DUBAI – Reinforcing its commitment to the region, Henkel – one of the world's leading companies active in laundry & home care, beauty care and adhesive technologies, has opened its new Innovation Center, Middle East and Africa (MEA) in Dubai Silicon Oasis. The Innovation Center has been set up in Dubai to take advantages of the strategic benefits Dubai offers as a business hub for the Middle East, coupled with its political & economic stability and multicultural environment. Ashraf El Afifi, President Henkel MEA, said: “The decision to open our regional R&D-Innovation Center in Dubai is emphasizing once more the important role Dubai plays for us as regional hub and is underlining our commitment to the MEA region, which is one of our fastest growing markets globally. As a key player in Laundry and Home Care business in MEA it makes perfect business sense to further extends our specific research for these markets.” The Innovation Center is facilitating the development of new products in the area laundry and home care tailored to the specific needs of consumers in Middle East and Africa. The center is equipped with a simulated environment for component testing. State-of-the-art technologies and equipment allow applying latest test methods, reinforcing Henkel's position as an innovation leader. “Dubai attracts a highly skilled workforce, which is evident from the growing number of international companies, professional service firms and financial institutions operational here, so we decided to have our R&D facility here which helps us gauge the pulse of our consumers – especially considering that people from over 150 nationalities reside in Dubai,” emphasizes El Afifi. The new R&D center houses experts from seven different nationalities, emphasizing the importance of diversity for the company, which plays a key role in Henkel's success. “Diverse teams – in terms of nationality, gender and seniority – deliver better results and offer competitive advantages,” El Afifi added. — SG
