A U.A.E. delegation led by Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, Minister of Economy, has held in-depth discussions with a number of senior American business leaders during its tour of Seattle and San Francisco on the U.S. West Coast.
At Seattle, the delegation visited Boeing’s facilities in Everett, the world’s largest factory and largest building by volume (more than 13 million m3) that assembles Boeing 747s, 767s, 777s, and the new 787 Dreamliner.
Talks between the U.A.E. delegation and Boeing officials focused on the current cooperation between the U.S. airplane manufacturer and several of the U.A.E.’s major companies. A significant partnership initiative between Boeing, Masdar and Etihad Airlines led to the establishment of a Sustainable Bioenergy Research Consortium (SBRC) in Abu Dhabi. Other partnerships include the agreement inked between Boeing and Strata, mandating the Al Ain based company within the Mubadala group to manufacture airplane parts for Boeing. In late 2013, the U.A.E.’s carriers - Emirates, Etihad and Fly Dubai - made history by ordering more than 300 Boeing airplanes, worth in excess of US$120 billion.
During its visit to San Francisco, the U.A.E. delegation visited the offices of tech giant Google in Silicon Valley. Mohammad Gawdat, Vice President - Business Innovation - Google X, met the delegation and provided an overview of the company’s approach to innovation and experimentation through the Google X division.
The delegation also visited Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX), the space transport services company headquartered in Hawthorne, California, that aims to reduce space transportation costs and enable the colonisation of Mars. The high ranking members of the U.A.E. delegation also visited Stanford University, one of the world's most prestigious institutions.
The U.S. tour offered U.A.E.-based private and public sector companies the chance to meet with their American counterparts and benefit from their vast industry leadership experience, identify standards and procedures as well as best practices implemented within the organisations, and explore ways to enhance bilateral cooperation and synergies.