Interview with Mr. Michael Dehn, Group Exhibitions Director of Materials Handling Middle East

JCtrans: What is the significance of a trade show such as Materials Handling Middle East?

Mr. Michael Dehn: Materials Handling Middle East serves as a vital trade platform for the sector in the region. Over the last five editions, the exhibition has succeeded in bringing together major international players and key regional buyers on to the same platform. Thus we are glad to have played a constructive role in the growth of what is now a well established sector in the Middle East with global importance.

JCtrans: In your opinion, what are the key drivers of growth for the industry in the Middle East?

Mr. Michael Dehn: The fact is that the Middle East has thrived as a trade and trans-shipment hub for centuries right from the time of the spice trade. Spice and silk-laden caravans transported their valued cargoes from Asia to Europe from ancient times, while today huge supertankers carry vital crude and natural gas to energy hungry consumers around the world. In its role as a trans-shipment hub Dubai has been considered a place from breaking up larger volumes into smaller packages with repackaging one of the factors.

At the same time multitudes of container carriers and flights bring in the consumer goods and conveniences that are so necessary to maintain our comfortable modern lifestyles. For the smooth transport and transfer of goods, resources and services there has to be a growing transport, logistical and cargo handling infrastructure.

Additionally, low cost and convenient storage facilities for a huge range of products are required in order to keep excess stock both on short, medium and long term bases. This stock then needs to be easily accessible as and when required. Unless you are familiar with the different industrial zones around Dubai, you would not believe the amount of warehousing facilities available for this. This ongoing need for storage space for all types of companies has helped to continually drive growth in this sector.

JCtrans: What do you think are the reasons behind the relatively strong growth of the industry in the Middle East as compared to other parts of the world?

Mr. Michael Dehn: While the overall economic scenario has affected the flow of goods and services in many parts of the world, the economies of the Middle East, especially those of the GCC, are still in growth mode. Relatively prosperous, riding on the buoyant oil prices and robust demand from fast-growing economies of Asia-Pacific, the market for the oil and gas from the region remains strong, leading to increased investments in pipelines and oil and gas shipment terminals in the region.

Fast-growing economies also drive increased consumption in the region, which has led to governments putting considerable resources into the creation of new transport and logistics infrastructure, including new and enhanced airport and air cargo terminals to serve the burgeoning airlines of the region as well as new highways and railway projects to boost land transport infrastructure and increased storage capacity in terms of warehousing to ensure optimum stock levels are accessible at all times.

JCtrans: How important is the growth of good infrastructure for the cities of the region?

Mr. Michael Dehn: Excellent logistics and the ease of movement of goods are fundamentals to the growth of any city as a commercial and business hub. International business houses and modern conglomerates prefer to base themselves in regions that have fundamental transport and logistics infrastructure in place in order to better access markets around the region. Those countries which have had the far-sightedness to establish state-of-the-art transportation facilities and communication links will benefit the most from the resultant increase in international investment.

JCtrans: Would you have any details of the amount of new cargo container handling infrastructure planned across the region?

Mr. Michael Dehn: Growth across the region has led to considerable investment in shipping and container handling terminals around the region. According to recent research by Global Industry Analysts the world maritime containerisation market is set to reach an impressive 731.88 million TEUs (Twenty-foot equivalent units) by 2017. According to recent estimates, the amount of container traffic handled by UAE ports was 11.6 million TEU, up four per cent over the previous year. There are many large-scale developments underway in the region, such as the mega terminal project in Jeddah, which will double existing capacity to 15 million containers annually. Another mega-development that is in the headlines is the multi-billion dollar deep water port at Meesaid in Qatar, currently under construction.

JCtrans: How vital is land transport to the region? Do you see any changes going forward?

Mr. Michael Dehn: While a large amount of goods and services are transported to and from the region by air and sea, land transport plays a vital role in the development of the local economies. Currently the road infrastructure is excellent and forms the backbone of intra-regional transport. Soon though, with the planned development of inter-regional rail services, land transport should get a further boost. A whole series of railway projects are in the pipeline that promise to transform the way people and goods are transported across the Arabian Peninsula. In the offing are projects such as the Saudi Landbridge, the North-South Railway in Saudi Arabia, the Etihad Railway in the UAE and a project to eventually link Oman, UAE, Qatar and Kuwait with Saudi Arabia. All in all, the countries of the GCC are set to spend over $100 billion on setting up modern rail networks connecting all countries of the Arabian Peninsula. Another mega rail project that has attracted interest internationally is the recent agreement among Qatar, Oman, Iran, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to build a railway connecting the landlocked Central Asian countries rich in oil, natural gas and agricultural resources with the warm waters of the Arabian Gulf, through Iran.