Saud Abu Alshawareb is executive vice president of industry at TECOM Group PJSC and has been instrumental in driving the growth and success of Dubai Industrial City, the region’s leading manufacturing and logistics hub, which confirmed almost AED 1 billion in investments earlier this year.
Abu Alshawareb’s innovative approach to industrial leasing and strategic planning has fostered an environment conducive to collaborative and innovative manufacturing at Dubai Industrial City, a part of TECOM Group that, since its establishment in 2004, has united local, regional, and global manufacturing leaders in Dubai.
Home to more than 800 customers and 300 operational factories, Dubai Industrial City offers a world-class masterplan divided across six strategic sector-specific zones – base metals, machinery, minerals, F&B, transport, and chemicals – that facilitates intra-sector collaboration and creates an integrated manufacturing network, eliminating supply chain uncertainties and wastage. Abu Alshawareb’s wealth of experience and insights have strengthened Dubai Industrial City’s role as an enabler of deeper public-private collaboration to deliver industry-wide advancements. Over the past year, he has led several collaborations to enhance the district’s contributions to national visions for growth – Operation 300bn, Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPA), or Dubai Economic Agenda ‘D33’.
In May 2023, Dubai Industrial City partnered with the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT) to deploy the Industrial Technology Transformation Index in the manufacturing sector, marking its commitment to decarbonisation, digitisation, digital transformation, and Industry 4.0. Furthermore, during the launch of the Make Brilliance global campaign in May 2023, Dubai Industrial City and the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) signed an agreement to promote decarbonisation in the industrial sector under the UAE Net Zero by 2050 strategy and support the National Food Security Strategy 2051.
Several empowered customers operate advanced and automated facilities at Dubai Industrial City that elevate the UAE’s vision for future sustainability. Unilever’s fully automated Dubai Personal Care facility in the district is part of the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse Network, while Silver Line Gate Group is developing an AED 200 million manufacturing facility at Dubai Industrial City that is expected to enhance food security in the UAE and the region.
These strategic government partnerships by Dubai Industrial City, one of TECOM Group’s ten business districts in Dubai, also facilitate access to investments for its customers. During the launch of the Make Brilliance global awareness campaign, Dubai Industrial City entered a strategic partnership with the Emirates Development Bank (EDB), which extended its commitment to provide the district’s customers with AED 1 billion in the next 3-5 years. The bank – which had approved more than AED 513 million towards financing projects and businesses based at Dubai Industrial City in 2022 – recently confirmed support for Indian company Himalaya’s new herbal pharmaceutical factory in the district, on which construction works commenced in October 2023.
Abu Alshawareb is a driving force for Dubai Industrial City, which is today home to a multitude of local and international manufacturing giants like A.P. Moeller-Maersk, Himalaya, Nutridor, Unilever, Al Khayyat Investments, and Standard Carpets. His contributions continue to strengthen Dubai Industrial City’s role as a cornerstone of Operation 300bn, Dubai Economic Agenda ‘D33’, and the UAE’s vision for economic prosperity.
