01 July 2004

Atotal of 1,719 visitors from 47 countries attended the Airport Build and Supply Exhibition held in Dubai last month, with a view to capitalising on an estimated $15 billion worth of airport development programmes in the Middle East and North Africa.

While a majority of the visitors were from the UAE, a significant number also came from Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia as well as from Iran, Pakistan, India, Korea, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore, according to Streamline Marketing, the organiser.
Representatives from more than 16 European countries and a number of African countries also visited the exhibition.
The exhibitor line-up at the event – which was held at the Airport Expo Dubai – included more than 130 firms from almost 30 countries including Germany, France, the UK, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Australia, Malaysia, Finland, Lebanon and the UAE. Almost half of the exhibitors were making their debut at the event.
Among the line-up was leading airport consultant Dar Al Handasah and France’s leading consultant Aeroports de Paris.
At the show,  Italian manufacturer, CCM Airport Equipment announced that it had been awarded the first major contract for the supply of check-in, passport control and other counters as part of the $50 million expansion project now under way at Fujairah International Airport.
Represented in the UAE by Dubai-based Al Shirawi Group, CCM Airport Equipment has successfully supplied and installed counters at 120 airports throughout the world, including specially-designed counters at the airports in Dubai, Sharjah, Doha, Milan, Amsterdam and Madrid.
Among the innovative products on display was a new range of airport doors developed by leading UK joinery company Edmont after two years of close collaboration with engineers and designers at the British Airports Authority. The doors are manufactured off-site and then supplied ready-to-fit, which helps reduce costs and site time. The new range maintains high fire protection standards and is designed to be extremely durable.
A new range of automatic immigration gates also made its Middle East debut at the exhibition. Showcased by Transguard Solutions, Dubai in collaboration with Sweden-based Gunnebo Entrance Controls, the new gates are designed to simplify passenger flow while boosting security at airports. The product can integrate a biometrics solutions programme for passenger verification, which will relieve manned monitoring and reduce operational costs at airports.
Among first-time exhibitors at the event was CAM group, which announced the opening of its first regional office in Dubai and launched what it described as a more efficient, cost-effective and ecologically-friendly technology for the cleaning of airport runways.
 Another exhibitor, Dubai-based Citytec displayed a huge range of security-related products, among which was a new, quick and effective under-vehicle-surveillance system.
Visitors also attended seminars presented by 13 leading companies dealing in products and services relevant to the aviation and airport industries and learned more on a wide variety of issues, from boarding solutions and noise and blast protection at airports, to online information systems for mobile objects. 
Some of the major airport projects planned or under way in the Arabian Gulf include:

• Dubai: Airport expansion worth more than $4 billion (see page 123). Among imminent contracts are the Dubai Air Wing facilities as part of the expansion.  The estimated $100 million package involves the construction of eight hangars with workshops, an administration building, a royal terminal with passenger bridges and a ground service equipment facility.
• Abu Dhabi: Expansion valued at more than $600 million to include a new main airport building, a second runway, cargo terminal expansion and the region’s first rapid transit shuttle links between terminals.
  The emirate has earmarked has some $20.5 million for the expansion and renovation work at Al Ain airport's existing terminal. The project also includes a new airfreight building, a catering facility and ground service equipment.
• Sharjah: The airport is undergoing an expansion plan which includes development of a new terminal and the construction of a new facility for arrivals alongside the existing arrivals hall, connected to the complex by a bridge. The new facility will also have three separate conveyors for baggage handling, apart from moving walkways and allied facilities.
• Ajman:  A major project worth $800 million is on the cards for the emirate’s airport.
• Ras Al Khaimah: Is investing in an expansion and modernisation plan for its airports, which includes the construction of an airport hotel, two terminals, expanded runways and taxiways, automated passenger and baggage handling facilities, a cargo collection centre, an aviation academy and an airport free zone.
• Fujairah: Is expanding its airport facilities with a second runway at an estimated cost of $50 million. Expansion of the main passenger terminal is also under way.
• Qatar:  Will build the New Doha International Airport, situated 4 km away from the existing facility. The first phase of the project will cost over $2 billion and will be completed early 2009 (see Regional News).
• Saudi Arabia: $1.5 billion has been allocated for expansion works at Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz Airport. Plans include the construction of two new terminals, expansion of the existing south terminal, a new concourse with 25 contact gates, three connector buildings and an extensive upgrade of landside and airside infrastructure facilities.
• Kuwait: A new terminal is planned for Kuwait International Airport. A new concourse that will also be built alongside it.The expansion project will also include the purchasing of sophisticated communications, radar, air traffic management and meteorological data processing equipment.
• Oman: A $300 million expansion project is set to be launched at Seeb International Airport in Muscat and Salalah Airport. Developments at Seeb include the construction of new arrival and departure buildings and is expected to raise the airport’s capacity from 2.5 milion to 6.5 million passengers per year.
• Bahrain: A major expansion costing over $170 million is under way which entails  more than doubling the number of air bridges to 15, increasing the number of check-in counters from 44 to 100, baggage carousels to 10 and immigration counters to 36.

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