identifying high-growth segments in the market
- To strategically profile key players and provide details of the current competitive landscape
- To analyze strategic approaches adopted by players in the real-time location system market, such as product launches and developments, acquisitions, collaborations, agreements, contracts, expansions, and partnerships
Available Customizations
With the given market data, MarketsandMarkets offers customizations according to the company’s specific needs. The following customization options are available for the report:
Company Information:
- Detailed analysis and profiling of additional market players based on various blocks of the value chain.
Generating Response ...
Growth opportunities and latent adjacency in Real-time Location Systems Market
I want to put value proposition for RTLS integration companies
We would like to go through the Real-time Location Systems Market (RTLS) in greater details specifically for our region Saudi Arabian Market.
Want to get to know more about this RTLS market
Good afternoon We are interested in this report on RTLS, as well as the one on Hospital Capacity Management Solutions but was curious how they are delivered and how single/corporate users are handled. Are these PDF documents or online only? Thank you, Aaron Huet
Using geomagnetic technology based RTLS systems usually eliminates the need for additional hardware, still the penetration of this technology is very less in this market. I wanted to get in-depth information about this technology with respect to real time tracking. Have you considered geomagnetic technologies in the study?
RFID is one of the oldest and most used technology in the RTLS market. We are currently in the business of providing passive RFID technology based products and are planning to includes active RFID products in our offerings. For this purpose I'm interested in knowing volume data of active RFID tags, is it covered in the study?
We are planning to expand our offerings in Asian market, so would like to get insights on UWB and BLE technologies for Asian region.
I can see that the RTLS market is witnessing significant growth in the APAC region. We are planning to expand our presence in this region, so would like to know if insights on drivers and restraints specific to market in APAC available in the report?
Hello I need an RTLS solution to control the monitoring of our fleet of biomedical equipment. Cordially
Healthcare is one of the key application area of RTLS. We want to expand our offerings to cater to clients from healthcare industry. Is the information on this industry available in the report?