Leading French companies will be showcasing their products, services and expertise to local businesses at The Big 5, the premier construction industry event in the Middle East, which opens its doors in Dubai next week.

Business France, the national agency supporting the international development of the French economy, will once again be running two French pavilions at expo, which will see a total of 24 companies taking part.

This is part of the agency's bid to enable French companies seize new opportunities or reinforce their existing presence, said a top official.

"France boasts a highly diverse offering when it comes to the building trades, with companies of all sizes providing structural engineering services and finishing work (carpentry, roofing, insulation, sanitation, air-conditioning, smoke detectors, etc.) and interior fittings (wall and floor coverings, luxury tapware, home automation, etc.)," remarked Marc Cagnard, the managing director of Business France Middle East.

"The French construction, finishing work industry has several undeniable strengths in line with the Expo 2020 Dubai, likely to require transport and tertiary infrastructure, and will therefore create a whole host of opportunities that French companies must leverage by establishing ties with local decision makers," he stated.

With a highly fragmented network of 392,000 companies and sales of €135 billion in 2017, the industry has one or more global leaders from France in most of its component sectors: Vinci, Eiffage, Bouygues and Spie, to name just a few.

Cagnard said: "Innovation features strongly in French companies, from new and biosourced building materials, wooden construction driven by ecological considerations, and smart building in BIM - Building Information Modeling - to home automation, smart meters, energy optimization tools, solar glass, and smart thermostats, boilers and bulbs, these are just some of the development initiatives currently being pursued by businesses in the sector."

Lastly, France enjoys a strong reputation for quality and reliability, which are especially important in the construction industry due to safety risks, he stated.

"The country tends to maintain a strong presence internationally with €22 billion generated in foreign markets, to export top-quality carefully designed, advanced technology products (innovative insulation materials, building facades that let in natural light, suspended ceilings, clay roof tiles, natural paints and decorative fireplaces, he added.-TradeArabia News Service