Security major focus at Airport Build & Supply Exhibition

IER, a leading French manufacturer of terminals, printing and controlling systems for the air, rail and sea transportation industries, will launch a revolutionary range of ATB printers and readers incorporating the industry's newest buzzword - radio frequency identification technology (RFID).

The wireless, RFID-enabled devices can make baggage handling quicker and more efficient, thus helping reduce baggage loss, and the company expects them to become a common sight at airports around the world.

Taking place at the Airport Expo Dubai and organised by event management and marketing specialists Streamline Marketing, the exhibition will also see IER showcase the smallest ATB printer now available on the market. The device can be connected to a biometrics identification machine, helping airport personnel monitor passengers at the check-in counter and re-confirm their identity at the boarding desks.

Joining an extensive line-up of airport security companies attending the Airport Build & Supply Exhibition this year, IER has a regional client portfolio which includes most of the region's airports an many major airlines, including Emirates Airlines which the company provided with ticket printers for its ticketing offices worldwide.

'Our sales in the region reached Dhs.10 million last year and we consider the Middle East to be the fastest growing region for our business,' said Mr Jean-Luc Rauline, regional sales director, IER. 'Back in 2000 we opened a repair centre in Dubai and this investment is now paying rich dividends helping us increase our business share in the region.'

The event will also see German trace detection and x-ray systems provider Smiths Heimann coming back after a major success last year. Developed to detect threats at airports and to prevent them from getting onboard the aircraft, the company's products and systems have been adopted at airports around the world, as have its applications in other mass-transit terminals.

Smiths Heimann will launch its latest X-ray system model, the new HI-SCAN 6046, which is equipped with a high resolution detector line providing dramatically improved, detailed images. The new device features a higher tunnel opening and can accommodate non-standard carry on baggage.

'The strength of our company's existing relationships and solution specifications, developed in collaboration with leading transportation standards authorities, will determine our future success in this sector,' said Guenter Schneider, Area Sales Manager, Smiths Heimann.

'Currently, more than 7000 IONSCAN® drug and explosives trace detectors are in operation in 58 countries, at 75 international airports and more than 400 units are deployed in US airports alone.'

The Airport Build and Supply Exhibition is held under the patronage of H.H.Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of the Department of Civil Aviation, Dubai (DDCA) and chairman of Emirates Group. Visitors at this year's show will include the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation officials and their appointed consultants, regional civil aviation authorities, contractors, consultants, architects and local businessmen and traders.