Like almost everything in the UAE, the German pavilion at the Big 5 shows too has grown year on year.

The official German pavilion at this year’s event will cover about 8,000 sq m of exhibition space in the Zabeel Hall, the open air ground and the PMV hall. This is an increase of 23 per cent on the space booked at last year’s show, according to Boris Abadjieff of the VDMA-German Engineering Federation.
More than 370 companies – up from last year’s 300 – will offer high-quality products and services all related to the construction sector.
“Not surprisingly, Germany is the biggest national group as in previous years. In addition, it is the largest pavilion of Germany worldwide,” he adds.
Commenting on trade ties between the region and Germany, Abadjieff says: “Trade relations between the Gulf region and Germany have also grown continuously. In 2007, Germany’s overall exports to the region increased by 11 per cent to €14 billion ($19 billion).
German exports, Growth of German machinery

“About 26 per cent of these products are machinery products, consisting in particular of materials handling technology, construction and building machinery, air-conditioning, ventilation and cooling technology, and valves for domestic and industrial applications. The general export growth was even outperformed by machinery exports, which rose by 20 per cent to €3.6 billion ($4.6 million) to the Gulf region.”
“These numbers are not surprising as the UAE has become more and more important also as a production location for various industries,” he continues. “Another reason is the ongoing boom in construction business. In this field, energy-efficiency, sustainability (“green buildings”) and intelligent building solutions will become more and more important in the UAE (for example, in the new super-towers in Dubai).
“Within the German pavilion, visitors will find several exhibitors with products and solutions on energy-efficient construction.”
The German pavilion at the Big 5 Show this year offers all visitors a platform for getting acquainted with the wide range of products and technologies made by German companies. In a close exchange of experience with exhibitors, they can consult on the use of the right product for the right purpose and analyse and arrange all kinds of possible future co-operation, he points out.
Representatives of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (Auma) as well as VDMA-German Engineering Federation, which are co-ordinating the German participation at the event, will be present at the stand to respond to queries and trade inquiries.
Meanwhile, the German construction equipment and building material machinery industry has had a good run in 2008, according to the VDMA.
“Gauging by the solid order backlog, the turnover of companies of the German construction equipment and building material machinery industry during 2008 will have shown an increase of eight per cent over figures for last year. This volume is worth €16.5 billion ($21.2 billion),” says Dr Peter Hug, an expert on economic matters at VDMA.
The association had predicted this rate of growth in the beginning of the year, he points out. The VDMA, which enfolds 3,000 small and medium-sized member companies in the engineering industry, covers the entire process chain – everything from components and plant manufacturers, system suppliers and system integrators through to service providers.
The backlog of orders was especially significant with regards to construction equipment, Hug continues. “Although the value of incoming orders regarding construction equipment saw a decline of 23 per cent in the first half of 2008, which is a significant decline, revenues deriving from orders already placed last year offset the low and made for an increase of 14 per cent instead.
German machinery exports to the Arabian Gulf

Export orders for construction equipment saw a net decrease by 19 per cent due to a slump in the US as well as in the UK and Spanish markets,” he says.
However, according to him, the situation is completely different as regards the area of building material, ceramics and glass machinery. Incoming orders saw a net increase of 20 per cent and turnover increase of 15 per cent during the first six months of the year.
Export orders for building material machinery experienced a net increase of 22 per cent. “This industry profits from the high demand in Eastern Europe and Asia. In these regions, the propensity to invest in construction and mining companies is developing immensely. The VDMA, therefore, expects good sales also in the medium term. The building material machinery industry also saw growth in the Middle East and Latin American markets,” Hug says.