The world's longest advert will launch in Dubai

It will be taken on a 12-month tour of 40 different countries: Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, India, Pakistan, Russia (Moscow), Morocco, Tunisia, Libya, Algeria, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden.

This mammoth billboard, which has been accepted by the Guinness Book of World Records, is the brainchild of Adrac, a global advertising and marketing agency with offices in the Burj Business District.

Rick Jones, Adrac's Project Head, said: "We were just so taken aback by the place that we thought we had to do something that will represent how fantastic Dubai is. That's when we came up with the idea of producing Dubai's skyline in one absolutely huge advert. We wanted to capture a piece of Dubai and take it to as many people as we possibly could in the space of one year."

The billboard is made of vented biodegradable and recycled PVC and supported by concrete blocks. It breaks down into 450 10m by 2m sections, which link together via a toggle and eye type system and all fit into two 40ft containers. It will take a team of four men less than seven hours to assemble the billboard in each country.

Israr Sarwar, Adrac's CEO, said: "This record-breaking project was developed to fit in perfectly with the grand nature and striking personality of the city of Dubai, and is set to launch alongside the opening of Adrac's new Dubai office in the Burj Business District. Our clients in the city stand to benefit enormously from the worldwide exposure and longevity of this project."

The advert is likely to run along run along Sheikh Zayed Road or beside a stretch of the Metro, and Adrac is currently in talks with the Dubai Department of Tourism and the Department of Information regarding suitable locations in the emirate for the launch. It will then be taken on a tour of Teams based across the world are currently liaising with 40 different governmental departments to find suitable sites to display the vast advert, and locations so far include the River Thames in London and the Rhine in Germany.

Jones added: "We're focusing on major cities with rivers as we want the banner to be seen by as many as possible. We want to give the Dubai experience to a lot of different people."

Adrac has designed the billboard to be 100% eco-friendly by using environmentally-friendly materials, inks, structure, transportation, cleaning and chemicals, as well as ensuring the lowest possible carbon emissions in production and transportation.

Creating the 1.5km long advert has been no easy task though, with challenges ranging from insurance, static electricity, wind resistance and lightning strikes to deal with.

Jones added: "At the moment we have four patents pending as we've had to create things that just don't exist. We've also had to run several wind tunnel experiments. Imagine if the wind got hold of a 1.5km long advert - it would be unbelievable and frightening."

The billboard will be funded by 100 sponsors, including 40 premier sponsors, and there are still sponsorship opportunities available ranging from $25,000 to $200,00. The advert will also support 10 worthy causes and Adrac is appealing for charities to step forward and benefit from this world record-breaking project. After completing a one-year tour of the world, the banner will be auctioned off in aid of charity.

Jones said: "The project has generated so much enthusiasm. We have dealt with many innovative marketing projects in the past, but this has got everybody's imagination running wild. The creative opportunities are endless. The fact that the banner will have a series of web cameras means that it will be not only the largest printed advert, but also the world's largest web advert."