AL MANARATAIN Company and Ali Al Shaab Group (Al Manaratain) will be making its maiden appearance at gulfBID this year, prompted by the success of the 2012 event.

The Bahrain company is hoping to use the show as a platform to promote the Al Manaratain brand, which has gained a reputation for its “superb quality and extensive variety”, according to Alem Al Khamiri, a spokesman for the leading building materials manufacturer.

“Our industry, much like our country, is tight-knit and our strengths are well known, as are the strengths of other concrete product manufacturers. Our intention for gulfBID is to promote Al Manaratain and its image as a product in its own right,” comments Al Khamiri.

Given the current economic climate in the county, Al Manaratain has been directing all its attention and energy towards consolidating its current operations, whilst focusing on customer retention and establishing contacts for potential business in the future, he says.

Commenting on gulfBID, Al Khamiri says: “We are aware of the success of last year’s exhibition and we felt that we would be missing out on a great opportunity to show off our products and services if we did not attend this year’s gulfBID.

“Additionally as a long-standing and well-established business in Bahrain, Al Manaratain feels duty-bound to help promote and support any event that aims to produce interest and encourage economic growth in Bahrain and the rest of the Gulf.”

While acknowledging that the poor economic conditions brought on by the global financial crisis has affected business, he says that Al Manaratain has managed to remain busy during the past year despite the difficulties.

“Our production facilities regularly operate round the clock out of necessity, and our fleet of delivery vehicles can often be seen on the roads throughout the day. We are confident that through our unwavering hard work and the continued support of our customers, 2013 will be a very good year for Al Manaratain,” Al Khamiri says.

The company has been taking a proactive approach in ensuring its success despite the current scenario, says Al Khamiri. “We undertook a company-wide audit in 2012, which amongst many things, led to a restructuring of our organisation. This helped us to produce clear lines of communication throughout the company, allowing us to deal with internal, as well as external, grievances swiftly and often amicably.”

Meanwhile, the company has focused its efforts on Saudi Arabia and continues to expand its presence there. It has worked hard to ensure the smooth running and efficiency of day-to-day operations of its production facility in Saudi Arabia ever since it was opened in 2011. This has led to several large recruitment drives in both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

“We have been fortunate so far in that we have been able to establish a small, but loyal customer base in Dammam and though we are new there, our reputation is increasing and we are receiving orders from further and further afield. This is not to say we have ceased growing in Bahrain. Bahrain is and always will be our home, and though we are not ready to say anything concrete yet, we do have plans to augment our current facilities and the services we can offer,” explains Al Khamiri.

About prospects for the construction industry in the GCC, he believes Saudi Arabia offers the highest potential, followed closely by Qatar and the UAE.

“Having said that, we have a great deal of faith in Bahrain, and we are positive that there will always be a healthy market here for those in the construction industry,” he adds.

Established in 1959, Al Manaratain has its head office in Sehla with production facilities in Khamis, Hafeera and Eker, and a Gulf office in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. The company employs more than 550 staff and its products are delivered throughout Bahrain and to areas around Dammam.

Al Manaratain specialises in the manufacture of building materials including concrete blocks, light-weight blocks, interlocking paving, artificial stone, precast concrete, ready-mix concrete, washed sand and ‘crusher products’ – a portfolio that continues to expand, according to Al Khamiri.

“We are particularly renowned in Bahrain for the superb quality, and extensive variety of our interlocking paving as well as our hand-crafted, luxury, decorative product, which has been dubbed ‘Al Manaratain Stone’,” he concludes.

Al Manaratain can be visited at Stand 1B26 at gulfBID.