Esri, a leader in geographic information system (GIS) technology, has announced the opening of its new office in Dubai as part of its regional expansion strategy.

The primary focus of the Dubai office, which is responsible for the first Esri ArcGIS Technology Hub outside the US, is to help the distributor network further develop its ArcGIS technical capabilities as the growing geospatial market expands into new industries.

Esri continues to expand its international network of offices and distributorships, further demonstrating its commitment to supporting the user community, said a senior official.

'As Esri's regional office for the Middle East and Africa, we are responsible for business development and supporting our distributors to help them extend their technical expertise and business skills and capabilities,' remarked manager Sohail El-Abd.

'We will also be supporting those larger customers with enterprise license agreements and helping distributors and partners deliver GIS projects,' he noted.

In addition to its ArcGIS Technology Hub, the office is developing an Executive Briefing Center that will be used to stage technology workshops and discuss Esri's latest software and its potential use with senior managers.

The center will also be available to Esri's distributors and partners to hold meetings and seminars.

Although new, the office is working with a number of established clients, including Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Centre, UAE Bayanat, Abu Dhabi Police, the Bahrain Central Informatics Organization, Qatar Centre for Geographic Information Systems, Ministry of Interior (Bahrain and Qatar), Saudi Aramco, Saudi National Water Company, Saudi Electricity Company, and the Kuwait Oil Company.

'The Middle East, particularly in the Gulf region, has experienced rapid and continuous growth over the past several years,' remarked Jack Dangermond, Esri president.

'While our current implementations have been well supported by the Esri distributor network, I believe that the time is right to establish an Esri technology center in this part of the world to help our users maximize their use of the technology and realize its full potential,' he added.-TradeArabia News Service