Materials Handling Middle East to spotlight automation, digitalisation
Putting automation into laser focus will be the 11th edition of Materials Handling Middle East (MHME), the region’s dedicated trade show for warehousing, intralogistics and supply chain solutions, which, alongside its sister event Hypermotion Dubai, will bring together key industry stakeholders for three days of face-to-face networking from November 2-4 at the Dubai Exhibition Centre (DEC).
With the global warehouse automation market forecast to double by 2025, the region’s automation market will be propelled by digitalisation initiatives led by end-user industries.
That’s according to a global leader in robotic, data-driven and flexible automated solutions Swisslog Middle East. Its general manager, David Dronfield, says the predicted growth will be the result of strong macro and industry growth drivers.
“The automation market across the region is set for a paradigm shift due to digitalisation initiatives by end-user industries, and the global warehouse automation market is set to double by 2025, on the back of eCommerce fulfilment and increasing warehousing labour costs,” he said.
Dronfield, who is also a member of the MHME Advisory Board, explained that the role automation will play in the Industry 4.0 is far-reaching.
“The Middle East is gearing up to take advantage of digitalisation in a big way, and we are seeing companies in the region making real investments for real results today. It is an emerging player in the worldwide map, and across the key industry sectors having a competitive advantage will be the key to the ongoing success and development of the organisation as well as the region.”
Echoing this sentiment is Navin Narayan, CEO of ACME Intralog – platinum sponsor of MFME. According to Narayan, the Middle East has been slower than other markets when adopting physical automation solutions, however, the pandemic has increased manpower costs and squeezed overall operational margins meaning businesses have had to quickly realise the value of implementing automation technologies in their production and distribution lines.
“The pandemic has definitely accelerated the adoption of semi-automation and automation solutions,” said Narayan. “Our region has been relying heavily on manual labour for material handling and warehouse operations which were challenged as Covid-19 hit us all.
“New regulations for social distancing and drastically increased customer demand when it comes to delivery accuracy and speed made it impossible to stick to the status quo. To remain competitive, increased efficiency is key that could not be achieved by adding more human resources.”
Running across the three-day event will be Scalex, a free-to-attend content platform gathering some of the industry’s brightest minds to tackle topics such as; ‘Port Projects: building and upgrading port facilities and the creation of environmentally sustainable facilities; ‘The potential of asset-sharing to shape the logistics sector (unlocking unused capacity in capital intensive assets - trucks, warehousing, ships)’; and ‘UAE’s ambition to be a global go-to destination for blockchain adoption and New supply chain and logistics business models to support industry 4.0’.
