TTI’s business development manager—connector/electromechanical, Steve Brahosky, explains how a golden age of connectivity will provide opportunities for years
While the Roaring 20s conjure a time of excitement and adventure a century ago, the 2020s is an equally ambitious and ground-breaking era for connectivity in electronics, as society and technology propel us towards innovations that touch every facet of our lives.
In this physically and virtually connected world, the importance of interconnectivity can’t be over-stated. With this transformative shift, the industry will witness an exponential growth of the global connector market from $62 billion in 2020 to an estimated $115 billion in 2030.
Five billion people (two thirds of the world’s population) have internet access. More connections equal more connectors. With increasing IoT applications, the amount of data captured by sensors and moved via connectors is astounding. The number of connected IoT devices grew 18 per cent to 14.4 billion globally in 2022, with a forecast of 27 billion connected devices by 2025. Facilitated by IoT, smart homes, cities and factories are driving the need for innovative connector solutions that are smaller, faster, lighter and more rugged.
The growing connector market is also being powered by electric vehicles in most transportation segments, including land, air and marine. These vehicles require high-voltage connectors for the drive train, energy storage, auxiliary systems and charging interface. Also, autonomous vehicles require exponentially more connectivity as data is captured, transferred and processed continually, within the vehicle and through terrestrial and satellite infrastructures. All requiring connectors.
Consumers drive our economy. As the pandemic showed, their appetite for entertainment and shopping is unrelenting. Demand for on-line streaming, shopping and gaming skyrocketed during the pandemic and shows no signs of retreat. The data processing and bandwidth required to service this demand has created a large network of data farms with high-speed computing and vast amounts of storage. These datacenters require enormous amounts of interconnectivity to route data through an array of server networks that must be powered and cooled with subsystems containing connector solutions.
Technology advances are often enabled by and through connectivity as digitalization and data bandwidth require connectors with high levels of performance in terms of speed and functionality. These connectors comprise copper, fiber, RF or a combination depending on modularity and performance characteristics. Artificial intelligence and machine learning architectures are emerging and will require connectivity solutions that will demand scalability and configurability.
With all these connectivity advancements come growing pains—component availability, assurance of authentic parts and demand for faster, smaller, more powerful technology. That’s why partnering with a top-notch supplier who keeps customers well stocked and informed is critical. TTI’s priority for the last 50-years has been to provide the deepest and widest inventory of leading-edge electronic components on the market.