Grace Najjar, CEO, Align Management Solutions and Chairperson of the Smart Building Summit, highlighted the growth of the industry.
H.E Dr Ali Al Jassim, Chairperson, Emirates Green Building Council, outlined key learnings from COP28.
The 2024 edition continues until Thursday, 18 January.
The second edition of the Smart Building Summit has begun at Light + Intelligent Building Middle East, the region’s largest exhibition for lighting and building technology, with insights from a range of experts highlighting the potential growth of the industry and the path to creating sustainable smart buildings.
Speaking at the event, which takes place until Thursday, 18 January, at the Dubai World Trade Centre, Grace Najjar, CEO of Align Management Solutions, outlined that the global smart buildings market is expected to increase in value from US$96 billion in 2023 to an estimated US$408 billion by 2030. Meanwhile, as construction and real estate account for 40% of carbon emissions, government support of sustainable building sectors could save around 4.8 trillion dollars globally over the next three years, and the building sector will see an average CO2 emissions reduction of 6% per year until 2025.
She explained: “We have a unique opportunity to delve into why the era of smart buildings is upon us and how it is reshaping our environment for the better. Dubai, one of the fastest-growing cities in the world, is home to more than 150 skyscrapers, including the world's tallest building. Under Dubai’s Clean energy strategy, the country will produce 75 per cent of its energy from clean energy sources by 2050.
“Dubai aims to become the city with the smallest carbon footprint in the world. Developing smart and sustainable buildings will be critical to this success.”
The Middle East stands out at the forefront of this global shift, with forward-looking cities and countries known for benchmark setting.
“Smart buildings are leaving a positive legacy as they focus on long-term success on wellbeing, technical excellence, ambition, contemporary and flexible design, outstanding innovation, user experience, as well as digitalisation and collaboration,” added Najjar.
Meanwhile, H.E Dr Ali Jassim, Chairperson, Emirates Green Building Council, discussed the path to sustainable smart buildings during the Smart Building Summit opening session at Light + Intelligent Building Middle East, the region’s largest exhibition for lighting and building technology.
As well as highlighting their potential to reduce emissions and resource consumption, he also discussed COP28’s role in shaping building regulations.
Elsewhere on the Smart Building summit agenda were sessions including Healthy Buildings and Communities Contribute to a Healthier Planet; Smart Cities, Smarter Buildings: Expo City’s Sustainable Development Story; Unleashing the Power of AI in Buildings; Revolutionising Energy Efficiency and Occupant Satisfaction; and Dark and smart cities of North.
Spanning three halls and denoting a 75% growth in event space and a 128% growth in exhibitor numbers from last year, over 400 international exhibitors will showcase the latest trends, innovations and technologies in the lighting, electrical engineering and smart building sectors during the three-day Light + Intelligent Building Middle East showcase.
The event takes place from Tuesday, January 16, to Thursday, January 18, at the Dubai World Trade Centre.
About Light + Intelligent Building Middle East
Light + Intelligent Building Middle East brings together world-renowned brands, regional players, and promising innovators for an exciting three-day showcase featuring lighting, electrical engineering, home, and building automation products. The exhibition has played a vital role in the growth and development of the industry since its launch in 2006, with a solid representation of global products and brands, several educational conferences, certified workshops, and leading awards programme to recognise the very best the industry has to offer.
About Messe Frankfurt
The Messe Frankfurt Group is one of the world’s leading trade fair, congress and event organisers with their own exhibition grounds. With a workforce of some 2,160 people at its headquarters in Frankfurt am Main and in 28 subsidiaries, it organises events around the world. Group sales in financial year 2022 were around €454 million. We serve our customers’ business interests efficiently within the framework of our Fairs & Events, Locations and Services business fields. One of Messe Frankfurt’s key strengths is its powerful and closely knit global sales network, which covers around 180 countries in all regions of the world. Our comprehensive range of services – both onsite and online – ensures that customers worldwide enjoy consistently high quality and flexibility when planning, organising and running their events. We are using our digital expertise to develop new business models. The wide range of services includes renting exhibition grounds, trade fair construction and marketing, personnel and food services. Sustainability is a central pillar of our corporate strategy. Here, we strike a healthy balance between ecological and economic interests, social responsibility and diversity.
About Messe Frankfurt Middle East
Messe Frankfurt Middle East’s portfolio of exhibitions includes: Automechanika Dubai, Automechanika Riyadh, Beautyworld Middle East, Beautyworld Saudi Arabia, Intersec, Intersec Saudi Arabia, Gifts & Lifestyle Middle East, Light + Intelligent Building Middle East and Paperworld Middle East. In the 2022/23 event season, Messe Frankfurt Middle East exhibitions combined featured 3,939 exhibitors from 66 countries and attracted 151,990 visitors from 116 countries.
