Exporting excellence to Dubai

Apr 16 2008 by Graeme King, The Journal

THE operators of the new Dubai Metro transport service have sought out engineering excellence from Tyneside to help complete their multi-million pound project.

Hart Door Systems, of Westerhope, Newcastle, has won an export order worth £750,000 to supply 115 of its industrial roller shutters for the Dubai Metro, which is intended to be one of the most advanced urban rail systems in the world when it opens next year.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries leads the consortium working on the construction project to build the Metro system, and the Japanese company has hired supplier Al-Futtaim Group to provide certain materials.

Now Hart Door Systems has won a contract with Al-Futtaim to supply its roller shutters and ship them out to the United Arab Emirates.

The first phase of the Dubai Metro involves the construction of two lines of a hi-tech driverless rapid transit system. Other consortium members include the Japanese Obayashi and Kajima corporations, and Yapi Merkesi of Turkey.

The new Metro is intended to relieve congestion caused by increasing traffic as well as supporting continuing urban development needed to accommodate a population rising by 6.4% per annum and tourist numbers estimated to reach 15 million per annum by 2010.

Alan Richardson of Hart said: “This is our largest export order to date and comes on the back of large orders for Hart products for Heathrow’s T5 and the international railway terminal at St Pancras.

“Time and again we show that engineering excellence is still alive and well on Tyneside.”

The first part of the order, which includes electrically-operated security, insulated and fire roller shutters, will be despatched from Hart’s factory by the end of April.

The shutters are designed to work in very sophisticated and complex systems including depot protection when driver-less trains are in operation.

In full operation, Dubai Metro is projected to carry approximately 1.2 million passengers on an average day, and 355 million passengers per year.

The 32.5-mile red line will have 29 stations, four of which will be underground, while the 11-mile green line which will have 14 stations, six underground and eight at ground level.