Sultan bin Saeed Al-Mansouri opens DOMOTEX Middle East 2007

Opening DOMOTEX Middle East 2007, the region's only specialised flooring and carpet exhibition, Al-Mansouri said: "It is very important to have a local flooring industry of high quality, and what I have seen is very encouraging, since many companies from the region, such as those from Saudi Arabia, are competing on an international level."

The event is open until 8pm on Wednesday (June 13) at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

"This is an important exhibition, particularly with the tremendous growth in the real estate sector the UAE is witnessing, namely in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Ajman," added Al-Mansouri.

"I have seen companies exhibiting flooring products that are also environmentally friendly, which is in line with the construction trends in the region."

DOMOTEX Middle East 2007 features 269 exhibitors from 37 countries, including first-time representation from Cyprus, France, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Norway and Poland. In addition to the country pavilions from Belgium, China, India and the USA, this year's show also welcomed the country pavilion debuts of Afghanistan, Austria, Germany and The Netherlands.

In addition to product innovations from exhibitors, the show features the eleven winners of The Carpet Design Awards 2007 (CDA) from DOMOTEX Hannover, the world's largest carpet and floor covering exhibition. The winning designs, chosen from 140 entries representing 15 countries, are on show exclusively in the Middle East at DOMOTEX proving incredibly popular with both visitors and exhibitors.

In a new, interactive part of the show, DOMOTEX Middle East is presenting 'Creative Flooring', a live demonstration area for interior designers, decorators and floor-laying professionals. Presented by The Flooring Industry Training Association (FITA), the authoritative education and training institution for the British carpet and hard surface flooring installation industry, the demonstrations allow visitors to see the cutting edge of fitting techniques while sharing best practice solutions and innovations in mixed material combinations.

DOMOTEX Middle East 2007 has projected an uplift in visitor turnout as trade professionals from across the world have pre-registered to attend in advance. Based on figures provided by Deutsche Messe - Dubai Branch, nearly 50% of visitors are of management status and have direct purchasing authority.

"At DOMOTEX Middle East 2007 you can expect to see the best the industry has to offer from the largest collection of hand-made and machine-made carpets and area rugs in the Middle East to cleaning and application technologies, adhesives, underlays and coatings," said Angela Schaschen, Managing Director, Deutsche Messe Dubai branch, the regional office of Deutsche Messe.

DOMOTEX Middle East 2007 is being held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President, Department of Civil Aviation, Government of Dubai and Chairman of the Emirates Group. The show has the official support of the UAE Contractors Association and the Association of Professional Interior Designers (APID) in the Gulf region.