Making inroads into the international marketplace is a key business strategy for Aqua — we pride ourselves on delivering the best in quality, design, and energy-efficiency, and these high standards have helped cement our global success.

Armed with a long-term plan and patience, we set our sights on the Middle Eastern horizon and in 2009 Aqua began knocking on doors in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Convinced that the key to these markets was forging the right partnerships, we identified potential business opportunities, most notably in the data centre sector and oil and gas industries.

This marked the start of an important journey for us: as a gateway to the Arab world and a significant EMEIA economy, the UAE represents a lucrative export market for UK companies.

With a number of projects currently underway, Aqua has installed state-of-the-art eco-friendly cooling systems in Masdar City, a government-sponsored pre-planned carbon-free desert city development in Abu Dhabi designed around sustainability principles with the aim of relying on solar and other renewable energies to become an environmentally-friendly, fully-sustainable hub for clean tech companies into the foreseeable future.

We are also proud that Aqua’s cooling systems have been installed by a leading Middle East finance company: Al Baraka Banking Group has incorporated our Rear Door Coolers (with LPS) into its new Bahrain bank data centre — and our specialised technology brings added local benefits as it has the flexibility to use the district chiller water supply if the community’s distribution network fails in the searing ambient heat.

And these aren’t the only businesses to benefit from sustainable, efficient and dependable cooling solutions despite desert temperatures that regularly soar above 50°C. Aqua’s bespoke products consistently offer industry the reliable reassurance of ultimate peace of mind: they are tailor-made to suit companies operating in an essentially hostile environment, and our Queen’s Award-winning Leak Prevention System (LPS) technology effectively eliminates the threat of water-related system damage, leaks and seepage.

That’s not to say it’s all been plain sailing in the Gulf region — like many good things, Aqua’s Middle East export success has thrown up many challenges, not least understanding business practices and traditions so different from the UK-norm…

Our determination to gain a thorough knowledge of this region and its modern-day industries by fostering a deep understanding of Arabic realities — its history, its peoples, its rich culture — is what sets us apart as a valued business partner. We are delighted that Aqua has now teamed up with EMC to strengthen our existing relationships and forge new connections with the Arab world.

As we continue to consolidate our presence throughout the UAE, we are in an increasingly strong position to expand our focus further east towards China. Having already gained a toe-hold in the US marketplace, Aqua really is going global — and that’s cool with us.