Automechanika Dubai lifts hood on transformative auto aftermarket

Staff Reporter, Gulf Today

Automechnika Dubai, the Middle East’s largest international trade show for the automotive aftermarket industry, which runs at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) until Thursday (December 16), was officially opened on Tuesday by  Mattar Al Tayer, Director General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) & Commissioner General for Infrastructure, Urban Planning and Well-Being.

Lifting the hood on a rapidly transforming and maturing sector where digitization is the new driver, the 18th edition of the show, organised by Messe Frankfurt Middle East, has exhibitors from 47 countries and 12 national pavilions all demonstrating just how far the sector has come in its technological transformation and signaling more change ahead.

“Technology advances are impacting all segments of the industry and are in evidence across all the show’s six sectors,” explained Mahmut Gazi Bilikozen, Show Director of Automechanika Dubai.

“This represents a seismic shift in the regional industry, which is advancing rapidly in terms of service provision, product innovation and professional standards. This is an industry which has now come of age.

“Compared to 2019, we have seen a 40 per cent increase in senior management and an 18 per cent increase in procurement and purchasing personnel pre-registering for the show – another signal of increased business activity and interest in finding new partners,” added Bilikozen. “Visitors have also pre-registered from 143 countries, so we’re expecting plenty of activity over the next three days.  

Spread across eight DWTC halls, Automechanika Dubai features six sectors: tires & batteries; car wash, care & reconditioning, repair & maintenance; parts & components; electronics &systems as well as accessories & customization.

For the first time, the show will feature a comprehensive awards ceremony recognising excellence in products, services, personnel and training within the regional industry and a Tools & Skills Challenge - an action-packed live stage where workshop specialists can demonstrate their skills in tire changing, tire mounting and smart dent removal.

The scale of transformation impacting the sector has been summed up by Romanian show newcomer Wemzer Industries, which says the sector is now increasingly aware of its need to contribute to global ‘greener world’ endeavors.

With Wemzer now producing OEM specified standard ceramic and carbon-free products, the company’s Managing Director Amin Uz Zaman identified additive manufacturing, remanufacturing, e-commerce, hybrid / electric drive trains and mobility as a service as the new sector drivers.

“The automotive aftermarket is undergoing big disruption,” he said. “With electrification and digitisation driving change, we are reshaping the way customers, automotive suppliers, and industry stakeholders think of cars and driving and how business in the automotive aftermarket is conducted and value is created.”

The massive penetration of internet connections and smartphones has driven the customer’s expectation for a seamless, comfortable, and most importantly a transparent shopping experience. The automotive industry was probably delayed in embracing this transformation, but the pandemic accelerated the process and now we are witnessing a massive digitization of the industry.”

Despite setbacks due to the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic, Wemzer Industries believes the aftermarket is poised for unprecedented growth.

“There may be challenges related to supply chain, but we have positive indications for economic recovery across our target markets. The automotive aftermarket revenue is anticipated to record US$ 800 billion by 2027, according to the most recent study by Global Market Insights Inc. It is a well-known fact that the global automotive industry is dynamically expanding,” said Zaman.

“Digitalisation has recently taken an exponential pace. There are certainly dimensions that are yet to be revealed. It is a revolutionary transformation of the business and its value chain, requiring the integration of new layers and partnerships with new enablers to complete the transformation that goes beyond offering a seamless omnichannel shopping experience.”

And with industry analysts forecasting the GCC’s automotive parts retail revenue will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.8% to US$6.84 billion in 2025, there’s much at stake for industry players facing greater than ever competition. Keys to success are being outlined at the Automechanika Dubai Academy where experts are probing the industry’s region outlook, the impact of electrification within the GCC, digital trends, sector diversification and fourth industrial revolution outcomes.