Germany-based Epoc Messe Frankfurt, one of the world’s top exhibition organisers, is hosting 10 trade shows in May in Dubai.

The list includes five highly successful construction-related shows such as the Hometech, ISH Kitchen and Bathroom, Hardware and Tools, Gardens, Landscaping and Outdoor Living and Light Middle East, which will be held from May 14 to 16 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.
The organisers expect over 18,000 visitors, including architects, interior and exterior designers, contractors and retail specialists who are expected to converge on Dubai looking for innovative home technology, building, lighting and design solutions.
Hometech Middle East 2006: The largest home technology exhibition within the region, the show is expected to attract major brands in the home technology sector, exhibiting a plethora of innovative and exciting products. Hometech has increased in size by 50 per cent since last year’s show and showcases a range that includes the latest in home automation and entertainment, high-tech refrigerators, washing machines, cookers among others,” says a Messe Frankfurt spokesperson.
More than 140 exhibitors have confirmed their participation with 16 countries being represented including first-timers such as New Zealand, UK, Portugal and Singapore. Exhibitors include Siemens, a world leader in domestic appliance market, and Dubai-based e-Home Automation, a specialist in smart home software offering different solutions in home intelligence, illumination, entertainment and security.
Other exhibitors from the UAE include major players in the consumer electronics industry including Better Life Appliances and General Electric. The show will also include country pavilions from China, Egypt, UK and Taiwan, reflecting its international stature. 
ISH Kitchen and Bathroom 2006: Claimed to be the world’s largest bathroom and kitchen exhibition, the event has witnessed a 30 per cent increase from last year providing a platform for quality manufacturers to showcase their latest lines. Representative countries include the UK, Germany, Italy, Hong Kong, Spain, Netherlands and US.
Exhibitors will include Kitchens and Beyond, Nolte Kitchens, Siematic, Pentagono, Teka, Saniview and Allmilmoe. UK-based leading bathroom designers Victoria and Albert Baths will also be showcasing its unique designs that incorporate both modern and classic styles. Allmilmoe will exhibit its stylish, ergonomic, high-end range at the show.
Hardware and Tools 2006: Having outgrown last year’s event by 30 per cent, the show will feature the latest innovations in equipment, designs and technologies currently in demand throughout the region. The hardware and tools purchased last year have exceeded $2 billion. This figure is expected to grow by a further 11 per cent, with the recent construction boom in the UAE and the Gulf.
“The construction industry in the Gulf region is estimated to be around $750 billion out of which the UAE alone accounts for $300 billion. The hardware and tools sector is estimated to comprise around 20 per cent of this figure, bringing the industry size in the GCC to $50 billion,” says the spokesman for the organiser.
Major exhibitors at the show will include DeWalt, 3M Gulf, Coopertools and SMTCL from China which will be exhibiting two categories of its metal cutting machines including CNC machine tools, such as CNC lathes, CNC milling and boring machines, CNC drilling machines and CNC special-purpose machines.
Conventional tools will be the second category at this trade show, which includes universal lathes, radial drilling machines, horizontal boring machines and machine attachments. 
Several international companies will be exhibiting via country pavilions this year that include Germany, Italy and India. Other countries represented at the exhibition include US, Turkey, Poland, UAE, UK, Egypt, Iran, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Korea and Japan. Companies from the Ukraine and Austria will also be exhibiting for the first time.
Gardens, Landscaping and Outdoor Living: The evolution within the landscaping and gardening sector in the region triggered by a combination of factors has helped this particular sector to grow at 12 per cent per year and an astonishing 60 per cent over last year. The exhibition will see more than 120 international exhibitors from across four continents showcasing their products. There will be country pavilions from Hong Kong, France and Indonesia, along with a strong presence from the UAE with a quarter of exhibitors being drawn from the local market.
Major brands at this year’s show include companies from the UK, such as Haddonstone and first-time exhibitor PJ Bridgeman featuring its range of premier Tecknique, Club Teak featuring dining tables, relaxing chairs and sun loungers. The designs are innovative and unique to Bridgeman, which has won the Outdoor Living Award for three consecutive years. Chipo Zainab Musandi, a renowned native Zimbabwean woman sculptor who owns exclusive galleries in Zimbabwe and Germany, will be at this year’s show presenting a collection of masterpieces.
“With an estimated $100 billion to be spent throughout the Arabian Gulf over the next five years on leisure, travel and home development, it is inevitable that the demand for landscaping and outdoor products will increase dramatically,” says the spokesperson. 
Light Middle East: The expo, which will debut this year, is the only design-led international trade fair in the region that offers architectural, internal and external lighting for urban spaces, corporate and retail lighting solutions. Internationally known Philips Lighting will be presenting the most innovative light emitting diode (LED) solutions for sports lighting, shops, offices, city beautification, road and tunnel lighting. Local exhibitor Martin Architectural, well renowned for providing products for architectural applications, hotels, theatres and retail landmarks, will also be exhibiting at the show.
A panel of speakers at the conference, includes Jonathan Speirs, Mark Major, Kevan Shaw, Rogier van der Heide, Gerd Pfarré, Alan Mitchell, Ted Ferreira, Mike Tatem, Marcel Chamoun and Durham Marenghi, will be giving expert advice to those seeking inspirational architectural lighting solutions.
Light Middle East draws on the experience of its sister exhibitions:  Light + Building in Frankfurt, Biel Light + Building in Buenos Aires, The Guangzhou International Lighting Exhibition and The Design Annual Frankfurt.