| Maritime segment 'now among world's best' |
| Special - LIMA 2007 | ||
| Written by Lee Shi-Ian and Mazlinda Mahmood | ||
| Tuesday, 13 November 2007 18:00 | ||
In 1997, Huswah Sdn Bhd took over the organising of the maritime segment. Now under HW Lima Sdn Bhd, it has since grown to almost rival the aerospace segment. This year, the maritime segment of Lima will be held from Dec 4 to 8 and it is set to become the biggest and best edition ever. There is an increase in exhibition space, participants, visiting delegations and vessels. HW Lima managing director Ahmad Dzuhri Abd Wahab said the maritime segment had exceeded all expectations. "In 1997, the maritime segment was met with a lot of scepticism but we were still able to attract visitors and exhibitors despite competition from other exhibitions." Citing the Euronaval exhibition in France as an example, Ahmad Dzuhri said the market representations and foreign participants there were similar to Lima. "The only difference is that they have more local participants as the French maritime industry is more developed." Foreign dignitaries expected at this year's exhibition include three transport ministers, six defence ministers, nine defence secretaries-general, five inspectors-general of police and six marine police chiefs. "Over the years, Lima has grown in stature and is now well-received by the international defence community. When they look at the calendar and see December, Lima automatically comes to mind," said Ahmad Dzuhri. Exhibition space has increased by 30 per cent with about 10,000 sq metres taken up compared with 7,600 sq metres in the last edition. Visitors at next month's exhibition will be able to view 73 vessels, including 12 warships. The vessels are from India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Australia, United States, South Korea and Malaysia. About 30 vessels are from the various navy fleets. There will also be three helicopters on static display -- the Royal Malaysian Navy's Agusta-Westland Super Lynx and Eurocopter AS 555 Fennec and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency's Eurocopter SA 360 Dauphin. Another highlight is a hovercraft manufactured locally and equipped with an engine from car maker Proton. Ahmad Dzuhri said exhibitors could expect improved services as feedback from the previous Lima had been noted and acted upon. "The opening ceremony will be held a day before the exhibition starts. This is to allow exhibitors to start doing business as early as possible. "The number of official events have also been reduced to allow the exhibitors more time to do networking." In conjunction with the 50th Merdeka celebrations, there will be a navy gallery to showcase the RMN's progress over the past 50 years. |
