IRIS Marks Successful Participation at OPINS 2007 in Korea

Dubai, UAE - 16 December 2007- IRIS, one of the leading property developers in the region recently participated at the worldwide property and investment show held in Seoul, Korea on November 20th to 22nd, 2007.

The exhibition was organized by Korean Fairs Ltd to raise the awareness of the growing interest of Korean investors in the international real-estate market.

During the exhibition, more than 3,700 trade visitors attended, with over 72 developers exhibiting from 15 different countries - Australia, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Lebanon, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, UAE and USA.

Among these developers, IRIS was the only property developer from the UAE to showcase projects at the OPINS 2007 Property & Investment Show

Commenting on IRIS' participation, Ashwin Sheth, CEO of IRIS and Managing Director of Sheth Estate said: "Korea represents a key market for us. Since its recently established laws that allows all Koreans to invest up to USD $4 million per person abroad a considerable percentage of investors in Dubai is comprised of expatriates from Korea and other neighbouring Asian Pacific countries"

"After a successful Cityscape 2007 in Dubai, we wanted to spread the IRIS story in Korea. This exhibition provided us with an ideal platform to showcase three of our key developments there, IRIS Blue, IRIS Bay and IRIS Amber and the distinctive lifestyles on offer to our international customers," continued Sheth.

At the exhibition IRIS signed an Agent agreement with several leading real-estate brokers in Korea: BM Properties Corporation, AK Links PTY Limited, and Far East Real Estate -Map Reality highlighting their commitment to the investors in Korea. These Agents will provide support to IRIS' sales team in promoting IRIS' residential and commercial developments in both Korea and North Asia.

The recently launched project, IRIS Amber was the key attraction at the IRIS stand, which at 35 square meters highlighted IRIS as the only property developer from the UAE who participated at this exhibition. "IRIS' philosophy is to offer our customers property developments in prime locations with quality building solutions all within timely delivery" added Sheth.

With further developments in the pipeline, IRIS aims at securing a considerable market share in Dubai's booming property sector. IRIS' two latest projects are being finalised and will include a spectacular residential property development located within Culture Village and another commercial development in Business Bay.

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source: zawya.com

ITCE Cairo 2008 expects 25 per cent growth as MENA's textile industry consolidates

ITCE CAIRO 2008 (ITCE'11), the eleventh international African Arabian exhibition for textiles, embroidery, and sewing machinery and accessories, is expected to register a 25 per cent space increase and record visitor attendance, as more than 700 exhibitors from 30 countries confirm their participation at this year's show, being held over 12 halls at the Cairo International Fair Ground in Egypt from February 28 - March 2, 2008.

Organised by ACG-ITF and supported by Egypt's Ministry of Trade and IndustryMinistry of Trade and IndustryLoading... and the Federation of Egyptian IndustriesFederation of Egyptian Industries
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, ITCE'11 expects more than 32,000 trade visitors from 18 countries to attend the exhibition, which will be showcasing products, services, innovations and technologies along with exclusive presentations of management trends, market forecasts and new textile industry developments.

"ITCE has a solid track record of facilitating lucrative sales deals and distribution agreements, which have boosted its status as an international meeting hub for all players in the textile industry. Since its launch in 1993, the ITCE has achieved growth rates of between 30-40 per cent, which makes it one of the fastest-growing industry events in the world," said Ahmed Ghozzi, Chairman and CEO, ACG-ITF.

"The extensive participation and diverse offerings make the event an ideal interactive venue for manufacturers, distributors, retailers, importers, consumers and potential partners in the Middle East and Africa," added Ghozzi.

ACG-ITF has commissioned a dedicated international and regional marketing campaign to further promote the event through a number of industry publications, street signage, targeted mail-outs, newsletters, websites and press conferences. Aside from Egypt, the campaign will also include countries such as Algeria, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, KSA, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE, Yemen and the Comesa agreement member countries.

"We have already gathered a significant number of bookings this early, creating the groundwork for another successful event. The previous exhibition was a huge success as numerous exhibitors vowed to be back in 2008 after they were impressed with the quality of the show and the number of international participants. International firms also consider the event an important platform to assess their potential in the Egyptian market, whose remarkable growth has created a lot of interest," said Nora Soliman, Business Development Manager, ACG-ITF.

Egypt is the largest textile manufacturer in the MENA region, with exports of woven and knitted apparel to the United States of America alone expected to exceed USD 2 billion by the end of 2007. Egypt's textile industry has been a major revenue source for the country and has achieved an average growth rate of 6.5 per cent annually. The country earlier enhanced its position as a trading centre for textile machinery after removing all customs tariffs on textile machinery and accessories in 2004.

ITCE'11 covers the entire spectrum of cotton processing operations, including spinning, weaving, converting, dyeing, sewing machines, raw materials and garment manufacturing. It has also been designed to facilitate exchange of information, provide expert opinion from industry leaders and develop direct business contacts within the industry and other related and supporting sectors.

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source: zawya.com

DCC unveils the Civil Engineering Internship Program

With this new initiative, DCCDCC
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aims to bring together university civil engineering students and DCCDCC
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professionals in a real-world training program, teaching students the reality of working in the construction sector in the UAE.

"With the current boom and promising future for contractors in the UAE, we feel this is the right time to contribute not only to furthering the education of young civil engineers, but to developing a program that fosters cultural understanding" said Abdallah Yabroudi, CEO of DCCDCC
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. "We hope that this program will inspire our industry to commit to helping the bright young minds that will lead the construction sector in the future."

Preparing for the first internship session in the summer of 2008, DCCDCC
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has been working with the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CIE) at Syracuse University in the USA to develop the program and study materials students will be following. Six of the university's own Junior and Senior civil engineering students will be participating in the six week internship at DCCDCC
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. Senior company officials have confirmed that DCCDCC
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will be contacting local UAE universities in order to select six local students to join the internship program as well.

The six week long training program, to be held in the summer of 2008, has been jointly developed by DCCDCC
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and CIE, and features two main study environments. Students will have regular study sessions at DCCDCC
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's head offices where they will participate in learning sessions with the company's senior management. They will also take part in regular site visits where they will be taught about actual site work from senior DCCDCC
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engineers.

"Giving young students the opportunity to see how the principles they review in the class room apply in a real world setting is extremely valuable. Many young civil engineers today graduate with limited exposure to the world of contracting, and this sort of training can help prepare them for what is out there. Furthermore, by bringing together students from North America and the Middle East for 6 weeks of working together, we will without a doubt help foster a culture of understanding and team work, which is essential for future generations."

Commenting on the longer term plans for the program, Mr. Yabroudi added "we strongly hope that this initiative can serve as a catalyst for the rest of the contractors in the UAE. We are aiming to take in 12 students ourselves in 2008. We hope that a few leading contractors will join the initiative in 2009, followed by more in the coming years. It will truly be an invaluable experience for young minds, and given the crunch we are facing in human resources today, we believe the benefits will be great for both students and contractors over the long run. We have been extremely fortunate in the business environment we are working in, and in accordance with His Highness UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's vision of educating the coming generations, its time we give back to make sure they can build on our successes."

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source: zawya.com

Sulafa Towers records overwhelming sales response from National bondholders

Dubai, December 16, 2007: Sulafa Towers, a 77-storey residential tower opened for sale exclusively to National Bondholders, recorded overwhelming response on the first day. National Properties said the Sulafa Call Centre received a tremendous amount of calls from interested investors.

Online registration also received an excellent response and can still be done by calling National Properties toll free number 600-545 544 or by visiting www.nationalproperties.ae. Sale of units will continue through December 17 from 9 a.m to 9 p.m at Sheikh Rashid Hall of Dubai International Convention & Exhibition CentreDubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre
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.

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source: zawya.com

Gulf Holding Company awards US$ 216-million Downtown Al Areen construction Contract to Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.

Bahrain, December 16, 2007: In a milestone development marking significant forward movement on Bahrain's first truly downtown district, Downtown Al Areen, Gulf Holding Company (GHC)Gulf Holding Company (GHC)
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today announced that it had awarded the USD216-million (BD 81.3-million) Downtown Al Areen construction contract to Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co. B.S.C (C)Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co. B.S.C (C)Loading... on a design build basis.

As per terms of the contract, Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.
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will be responsible for construction of the Main Boulevard including retail, residential areas, offices, supermarket, hotel. Construction will begin in the first quarter of 2008 and is scheduled for completion in end of 2009 .

Commenting on the award of the contract, Mr Ahmed Al Ameer, Vice Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, GHCGHCLoading..., said: "Downtown Al Areen was conceived with the aim of providing Bahrain with its first truly Downtown district and in the process significantly contributing to the Kingdom's booming tourism sector. The award of this contract marks a significant forward movement towards making this goal a reality. Given the nature and scope of this strategic project. It was absolutely essential that we appoint the best qualified partners especially those with vast local experience. After an exhaustive global tendering process we found Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.
Ahmed Mansoor Al A'ali Company
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best suited for this assignment."

ATKINSATKINSLoading... is the main designer of the Downtown Al Areen, which is a much talked about emerging tourism destination in the Al Areen Development. It is located in the heart of the world-class leisure destination. Spread over 260,000 square metres, Downtown Al Areen is a singular mixed use model of sustainable urban development, which is expected to galvanize the tourism appeal and attract a wider range of visitors to the Kingdom of Bahrain and the region. The project will include a " Town Square ", the first of its kind in the region, in addition to a school, recreational facilities and retail outlets.

Commenting on the appointment Mr. Jalal Al Al Aali - Vice Chairman & CEO, Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.
Ahmed Mansoor Al A'ali Company
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said: "We are extremely glad and proud to have been selected by Gulf Holding CompanyGulf Holding Company
Gulf Holding Company
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to undertake this prestigious Downtown Al Areen assignment. Given our vast experience we are confident that we will deliver this challenging assignment within the stipulated time-frame and while maintaining the high quality standards set out by GHCGHCLoading...."

Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.Ahmed Mansoor Al Aali Co.
Ahmed Mansoor Al A'ali Company
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, which was established in 1948, is one of the largest and longest-established contracting and construction companies in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The group's diversified and fully integrated activities include construction and contracting (EPC), industrial infrastructure, manufacturing and processing (building materials), construction equipment and heavy commercial vehicles, trading and real estate development. The Group has an annual turnover in excess of US$ 300 million. With over 20 divisions, subsidiaries and joint ventures, it employs more than 5,000 people and serves the needs of clients in the public and private sectors.

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source: zawya.com