National Cement Company was established in 1968 under the guidance of the late ruler of Dubai H.H.Sheikh Rashid.
It was his vision to create new avenues for industry using local resources and local raw materials.
Accordingly ,National Cement was set up to produce the base material to fuel the anticipated construction boom in the UAE and the region.
Cement Works
I came across these two Videos on Vimeo a few years ago
Videos uniquely showed Dubai as it used to be in 1970 and 1971 .
Videos belonged to Martin von Wyss, made from Super8 home movies taken by Martin's father, Marc von Wyss
Marc von Wyss made two visits to Dubai on business and made home movies of his visits.
These Super8 Movies later passed to Martin, but without explanation of their contents.
Martin published these videos asking if anyone could explain the content.
I contacted Martin. We met in Melbourne Australia.
I talked Martin through his Father's Home Movies.
Later we gathered more information from Expats who lived in Dubai during those times.
Len Chapman Brisbane Australia
Mr Wyss worked for Holderbank Financière (now LafargeHolcim).
His visits to Dubai appear to have been associated with establishing a Cement Factory in Dubai in conjunction with Al Ghurair Family.
Al Ghurairs later established the National Cement Factory in Al Quoz Dubai.
My father, Marc von Wyss, the man in the neck tie, made these films on his first visit to Dubai using Super8 film.
Some of the men in the airport departure shots might be Abdullah Ahmed Al Ghurair and Saif Al Ghurair.
Is it Saif Al Ghurair in the desert with my father, another man, and the donkeys?
Also shown are many images of the Creek from both sides
Nevil Allen, Engineer and Advisor to Sheikh Rashid, at home
Nevil Allen and Jack Briggs, Police Chief, at Port Rashid.
if you have any insights or information about the people in this film, please let me know at HERE
Thank you.
Martin von Wyss
Many thanks to Len Chapman and Les Harris for shedding light on the people and places depicted.
A couple of years later I had the pleasure of meeting Martin von Wyss in Melbourne, Australia
I was able to sit down with Martin and talk through his father's videos and talk about Dubai as it used to be - the Dubai that his Father will have seen.Len Chapman