The 10th edition of The Office Exhibition, a major event for architects and designers specialising in workplace interior environments, opened in Dubai today (May 17).

Inaugurated Humaid Mohamed Obaid Al Qutami, UAE Minister of Education, the show will run until May 19 at Dubai World Trade Centre.

The event has attracted more than 120 companies from 25 different countries to showcase the very latest in office fit-out design solutions in a bid to tap the billions of dollars worth of active commercial real estate projects across the Middle East.

More than 5,400 trade and business delegates have also registered to attend the 2011 show, a statement said.

“We thank Humaid Mohamed Obaid Al Qutami for his support of The Office Exhibition 2011, the most influential trade show in the Middle East for the office-fit out industry," said David Wilson, event director of The Office Exhibition.

“The phenomenal international response we have received from exhibitors reinforces the confidence they have in the region’s commercial real estate sector which, despite setbacks, continues to show resilience particularly in the Gulf countries."

The Office Exhibition 2011 has witnessed the return of some of the biggest names in office furniture and design from the US, Europe and the Far East.

“We have our largest contingent of companies from North America with 30 brands represented at our US Campus including industry heavyweights Bernhardt Design and KI,” added Wilson.

“We are also very pleased to welcome a number of first-time exhibitors as well as new country pavilions from Canada, China, Scandinavia and Malaysia. The three-day event is action-packed with exciting award ceremonies, industry debate and discussion as well as hundreds of new product launches.”

The Office Exhibition opened with the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) presiding over the judging of both the Middle East Office Awards and the Decade of Design Competition.

Bernd Albinger, export sales manager of German design company Interstuhl, said: "The Office Exhibition provides an excellent opportunity for us to showcase an extensive range of our products and innovations to both our existing customers and to the many new clients we hope to meet.”

“The Middle East is home to some of the highest-value infrastructure and commercial construction projects so it is certainly a priority market for us in terms of growth prospects,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service