Preparations for the region’s most comprehensive trade fair touching key sectors across the entire gamut of industry are gathering steam ahead of its opening in mid-January.

Gulf Industry Fair 2008, scheduled for January 15 to 17 at the Bahrain International Exhibition Centre, has been more than 80 per cent booked with several new establishments coming aboard for the exposition in the past few weeks.
For the first time in the region, products and services will be presented in the distinct components of Gulf Aluminium, Gulf Metal, Gulf Energy, Gulf Metrology, Gulf Logistics, Gulf Automation and Gulf Manufacturing
Hilal Conferences & Exhibitions (HCE), staging the event in close co-operation with Hannover Messe International, organiser of the world’s biggest industrial event, the Hannover Messe Fair, has left nothing out in a very broad industrial sector, thereby affording manufacturers, traders and consumers a peek into the state of the Gulf’s industrial world and the opportunities it offers.
The latest products and technologies will be on display while visitors gain an understanding of the initiatives planned and the prospects in store for the furtherance of their businesses.  Sixty-four companies have confirmed their bookings. They hail from a wide geographical spectrum including such markets as the USA and Europe, the Gulf and the wider Middle East, India and Taiwan.
Jubran Abdulrahman, managing director, HCE, commented that Gulf Industry Fair had attracted both regional and international interest from companies that were either a part of or wish to be involved in the trillion-dollar sector of the Arab world’s economy.
Abdulrahman also observed that the massive investment in industrial facilities and infrastructure was expected to grow over the next few years with new industrial cities being built to feed the demand for development.
He pointed out that the venue Bahrain was just 25 km from industrial powerhouse Eastern Saudi Arabia and also within easy reach of Riyadh and Kuwait, both of which have burgeoning industrial sectors. 
Andreas Luttman, the managing director of Hannover Messe International, said at the time of launching the event, that it made sense to have a fair of this magnitude. He cited the “very dynamic economic development” in the Middle East, saying many companies from across the world would be interested in participating in such an event to display their technologies to potential customers. He saw “a substantial increase of demand” for industrial manufacturing technologies.
Luttman also described the venue Bahrain as a “perfect hub” for the region as it was closely linked to the neighbouring markets.
Coming forward as strategic partners for Gulf Industry Fair 2008 are Bapco, Zamil Industrial Investment Company and First Leasing Bank.
Among the latest organisations booking space for the expo are the General Organisation of Sea Ports Bahrain (GOP) and APM Terminals. They join a number of companies that enlisted earlier. They include DHL International, Aramex International, Saudi Pan Gulf, Arabian Chemical Co (Polystyrene) Ltd, Arabian Company for Steel Structures, Bhatia & Co (Bahrain) and Midal Cables.
New entrants also include Arabian International Company for Steel Structures, Rajhi Steel, Sandmark Sales & Marketing, the Expert Group, Turk Heavy Transport, Wikus and Oilfield Technical Supplies.
Among the first to confirm their participation as exhibitors were Alba, Azon of the UK, Dubai Airport Free Zone Authority, Aqaba Development Corporation of Jordan, Metals of Bahrain, Yateem Oxygen, Nimr Steel, Actis Furio of Ital, Al Suwaidi Equipment and Transport and Zayani Industrial Services.
Alruqee International of Saudi Arabia has come out in force with several companies it represents in the kingdom.
 Present at the exhibition will be Haeusler and Trump Grusch (Switzerland), Haulotte Group and Hypertherm Europe (both France), IGM Robotersystem and Bohler Schweisstechnik (both Austria), Juaristi (Spain), Kemper, BDS Maschinen, UTP Schweibmateril, Metso Lindemann, SHW Werkzeugmaschinen and Schaffer Werkzeugmaschinen (all from Germany),  MA Ford (India) and Allied Machine & Engineering (USA).
Gulf Industry Fair 2008 comes at a time when the Gulf is witnessing unprecedented investment and development in fields such as metals, utilities, hydrocarbons, petrochemicals and communications and information technology as well as in logistics, which supports the movement of goods.
Projects under implementation include aluminium ventures Emirates Aluminium, Qatalum and Sohar Aluminium, petrochemical ventures such as Sabic’s Yansab and Aramco’s Ras Tanura, utilities schemes including Marafiq in Saudi Arabia and gigantic logistics developments such as Dubai World Central incorporating an airport and Dubai Logistics City.