More than 350 companies, covering the latest in office furniture design to cutting edge technology solutions, will be featured at an upcoming event for the office industry.

The ninth edition of The Office Exhibition, covering an area of approximately 25,000 sq m, will take place from February 9 to 11, 2010 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

With European markets depressed as a result of the economic crisis, The Office Exhibition 2010 is seeing increasing interest from European office sector companies wanting to capitalise on the huge opportunities that are available in the UAE.

The office sector in the UAE continues to grow, and the region is becoming an attractive location for companies to relocate to, with many leading international companies transferring their headquarters to the region as a result of its tax-free environment and advantageous free-zones, said a report.

The recent drop in high office rent, prompted by the current global economic situation, has also added to the attractiveness of the region, resulting in an increasing number of businesses relocating or opening offices within the GCC.

The UAE is predicted to have the highest growth in office space in the region, with a further 6.7 million sq m of new office space planned in 2010 alone.

Despite the current global economic downturn, the Mena region is still growing, achieving real GDP growth of 2 per cent for 2009. In particular, the higher education, healthcare and public sectors are set to continue to experience extraordinary growth, with the UAE government committed to spending some $56 billion on public development projects over the next three years.

Interest in the show from companies outside of the Middle East, in particular from Europe, has increased significantly. In addition to national pavilions from the UAE, Germany, Portugal, UK, Austria, Sweden, USA, Korea and Turkey, there will be a debut appearance of a Greek Pavilion, and Cyprus has doubled the size of theirs.

The Danish Export Association is also, for the first time, working on bringing a grouped participation of up to 12 companies.

The show will also include a visionary Future Office feature, where a number of manufacturers from both furniture and the technology companies will put together a mock-up of their predictions of what the working environment will look like in years to come, addressing also the ergonomic issues.

Sinead Bridgett, The Office Exhibition event director, said: “As the European economy continues to suffer, we are seeing strong interest from European companies who are recognising the massive potential of the Middle East.”

“The office sector here remains a growth area, and The Office Exhibition provides an excellent opportunity for overseas businesses to showcase their products, and network with companies here,” Bridgett added. – TradeArabia News Service