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.

The industrial picture

Why Jafza drives a specific kind of plywood demand

Jebel Ali Free Zone is not a normal industrial estate. It sits directly against one of the world's largest container ports, hosts thousands of companies, and operates as a re-export hub where cargo lands from one origin, gets reworked, and leaves for a different destination. That single fact — re-export consolidation — shapes the plywood that moves into the zone. Boxes get opened, contents get repacked into multi-SKU export crates, and pallets get rebuilt for onward sea or air movement. Where a normal manufacturing zone treats packaging as a one-shot job, Jafza consumes packing-grade plywood, crate sets and pallets in cycles, often for shipments that need to clear ISPM-15 phytosanitary rules on the outbound leg.

Jafza's footprint runs across the South, North and Jafza One precincts, with dedicated zones for heavy industry near the port and lighter assembly and logistics sheds inland. The plywood-relevant clusters fall into a few buckets, and each consumes a slightly different specification.

Re-export and consolidation logistics

The largest plywood draw is the freight-forwarding and 3PL belt — consolidation warehouses that break bulk from one container and rebuild multi-consignee export crates. They want consistent 12mm and 15mm sheets for case walls, 18mm for floors and skids, and pallets to EUR or ISO 1200x1000 footprints. Outbound wood must carry ISPM-15 marking, so they prefer suppliers who can provide kiln-dried, heat-treated and stamped material with paperwork.

Heavy engineering and oil-and-gas packaging

Jafza hosts manufacturing and service facilities for valves, pumps, drilling equipment, transformers and modular fabrication serving the oilfield and downstream sectors. These shipments need heavy-duty closed crates with internal bracing — typically 18mm packing-grade plywood walls, sawn-timber skids and steel-strap reinforcement. Loads often run 800 kg to several tonnes per case and travel to refineries and project sites across the GCC and East Africa.

Automotive parts and capital-equipment re-export

Aftermarket auto parts, machinery and capital equipment flowing from East Asia to Africa frequently transit Jafza for re-labelling and split shipments. The packaging profile here is mid-weight crates and slip-sheet pallets, with a clear preference for clean-faced packing ply that takes a stencil cleanly.

FMCG, food and chemical distribution

The food and chemical distribution belt runs lighter packing — block pallets, four-way-entry pallets and corner protection — but at very high pallet volumes per month. Standardisation matters more than premium grade here.

Project cargo and modular construction

Pre-assembled MEP modules, switchgear and structural sub-assemblies leaving Jafza for KSA and African mega-projects need bespoke crates: oversized, often 6m or longer, with shuttering-grade ply for stiffness in skids and bottoms.

What we ship

The Jafza-bound product mix

We manufacture the packing-plywood range around the repeat sea-freight cycles Jafza buyers run. A typical Jafza-bound mix:

Okoume is a face-veneer option on the packing and BWR grades rather than a separate grade — choose it when the case needs a smooth, stencil-ready surface.

Pallet footprints that actually move

For Jafza, three pallet footprints cover most demand: EUR 1200x800, ISO 1200x1000 and the GCC-favoured 1100x1100. Our operation manufactures heat-treated stringer and block pallets in all three, with hardwood deckboards rated for 1000–1500 kg dynamic load.

Logistics

Kochi to Jebel Ali: the route and the economics

The sea distance from Cochin Port to Jebel Ali runs roughly 1,900 nautical miles, with mainline transit of 6–9 days depending on carrier and rotation. Cochin is a direct-call port for several Middle East services, which keeps freight predictable and avoids the Colombo or Nhava Sheva transhipment penalty. The practical implications for Jafza buyers:

• Order-to-arrival window: roughly 14–21 days from confirmed PO, factoring in factory cut, stuffing, port handover and the ocean leg.
• Container economics: a 20-foot container takes around 22–24 tonnes of packing-grade ply, or roughly 600–650 sheets of 18mm; a 40-foot takes about double the volume but is weight-limited.
• Customs and documentation: FOB Cochin or CFR Jebel Ali both work; ISPM-15 stamps and phytosanitary certification are issued at origin so cargo clears straight into the zone.
• Repeat-order cadence: for consolidation hubs on monthly cycles, splitting into a fortnightly 20-foot rhythm often beats single 40-footers on warehouse turn.

Perumbavoor sits about 35 km inland from Cochin Port, which keeps the road leg short and the loading-to-vessel timeline tight.

Choosing a grade

Packing grade vs Okoume face vs shuttering ply

Use packing-grade plywood when

The shipment is industrial cargo, the case is a one-time export, and the receiver cares about structural integrity more than face cosmetics. This is the default for most Jafza consolidation work.

Choose the Okoume face when

The end customer is in electronics, aerospace, premium automotive or branded capital equipment, where the crate carries a stencilled identity and will be inspected on arrival. The smoother face also helps when the case is photographed for shipment records.

Use shuttering ply when

The load runs over 1.5 tonnes per crate, the skid takes point loading from a forklift, or the case has to survive multiple trans-shipments. Shuttering-grade stiffness reduces flex failures on the bottom panel.

FAQ

Common Jafza questions

Can you supply ISPM-15 heat-treated material with documentation?

Yes. All sawn timber and pallet components for Jafza-bound consignments can be supplied kiln-dried, heat-treated and stamped per ISPM-15. Phytosanitary certificates are arranged through Cochin Port at origin.

What is the minimum order that makes sense for a Jafza buyer?

A 20-foot container is the practical floor for sea freight. Below that, the per-sheet landed cost rises sharply because of fixed origin charges. Buyers running small monthly volumes are usually better off bundling a fortnightly 20-footer than chasing LCL.

Do you do cut-to-size kits, or only standard 8x4 sheets?

Both. Standard 8x4 sheets at 6mm–18mm are the bread-and-butter line. For consolidation hubs that want to skip in-warehouse cutting, we also pre-cut sheets and bundle them with skid lumber as crate kits keyed to your case sizes.

Get a quote

Request a Jafza quote

The fastest path to a working price is a short brief covering thickness mix, monthly sheet or pallet volume, target Incoterm and any ISPM-15 paperwork needs. From there a working quote and indicative stuffing plan come back within a business day. Manufactured in Perumbavoor, where our group has run plywood operations since 1986, and shipped on direct Cochin–Jebel Ali services. Request a quote with your spec, or browse the resource hub for crate-design and packing-plywood reference notes before you brief us.

The industrial picture

Hamriyah, SAIF Zone and the industrial areas

Sharjah is built around manufacturing, re-export and heavy industry, so crates, pallets and containerised cargo move in volume every day. For a Sharjah fabricator or Free Zone trader, the question is rarely what looks good — it is what survives the sea leg plus inland trucking at the receiving end.

Hamriyah Free Zone

Anchored on the Hamriyah Port complex — a heavy concentration of oil-and-gas service companies, steel fabrication, petrochemical packaging and maritime supply. Crates here are heavy, dimensional and built around irregular equipment shapes.

Sharjah Airport International Free Zone (SAIF Zone)

Adjacent to the airport, skewing toward electronics, aerospace components, automotive parts and lighter precision manufacturing — smaller, cleaner crates and a lot of export-ready pallets.

Industrial Areas 1 to 18

The older estates around Al Sajaa and Industrial Area 13, 17 and 18, where local manufacturing, joinery, metal fabrication and SME-scale exporters operate.

Khalid Port and Hamriyah Port

Khalid Port handles general cargo and containers close to Sharjah city; Hamriyah Port handles bulk, project and oil-and-gas cargo further north. Most plywood-packed shipments flow through one of these two gateways.

What we ship

Packing-grade ply, Okoume, crates, pallets, flooring

Packing-grade plywood

The workhorse — hardwood-faced, rubberwood or mixed-hardwood core, glued for moisture tolerance, in 6 mm to 18 mm at 8 × 4 ft, with cut sizes on request. For Sharjah-bound consignments the 12 mm and 15 mm move most, balancing weight against rigidity for typical Free Zone crate sizes.

Okoume-faced plywood

Where the cargo is high-value — precision oil-and-gas instrumentation, aerospace components, automotive prototypes — buyers specify an Okoume face veneer on the packing-grade core for a cleaner, lighter face at destination inspection. A face-veneer option, not a separate grade.

Heavy crates, skids and pallets

We build complete crates to the cargo: heavy-duty bolted crates with internal bracing, heat-treated dunnage and skid bases sized for forklift entry, with 12 mm or 15 mm packing-grade walls. Pallets are built to the receiver's spec:

For container repair workshops we also supply 28 mm container-grade flooring panels in standard 20 ft and 40 ft sizes.

Logistics

Cochin to Khalid Port — 7 to 10 days by sea

Cochin Port to Khalid Port is roughly 1,900 nautical miles. Direct container services deliver in 7 to 10 days port-to-port, with weekly to fortnightly sailings; transhipment via Jebel Ali adds 2 to 4 days. The chain runs Perumbavoor factory → road to Cochin Port → FCL or LCL → Khalid Port → consignee yard in Hamriyah, SAIF Zone or an Industrial Area. A 20 ft FCL holds roughly 550 to 600 sheets of 18 mm packing ply, or proportionally more of thinner sheets. For heavy oil-and-gas buyers we consolidate plywood sheets with pre-built crate kits in the same container — the kit panels nest flat against the sheet stack and the site assembles on demand.

Choosing a grade

Which grade for which Sharjah load

• Standard packing-grade (commercial / rubberwood, 12–15 mm) — default for general fabricated steel, machinery sub-assemblies, automotive parts and electrical panels.
• Okoume-faced packing-grade (12–15 mm) — when the cargo is high-value or destination buyers inspect crates at receipt. Cleaner appearance, lighter colour.
• Shuttering plywood — relevant only if you are pouring concrete on site. Not a packing product.
• Sawn hardwood (jackwood, rubberwood runners) — for skid bases, framing members and dunnage, shipped alongside the plywood load.

FAQ

Common questions from Sharjah buyers

Do you supply ISPM-15 compliant material?

Yes. All wooden packaging components destined for export — dunnage, pallet runners, crate framing — are heat-treated and stamped to ISPM-15. Plywood itself is exempt as a manufactured wood product, but we provide the documentation Sharjah compliance officers typically ask for.

What is the minimum order to make a Kochi–Sharjah shipment economical?

FCL economics start to make sense at around half a 20 ft container — roughly 250 to 300 sheets equivalent. Below that, LCL consolidation works but transit lengthens and per-sheet cost rises. We quote both once you share the load profile.

Can you ship cut-to-size panels instead of full sheets?

Yes. For larger orders we run cut lists in Perumbavoor and ship pre-sized panels stacked and strapped, which reduces cutting waste and labour at your Sharjah facility.

Get a quote

Sourcing for a Sharjah operation?

For packing plywood, crates, pallets or container flooring into Hamriyah, SAIF Zone or any Sharjah industrial estate, share your thickness, quantity, delivery window and consignee location and we usually return a CIF Khalid Port quotation within one working day. Request a quote with your specs, or browse the resource hub for grade comparisons, crate-build notes and packing references.

The industrial picture

Jebel Ali, DIC, Aviation City and the interior estates

Dubai is less a manufacturing city than a re-export consolidation hub, and the wood-packaging demand concentrates in a few well-defined belts. Which belt a buyer sits in usually tells you what crate they need.

Jebel Ali Port and JAFZA

Jebel Ali anchors the Jebel Ali Free Zone — re-export consolidators, regional distribution centres and bonded warehouses that re-bundle electronics and textile shipments. The packing is typically light to medium-duty crates and four-way pallets used inside containers, so 12 mm and 15 mm packing-grade plywood with planed softwood framing dominates.

Dubai Industrial City

South of Jebel Ali, Dubai Industrial City houses heavier-engineering tenants — machinery assembly, building-materials processing, food and beverage. The typical job is a heavy-duty export crate for a single machine: 18 mm packing-grade plywood with hardwood skids, bolt-down corner cleats and silica-gel dunnage.

Dubai Aviation City and DWC

Around Al Maktoum International, the profile shifts to aerospace MRO crates and high-value airfreight packing — smaller boxes, but flat, void-free panels matter more than raw load rating.

Dubai Investments Park and Al Quoz

The interior estates handle joinery, furniture and fit-out work for construction. This is where shuttering ply and sawn-timber lots land alongside the packing-grade range.

What we ship

Packing-grade ply, crates, pallets, flooring

Forty years of group manufacturing has shaped a tight, repeatable range for GCC re-export work. We ship what the Dubai sector actually consumes, in container quantities.

Packing-grade plywood

Our staple is commercial / rubberwood packing-grade, ex-factory in 8 × 4 ft across 6 mm to 18 mm. For JAFZA consolidators the workhorses are 12 mm (light crate walls), 15 mm (medium crates, pallet decks) and 18 mm (heavy bases and skids) — flat lay, square edges, minus tolerance on stated thickness.

Crates and pallets

Where we are quoted on finished crates, we build to ISPM-15 using heat-treated softwood framing and hardwood runners with packing-grade panels — collapsible export crates, closed boarded cases for sensitive equipment, open-top skidded bases for heavy machinery. Pallets are four-way ISPM-15 in 1200 × 1000 and 1200 × 800 footprints, plus custom oversize bases for project cargo; block pallets for automated lines, stringer pallets for general repack.

Container flooring, Okoume and shuttering

For consolidators rebuilding worn FCL boxes, 28 mm hardwood-faced container-flooring plywood in the standard 19-ply construction. Okoume face veneer is a finish option on the packing or BWR core for branded electronics re-export where the outer case is visible. Shuttering ply goes to fit-out buyers in DIP and Al Quoz on standalone orders.

Logistics

Cochin to Jebel Ali — 3 to 5 days by sea

The lane economics on this corridor are exceptionally clean, which is why GCC buyers default to South Indian supply.

For a 40' HC load of 18 mm packing-grade the sheet count fits cleanly within payload, and the short sea leg keeps demurrage risk low at the Dubai end. ISPM-15 compliance is non-negotiable on this lane — every crate, pallet and dunnage piece carries an IPPC mark traceable to the treatment facility.

Choosing a grade

Which grade fits which Dubai job

• JAFZA consolidation re-pack — 12 mm or 15 mm commercial packing-grade. High volume, light individual crates, no need for exhibition-quality panels.
• Heavy machinery export from DIC — 18 mm packing-grade on hardwood-skidded bases; specify BWR packing if the consignment is high value or onward to a humid African destination.
• Branded electronics or premium textile re-export — Okoume face on the MR-Packing core; the brighter, cleaner grain matters to the receiving warehouse.
• Construction fit-out in DIP or Al Quoz — shuttering ply or BWR hardwood plywood per the architect's spec, quoted as a separate line.
• Container floor refurbishment — 28 mm hardwood-faced flooring ply only; nothing thinner survives a forklift cycle.

FAQ

Common questions from Dubai buyers

Do you supply ISPM-15 stamped pallets and crates?

Yes. All wood-packaging material shipped out of Cochin Port for the GCC carries IPPC marking from a registered heat-treatment facility, with treatment certificates attached to the shipping documents.

What is the minimum order quantity for FCL to Jebel Ali?

We quote in container loads. A 40' HC is the standard unit; mixed loads (packing-grade sheets plus pre-built pallets) are routine. Sub-container quantities ship LCL through Cochin consolidators on agreed lead times.

How do you handle thickness tolerance and moisture for Gulf-climate transit?

Packing-grade is supplied minus on stated thickness per the standard convention. Moisture content is held to the range needed for stable transit through Gulf humidity, and we kiln-dry sawn-timber lots before crate fabrication when specs call for it.

Get a quote

Sourcing for a Dubai operation?

Send the spec — thickness, sheet count or crate dimensions, ISPM marking requirement, port of discharge and Incoterm — and we usually quote a finished container within 24–48 hours, with FOB Cochin and CIF Jebel Ali numbers plus a realistic loading plan. Request a quote with your packing list, or browse the resource hub for the grade, ISPM-15 and crate-construction reference notes we share at the spec stage.

The industrial picture

KIZAD, the oil-and-gas belt and ICAD

Abu Dhabi is the operational backbone of the UAE's oil, gas and heavy-engineering economy, and its plywood demand concentrates in a few belts. Understanding them matters, because the crate spec follows the cargo.

KIZAD and Khalifa Port

KIZAD is one of the largest integrated trade and logistics zones in the region — petrochemicals, metals, polymers, EV components, pharmaceuticals, food processing and a growing cluster of heavy fabrication. It sits beside Khalifa Port, the deepest-draft port in the UAE. Manufacturers inside KIZAD generate export cargo year-round that needs bulk packing-grade plywood for crating finished modules, machinery skids and pipe spools.

Oil and gas — upstream and downstream

Abu Dhabi's national oil-and-gas sector — onshore, offshore, refining, gas processing — drives a heavy spare-parts and turnaround economy. Valves, pumps, instrumentation, drill-bits and high-pressure tubulars move in custom-built wooden crates with ISPM-15 stamps. Most of that crating is fabricated in the Mussafah vendor ecosystem and runs on continuous plywood supply.

Mussafah and ICAD

The Industrial City of Abu Dhabi (ICAD I–IV) hosts steel fabrication, building materials, automotive workshops and contract manufacturers. This belt absorbs pallet stock and shuttering ply — pallets for inbound and outbound logistics, shuttering for construction still active across Saadiyat, Yas and the Al Ain corridor.

What we ship

Packing-grade ply, Okoume, crates, pallets and flooring

Operators here buy wood as an industrial input, not a finished good, so specification and consistency matter more than appearance.

Packing-grade plywood

The workhorse SKU — standard 8 ft × 4 ft (2440 × 1220 mm), 6 mm to 18 mm, MR-bonded for moisture resistance through humid sea transit. Common moves: 12 mm and 15 mm for crate walls and tops on medium machinery and oil-and-gas spare-parts cases; 18 mm for base boards and skid surfaces under heavy equipment; 9 mm and 6 mm for internal partitions, dunnage and inner blocking. Where the buyer needs a denser, cleaner face for high-value modules, we move them to Okoume face veneers on the same MR-packing or BWR construction. Okoume is not a separate grade; it is a face-veneer option that gives a smoother, more uniform skin.

Built-up crates and knock-down kits

For customers who want to skip in-house fabrication, we ship pre-built crates or knock-down kits cut to the project's bill of materials, with cleats, corner blocks and labelled lid panels — ideal for one-time KIZAD project cargo where the receiver does not want idle carpentry capacity.

Pallets

Container flooring

For reefer and dry-box refurbishments handled by container-leasing yards in the Khalifa Port hinterland, we supply 28 mm container flooring boards in BWP construction — a niche but recurring line.

Logistics

Kochi to Khalifa Port — 8 to 12 days by sea

The maritime lane is one reason Kerala-origin plywood is cost-competitive into the UAE. Cargo is consolidated at our Perumbavoor / Kochi loading point, trucked to Cochin Port (or Tuticorin / Mundra depending on the line) and sailed to Khalifa Port or Jebel Ali.

• Sea distance: roughly 2,000 nautical miles, Kochi to Khalifa Port
• Transit time: typically 8 to 12 days port-to-port depending on carrier and transhipment
• Container modes: 20 ft and 40 ft dry; FCL is standard for plywood given cube efficiency
• Documentation: commercial invoice, packing list, BL, COO, ISPM-15 / phytosanitary where applicable, plus any FTA preference certificates

For project crates and pallets, ISPM-15 heat-treatment marking is non-negotiable at UAE customs, and we ship pre-marked stock so the receiver does not re-treat at destination.

Choosing a grade

Which product fits which Abu Dhabi load

1. Standard industrial machinery, valves, pumps or spare parts for oil-and-gas vendors, fabrication shops or general KIZAD manufacturers — MR-packing-grade plywood at 12 mm to 18 mm. Cost-efficient, stable, ISPM-compliant.
2. Premium, high-visibility or customer-sensitive cargo — Okoume face veneer on the same MR-packing or BWR core. Cleaner finish, better dent resistance over long sea moves.
3. Construction shuttering on Abu Dhabi infra and real-estate projects — that is shuttering ply, a separate SKU with a phenolic film face, the right call for repeated concrete pours.
4. Raw sawn timber or jackwood / rubberwood runners for crate cleats, dunnage or pallet stringers — shipped alongside the ply on the same container.

FAQ

Common questions from Abu Dhabi buyers

Do you supply ISPM-15-treated plywood and crates to Abu Dhabi?

Yes. Built-up crates and pallets ship with ISPM-15 heat-treatment marking from origin. Sheet plywood does not require the mark, but any solid-wood components do.

What is the minimum order quantity?

FCL is the practical floor — one 20 ft container of plywood is the smallest economic move because of fixed sea-freight and customs costs. Built-up crates or pallets can mix SKUs inside one container.

Can you deliver to KIZAD or Mussafah directly, or only to the port?

Standard quotation is CIF or FOB to the named UAE port. Inland delivery to KIZAD, ICAD or Mussafah is arranged on request through a local clearing agent.

Get a quote

Shipping into Abu Dhabi's industrial belt?

Send us your specification — thickness, size, monthly volume, delivery port — and we quote with the actual loading plan in mind, not a generic per-sheet rate. The Cochin Wood group has manufactured out of Perumbavoor since 1986, with 40+ years of group operations behind the supply chain into the GCC. Request a quote with your bill of materials, or browse the resource hub for plywood selection guides, ISPM-15 background and packing-case specification notes.