Automechanika Dubai draws 30,835 visitors from 130 countries

Automechanika Dubai, held earlier this month, the 30,000 visitor mark for the first time in its 13-year history.

A total of 30,835 trade buyers from 130 countries visited the 2015 edition of the Middle East and Africa’s largest automotive aftermarket trade fair, a seven percent increase over the previous year, according to organiser Messe Frankfurt Middle East.

With 1,889 exhibitors from 59 countries occupying 17 percent more space than in 2014, Automechanika Dubai 2015 concluded on 4 June at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre with more international and local representation than ever before.

The increasing global interest in the wider region’s automotive aftermarket also comes as Dubai Customs released figures showing Dubai’s trade for auto parts and accessories was valued at US$ 12 billion in 2014, 10 percent more than in 2013.

That figure includes imports of auto parts, accessories, tyres, and engine components worth US$ 7 billion last year, while exports and re-exports were worth US$ 5 billion, reinforcing Dubai’s premier status as a major liaison between Asian, European and North American manufacturing countries and consuming regional markets.

Ahmed Pauwels, CEO of Messe Frankfurt Middle East, said: “The double-digit growth of Dubai’s auto parts trade underlines the Emirate’s important role as a key gateway to emerging markets throughout the world.”

There were a number of new product launches, partnerships, distribution agreements, and manufacturing facility announcements by leading global majors and local players. At the forefront of new announcements was the UAE-based ENOC, which opened a 5,000 square metre lubricants and grease manufacturing plant in Dubai to complement its existing facility in Fujairah. The two plants have a total production capacity of 300,000 metric tonnes annually, most of which is exported to more than 60 countries.

Automechanika Dubai focuses on six product sections of Parts & Components and Systems and Electronics (1,340 exhibitors in 2015), Tyres & Batteries (190 exhibitors), Accessories & Tuning (166 exhibitors), Repair & Maintenance (109 exhibitors), and Service Station & Car Wash (84 exhibitors).

The largest section, Parts & Components and Systems & Electronics, spanned more than 41,000 sqm of exhibition space alone, and was packed with biggest names of the international automotive aftermarket.

Among these was Belgian-headquartered WABCO, a world-leading supplier of electronic braking, stability, suspension and transmission automation systems for heavy duty commercial vehicles.

Sherif El-Sheikh, regional leader for the Middle East and Africa, WABCO Trailer Systems, Aftermarket and Off-Highway Division, said the region presented major growth opportunities for the automotive sector. “The Middle East continues to close the gap to advanced safety and efficiency technologies more common in developed markets,” said El-Sheikh. “Therefore, we see it as a glass half full because it means there are more opportunities to introduce the latest innovations that have already been around in mature markets.”

Automechanika Dubai is the definitive trade show for the wider region’s automotive aftermarket, and has in recent years attracted a growing number of African visitors looking for suppliers of genuine parts, accessories, and components.