- Harbor365 studies the climatic conditions in the Middle East, workplace ergonomics and socio-cultural aspirations to build country-specific solutions locally.
- Plans to spread wings beyond Saudi Arabia and into other Middle East markets by January next year.
- The startup has set aside a budget to set up a manufacturing plant in Saudi Arabia in the next couple of years.
- Sees 60% year-on-year growth in revenues this year due to strong demand from Saudi Arabia.
Singapore-based startup – Harbor365, makers of personal protective clothing for petrochemical industries, is flexing its muscles to take on the big brands in the Middle East.
Frank Nuttebaum, Director of Business Development at Harbor365, told TechChannel News that the brand was conceived to provide an alternative to the already existing and dated protective clothing.
“What we are trying to do is introduce a newer approach to flame-retardant clothing in the Middle East, compared to the conventional ways. Flame-retardant clothing has been mandatory for most oil & gas and petrochemical companies in the Middle East for the last 10 to 15 years, although the transition has been slower when compared to other parts of the world,” he said.
Flame-resistant clothing is designed to protect against possible intermittent flame and thermal exposure as oil & gas related flash fires can reach up to 1,038 degrees Celsius and can last for several seconds.
There are many different types of personal protective clothing to protect against these hazards but what Harbor365 is doing is studying the climatic conditions in the Middle East, workplace ergonomics and socio-cultural aspirations to build country-specific solutions locally.
“The problem in the Middle East is that the region has very particular climatic conditions and you need to balance the protection of the workers as well as their comfort and durability of the garment,” Nuttebaum said.
Unique fabric solution
Heat stress is a huge problem, he said and added that most of the products sold in the region, predominantly, are from the US, China and Europe, and has not been designed for the Middle East, in particular.
“What we bought to the market is a unique fabric solution which is looking into the heat-stress problem and flame-retardant clothing to give users and companies a piece of mind. What I found in the Middle East market is that people are not looking at the real work problems that are faced by end-users,” he said.
Moreover, he said that they spent a lot of time interacting with the safety heads of big corporations and top fabric manufacturers to develop next-generation fabric technology.
“Protective clothing is not just about keeping you safe but also comfortable from the extreme weather conditions, either in the Middle East or in the European winters,” he said.
Nuttebaum sees strong demand for flame-resistant protective clothing from the petrochemical, oil and gas industries due to their hazardous work profile.
The startup, owned by the family business of India-based Basant Lohia, was started in April 2019. Its presence in the Middle East is limited to Saudi Arabia and plans to spread its wings to other regional markets by January 2022.
Key focus areas
“We had a very strong entry into the Kingdom with a strong distributor. 2019 was a strong year for us but we had a flat 2020 due to Covid19. This year has been promising and we expect to register a 60 per cent year-on-year growth,” Nuttebaum said.
The startup has done some development work for specific needs for the UAE and Qatari markets.
“We are catering to other industries, but the key focus areas are oil & gas and petrochemical industries. We are not playing in the lower end of the price segment. Our mission is to become a major player in the oil & gas and petrochemical industries, globally. We are getting recognised in the global marketplace despite being competitive,” he said.
Created locally and growing globally
There are big brands in the region for a long time, but they haven’t developed products, especially for the Middle East climatic conditions.
“We also work with the local laundries to make sure the products are laundered correctly and the wash cycles are correct and that is something you don’t find in the competition,” he said.
They have won nine big contracts from oil & gas and petrochemical companies from Saudi Arabia and about 40 end-user customers through distributors.
In the UAE, Nuttebaum said that their initial focus will be on the Abu Dhabi petrochemical market but are also into other industries such as utilities, aluminium smelters, etc.
“We will set up a shop in Dubai because the Emirate is more diversified and there are more competitors. We are in talks with big energy companies in the UAE and we will be finalising an exclusive distributor for the UAE market soon,” he said.
He said that Harbor365 wants to be the largest and protective garment brand in the Middle East in the next three years.
“We have set aside a budget to set up a small factory in Saudi Arabia as no company will be able to win big contracts, based on Agenda 2030 initiative, without having a factory in Saudi Arabia or making a part of the product locally but we are carefully watching the pandemic situation,” he said.