Airport Build and Supply Exhibition, the Middle East’s specialised professional forum for the selection and pre-qualification of suppliers and contractors for the region’s airport development programmes, is expected to feature an even larger number of exhibitors when it opens at the Airport Expo Dubai in the UAE this year.

The organiser expects the number of exhibitors to grow to 120, compared to 100 last year, representing around 170 suppliers. The exhibitors will arrive from 18 countries, including Germany, France, UK, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Australia, Malaysia, Finland, Lebanon and the UAE.
All four of Europe’s prominent airport suppliers’ associations will be exhibiting at the event. This includes the British Airports Group (Bag), the German Airport Technology and Equipment (Gate), Netherlands Airport Technologies (Nat) and Proavia (France). Bag and Gate are also putting together government-funded pavilions at the show. The German pavilion (already fully confirmed) has 19 exhibitors spread over 375 sq m.
The show also enjoys the support of a number of leading international airport specialists and suppliers. Some of the companies that have been with the event since its inception in 2001 include: Dar Al Handasah, Aeroports de Paris (ADP), Sita, Alstef, Cavotec, Cloisall, Emirates Trading Agency, Vanderlande, Siemens, Heimann, Middle East Aviation Journal, IER, Expresso, Alstom, Fujitec, Emirates Neon and Honeywell.
Says Nick Webb, director of event management and marketing specialist Streamline Marketing, the organiser of the exhibition: The 34-member registered trade association Gate will use the event to introduce the latest developments in the German airport and technology industry in the Middle East.
Sponsored by the German Federal Ministry of Economics in cooperation with the Confederation of German Trade Fair and Exhibition Industries, Gate aims to attract new customers in the region, reestablish existing contacts and build on new and established business opportunities.
The show will feature a number of innovative systems and solutions that are being introduced for the first time in the region, including the ‘dart’ traffic management systems from delair Air Traffic Systems, the ‘Unitherm’ range of fire coating paints from DuPont, and modular aluminium docking system for the maintenance of all types of aircraft including work stands and fuel ladders from Zacher Leiter of Germany.
Says Dietmar Dippe, director of delair Air Traffic Systems: “Darts is the first arrival and departure management system in the world that enables airport operators, airlines and handling agents to work together to optimise air traffic operations at and around an airport. Darts ensures optimal use of the runway capacity, avoiding unnecessary delays in the air and on the ground.”
The Uniterm range of fire protection paints and coatings is claimed to hold back fires for a period of time longer than that achieved by any other fire retardants currently on the market.
“Used on steel, our product can prevent it from melting for a period of 90 minutes in the case of fire, thus protecting constructions from faltering” says Herbert Weiss, the company’s business manager. “This is really important for buildings where steel constructions are used, as it can prevent a burning building from collapsing for a very long time.”
“Our products are widely used in more than 40 airports in Europe and Asia, and we hope we can soon become the leading supplier of fire retardants in the region, which is very important for our future growth plans,” he adds.
 Zacher systems are mobile and modular so that existing modules can be easily extended or rearranged to match the requirement of various aircraft types.
The expo will feature an impressive line-up of the regional civil aviation officials, government departments, consultants and contractors including: the departments of civil aviation of Dubai, Sharjah, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah, Bahrain and Kuwait; the Saudi Presidency of Civil Aviation; US  construction firm Bechtel; and Qatar Airways.