ArabPlast and Tekno Tube Arabia 2011, which took place concurrently from 8 to 11 January at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre, attracted 18,680 visitors.
HE Dr. Rashid Ahmed Bin Fahad, UAE Minister of Environment & Water, who was speaking at the inauguration of ArabPlast and Tekno Tube, said: "The success of ArabPlast and Tekno Tube 2011 exhibitions demonstrates the robustness of the exhibitions industry in the UAE."
ArabPlast & Tekno Tube are the leading business and industrial platforms in a market with major investments and a great future for the plastics and petrochemicals in the GCC in general and the UAE in particular. ArabPlast 2011, the Middle East premier trade show for rubber, plastics and plastic processing, was in its 10th edition with significant international participation.
Tekno Tube Arabia, the international trade fair for industrial machinery, metalworking and machine tools, the only specialized and established event of its kind in the Middle East, helped foster this growth in its 20th year which proved to be the ideal platform for companies to make inroads into the booming Middle East market.
At ArabPlast and Tekno Tube Arabia 2011, Messe Düsseldorf handled once again the acquisition and support of international exhibitors based outside the Gulf States. This was the fourth time that it organised the official German trade fair presence of over 50 companies at the request of the German Ministry for Economics and Technology. There were also joint presentations from Austria, Italy and Portugal at ArabPlast, while Tekno Tube Arabia had joint presentations from China, Austria and Germany (Bayern International).
Mr. Satish Khanna, General Manager of the organizer Al Fajer Information & Services, said: "The fact that Arabplast and Tekno Tube Arabia 2011 have attracted 800 exhibitors representing 40 countries and the increase of 25 percent in the display area compared with last edition is clear evidence that the UAE is the ideal platform to target the Middle East market."
Erhard Wienkamp, Division Director, Messe Düsseldorf, commented: "ArabPlast and Tekno Tube Arabia have strengthened their positions as the leading business platforms in a market with major investments and a great future. The shows represent the success of a partnership that has united Messe Düsseldorf and Al Fajer Information & Services for over six years. The United Arab Emirates have successfully emerged as the region hub of the Middle East markets. International and regional industry players find this market beneficial for their operations. I'm very pleased that Messe Düsseldorf could add know-how and experience to the success of ArabPlast 2011 and Tekno Tube 2011 and I'm looking forward to our ongoing partnership for the benefit of our customers."
Khanna added: "At ArabPlast 2011, deals comprising machinery products at the show crossed AED 4.61 billion, involving mainly European and far Asian companies. There was a huge turnout from regional plastics factories that looked at the show as an ideal platform to buy machinery instead of travelling overseas to place orders. The governments of the GCC are opening the doors wide for plastics producers and these factories are grabbing the opportunity to produce plastics domestically. Petrochemical companies in the GCC are also supporting the plastics producers to enhance their competitiveness and export their products."
Commenting on the plastics industry in the GCC region, Mr. Joachim Branz, General Manager of the regional offices of, ARBURG, the leading German company said: "This is our second participation in ArabPlast which comes after the great success and major deals we achieved in the previous edition of 2009."
Mr. Daniel Liao, Regional General Manager, Middle East & North Africa, Hyplas, the leading Taiwanese company specialized in plastics, said: "We have been in the Middle East & North Africa for the past 10 years and we established an office here two years ago. This is our third participation in ArabPlast and this show has proved that it is one the best shows for plastics and petrochemicals."
"This edition of ArabPlast has provided a strong boost to this sector. We clinched major deals, including two machines worth 220,000 US dollars and 68,000 US dollars," added Liao.
"We have made deals worth 5 million Euros. We have received many visitors during the show on an average of 50 per day. We and the other Austrian companies find this area a great venue to showcase our products for the entire Middle East," said Mr. Franz Gass, Regional Sales Manager, Starlinger & Co. Gesellschaft m.b.H, a leading Austrian company specialized in the production of plastic bags and recycling machines.
