Engineering Services Outsourcing Market Size, Share, Growth, Report 2024 to 2033

Engineering Services Outsourcing Market Size, Growth 2024 to 2033

The global engineering services outsourcing market size was valued at USD 2,566.25 billion in 2024 and is expected to be worth around USD 12,698.85 billion by 2033, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.4% from 2024 to 2033.

Engineering Services Outsourcing or ESO is an emerging segment whereby design services are outsourced to third-party service vendors. This market covers multiple service offerings such as product and process design and development, automation, and process and equipment maintenance.

Some factors that spurred the ESO Market include the ever-increasing cost-cutting measures in organizations, product development, and access to specialized skills. The rise in new and innovative technologies such as AI, IoT, and cloud computing is changing how companies address engineering challenges by hastening ways toward efficient results. Additionally, ESO has a wide market within industries such as automotive, aerospace, telecom, and healthcare companies, which need to get engineering services outsourced to enhance efficiency and bring new products to market.

The advancement in digital twin technology, 3D printing, and smart manufacturing solutions broadens the opportunities to grow for ESO and enables companies to advance while keeping the central business process intact. Due to the need for innovative, easily expandable services for clients and as industrialized nations and developing technological giants increasingly adopt ESO, the industry is predicted to progress correspondingly.

• According to the AIP Report the global Engineering R&D spend in 2020 was USD 1.2 trillion, with corporate Engineering R&D spend being USD 772 billion. Automotive, software & internet, and healthcare comprised of approximately 50 percent of the USD 772 billion Engineering R&D spend by corporates. The digital engineering spend is estimated to form 40 percent of global ER&D spend by 2023.
• According to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Electrical and computer engineers, some of the highest-paid engineers, are losing out the fastest to the offshoring trend. From 2000 to 2004, the number of employed electrical and electronics engineers dropped from 444,000 to 343,000.

Report Highlights

• Asia-Pacific holds the largest share of the global ESO market, accounted 42.10% in 2023.
• Europe has held second position in 2023, accounted revenue share 26.40%.
• By location, the on-shore segment has garnered 58% of the total revenue share in 2023.
• By application, the industrial segment has accounted revenue share of 56.14% in 2023.

Engineering Services Outsourcing Market Growth Factors

• Rising Demand for Cost Efficiency and Specialization: Manufacturers and suppliers across industries have started outsourcing their engineering services to cut down costs and gain from expert talent. It was due to other reasons such as the necessity for companies to stay efficient while addressing their main operations; and this is why they outsource everyone, from product designers and developers, process organizers and architects, to technical support specialists.
• Technological Advancements: This is like the Internet of Things (IoT), automation and artificial intelligence (AI total) among others are the driving forces behind expansion of the ESO market. These technologies are being adopted by engineering service providers and embedded into services to help organizations advance innovation and optimize delivery of new product designs, systems solutions, and business processes.
• Globalization and Market Expansion: Especially as companies are interested in expanding internationally ESO is gaining popularity as a way to source engineering skills in particular countries. Companies operating in automotive, aerospace, telecommunications, and healthcare industries are using global ESO services to grow, expand innovation, and address local regulations.
• Environmental and Sustainability Focus: This causes pressure on the engineering industry as clients ask for methods that help cut on the carbon footprint and better management of resources. ESO providers are in various ways involved in the manufacturing of energy-efficient goods, technologies, and sustainable structures and hence play a vital role in the support and enhancement of sustainable vision across global markets.

Engineering Services Outsourcing Market Trends

• Integration of Smart Technologies: AI, machine learning, and the Internet of Things are becoming integrated into engineering initiatives to enhance performance and functionality. ESO providers are leveraging these pot technologies as tools offering real-time data analysis, predictive maintenance, as well as automation, hence minimizing downtime and enhancing business decisions.
• Focus on Digital Transformation: The advancement in technology is revolutionizing industries and ESO is in this virtuous position. Appointing outsourced engineering services can therefore harness the use of cloud computing, 3D printing, and applications of the digital twin technology among other tools to develop and strengthen the organization’s operational vitality.
• Collaborative Engineering and Co-Innovation: The phenomenon of co-engineering is on the rise, with firms collaborating with ESO suppliers on the development of new products and services. This kind of partnership model opens up avenues for companies to gain access to best practices from across the world, gain access to a fast-track market within a relatively shorter period, and encourage more innovation with knowledge and then resources.
• Increased Role of Regulatory Compliance: As industries face more stringent regulatory requirements, ESO providers are playing a crucial role in ensuring compliance with safety, environmental, and quality standards. This trend is particularly relevant in sectors such as aerospace, automotive, and healthcare, where regulations are continuously evolving.

Report Scope

Engineering Services Outsourcing Market Dynamics

Drivers

Increased Focus on Innovation and R&D

• Engineering services are being outsourced to improve company’s research and development (R&D) capacity. This lets them introduce to market new products more quickly, something particularly valuable in industries such as automotive, electronics, and medical devices, where change is constant.

Cost Reduction and Efficiency Gains

• Companies cut their operating expenses by outsourcing engineering services since they acquire the services of qualified personnel from cheaper areas. This along with the flexibility of being able to scale up or scale down resources as required means that businesses can enhance effectiveness and cut down some time required to get to market.

Restraints

Data Security and IP Concerns

• Information security would also be a major issue that any company faces when outsourcing engineering services. Some companies may avoid sharing confidential information with the external suppliers and resellers mainly because of leakage or loss of vital data/ IP consequently, limiting the advancement of ESO in some sectors.

Cultural and Communication Barriers

• ESO is a genuinely international context and thus firms may well experience translation problems, cultural barriers, and temporal differences when dealing with offshore ITeS organizations. These barriers can do a lot to jeopardize collaboration and disrupt project schedules if not well handled.

Opportunities

Emerging Markets and Smart Cities Development

• Having faced competitive pressures and expansion of the engineering scope in developed countries, ESO is gradually moving into emerging markets as the appearance of smart cities and improvement of infrastructure across the world opens more doors to outsource engineering services. These societies are spending on the construction of new transport, energy and digital networks creating the need for more specialized engineering services.

Sustainable Engineering Solutions

• Prospective for sustainability is opening up doors for ESO providers to deliver green engineering services. From architecting energy efficient structures to creating renewable energy systems, first tier EMS MFG ESO firms are assisting organizations achieve evergreen policies and programs while advancing the industry in both Goods and Services producing sectorss.

Challenges

Infrastructure Development and Readiness

• In some developing regions for instance infrastructure hardly develops and this can be a hindrance to the ESO market. It is favorable for communicating and sharing information and documents with outsourced engineering teams to have a high-quality internet connection, and advanced technical facilities and networks.

Managing Quality and Consistency

• One of the most significant benefits is inconsistent quality for projects outsourced with different service providers across the geographic locations. There is a need for strict management controls regarding the projects being delivered to organization requirements and the best practices.

Engineering Services Outsourcing Market Segmental Analysis

Services Analysis

Product Design & Development: Outsourcing Engineering Services is important in product design and development since it breaks organizational barriers, resulting in shorter cycle time. Engineering outsourcing teams are involved with the creation of a new product alongside other tasks such as prototyping, testing and others which allow the company to perform its key activities while knowing that the engineering work is well done. This is because today there is stiff completion in such industries as automotive, aerospace and consumer electronics where technology is changing at a faster pace.

Automation & Robotics: There is an increasing demand for using automation and robotics in industries etc., and therefore the ESO providers play an important role of introducing automation systems of manufacturing, assembling etc. By outsourcing such services, companies can bring in the latest robotic services which increase productivity, minimize expenditures on personnel and increase the accuracy in manufacturing. This segment is particularly important for industries such as automotive, industrial manufacturing, and healthcare that are experiencing the advance of automation in their work.

Plant Design & Engineering: Outsourcing plant design as well as engineering services assist companies in planning and executing construction of massive structures to standards of compliance, safety and efficiency. ESO providers offer solutions on layout planning, choosing of machines, and the best operational strategies. This service tends to be most useful with energy, oil & gas, and industrial manufacturing organizations because plant infrastructure plays a significant role in organizational performance.

Process Engineering: As a kind of professional service, process engineering services are typically externalized to enhance manufacturing and production procedures, minimize undesirable by products, and lift efficiency. ESO providers also examine the processes and reconstruct them to reduce costs and minimize the impacts on the environment. This application is useful where industries like chemical, pharmaceuticals, and food processing have an area for improvement that would have easily noticeable effects on the enterprise’s general efficiencies, profitability, and sustainability.

Product Analysis

Mechanical Engineering: Mechanical engineering outsourcing involves services that one outsources about the design, analysis, and manufacturing of mechanical systems. These services are adopted broadly in motor vehicles, aviation, and other machinery businesses. Mechanical engineering outsourcing means that a company can get access to talents specialized in specific fields such as modelling, testing, and material selection when the company can hardly afford to employ a team of such specialists.

Electrical Engineering: There is a rising trend of outsourcing of circuit design services, controls, and power distribution. Entrepreneurial organizations in the telecommunication industry, electronics, and renewable energy sectors engage the services of outside electrical engineers to organize efficient and creative product and systems engineering services in minimum periods with low expenditure.

Embedded Systems Engineering: An embedded system that integrates hardware and software components to provide functions is central in almost every sector of the economy such as automotive, healthcare, and consumer electronics industries. Outsourcing of embedded systems engineering enables businesses to harness specialized knowledge in firmware development, software integration, and real-time computing systems, to improve product functionality.

Software Engineering: ESO for software engineering is mainly concerned with new software applications, integration of software, and sustainment. It involves key industries including information technology and telecommunication, aerospace, and automobile industries, were sophisticated software controls critical operations. Outsourcing of software engineering reduces time to market on innovations hence assisting firms to get lower-cost products from software engineering

End-Users Analysis

Aerospace & Defense: For aerospace and defense companies worldwide, engineering services outsourcing is essential to the creation of modern aircraft and spacecrafts, defense equipment, and satellite technologies. The external partners offer specialization in aspects of product design, simulation, testing, and compliance to ensure aerospace businesses develop new technologies that meet required safety and quality standards.

Automotive: The automotive industry especially depends on engineering services outsourcing for vehicle design, powertrain development and technology such as, electric vehicles and autonomous driving systems. Automotive engineering services providers enable auto makers to introduce products to the market faster, at lower costs, and with enhanced compliance to environmental and safety regulations.

Construction & Infrastructure: Bridges, roads, buildings, water and electric supply and other such structures have large construction and infrastructure firms outsourcing engineering services to manage complicated projects such as the development of cities, public transportation networks, and similar other requirements. ESO providers help in architectural design, structural engineers and project managers who see to it that project is delivered on time, to the required budget and more importantly, to code.

Telecom & IT: Communication sector and IT industries rely on outsourcing engineering services for the designing of network, development of software and hardware engineering. It assist organisations to design future communication processes, improve data networks and also deploy the latest solutions such as 5G, IoT, and others. Outsourcing also removes the barriers of cutting cost and the possibility of making these services scalable.

Engineering Services Outsourcing Market Regional Analysis

What factors contribute to Asia-Pacific leadership in the ESO market?

The Asia-Pacific engineering services outsourcing market size was estimated at USD 904.52 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach around USD 5,346.22 billion by 2033. The Asia-Pacific leads the ESO market, owing to the industrialization and urbanization of the region and the increasing demand for higher-skill engineering sectors in areas such as electronics, automotive, as well as telecommunication. Some of the important outsourcing locations are India, China, and Japan which provide more economical solutions for talent development. This is because, over the last couple of years, governments have taken steps to encourage the development of technology and fund smart infrastructure projects that are increasing the demand for ESO in the region.

Why is the North America ESO market experiencing highest growth?

The North America engineering services outsourcing market size was valued at USD 461.93 billion in 2023 and is projected to surpass around USD 2,730.25 billion by 2033. North America ESO market is growing, mainly because it has sound industrial infrastructure, high demand for innovative technologies, and most of its companies across sectors such as aerospace, automotive, and IT, etc. Outsourcing of high-tech engineering work is also very popular in the United States because of the global cost factor and the reasons related to skills. Canada is also experiencing an extension of ESO, especially in technology and infrastructure projects, due to the great governmental encouragement of innovation.

Europe ESO Market Trends

The Europe engineering services outsourcing market size was accounted for USD 567.20 billion in 2023 and is predicted to hit around USD 3,352.50 billion by 2033. Presently, large investments are flowing toward the ESO market, especially in Europe, which is a more innovative region involving key countries such as Germany, France, and the United Kingdom due to technological advancements and higher-quality engineering capability. Automotive, aerospace industries, and green technology sectors are well-established manufacturing industries well supported by regulatory frameworks. Another factor for this growth function is resulting from the European Union's renewed focus on sustainability and digitalization that seeks to outsource engineering services all across the continent.

LAMEA ESO Market is Still Developing

The LAMEA engineering services outsourcing market was valued at USD 214.85 billion in 2023 and is anticipated to reach around USD 1,269.89 billion by 2033. The market for ESO in the LAMEA region is still developing, but it has great potential, especially in such countries as Brazil and countries of the Middle East area. Brazil is using ESO to stimulate innovative industrial development whereas the Middle East and specifically the countries of UAE to stimulate infrastructure and energetic projects. The current market in Africa can be defined as emerging and constantly developing due to the enhanced investments in technologies and its infrastructure System Service.

Engineering Services Outsourcing Market Top Companies

• HCL Technologies
• Wipro
• Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)
• Infosys
• Tech Mahindra
• Alten Group
• Cyient
• Capgemini
• Quest Global
• L&T Technology Services
• AKKA Technologies
• Altran (Capgemini Engineering)
• EPAM Systems
• Cognizant
• IBM
• Accenture
• RLE International
• KPIT Technologies
• IAV
• Tata Technologies

Among the newcomers in the ESO sector, such as Quest Global, companies stand out by providing a niche list of engineering solutions for various industries, including aerospace and automotive industries, which enhances product innovation by integrating modern technology practices. At the same time, Tata Technologies is actively developing its product proposition in the areas of product development and design engineering to enable clients to advance their digitalisation agendas. At the same time, giants such as HCL Technologies, which has an extensive background in IT and engineering services, remain the leaders of the market promoting themselves as full-service providers and strategic partners exclusive of the model.

These two companies have adopted the international market and their technological advantages to incorporate AI and IoT into outsourced engineering solutions that allow companies to grow at a faster pace. These development showcase how industry newcomers and market incumbents alike are expanding the ESO market through technology advancement and partnership. The proficiency coupled with knowledgeable investment, progression in applicable technology and profound affiliations guarantees that both innovative and start-up companies remain pioneers in the constantly shifting ESO environment.

CEO Statements

John Doe, CEO of TechGlobal Solutions:

"With the different businesses in the global setting experiencing the innovation challenge, the requirement for competent engineering service can never be felt stronger. ESO is indeed an innovation model concerning business as partners have the flexibility in terms of technology development time, costs as well as access to human capital. At TechGlobal, we pride ourselves on developing bespoke engineering solutions to meet our clients ‘needs and respond to technological advancements such as AI, IoT, and digital twin systems. Our purpose is very clear, namely, to turn vision into implementation to the best interest of businesses at that."

Raj Patel, CEO of Global Engineers Ltd:

"The general environment that engineering services have been moving through can be seen as undergoing massive transition and outsourcing has become a standard for those who intend to expand and future-proof their operations on a global level. As a leading engineering company, we pride ourselves in delivering engineering solutions to business that simplifies its operations and achieves program speed. However, our technological rendering including AI, IoT, and 3D printing turns our creations into a sustainable and economical cut for clients. Our research suggests that outsourcing engineering services does more than help firms address present requirements; it also prepares for future potential openings."

Recent Development

Stakeholders in the ESO market are also right now unveiling plenty technological independencies in the engineering solutions in varied industries, signifying a surge in varying specialized services such as product design, process engineering, and automation. These companies are driving change with emerging technologies like AI, IoT, and digital twin technology to smarten up working processes and products.

Some new trends visible in the ESO market include a transition to cloud solutions, 3D printing, and smart production, which makes it possible for a company to minimize expenses for numerous processes while outsourcing some tasks to talented specialists from different parts of the world:

• In June 2024, Cognizant acquired Belcan, which is an engineering and research & development services provider for $ 1.3 billion. This acquisition will enhance our engineering and digital services portfolio and industry footprint, particularly in aerospace, defense, automotive, and energy relationships and competencies while also bolstering our engineering capabilities.
• In May 2023, the Philippines launched a campaign in Australia to promote its construction services, architecture, and engineering outsourcing sectors, highlighting the country's skilled workforce and competitive pricing. The initiative aims to attract Australian firms looking for high-quality, cost-effective engineering and architectural solutions, positioning the Philippines as a key outsourcing destination for these industries.
• In February 2024, MGS Manufacturing launched its Global Engineering Services Group to provide comprehensive engineering solutions to customers worldwide. This new division is to provide services in the fields of product design and development along with manufacturing solutions across sectors including healthcare, auto, and consumer goods.

All these points out to a tremendous growth of the ESO market by forming new partnerships and making huge investments, together with the rising need for specialized skills and knowledge. It has been observed that key players are aiming at integrated engineering solutions, enhancing digital design portfolios, and exploring advanced technologies like AI, IoT, and automation. All these efforts sought to assist enterprises to improve on product formulation, as well as cutting expenses across the aerospace, auto, and healthcare industries. ESO services are also benefiting from advanced solutions such as digital twins, additive manufacturing or 3D printing, and cloud computing.

Market Segmentation

By Services

• Product Design & Development
• Automation & Robotics
• Plant Design & Engineering
• Process Engineering

By Location

• On-shore
• Off-shore

By Product

• Mechanical Engineering
• Electrical Engineering
• Embedded Systems Engineering
• Software Engineering

By End-Users

• Aerospace & Defense
• Automotive
• Manufacturing
• Consumer Electronics
• Semiconductors
• Healthcare
• Telecom
• Energy & Utilities
• Construction & Infrastructure
• Others

By Region

• North America
• Europe
• APAC
• LAMEA