Following the successful completion of the first Intelligent Building Middle East (IBME) last year, the organisers of the show have already confirmed a large portion of this year’s exhibition space to many returning exhibitors.

To be held at the Bahrain International Exhibition Centre from November 20 to 22, the exhibition is being jointly organised by Germany’s Nürnberg Global Fairs, the Bahrain Convention and Exhibition Bureau and the Bahrain Society of Engineers.
Last December, the new trade show concept was successfully launched with 117 exhibitors arriving from 14 different countries and was attended by more than 2,800 trade show visitors and conference delegates.
“In the conference programme we had six sessions with 57 internationally renowned speakers from 13 countries. This year we are expecting all the ones who came last year to return along with some new ones, totalling about 140 exhibitors at least,” says Frank Venjakob, event manager for Nuernberg Global Fairs, Germany.
The event is targeted at all experts involved in the planning and construction process: from consultants and architects, planners and construction companies, to public and private property owners and facility managers.
“Intelligent building primarily implies the design of sustainable and energy-efficient buildings. Many countries from the region such as the UAE, Bahrain, Dubai and Qatar are currently investing in impressive large-scale building projects. Efficient building concepts and integrated solutions are required for the flourishing building industry,” says a spokesman for the organisers.
“The concept of IBME is focused on the needs of the construction of buildings, but we would not call it just a construction material trade show,” adds Venjakob.
“It also focuses on the intelligent combination of materials and on integrated systems and solutions leading to a maximum of comfort for the people who are living and working in the buildings. However, comfort is also essential for those people who are maintaining and owning the building. In that respect intelligent buildings are leading to an optimised facility management and to cost-efficiency in particular in energy consumption,” he says.
“Designed for the flourishing construction market of the Middle East, the show clearly stands out from the horizontally-oriented exhibitions in the region, which primarily focuses on a variety of building material and related goods,” says the spokesman.
“This years’ special focus will be on climate control, showing the latest developments in the field of cooling, ventilation, building services and control systems as well as innovative solutions with regard to the building skin,” says Dr Werner Lang, chairman of the International Scientific Committee, IBME 2006.
“Together with the conference, the aim of the special exhibition is to set benchmarks for the most advanced intelligent building designs and technologies for the Middle East as well as other regions with similar climate conditions,” he concludes.