Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre, 24–27 January 2011
Democratic reforms across the Middle East – some currently taking dramatic form, others taking place more slowly – are greatly increasing the region’s investment in health systems. This is opening up major new markets for Western companies whose medical technologies are designed to meet the challenges of increasing patient populations and limited economic resources.
Arab Health is the largest healthcare exhibition in the Middle East, and the second largest in the world. Now in its 36th year, Arab Health provides an essential platform for medical technology suppliers to meet tens of thousands of healthcare professionals, as well as distributors and wholesalers, from the Middle East and beyond.
The exhibition space available at Arab Health 2011 was 20% greater than last year. There were 30 national country pavilions, with 2,700 companies exhibiting to 66,000 visitors from 141 countries. The Arab Health Congress featured 18 conferences, including the Leaders in Healthcare Conference of healthcare industry leaders and influencers.
This year saw the biggest stand in the event’s history: theatre equipment specialist Maquet presented two fully-equipped and functional operating theatres.
Nearly 200 medtech companies from the UK visited Arab Health 2011 to showcase their technologies and explore new export opportunities.
Arab Health 2011
ABHI leads UK pavilion
The UK pavilion, coordinated by the Association of British Healthcare Industries (ABHI), occupied over 1000m2 and showcased over 100 UK medical technology companies.
Paul Benton, Director, Commercial and International at ABHI, said: “Arab Health was once again a successful show for the UK delegation. The exhibition enjoyed high attendee numbers and our conversations with UK exhibitors suggest they found the show worthwhile. As health spending in the UK continues to slow down, opening up new markets is crucial for small and medium-sized UK companies and the Middle East represents a key target market for many companies, with healthcare spending in the region likely to increase to $60 billion in the next 15 years.
“We were pleased to see the UK Government supporting companies, with UKTI maintaining a visible presence throughout the show and organising a visit from Lord Darzi in his role as Trade Ambassador. I look forward to helping more UK companies do business in the Middle East through Arab Health next year.”
Adrian Cossor of A.C. Cossor & Son (Surgical) Ltd commented: “Arab Health attracted visitors to our stand from both the local region and much further afield. We were pleased to meet with potential distributors from South Africa, and many of our existing customers attended making it an ideal opportunity for catching up and renewing our relationships. It was also good to meet potential customers invited by UKTI.”
Sam Fayyaz of Timesco added: “Timesco has exhibited now for six years with ABHI and this year’s show has been the most successful. We have a network of dealers in the Middle East and the show has become a focal point, with meetings with our dealers and key decision-makers.”
Lord Darzi in Dubai
At the opening ceremony of Arab Health 2011, UK Business Ambassador Lord Darzi said: “The UK medical technology sector has a large proportion of the world’s most innovative medical technology SMEs, multinationals and leading R&D centres. It is at the forefront of healthcare innovation, and it gives me great pleasure to be able to celebrate today such innovative technologies and solutions.
“We already have strong trading relations with countries across the Middle East, but we can work even closer together to ensure we can all benefit from the latest technologies and medicines developed by UK companies on show here at Arab Health 2011.”
UK companies at Arab Health were supported by UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), which has a worldwide network of life science specialists. UKTI’s Brian Hickmott commented: “The Gulf Region countries are investing heavily in healthcare infrastructure and this presents a huge opportunity for UK companies that can offer high quality, innovative healthcare products.”
Two examples of medtech companies helped by UKTI to promote new medical technologies at Arab Health 2011 are:
• North Sea Plastics (Glasgow) introduced Silver Shield, a range of thermoplastic materials containing an antimicrobial agent designed to protect amputees from bacterial infections.
• Flexicare Medical Ltd (Mid-Glamorgan) exhibited the Hall Lock device, a series of connectors that reduces the risk of accidental wrong-route injections in hospitals.
UKTI worked with regional Medilink organisations to support medtech SMEs at Arab Health 2011: assisting with stand preparation, carrying out market research and arranging business development meetings.
Medtech makes its mark
Together with UKTI, Medilink East Midlands accompanied four life science companies to Arab Health 2011: BHR Pharmaceuticals, Wattbike Ltd, Spectrum Healthcare and The Snoring Disorders Centre.
“It was exciting to see these companies making the most of trade opportunities in such a lucrative healthcare market,” said Costa Philippou of Medilink East Midlands. “The UAE is a rapidly growing healthcare market with incredible potential. Our assistance enabled these companies to test this valuable market at a cost they could afford.”
Wattbike was promoting its exercise bike at a medical exhibition for the first time. The bike accurately measures power output in real time, so that users can improve their physiological performance. Alex Skelton of Wattbike said: “We particularly wanted to highlight Wattbike’s use in rehabilitation and stress testing for clinical purposes. As a result of several useful meetings we have raised awareness of the product and what it can offer.” Without the support of UKTI and Medilink, he added, “we would not have had access to such an exciting new market.”
Spectrum Healthcare specialises in mobility aids, moving and handling equipment and evacuation equipment. It brought several new products to Arab Health 2011, including the Ergo Kneeler and the Jolly Back Chair, and gained valuable leads. Alison Hayward of Spectrum said: “The volume and quality of enquiries was very promising for future business and we now feel better equipped to tackle the Arab Gulf region, Asian and North African markets.”
BHR Pharmaceuticals Ltd used Arab Health to explore new markets for its point-of-care in vitro diagnostic devices. Ramesh Patel, Managing Director, said: “We are confident that a high percentage of the contacts made at Arab Health will turn into export orders. Just being under the UKTI and Medilink banner was sufficient to bring a great deal of credibility.”
Eddie Fletcher, sports scientist, with Alex Skelton of Wattbike
Winning export opportunities
Another regional membership organisation working with UKTI to support SMEs at Arab Health was Medilink Yorkshire and Humber (Y&H), organiser of the Yorkshire Pavilion. Medilink Y&H provides a gateway for national and international clients to develop relationships with the region’s healthcare sector.
Kate Stoddard, Export Manager of Single Use Surgical, said: “Each year Arab Health offers us the perfect opportunity to speak to distributors from across the Middle East and indeed the world. We’ve had interest from over lots of countries across the Middle East, and I’m looking forward to chasing up these leads when I’m back in the UK.”
Charlotte Fraser, International Manager at Medilink Y&H, commented: “The UK enjoys an excellent trading relationship with countries across the Middle East, with sustained investment in health delivery reforms leading to the demand for the latest technologies.”
The innovative products and solutions on display from Yorkshire companies included the following:
• Paxman Ltd’s cooling systems reduce hair loss during chemotherapy. The new ORBIS model, launched in 2010, was among the nominees for the Arab Health 2011 award for most innovative product for export.
• RD Biomed made its first visit to Arab Health to launch its diagnostic device Peptest, which detects reflux disease by measuring the level of pepsin in clinical samples.
• Park House Healthcare launched its new lightweight and durable aluminium hoists for patient lifting.
• Single Use Surgical sought distribution partners for its surgical instruments, which combine the safety of disposable products with the reliability of reusable ones.
• Inditherm plc unveiled its new CosiCrib solution for nursing new-born babies in hospital, providing a safe environment operated via a foot control.
Harvey Dettmar, Director of RD Biomed, commented: “The interest we’ve had from clinicians and potential distributors from across the world has been outstanding, and the event has acted as an ideal platform for us to launch our technology into this exciting international market.”
Kate Stoddard at the Single Use Surgical stand
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