SAVETO, one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of cement and gypsum-based building finishing materials in the Middle East, aims to create more awareness amongst private and public builders about its speciality Saveto and Vetonit products.

However, assistant marketing manager Tommy Toikkanen feels that the number of visitors to the show has declined as there are "too many similar exhibitions in the region".

He says Saveto will be promoting products in new packaging at the expo.

Toikkanen says business has been good for the company this year and expresses optimism for the future as there is "very good potential in the local market especially with private construction".

Saveto, established in 1981, is a Saudi-owned company with 200 employees. It has technical co-operation with a leading research laboratory and manufacturers of similar products in Europe.

Its products are made at its state-of-art factories in Riyadh, where the company's head office is also located.

Saveto also serves its clients in Jeddah, Makkah, Khamis, Al Khobar, Hofuf, Tabuk, Madinah and Buraidah through the above branches.

''In the Kingdom, Saveto materials have been used in all major projects of which the recent projects include the Holiday Inn Hotel, Hofuf; Hilton Hotel, Jeddah; Al Farsi Centre, Jeddah; Al Faisaliah Center, Riyadh; and the Kingdom Centre, Riyadh,'' says Toikkanen.

It is also supplying to several overseas projects in Egypt and Abu Dhabi, besides other regional markets.

Saveto's range of products including exterior and interior finishes, renders, tile fix, grouts, putty and self-levelling flooring compound, will be on show at stand 941.