By global standards it may be a small country, but Wales is aiming to prove that it has the might to take on the world as it prepares for Big 5 show this year.

More Welsh firms than ever before will be attending the prestigious show, thanks to support from the Welsh Assembly Government’s overseas trade and investment arm, International Business Wales (IBW), via its Objective 1 Programme, Export Assist.
For the second year running, IBW is hosting a major stand at the show and helping firms with the logistics of exhibiting in the region.
“Welsh firms are well-equipped to provide the kind of advanced technologies that the construction sector now requires. As the rapid development of the UAE region continues apace,” says a spokesman for IBW.
Lee Jennings, vice President (Middle East) of IBW, says: “The local market has a high regard for Welsh products and services and this year we have a diverse range of products on show. Last year, Welsh exports to the UAE totalled £210 million ($395 million), an increase of £63 million from the previous year.
“Last year’s show generated over £1 million in new business for Welsh companies in the Dubai market alone, and the attending companies are keen to replicate that success again this year.”
Sean Reilly, managing director of equipment supply firm ESS, based in Glynneath in West Glamorgan, says: “At last year’s event, we secured an order from a large landscaping contractor in the UAE for one model from our range of Bandit Beast horizontal waste recyclers – the first time the 2680 model has ever appeared in the Middle East. Since then we have secured deals with a wide range of customers from small landscapers to major construction firms and we are hoping for similar success this year.”
He continues: “Welsh firms are doing well in the Middle East because our staff come from a highly skilled background and have a lot of experience in the construction and recycling industry. We are also a practical nation; Welsh companies in general tend to have a very practical approach that clients in the region like.”
ESS will be showcasing new products at the Big 5 incorporating equipment for the removal and recycling of indigenous materials, such as palm and eucalyptus, using a new cutting technology specifically designed for these applications in the Middle East. The firm provides equipment for the recycling and reutilisation of construction and landscape waste, enabling it to be turned into a valuable product such as mulch and compost that can be resold or reused.
Reilly stresses that the help offered by IBW has been crucial to the company’s success in the Gulf.
“We could never afford to design and build a stand of the same size, effectiveness and general professionalism of the International Business Wales stand. Having a permanent office in the UAE also means that International Business Wales can provide ongoing support in the region. Its support has been absolutely fundamental to us, resulting in the recruitment of new staff to our organisation to service our growing client base in the Middle East.”
Also attending the Big 5 show is Bridgend-based technology innovators IEA Limited. Following the successful launch of its ‘V’ tankered water and waste water management systems at last year’s show, the firm hopes to build on its success this time around. IEA will be launching two new products for the water industry at Big 5: TraKKa, a tracking and monitoring management solution for heavy-duty machinery and mobile assets, and AquatraK, a water-based transport monitoring system, which monitors passenger numbers and engine details to help ensure the safety of the vessel.
Managing director Les Seaton explains that the Middle East provides a huge market for water industry technology. “With massive investment spending in the water industry in the Middle East as companies strive to abide by new legislation, there is now a high demand for the new technologies we have been using in Europe for the last 10 years. Last year, we signed two partners including Metito in the UAE and Midwil n Qatar, which has enabled IEA to enter the market with the credibility that such local contacts bring with them, allowing us to tender for major contracts in both Qatar and Oman so far.”
“International Business Wales has been very useful in providing the support needed at such a show as the Big 5. We have enjoyed reduced air fares, but for us it is less about the financial savings than the infrastructure support. To be able to set up a stand is logistically difficult, so having the IBW stand there ready for us when we arrive is a real help,” he adds.
Some of the Welsh companies that will be exhibiting with IBW are:
• Pop Up Products, the new face of NSG’s sales business. It produces aluminium access products including aluminium towers, folding towers and podium steps used in construction, maintenance, retail, leisure and facility management sectors;
• Xetal Consultants, a research and development company for the construction industry, which specialises in acoustic attenuation products and build solutions to reduce the transmission of noise through walls and floors between apartments. The products are based on a unique patented noise attenuation membrane and the solutions are lightweight, and have a low footprint, offering significant savings in cost of build;
• Equipment Supply Services, which provides a wide range of equipment solutions and services for the construction and recycling industries. The company specialises in the provision of equipment and systems for the management and realisation of valuable recoverable resources that can be obtained from construction waste;
• IEA, which specialises in delivering business critical solutions based on the innovative use of electronics, process engineering and computer software;
• Engineering Services (Bridgend), which offers top quality recycling machinery and highly skilled engineers to solve processing requirements for a wide range of materials;
• Axonics, which designs and manufactures electrochemical water and waste water treatment plants;
• Oxygen Power products, which offers the Oxygen Lifestyle range. This well-being product range for the health, leisure, spa, airport sectors and now home and cars where oxygen treatments replaces oxygen depleted by poor diet, lack of exercise, air pollution, drugs, alcohol, smoking and stress;
• KindaGroup, a leading supplier of recycled plastic products. It manufactures Kindadek, a composite decking made from wood and plastic, which has passed British standard anti-slip and fire tests, is ultraviolet (UV)-stabilised, termite proof and is guaranteed not to warp, rot or crack. It is suited for commercial and residential uses in boardwalks, marinas, decking or bridges;
• Executive Integrated Services, which manufactures the Sani-Sleeve, a patented, tried and tested low-cost consumable that can be retro-fitted to existing urinals as well as fitted to new units to negate the need for harmful chemicals and urinal blocks;
• Rubbertech, which has developed a new acoustic self-levelling flooring system. This product enables services to pass through floors and also meets high acoustic standards. It also has a full range of acoustic roof protection and equine flooring solutions; and
• Toplis Project Management, which provides project management and chartered quantity surveying services to construction professionals.
IBW will be present in Hall 3 at the Big 5 show.