The MAC is used to develop future-oriented analytics and Internet of Things (IoT) solutions for airports, airlines, cargo service providers and ground handlers.  At these MACs, around 900 software developers, data specialists and engineers are developing digital solutions in conjunction with customers. The solutions are based on Mindsphere, the open cloud-based IoT operating system from Siemens. The MAC in Dubai is located at Dubai South’s Business Park, which is built to support every conceivable kind of business and industry, and is also home to the Al Maktoum International Airport and the Expo 2020.

Moreover, the United Arab Emirates is a major hub between North and South, East and West, and is therefore the ideal location for the new facility.

"We are building on our decades of experience in airport logistics and are using Mindsphere in a targeted manner as a platform for digital innovations," says Michael Reichle, CEO of Siemens, Postal, Parcel & Airport Logistics. "For example we are using our extensive expertise to develop apps, or in the areas of machine learning, data analysis or data mining."

"Customers benefit from these skills in our cloud-based and on-premise solutions. Siemens is also inviting customers to work together on new solutions as co-creation partners," adds the head of the new MAC in Dubai, Khaled Nabli. "In this way, Siemens is developing applications which are tailored precisely to the needs of customers, adding maximum value for them. This gives them a significant competitive advantage, and it provides us with a USP in the market." Siemens has already established partnerships of this kind with Dubai Airports (United Arab Emirates) and Munich Airport (Germany).

Siemens' global MAC network also opens up the opportunity for SPPAL to use the expertise and data from closely related fields. For example, data from Building Technology can be used to further improve the passenger experience at the airport.

In the era of digitalisation, appropriate cyber security is fundamental for protecting sensitive data. In the collaboration with airports Siemens takes on a leading role, offering a wide portfolio of products and services which includes plant and network security as well as system integrity.

The Dubai MAC is the first of two in the United Arab Emirates, with the second to be built in Abu Dhabi. The two UAE MACs are part of a US$500 million investment Siemens is making over three years to expand its digital presence in the Middle East, which also includes software grants for local universities to boost digital skills.