Rashed Al Ansari, Vice President of Dubai Industrial City, explained that the construction activity is another sign of the growth and development of the township, which is the third largest non-real estate project in Dubai spanning across 560 million square feet.

"We are achieving rapid occupancy, an indication of the high demand and fast track development of the City. The on-going construction within the city means that we will maintain our leading role in driving the emirate's status as the region's hub for the industrial sector," he pointed out.

Rashed further noted that five of the 19 factories that are currently being built are estimated to be complete by 2008, while the remaining are scheduled to start operations by 2009.

"The new wave of construction will further expand the city and mark a milestone in our development with an increasing number of industrial units expected to be operational before the end of this year," he said.

Al Ansari further pointed out that more than 500 factories and manufacturing units for light and medium industries are set to be built across the various six industrial zones of the city until 2015.

"This is the start of massive and wide spread construction across our industrial zones as we have more than 450 investors who plan to have an industrial presence in the city with some of the investors planning to build multiple manufacturing units in the city", he pointed out.

Rashed also noted that the Dubai Centre for Industrial Standards, Maqayees, which is in charge of managing and implementing all Quality, Health, Safety and Environment (QHSE) issues across the industrial hub, is currently working to approve more than 140 construction applications for factories by the city's industrial tenants.

With construction activities at the City in full swing, two factories built by Conmix became operational earlier this year, for pre-mixed plaster and concrete with a total capacity of 300,000 tonnes per year.

Additionally, facilities are being added within the City in quick succession with new milestones being notched such as warehouses, logistic services and the Dubai Industrial Academy, as Dubai Industrial City continues to sign up fresh investors keen to set up base in the township.

In close proximity to Jebel Ali Port and Free Zone, with easy accessibility to major highways such as Sheikh Zayed Road, Emirates Road and the Dubai Ring Road, the 560 million square feet Dubai Industrial City is a dedicated industrial destination comprising six industrial clusters for food and beverage, base metal, mineral products, chemicals, transport equipment and parts, and machinery and mechanical equipment.

Complementary facilities for logistics, warehousing, labour villages, industrial training, in addition to commercial, residential and entertainment zones, position Dubai Industrial City as a comprehensive one stop-shop destination. DI provides tenants with a critical competitive advantage in human resources, logistics and business operations.

About Dubai Industrial City

Dubai Industrial City (DI), a member of Tatweer, is set up on 560 million sq ft of prime land, with the aim of catalysing the growth and expansion of the industrial sector in the United Arab Emirates - especially in high value added manufacturing and production in the sectors of Machinery & Mechanical equipment, Transport Equipment and parts, Base Metal, Chemicals, Food and Beverage and Mineral Products.

Dubai Industrial City provides one of the region's finest business environments and is a one-stop facility for industry and related sectors such as logistics, assembly and warehousing, vocational training and labor residences.