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Ducab set to boost capacity twofold

The cable giant, jointly owned by the governments of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, expects to achieve the capacity boost with the imminent opening of the state-of-the-art Abu Dhabi plant. "While the new plant will add 25,000 tonnes to its present capacity of 40,000 copper tonnes, Ducab seeks to further boost the production at its plant in Dubai through technology upgrade and enhanced human resource capabilities," said Farid Mohammed Ahmed, the company's general manager, sales & marketing. "Within the next few months, we are poised to achieve a combined capacity of some 60,000 tonnes." Already a market leader accounting for some 50 per cent of the local market where the total demand is estimated over Dh1 billion, the ambitious expansion will help the company reinforce its profile not only within the region but also in other export markets as reliable provider of advanced cable solutions. "The enhanced capacity will enable us to sustain our penetration in the MENA (Middle East North Africa) Sub Continent and Far East region while better positioning us to meet a predicted surge in local demand," Ahmed said. Ducab has already set its sights on other potential markets in the region and beyond. Libya, Sudan and Yemen are among the new markets where Ducab hopes to penetrate as part of its aggressive push to grab a bigger share of the global market.

"Our expansion strategy is to capitalise on the upcoming projects in the Gulf and MENA markets, while continuing to develop network of distributors in new markets across the globe," Ahmed said.

Last year, with sales reaching Dh530 million, Ducab recorded a 22 per cent growth over the preceding year. "This year we are geared to sustain the trend with the first half performance exceeding our targeted sales," Ahmed said.

Ahmed said the opening of the new plant, located at new Abu Dhabi Industrial Area, will also enable the cable major with a 25-year-old track record of steady and sustained growth to increase the speed of response to customers in Abu Dhabi while contributing further to the industrial activity within the country. Currently with a workforce of 400, the opening of the new plant will see Ducab adding 130 new employees.

In 2003, in addition to posting a substantial growth in sales and production, Ducab also succeeded in conquering new markets including Iran, India, Tanzania and Jordan. Ducab secured the Dh24 million Daelim Engineering contract for the supply of power and control cables for Kuwait Oil Company's Effluent Water Project. It also acquired contracts with the transport sectors in both Iran and India. Heralding Ducab's foray into the Indian sub-continent was the winning of the Dh10 million first phase contract for Delhi Metro. Ducab's advantage in its bid to win the prestigious Delhi Metro contract was its fire resistant (FR) cable, hailed as accomplishment in terms of its diverse utility. "A combination of innovative technology and a commitment to quality ensured that we were chosen as the preferred partner in assisting these countries in the creation of efficient and reliable national transport systems," he said. The fire resistant cable has an added safety dimension in enabling the functioning of certain services during crisis situations.

"Our forte is a superb blend of technical capability and efficient delivery systems." Ahmed said.