The industrial picture

RAK runs on heavy industry, and heavy industry needs export-grade wood

Ras Al Khaimah is the northernmost of the seven emirates. Unlike the trading-and-services skew of Dubai or the oil-and-government skew of Abu Dhabi, RAK runs on heavy industry. Tile kilns, glass furnaces, pharmaceutical clean-rooms, cement and aluminium fabrication all sit inside a compact industrial belt that ships finished goods out of Saqr Port and Mina Al Arab, plus by road to Jebel Ali for deep-sea legs. Every one of those export streams needs export-grade wood packaging, and most of the raw plywood, sawn timber and crating consumables travel into the Gulf from South India.

RAKEZ and the RAK Free Trade Zone

RAK Economic Zone, formed by the merger of the RAK Free Trade Zone and the RAK Investment Authority, clusters thousands of light-to-heavy manufacturers across the Al Ghail, Al Hamra, Al Hulaila and Al Nakheel zones. The Al Ghail Industrial Park is the heaviest of the four, with steel, building-materials and large-format equipment makers. Al Hamra leans toward food, FMCG and lighter industrial. Al Hulaila is the deep-water-adjacent industrial city, closest to Saqr Port and home to glass and ceramic exporters.

Ceramics, glass and cement belt

One of the world's largest tile and sanitaryware producers operates out of Al Jazeera Al Hamra and exports into more than 150 countries. A single 40-foot container of porcelain tiles can carry 22 to 26 tonnes, which puts serious load on the pallet, the bottom slats and the container floor. Add several large glass works, cement plants and tile-adhesive lines, and you have steady demand for heavy-duty wooden crating and treated pallets.

Pharmaceuticals and specialty chemicals

A major generic-drug manufacturer anchors the RAK pharma cluster, with smaller API and packaging firms around it. Pharma exports are lighter per unit than tiles, but the packaging spec is tighter: temperature-stable, fumigation-compliant, dimensionally accurate wooden cases and pallets, usually ISPM 15 stamped before they leave the gate.

What we ship

Four product families, consolidated into one container

RAK buyers usually consolidate four product families with us into a single container: packing-grade plywood for in-house case shops, ready-built export crates, pallets, and container-floor boards for re-flooring tired boxes.

Packing-grade plywood — sheet specs

The mainline product is our MR-Packing grade: hardwood core, phenol-bonded, two-time hot-press, calibrated thickness, with either a commercial face or an Okoume face when the customer wants a cleaner finished look. Okoume is a face-veneer option on the grade, not a separate grade. The 8 mm and 12 mm boards do the heaviest lifting: 8 mm for crate side panels and lids, 12 mm for bottom skids, blocking and pallet decks. Sheets are cut to 8x4, 7x4, 6x4 ft, or to any custom dimension that loads tighter into a 20-foot box.

Wooden crates and cases

For RAK ceramic, glass and engineering exporters, we manufacture cases two ways: flat-pack (knocked-down) for buyers who reassemble at their own packing yard, and pre-assembled for buyers who load directly. Construction is plywood-skinned softwood or hardwood framing with corner gussets, with bottom skids sized for the forklift fleet on site. All export-bound timber is ISPM 15 heat-treated and stamp-marked at source, so cases clear UAE customs and onward re-export without quarantine holds.

Pallets

The standard sizes that move on the Kochi–RAK lane are 1200x1000 mm (the European/UAE generic), 1200x800 mm (Euro), and 1100x1100 mm (Asian, for buyers cross-shipping into the Far East). Four-way entry with stringer or block construction, ISPM 15 treated, dynamic load rating typically 1.5 to 2 tonnes for the standard build and 3 tonnes for the heavy-duty tile variant.

Container flooring

RAK has a healthy population of refurbished 20- and 40-foot containers used as in-yard storage and for short-haul GCC moves. We supply 28 mm container-floor plywood: high-density, 14-ply construction, hot-pressed, oil-coated, in the standard 2400 x 1160 mm board, for buyers who run their own container refurb lines.

Logistics

Kochi to Ras Al Khaimah — the lane in detail

The sea leg runs Cochin Port (Vallarpadam ICTT) to either Mina Saqr in RAK directly, or Jebel Ali with a feeder or road leg up the E311 to RAK. Distance is roughly 2,000 nautical miles, transit 7 to 10 days depending on the rotation. Direct calls to Saqr are less frequent than Jebel Ali, so most of our consolidated containers route via Jebel Ali and then ride 110 km up the highway.

We quote FOB Cochin as standard; CFR Mina Saqr or CFR Jebel Ali on request. Cochin is about 2,000 nautical miles from Mina Saqr, which makes our operation a logical supply node for buyers who want consistent plywood specs, dependable transit, and pricing that does not carry a Jebel Ali warehousing markup.

Choosing a grade

Which grade for which load

Okoume is a face-veneer option on the MR-Packing and BWR grades, not a separate grade. Buyers who want the lighter, cleaner look spec it when finished appearance matters at the receiving end.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Do you handle ISPM 15 certification?

Yes. All export timber and plywood-clad cases bound for the UAE leave our facilities heat-treated and stamp-marked under registered ISPM 15 facilities. The stamp is visible on every skid and pallet, and buyers can verify it on receipt.

What is the minimum order for direct Kochi-to-RAK supply?

One 20-foot container is the practical floor for direct supply. Smaller volumes go LCL via consolidators into Jebel Ali, then truck up to RAK — slower and higher per-tonne cost, but it works for trial orders. For pallets and ready-built crates, we quote both modes.

How are payments structured for first-time UAE buyers?

The standard pattern is 30 percent advance on PI confirmation and 70 percent against scanned shipping documents before BL release. Repeat buyers move to LC at sight or DA terms once the relationship is established. Pricing is FOB Cochin in USD or INR depending on buyer preference.

Get a quote

Get a quote for your Ras Al Khaimah shipment

If you are sourcing plywood, crates, pallets or container flooring into RAKEZ, Al Hamra, Al Hulaila, or anywhere across the RAK industrial belt, send us the spec — thicknesses, sizes, monthly volume and delivery point — and we will revert with a PI inside one working day. Cutting lists, drawings and stamp samples are welcome with the enquiry. Start at our request a quote page, or browse the technical write-ups, grade comparisons and packing-case guides at the resource hub first if you want to fix the spec before pricing. Our group has manufactured and shipped wood-based products out of Perumbavoor since 1986, and the export desk runs the GCC lane every week.