10th October 2016, Dubai: The year 2016 will not go down as one of the best in the shipping industry’s history, with economic factors and overcapacity producing challenging times for many sectors. But despite the difficulties, companies have continued to excel and innovate and The Maritime Standard Awards 2016 will rightly recognise these positive achievements in an unrivalled occasion on October 24th at the Atlantis, the Palm Dubai.

The TMS Awards, once again held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President, Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group, will have a record attendance of around 700 guests this year, with bookings gathering momentum in recent weeks. The guest list will be a ‘who’s who’ of the shipping and maritime industries in the Middle East and Indian subcontinent and will come from over 65 different countries. Attendees include many high-level executives, making this a fantastic networking opportunity and a chance to meet with potential business prospects.

Managing director, Trevor Pereira says, “The TMS Awards bind people together. It is the single largest meeting place for shipping and maritime high flyers in the region. All in all it is a great night of celebration.” 

The TMS Awards assembled an elite panel of judges who have recently determined the finalists in a total of 19 different categories. Clive Woodbridge, TMS editor and chairman of the judging panel comments, “The standard of entries this year was extremely high, and all of those who entered should be commended for their excellent submissions. It was a tough job compiling a shortlist and those who win on the night know they are the best of an exceptional group of finalists.”

The categories that have been judged are: Classification Society, Marine Broker, Marine Insurer, Maritime Law Firm, Port, Ship Agency, Ship Manager, Shipowner/operator, Shipping Company, Shipyard, Tanker Operator and Terminal Operator of the year, as well as awards for Corporate Social Responsibility, Green Shipping, Maritime Training and Education, Safety, Sustainable Development, Technology and Innovation and Maritime Security. The list of the finalists in these various categories can be found by clicking on this link.

Trevor Pereira adds, “The Awards are a massive occasion, and have established their position as the biggest gathering of their kind the region. The Atlantis is the ideal setting for such an august occasion as a highly prestigious venue perfectly matching the prestige and quality of those attending.' (Further details about how to book a table so not to miss this prestigious event can be found by clicking on this link. Space is limited and tables will be sold on a first come first served basis)

This year the master of ceremonies will be Jim Clancy, US journalist and former CNN anchor. Jim worked for CNN form 1982 to 2015, and has won an Emmy and many other awards during is almost 35 years with the station. Jim Clancy is one of the best-known, and globally respected names in journalism, having covered key events across the world in more than three decades with CNN. He is passionate about education and leads journalism training courses in a number of well-known educational establishments.