Latest Industry Trends And Developments In Focus At Warehousing And Materials Handling Conference

The latest trends and developments in warehousing and materials handling were the focus of yesterday's (Wednesday, September 11th's) opening day proceedings at the Warehousing and Materials Handling Conference, being held alongside Materials Handling Middle East 2013.

The two-day conference, which is one of the key attractions at the region's largest gatherings of the materials handling, supply chain and logistics industries, is being organised in association with the Supply Chain and Logistics Group (SCLG).

The conference kicked off with a keynote address on the latest global and regional trends in the industry by Ravi Subramanyam, CEO of Launchpad and President of Supply Chain and Logistics Group (SCLG), UAE. The conference which was well attended by industry professionals, continued with a lively panel discussion on the technology that drives the warehousing industry. The panelists explored the impact of storage automation and retrieval as well as smart forklifts, solar power enabled warehousing, packing materials and intelligent doors, all in relation to how the industry does business today.

"Materials Handling is a fair which relies heavily on the movement of goods, so in essence, the supply chain and warehousing industries. That the UAE has ranked 4th in its good markets in the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Market is another optimistic sign for the ongoing growth and development of this sector. The conference provides a key interactive platform for regional industry representatives to network with leading experts and discuss key issues impacting the industry," said Ahmed Pauwels, CEO, Epoc Messe Frankfurt.

The opening day's programme continued with presentations on the efficient design of warehouse floors to promote safety and efficiency by Kevin Dare, Chairman & Managing Director of FACE Middle East and on the latest trends in intra-logistics by Edward Ray, International Business Division Manager, Daifuku Co. Ltd.

This was followed by another compelling panel discussion on the variety and inclusion of materials handling equipment in operations and a presentation on the parameters that govern the adoption of automation in storage by Mathias Hower, Managing Director of SSI Schaeffer and Uwe Kircheis, Regional Manager Automation, SSI Schaeffer.

Today's final day will see panelists exploring the role of education in shaping the materials handling industry, examining the role of free zones in the development of the industry as well as a look at some of the trends driving the regional materials handling scene.

Materials Handling Middle East 2013 – the largest ever edition of its kind – will conclude today (Thursday, September 12th) at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. The exhibition's four major product areas are: Materials Handling & Lifting Equipment; Logistics and Postal Services Providers; Value added Logistics Services and Warehousing Equipment.