Dubai-based Erith Group announced the establishment of an industrial-scale production plant of sealing products – Erith Industries – at the Al Hamra Industrial Area in Ras Al Khaimah, which will reduce and eliminate the need to import foreign sealing products and solutions and will eventually increase the export to other countries after meeting the domestic demand.

Construction of the factory has started in April this year. The factory will go into production in the next few months. Erith Industries will produce industrial gaskets with the help of computer and numerically controlled machinery managed by as many as 7-9 highly skilled personnel by December 2022. The company is investing Dhs4 million on a 6,500 square feet plot of land at Al Hamra Industrial Area. The Phase I of the factory will be ready for production in December this year, to be followed by the development of the Phase II.

The news of the new factory comes at a time when the global industrial seals market is projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5.7 per cent from $12.11 billion in 2022 to $17.86 billion by 2029, according to Fortune Business Insights.

“Our decision to invest in the UAE is in line with the economic vision of the UAE and supports the ‘Make it in the Emirates’ programme to increase in-country value, industrial output that will reduce import dependency and help the UAE to become self-reliant in industrial products,” Richard S. Edwin, Chief Executive Officer of Erith Group, says.

“We are bringing the highly-reliable and word-class technology to the region with the support of our partners Garlock and GPT – leaders in industrial seals and gasket market worldwide – to help our clients achieve the highest level of safety and reliability.

“Our investment in Erith Industries FZ LLC in Al Hamra Industrial Area is a small step towards a self-reliant UAE economy and part of our grand vision to develop a large industry that will not only create good-paying jobs, but will help the country earn foreign currency through exports.”

Gasket and seals are the materials used to prevent the passage of any foreign media through to and fro, the joined object while under compression. Gasket is a mechanical seal, which fills the space between two or more mating surfaces, in order to prevent leakage. Gaskets allow perfect mating surface wherein they can fill irregularities.

The primary function of an industrial seal or gasket is to optimise the performance of a machine with its process reliability. Seals are also used in applications that involve rotary and reciprocating motions. Industrial seals have played an important role in providing optimum efficiency and productivity over the past few decades.

The global market has shown significant growth in the past decades and is expected to grow moderately in future.