A mega one-stop-shop event Wednesday, 04 May 2011 05:58

The Master Plan for Qatar, a comprehensive long term plan that will guide the physical development of Qatar, will be presented to the Council of Ministers in next May, the Minister of Municipality and Urban Planning              H E Sheikh Abdurrahman bin Khalifa bin Abdul Aziz Al Thani said.

The comprehensive urban plan is based on “Qatar National Vision 2030” and the plan includes data that are consistent with this vision in terms of the projected population and the upcoming development projects, the Minister said after the inauguration of Project Qatar 2011 expo.

Sheikh Abdurrahman averred that the Emir H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani said in more than one occasion that Qatar wants to build a modern state through infrastructure projects. He said Qatar will spend about $10bn on infrastructure projects this year. “There is a significant change in offering projects where the state is considering the quality of the projects not only in terms of cost price, but in terms of qualitative criteria,” the Minister said.

He expected that Project Qatar 2011 would be a great success especially in light of large-scale projects which the state intends to offer during the coming period, considering that the participation of companies in the exhibition as a good opportunity for them to take advantage from the projects to be offered, especially projects related to 2022 FIFA World Cup.

High profile local and foreign officials, diplomats and senior businessmen from the infrastructure and buildings industry graced the opening. Thousands of trade visitors came in droves to witness the wide array of display of services and products displayed by the exhibitors. Nearly 1,700 exhibitors from nearly 50 countries are making their presence felt under one roof at the Doha Exhibition Center. More than 40,000 guests are expected to visit the event, which ends tomorrow.

Some of the exhibitors went to the extent of displaying equipment outside the exhibition center to showcase how far they had gone in their contribution to the modern Qatar infrastructure and buildings industry.  Hundreds of million dollars of contracts for the construction technology, materials and equipments are expected to be signed in the exhibition. Sponsors for Project Qatar 2011 include Orwood (Diamond Sponsor), Naffco (Gold Sponsor), HBK Holdings (Silver Sponsor) and Abu Issa Holdings.

Organisers said Project Qatar 2011 – the 8th international construction technology and building materials exhibition — is 73 percent bigger than the 2010 edition of the show, underscoring the importance of Qatar in the construction landscape since the announcement the country would host the 2022 Fifa World Cup.  The exhibition broke all records for size and impact by showcasing the country’s booming construction and building industry with its exhibition area spreading across 52,000sqm that occupies the biggest tent ever erected in the Middle East.

Event organiser IFP Qatar has commissioned a 30,600sqm air conditioned extension to the venue — another largest temporary structure ever constructed in the Middle East. With exhibitors ranging from construction companies and technology providers to heavy machinery operators and design consultancies, Project Qatar 2011 runs the full scope of the construction industry’s supply chain.

To cope with the growing scale of the event, Michele Gebreal, Project Manager, Project Qatar 2011,.  said they would stage two editions of Project Qatar next year, one of which will focus on energy and electricity to be held in from November 5 to 7, 2012.  

“There is currently more than $140bn in confirmed project construction underway in Qatar and the country is about to embark on an unprecedented construction phase. Project Qatar 2011 is an excellent gauge of just how much growth can be expected in Qatar and will be instrumental for organisations that want to position themselves in this vibrant market,” said George Ayache, General Manager of IFP Qatar.

Project Qatar 2011 has received the unprecedented backing of the international community with 16 supporting bodies from construction heavyweights with representatives from the UK, France, Korea, Spain and Australia.

Qatar-based companies are also reaping the benefits of Project Qatar’s global reach. “The exhibition makes us compete against international companies since it provides a high degree of exposure that would have taken us 20 years to achieve had we promoted ourselves on our own or thorough other events,” R Vedhachalam, Chief Technical Officer of HBK Contracting said.

Taking place alongside Project Qatar 2011 is Heavy Max - the international trade exhibition for heavy machinery, technology and equipment for Qatar and the Gulf region. Heavy Max is the region’s leading show for construction plants, machinery, equipment and vehicles.