Crisplant, a leading global supplier of automated baggage-handling systems, has opened a new office in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, to provide rapid deployment of advanced, high-speed baggage-handling systems to airport customers throughout the Middle East.

Klaus Schäfer, managing director, Crisplant, explains: “Significant investment is being made throughout the Middle East in developing the infrastructure to support growth in air passenger numbers and air freight. The new Jeddah office brings Crisplant’s global expertise closer to our customers in this region. As a key partner in developing efficient and secure high-speed baggage-handling systems, Crisplant combines state-of-the-art technology with a fast response from a local workforce, allowing airports to meet tight timescales during this strategically important time in the region’s economic development.”

The office builds on Crisplant’s existing presence in the Middle East, where one of the company’s projects has been to design and install the complete $123m baggage-handling system for the New Doha International Airport in Qatar and has a $67m five-year contract to provide full service and maintenance contract on the system. This major installation required a wide range of equipment to handle and sort around 19,500 items of luggage per hour, providing capacity for 20 million passengers per year.

The Jeddah office will be headed by Mr Søren Stenz who has 25 years of experience in baggage handling projects for major airports around the world, including the new major airport at Doha, Qatar. He also has extensive local knowledge gained whilst based in the Middle East. Stenz will be supported Alaadin Tinawi, who has years of business experience in the Middle East.

In addition to the new Saudi office, Crisplant has a global network of local offices in China, South Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong, Spain, France, UK, Netherlands and Germany. As part of the BEUMER group, a market leader in conveying, loading, palletising, packaging, sorting and distribution systems, Crisplant can also support customers through BEUMER offices in, Australia, Brazil, India, US, Russia and Asia.