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MIDDLE EAST NEWS UPDATE |06EVENTS |11

DISTRICT COOLING |24REGION IN FOCUS |34

PRODUCTS |38THE LAST WORD |40

An ITP Business Publication | August 2010 Vol. 5 Issue 8Essential information for mechanical, electrical and plumbing professionals

Licensed by Dubai Media City

ALSO: SYED SHAMSUL HAQ FROM AL-FUTTAIM ENGINEERING

Kevin Mitchell from Buro Happold on energy effi ciency trends

PRIME DEVELOPMENTLATEST IN PREFABRICATED

WIRING

KEEPING COOLTHE RETURN OF THE

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August 2010 | MEP Middle East 1www.constructionweekonline.com

AUGUST 2010 VOLUME 5 ISSUE 8

CONTENTS

03 CONSTRUCTION WEEK ONLINE

05 COMMENT

06 UPDATE

11 EVENTS

12 GLOBAL NEWS

14 NEWS ANALYSIS

18 THE BIG INTERVIEWBuro Happold principal Kevin Mitchell on the green-building trend.

22 PROFILEAl-Futtaim Engineering Elevator Division GM Syed Shamsul Haq.

24 DISTRICT COOLINGSupply-chain initiatives are boost-ing the business case for district cooling.

26 TECHNOLOGY The latest in prefabricated wiring

solutions.

28 CONTRACTORS Challenges and opportunities facing contractors.

32 SITE VISIT ASD’s new Al Barsha campus.

34 REGION IN FOCUS: QATAR

35 BUSINESS LEADS: QATAR

36 LEGAL

37 METAL MONITOR

38 PRODUCTS

40 THE LAST WORD RWI GM Fareed Majeed and

Leminar GM Pramodh Idicheria.

10

15

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CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM

COLUMNS AND FEATURESMY PROBLEM?Sarah Blackman, Editor, Facilities Management Middle EastA Saudi Arabian developer: “This hotel is currently a shell … We are therefore not thinking about FM at the moment.” Another de-veloper I spoke to hadn’t even heard of FM before I mentioned it to him.

CLOSED DOORStuart Matthews, Senior Group EditorWhen the issue of my broken door was raised with Nakheel at an owners’ association meeting, the company’s representative said the door was not just broken, but was in fact suffering from a manufac-turing fault that was the contractor’s responsibility.

ARABIAN SIGHTSOrlando Crowcroft, Middle East ArchitectWhen you ask people why Saudi Arabia is such an attractive market, the reply usually involves the fi gure of 27 million, the expected population by end 2010. It is followed quickly by the number 80, the percentage under 39.

CHINA TALESSelina Denman, Editor, Commercial Interior DesignWe attended the of-fi cial launch of Philippe Starck’s Sensowash in Shanghai. It sees Starck partner with sanitaryware specialist Duravit for the fi fth time to create a ‘shower toilet’, a toilet seat with built-in bidet.

AMERICAN SCHOOL OF DUBAI, AL BARSHAMEP works are being undertaken by Drake & Scull International PJSC (DSI) for general contractor Al Ahmadiah Aktor.

For more galleries, check out www.constructionweekonline.com/galleries

IN PICTURES MOST POPULAR

Top 20 MEP consultants • Two killed by falling concrete slab in Abu Dhabi • Bahrain-Saudi causeway gets AED44m • improvements Drake & Scull Construction wins Saudi • contractDubai home owners to sink under charges •

Plug, process loads critical for optimising HVAC• Dubai’s ClimaGulf in Oz air-con deal • Pluggable DB galvanises electrical • installation ASHRAE adapts energy-saving standard • for Kuwait Dubai fi rm in tie-up with Japan HVAC expert •

EDITOR’S CHOICE

SPOT POLL

Would you consider working in Libya?

37.9%Maybe. The opportunities are tempting.

34.5%Absolutely not. It’s too diffi cult to establish a

presence there.

20.7%No.Not until the government makes it easier for

developers.

6.9%Absolutely. It’s a goldmine of opportunity.

For more comments, check out www.constructionweekonline.com/comments

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COMMENT

Plugging into innovation

It is bizarre that alongside such achievements as the tallest building and a veritable slew of other

world-fi rsts, many regional practices and mindsets are still hidebound by tradition. We all know how rapidly technology advances; surely outlooks should adapt ac-cordingly?

Recently I spoke to a com-pany that is introducing a pre-manufactured wiring solution into the region. Basically this is a fully ‘plug-gable’ system from the DB right down to the fi nal connection. All fi ttings required are off-the-shelf, from sockets to switches, light fi ttings and even fan coil units.

Pre-wired conduit, available in either PVC or met-al, is made to specifi c lengths to facilitate the socket-to-DB connections. Once on-site, all that is needed is for the DB and fi nal points to be installed … and then simply plugged together. Voila!

Now every electrical contractor knows how many man hours, sheer physical effort and materials are expended on the relatively straightforward, but vi-tal, process of terminating DBs. Hence you would expect any MEP contractor to jump through hoops at availing himself of the opportunity of an average 20% cost-saving and 70% reduction in the installation schedule.

Of course not. The company’s business manager told me: “Literally I have had a guy stand up, slam his hand down on the table, and say, I have been here 25 years, and have done things the same way all that time. It has always worked, so why change? Your

MIDDLE EAST

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system will never work.” The gentleman’s antipathy was based on two common misconceptions: that la-bour is an insignifi cant project expense because it is so cheap in the region, and that a pre-manufactured, modular system can in no way compete with ‘best price” (that is, rock bottom) raw materials assem-bled by said labour.

Now we all know that the global fi nancial crisis is bringing about a new business paradigm in the region’s construction industry. Contractors are re-alising that ineffi ciencies glossed over in the past – such as labour over-supply and material wastage – can weigh signifi cantly on the bottom line.

Fortunately it is quite easy to deal with the gentle-man who has been doing things ‘his way’ for the past couple of decades, for psychology has advanced as much as business practice in the interim.

“You make it seem like he came up with the idea himself. You get him to speak to his peers who have used the system, so they can tell him about its innate benefi ts, so he can then tell you, in turn: I have a brilliant idea …”

It is vitally important for the MEP industry, and construction as a whole, to not only adopt the lat-est technology, but also to encourage its long-term practitioners (we do not wish to antagonise them by using the potentially pejorative ‘old-timers’) to think creatively. And to make a big noise about it when they get things right, so others can learn as well, and thereby raise the benchmark for all.

GERHARD [email protected]

Keep up-to-date with all MEP Middle East news at

5

COMMENTSDo you have any comments about the MEP industry in the Middle East? Please e-mail any letters to: [email protected] or post to: MEP Middle East, ITP Business, PO Box 500024, Dubai, UAE.

ON THIS MONTH’S COVER“What excites me is the big challenge — be it technical, relation-

ship or logisticsl,” says Buro Happold principal Kevin Mitchell.

Photo: Lyubov Galushko.

MIDDLE EASTNEWS UPDATE |06

EVENTS |11DISTRICT COOLING |24REGION IN FOCUS |34PRODUCTS |38THE LAST WORD |40

An ITP Business Publication | August 2010 Vol. 5 Issue 8

Essential information for mechanical, electrical and plumbing professionals Licensed by Dubai Media City

ALSO: SYED SHAMSUL HAQ FROM AL-FUTTAIM ENGINEERING

Kevin Mitchell from Buro Happold on energy effi ciency trends

PRIME DEVELOPMENTLATEST IN PREFABRICATED WIRING

KEEPING COOLTHE RETURN OF THE WIND TOWER

CHALLENGING TIMESWE LOOK AT THE MAIN VALUE AND COST DRIVERS FOR THE MEP CONTRACTING SECTOR

THE GREEN BOTTOM LINE

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UPDATE

6 MEP Middle East | August 2010 www.constructionweekonline.com

Middle East CSP plant is world’s largestOne of Masdar’s fl agship renewable-energy projects will help Abu Dhabi achieve its 2020 target

A rendering of the Shams 1 project

Santiago Seage, Dr Sultan Al-Jaber and Philippe Boisseau

SOLAR

Masdar has appointed the bidding consortium of Total and Abengoa Solar as a partner to own, build and operate Shams 1, the world’s largest concentrated solar power (CSP) plant, and the fi rst of its kind in the Middle East. One of Masdar’s fl agship projects, Shams 1 will contribute directly towards Abu Dhabi’s target of achieving 7% renewable energy power genera-tion capacity by the year 2020.

Based on Abengoa Solar’s best-in-class solar technology, the Shams 1 technology is unique. It is the result of strong technical co-operation between Masdar, Total and Abengoa Solar. Focused sunlight, concentrated by mir-rors, heats a coolant which then generates high-pressure steam that drives a conventional steam turbine. It generates solar thermal electricity – an effi cient, reliable and clean solution.

The JV between Masdar (60%), Total (20%) and Abengoa Solar (20%) will develop, build, operate and maintain the plant in Madinat Zayed, about 120 km south-west of Abu Dhabi. Shams 1 will be the largest CSP plant in the world, ex-tending over an area of 2.5 square kilometres, with a capacity of about 100 MW and a solar fi eld consisting of 768 parabolic trough collectors to be supplied by Aben-goa Solar. Construction is set to begin during Q3 2010, and is ex-pected to take about two years.

“The launch of Shams 1 marks a very important milestone for Mas-dar and for Abu Dhabi,” said Mas-

dar CEO Dr Sultan Al-Jaber. “I am very proud because this project, which will be the fi rst utility-scale, commercial solar power project in the UAE, represents the transla-tion into reality of the vision the Abu Dhabi leadership has for re-newable energy in the Emirate.

“In addition, Shams 1 will al-low Masdar to transfer to Abu Dhabi the know-how and exper-tise we have gained from our involvement in developing world-

class renewable energy projects abroad, thus not only opening the door for renewable energy projects in the UAE, but also for technology transfer, contribut-ing towards the development of a knowledge-based economy and new job opportunities through the specialisations required to manage and operate the plant.

“I am delighted we are em-barking on this journey together with our strategic partners Total

175 000 TONNES

CO2 displaced a year

It is through such partnerships that Masdar will succeed in establishing Abu Dhabi and the UAE as a world leader in renewable energy and clean technology. “ – Dr Sultan Al-Jaber

and Abengoa Solar, both of whom have tremendous experience and technical know-how in develop-ing projects such as Shams 1.

“It is through such partner-ships that Masdar will succeed in developing and advancing renewable energy solutions and establish Abu Dhabi and the UAE as a world leader in renewable en-ergy and clean technology,” said Al-Jaber.

“By participating in this ambi-tious project alongside Masdar and Abengoa Solar, Total devel-ops its solar energy assets, en-riches its portfolio of expertise with this fi rst step in concen-trated solar technology, and reaf-fi rms its unique partnership with Abu Dhabi,” commented Total Gas & Power president Philippe Boisseau.

Santiago Seage, CEO of Aben-goa Solar, also expressed his sat-isfaction: “We have teamed with the most qualifi ed partners in the region, Total and Masdar, to own and operate what will be the most advanced solar plant, featuring our cutting-edge technology.”

In turn, Michael Geyer, Aben-goa Solar’s director of interna-tional development, highlighted the immense potential of build-ing large-scale solar plants in the Middle East, a region that offers both an unlimited solar resource and infi nite site locations for im-plementation of solar plants in its deserts.

Shams 1 is registered as a proj-ect under the United Nations’ Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), and is eligible for carbon credits. It is the fi rst CSP plant registered under the CDM and the second project registered for Masdar. The plant will displace approximately 175 000 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, equivalent to planting 1.5 million trees or removing 15 000 cars from Abu Dhabi’s roads.


UPDATE

Times have been tough, says Shaw

MARKETS

The last 18 months have been tough for construction in the re-gion, but Abu Dhabi has “show-cased environmental and econom-ic sustainability.”

This was said by Ducab MD Andrew Shaw at a recent network-ing event for key clients in the con-struction and utilities sectors at the Yas Island Rotana Hotel.

Ducab itself has been active in the Emirate for many years, and

Abu Dhabi ‘leads the way’since 2001 has been managed as a 50/50 JV between the govern-ments of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Shaw said the company’s Abu Dhabi partnership has contribut-ed greatly to developing both the company and the local economy.Over 60% of Ducab’s capacity is manufactured out of Abu Dhabi, as three out of the fi ve Ducab facili-ties are located there.

“Thought leadership is an im-portant part of doing business, especially when it comes to infra-structure,” said Shaw. “It is our hope that encouraging business-to-business dialogue will ultimate-ly bring to light new innovations.” Ducab has supplied such projects as Yas Marina Circuit, Reem Is-land, Emirates Palace and a Green Diesel project with Takreer.

CONTRACTS

Drake & Scull Construction Saudi Arabia (DSC KSA) has clinched a SR450 million (AED440.7 mil-lion) contract for the Al Jawharah tower in Jeddah by developer DAMAC Properties.

Al Jawharah is a 42-storey building on the Jeddah Corniche. It will include fi ve-bedroom pent-houses, as well as one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom apart-ments across 87 000 m². Comple-tion is expected in 28 months.

“Being awarded this project from such a prominent developer is a good indication that the new-ly-formed DSC KSA is off to an excellent start in the Kingdom,” said DSC KSA executive director Saleh Muradweij.

“We are working with DSI on a number of our projects in Dubai, and this project in Saudi Arabia

will further strengthen our work-ing relationship,” said DAMAC Properties GM Ziad El-Chaar.

In other news, DSI has re-cently been awarded the contract for the complete MEP works for two major projects in Abu Dhabi, with a total value of AED 240 million.The Saadiyat Beach Apartments Plot SB19 project is being developed by the Tourism Development & Investment Com-pany (TDIC). It is scheduled for completion in December 2011. DSI’s scope of work includes sup-ply, installation, testing and com-missioning of the entire scope of electro-mechanical works.

DSI will simultaneously com-mence with the complete MEP works for a prominent govern-mental building project that will be completed by June 2012. The total built-up area is 106 670 m².

Jeddah tower contract awarded

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UPDATE


Swedish ambassador to the UAE Bruno Beijer and ABB region manager: India, Middle East and Africa Frank Duggan at the ‘scholarly’ launch event

Lennox in R&D driveR&D

The Lennox India Technology Centre (LITC) has been launched in Chennai, India to continue the company’s international R&D ef-forts in HVACR systems.

“This latest expansion of our technology footprint is consis-tent with our strategy of growth through leadership products and solutions in the global markets we serve,” said Lennox CEO Todd Bluedorn. US Consul General in Chennai Brian Dalton also attend-ed the offi cial inauguration.

The LITC will focus mainly on controls engineering, best prac-tice analysis and information tech-nology applications.

“It is expected to play a key role in the development and exchange of knowledge, expertise and best practices,” said Bluedorn.

TRAINING

GE is launching its fi rst energy training centre in Saudi Arabia as part of the new GE Energy Manu-facturing Technology Centre in Dammam. The new centre will join several other global energy training facilities established by GE in Europe, the US and China.

The Dammam centre is expect-ed to be GE’s largest repair centre of excellence worldwide when completed, and will strengthen GE’s service capabilities in Saudi Arabia and the region. Developed in association with GE’s joint ven-ture partner Ali A. Tamimi Co, the technology centre encompasses more than 10 000 m² and boosts ad-vanced gas turbine services while reducing cycle time.

The new training centre will bring GE’s total investment in the

GE energy training centre for Saudi Arabia

Dammam site to about US$100 million. It will offer the latest tech-nology and managerial courses for college students, fi eld engineers and other power industry profes-sionals throughout the region.

The technical education on of-fer is viewed as key to providing

SCHOLARSHIPS

AABB has joined forces with the Swedish Trade Council to offer talented Emirati graduates schol-arships to cater to the growing demand for Emirati engineers in the UAE. Every year it will spon-sor two promising UAE national students pursuing a degree in en-gineering to complete a Master’s degree in electrical engineering at the Royal Institute of Technol-ogy in Stockholm, one of the larg-est and most prestigious technical universities in Sweden.

The fi rst batch of students will commence the graduate pro-gramme in September 2011. The scholarship will cover all expens-es, including accommodation, transportation, allowances, medi-cal insurance and books. Students will also receive hands-on training at ABB’s facilities in Sweden.

“This scholarship programme

will give aspiring UAE engineers a unique opportunity to develop their engineering skills and in-dustry knowledge in a completely new environment,” said Jana Va-sickova, human resources man-ager for ABB in the UAE. “In the UAE there is a huge demand for qualifi ed Emirati engineers in all industry sectors, and this pro-

give back to the local community,” said Vasickova. This is the second time that the Swedish Trade Coun-cil (STC) is working with ABB on a scholarship programme in the Middle East aimed at promoting local engineering talent.

“We are delighted to cooperate with ABB as part of its corporate social responsibility programme in the region,” said Mats Paulson, head of Swedish Trade Council Middle East. “We hope that this scholarship program will evolve and spread to key countries in the Middle East as it will help talented young nationals across the region grow into tomorrow’s leaders in engineering.”

For more information on the pro-gramme, please contact Qudsia Jafar, ABB’s senior recruitment of-fi cer, at [email protected] or on +9714 4241900.

ABB offers engineering scholarships Two promising UAE national students a year will be sponsored for Stockholm study

Largest ‘repair centre of excellence’ worldwide upon its completion

gramme will help ensure promis-ing students have the skills and experience needed to succeed in the industry and contribute to the country’s long-term growth.

“We at ABB take great pride in the growth that we have been ex-periencing in the Middle East over the years, and this scholarship programme gives us a platform to

young talent with the skills and qualifi cations to work with the lat-est advances in technology, quality and safety so they can help meet energy demands for Saudi Arabia and the region.

“Our commitment to Saudi Arabia includes the nurturing and development of local tech-nical talent,” said Joseph Anis, GE Energy’s president for the Middle East. By sharing our technology expertise and expe-rience with today’s promising power industry students and professionals, we believe we will be better able to meet the future needs of our power, water, oil and gas and industrial custom-ers in the region. We feel this is a signifi cant investment in the future of the Kingdom’s energy infrastructure.”

GE nurturing Saudi talent, says Anis


UPDATE

Rumaillah Motors GM Jim Elliot

A rendering of the proposed new Riyadh monorail

SAS International opens its latest offi ce in DubaiSUPPLIER

SAS International, a leading manufacturer of metal ceilings, partitioning and doors, room comfort systems and architec-tural metalwork has opened a dedicated offi ce and warehouse in Dubai Investment Park 2. Having operated in the Middle East for over 30 years, SAS has supplied such landmark proj-ects as the Aldar HQ, the main building at the Science and

Technology Park in Doha, and the H3SIXTY Business Centre in Bahrain.

The new offi ce will be a hub for MENA and India for advis-ing specifi ers, contractors, con-sultants, developers and clients from initial concept through to installation. Other support ser-vices include design and techni-cal solutions, training resources for contractors and sub-contrac-tors, CPD presentations for ar-chitects and M&E consultants, and a dedicated mock-up area.

This is in addition to the SAS Abu Dhabi offi ce, which has operated for two years. SAS International’s UK manufactur-ing facilities are accredited to ISO9001 & ISO14001 SAS Inter-national, widely known as lead-ing manufacturer of interior building solutions.

WATER-SAVING

A new water-saving system devel-oped by a UAE company in collab-oration with Germany promises to slash consumers’ water consump-tion by half.

This follows RAK Ceramics en-tering into a JV with Kludi of Ger-many to form Kludi RAK, a lead-ing manufacturer of world-class bathroom fi ttings.

A key component of the new water-saving system is a pressure-compensating aerator, which en-sures a constant fl ow of water even in cases when the water pressure is increased or fl uctuates.

The company has also devel-oped a new fl ow regulator, which it states maintains a defi ned fl ow rate regardless of pressure variation of the supply line.

Compared with conventional

UAE, German system cuts water consumption by half

aerators, the new version also de-livers several other advantages, in-cluding superior lime protection, damage-proof design, extended lifespan, perfect stream quality even under diffi cult water pres-sure conditions, and integrated anti-clogging dome screen that fi lters sediments and particles.

“Sub-standard faucets can po-tentially cause problems as they could be a breeding ground for germs and bacteria, and may be-come rusty after a short period of use. With Kludi RAK’s latest inno-vation, home owners and commer-cial establishments can truly enjoy clean water and optimum water savings each time they use their faucets,” said RAK Ceramics CEO Dr. Khater Massaad. Kludi RAK a member of the Emirates Green Building Council.

CONTRACT

KEO International Consultants has been awarded a contract by Saudi Oger to design the 3.5 km el-evated rail viaducts, switch bridg-es, long span bridges and 131 piers supporting the monorail train sys-tem, Station 1 and the train main-tenance depot for the new Riyadh monorail.

“KEO deliverables include the detailed design of over 30 bridges, as well as complete architectural and engineering design for the train maintenance depot and Sta-tion 1. KEO’s approach will care-fully consider critical factors such as durability and maintenance, constructability, aesthetics, materi-als, economy of structural solution,

and whole life-cycle costs,” PR and corporate branding director Brad Batcheller said in a statement.

KEO will team up with Bombar-dier, Freyssinet and Scott Wilson to deliver the project for Saudi Oger, which was awarded the con-tract by the Rayadah Investment

KEO wins design contract for new Riyadh monorailDeliverables include total engineering design for train depot

DISTRIBUTOR

Terex Aerial Work Platforms (AWP), a business segment of the Terex Corporation, has signed an agreement with Rumaillah Motors to distribute Genie self-propelled scissor lifts, articulating and tele-scoping booms, telehandlers, portable material lifts, aerial work platforms, light towers and trailer-mounted booms.

As a full service provider, Ru-maillah Motors will support Genie product line sales with preventa-tive maintenance contracts to help maximise equipment up-time.

Terex AWP Genie distributor for Qatar

Company, the investment vehicle of the Public Pension Agency of the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Design completion for the proj-ect is expected in 2011, with con-struction expected to be substan-tially fi nished in 2012.

An example of a suspended ceiling

UPDATE


New efficient ‘green’ business modelDubai company looks at doing business “in a slightly different way” with tripartite alliance

Carol Prince and Naohiro Yamamoto give the green light for energy effi ciency

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

A Dubai company specialising in LED lighting has entered into a tripartite alliance with Takasago Thermal Engineer-ing, Japan’s largest HVAC spe-cialist, and FuGu Energy, a fi rm focused on energy effi ciency solutions. “We are looking at do-ing business in a slightly differ-ent way than what is the norm in Dubai, but we think it is the way forward at the moment,” says RWN Trading marketing direc-tor Carol Prince.

“We feel that working to-gether makes us stronger and more confi dent. People are not spending money, and are being very cautious due to the current economic environment. We feel the market is best served with a tripartite association promoting sustainability than disparate companies going it alone.”

The advantage of the tripar-tite association for customers is it has inherent fl exibility to cater for a broad spectrum of needs and specifi cations. “We are able to look at the full spectrum of what companies need in terms of energy-saving initiatives, and then we slot in the best solution for them. This may range from optimising chiller systems to a simple lighting technology change, depending on the indi-vidual company,” says Prince.

Takasago is also hoping to apply its highly successful Japa-nese business model to Dubai. Naohiro Yamamoto, senior man-ager from the technical depart-ment of the company’s Dubai branch, explains the company will assist with fi nancing solu-tions for companies wishing to introduce energy-saving initia-tives. This will take the form of either appointing approved lenders, or approaching banks on behalf of customers.

“First we go to the site in

question and conduct a very simple analysis. This forms the basis of an elementary proposal for potential energy-saving ini-tiatives. If the client agrees to the proposal, we conduct a more detailed analysis. In parallel with this, we will approach an appropriate fi nancial entity to

arrange fi nancing for the sug-gested plan. It helps companies overcome the initial cost hurdle, while simultaneously allowing them to reap the energy ben-efi ts, which are guaranteed,” says Yamamoto.

Prince says the major stum-bling blocks for sustainability

We feel the market is best served with a tripartite association promoting sustainability than disparate companies going it alone. “ – Carol Prince

EXAMPLES OF ENERGY-EFFICIENCY INITIATIVES

Chiller Systems• Smart chiller controller• Sub cool system• VSD chiller

Chilled Water Systems• Variable fl ow

Condenser Water Systems• Cooling-tower blowdown recovery system• Wastewater purifi cation

at the moment are changing the prevailing mindset towards looking at long-term benefi ts as opposed to initial once-off payments, and getting potential customers to appreciate the im-portance of saving energy.

“If you look at LED lighting versus traditional CFLs, the for-mer reduce energy consumption by enabling companies to install lower-wattage systems with comparable lux levels. This, in turn, saves even more energy because the cooling load is re-duced due to a drop in internal heat gain,” says Prince.

“However, the prevailing at-titude is: why would I want to buy something more expensive? The added maintenance and en-ergy-saving benefi ts may make it seem like a no-brainer, but we have to get over the initial hic-cup of the upfront capital outlay. The diffi culty has been chang-ing people’s attitudes, as they are a bit lazy here about saving energy compared to Japan.”

Prince hopes RWN Trading’s link-up with Takasago and FuGu Energy will expose companies to a broader range of energy-saving technologies.

LED lighting offers comparable lux levels, but saves energy as well


UPDATE

Trane controls efficiencyNewly-launched Tracer ZN525 controller ensures energy effi ciency

DBX KURDISTAN INTERNATIONAL EXPO DAHUK1-4 AugustDahuk International Expo, IraqArchitects, builders merchants, civil and consulting engineers, fi nanciers, government departments to developers and specifi ers.www.salehoo.com/tradeshows/iraq

JORDAN BUILD2-5 AugustAmman Exhibitions Park, JordanCatering for the full spectrum of construction/building professionals, from bricklayers, roofers, electricians and plumbers to architects, speciers, contractors and clients.www.jordanbuild.com

CONSTRUCT EXHIBITION 201013-15 AugustSri Lanka Exhibition & Convention Centre, Colombo, Sri LankaSri Lanka’s largest and most infl uential construction industry related exhibition brings together the entire value chain under one roof.www.constructexhibition.com

SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL & INDOOR DECORATION EXHIBITION17-20 AugustShanghai New International Expo Centre, ChinaConstruction materials for commercial buildings, cultural and public facilities, homes and offi ce buildings. Also equipment, building techniques, tools and software.www.glassinchina.com

EVENTS

HVAC

As a result of increasingly rigor-ous energy standards, terminal units using the energy-effi cient electronic commutated (EC) fan motor technology are becoming a popular component of HVAC sys-tems. The newly-launched Trane Tracer ZN525 controller ensures optimum energy effi ciency, in-creases comfort and eliminates operating noise when combined with EC fan motor technology.

The Tracer ZN525 was devel-oped to meet the specifi c comfort needs of hotels and offi ce build-

ings, and is certifi ed as a LonMark Space Comfort Controller type SCC 8501. The controller runs terminal units to adapt to the exact cooling and heating needs of indi-vidual zones or rooms in a build-ing. As a result of cascade control based on room and discharge air temperature monitoring, this con-fi guration avoids potential cold or hot air drafts to provide an even higher level of comfort.

The controller maximises the energy-effi ciency of an EC fan motor terminal unit through fan speed optimisation and a random

start function to limit power-up de-mand. Limiting demand of electric heaters avoids peak time tariff pe-riods for further energy savings. Additionally, a window contact switches off the heating/cooling unit when a window is opened.

Sound levels are reduced signifi -cantly with the Tracer ZN525 intel-ligent fan speed and valve control, ensuring that up to 40% of nomi-nal capacity is available at low fan speed. The controller also allows for fan cycling, which turns the fan off whenever zone temperature is at optimum comfort level.

“Comfort is key for hotels and offi ces,” said Franck Biegalke, applied integrated systems leader for Trane Europe, Middle East, India and Africa. “The Tracer ZN525 is an important component of a high-performance room com-fort system because it integrates seamlessly into a complete BMS architecture.”

To reduce on-site commission-ing time and maximise assembly quality, the Tracer ZN525 can be factory-mounted on all Trane chilled water terminal units equipped with EC fan motor tech-nology. This includes the EC fan motor fan coil units and cassettes, chilled beams and chilled ceilings. As such, the Tracer ZN525 con-trols two- or four-pipe units, with or without electric heaters, and op-timises performance with either fl oating or thermal valve actua-tors. The Tracer ZN525 is also of-fered as a fi eld-installed controller.

The controller is a compact unit with an embedded 230 VAC power supply. DIN-rail or screw mount-ing, removable terminal strips and a confi guration tool ensure quick and easy installation. The Tracer ZN525 can be part of a fully inte-grated Trane room comfort solu-tion in combination with lighting and sun blind controllers Tracer EXL and Tracer EXB. The con-troller is also compatible with the Trane wall interfaces range.

EC FAN MOTOR TECHNOLOGYTrane is now applying innovative electronic commutation (EC) fan motor technology throughout its range of chilled water terminals. This state-of-the-art technology offers offi ce buildings and hotels substantial energy savings and improved user comfort.

EC motors using electronic commutation of motor windings re-quire four times less energy (Watt) than conventional alternating current (AC) motors in the low-speed range. While AC fan motors run on fi xed speeds, EC fan motors run at all speeds throughout the entire operating range of the unit, with the motor rpm-controlled via a 0 to 10 V signal from a unit controller. Without perceptible sound shift when modulating the fan speed to adapt to minimum cooling and heating load variations, increased acoustic and thermal comfort are immediate benefi ts.

Trane has incorporated the new technology into three types of ter-minal units: the new horizontal concealed fan coil FED and U-Line units, and the chilled water cassette CWE. The FED is a straight-through fan coil unit that offers up to 100 Pa of static pressure within several confi gurations of coils, plenums, electric heaters and water valves from 0.6 to 4.0 kW within a range of four sizes. The U-Line models’ innovative ‘u-turn’ airfl ow pattern ideally fi ts buildings where individual offi ces of 10 to 30 m² are grouped along a building’s perim-eter. Both FED and U-Line have a slim shape (225 mm high), which makes them ideally suited for concealed installation.

The third Trane terminal unit with CE fan motor technology, the new chilled water cassette CWE, ranges from 1.5 to 11 kW and comes in fi ve sizes. With its smart and discreet front, the system fi ts seam-lessly in all kinds of suspended ceilings in retail or offi ce buildings.

The new terminal units can be factory-mounted and confi gured with the Trane Tracer TM ZN525 controller. The new controller max-imizes EC fan motor technology performance by providing an aver-age of 5% additional power consumption savings on an annual basis. It also controls the fan speed to adapt to exact cooling and heating loads of individual rooms or zones in the building, improving room temperature and acoustic comfort.

GLOBAL NEWS


SOUTH AFRICAAn initiative to salvage the tainted image of South African plumbers as a result of poor customer service delivery from unqualifi ed and non-registered plumbers has been launched. The Plumber of the Year 2010 competition, which will honour the best plumber, plumbing business and learn-er plumber, is a Plumbing Africa initiative endorsed by the Plumbing Institute of South Africa, Plasma, Polymer Hot and Cold Association, Copper Development Association and South African Plastic Pipe Manufacturers’ Association and the Plumbing Industry Registration Board. The awards will be presented at the Plumdrain Africa Show, part of the In-terbuild Africa 2010 exhibition, to be held at the MTN Expo Centre in Nasrec, Johannesburg from September 8 to 11.

UNITED STATESThe completion of a newly redesigned, energy-effi cient air-con system at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam’s Building 1770 culminated end June with train-ing for the maintenance workers who will work on the new system. It was determined that new technology and a redesign of the system would create a much more comfortable and affordable working environment, and which will save the US Navy more than US$92 000 in energy costs annually.

CHINAWestern countries could learn a great deal from Chinese R&D into wastewater management. If engineering solutions can be found to reuse gray and black water rather than lose it to drainage, there is a great opportunity to reduce the con-sumption of primary potable water. Professor Siqing Xia of Tongji University has created a small-scale toilet-to-tap treat-ment plant on campus. The plant turns wastewater from the College of Environmental Science and Engineering’s labora-tory into pure potable water. This water is used for a number of purposes around campus, including scientifi c procedures and irrigation of the surrounding landscape.

UNITED KINGDOMManchester Airport is using high-level fi re per-formance cables from AEI Cables to ensure the performance of its critical voice alarm systems. The overhaul of the life safety systems in Termi-nal One represented the fi rst and most important phase of a £35million radical revamp of the site. With 107 check-in desks, T1 is Manchester Air-port’s biggest and busiest terminal, and a power-ful new 64-zone voice alarm using AEI’s Firetec Enhanced Cables was required to replace the existing system.

SAUDI ARABIAMillennium Energy Industries (MEI) has been awarded a design-and-build contract for a solar district hot water project at the US$11 billion Princess Noura Bint Abdurrahman University for Women (PNUW) in Riyadh, Saudi Ara-bia. This is believed to be the largest so-lar district hot water project in the world. MEI is sub-contractor to a JV between El-Seif Contracting and Consolidated Contracting Company (CCC), which are responsible for implementing the infrastructure works (Package 3) of the PNUW project, with Dar Al Handaseh as the supervising design and MEP con-sultant.

NEWS ANALYSIS


Report: LEED buildings are ‘unhealthy’Call for urgent need to include human health in the defi nition of what it means to be ‘green’

The cover of the EHHI reportENERGY EFFICIENCY

A new report from Environment & Human Health, Inc. (EHHI) of the US argues that the USGBC’s LEED rating system favours energy effi ciency over indoor envi-ronmental quality.

“There is an ur-gent need to include human health in the defi nition of what it means to be ‘green’ or environmentally responsible,” said Dr. Peter Rabinowitz, di-rector of Clinical Ser-vices at Yale School of Medicine’s Occupation-al and Environmental Medicine.

Many corporations and other institutions have ad-opted LEED standards without fully understand-ing that energy-conserva-tion efforts often reduce the exchange of indoor and outdoor air, which can cause syn-thetic chemicals to concentrate within buildings.

“EHHI is especially concerned that the LEED programme is now providing the false impression that the buildings it certifi es pro-tect human health. LEED’s high-est rating, Platinum, is attainable without earning any credits for indoor air quality protection,” EHHI states in a press release.

“Although LEED has effective-ly encouraged energy effi ciency in buildings, tighter buildings often concentrate chemicals re-leased from building materials, cleaning supplies, fuel combus-tion, pesticides and other haz-ardous substances,” said John Wargo, lead author of the study, and Professor of Risk Analysis and Environmental Policy at Yale University in the US.

T h i s includes substanc-

es common in building materials, like phthalates (used in fl oor and wall coverings); short-chain chlo-rinated paraffi ns (used in fl ame retardants); and perfl uorinated chemicals (used in carpets and upholstery). All of these are listed as ‘chemicals of concern’, accord-ing to the US Environmental Pro-tection Agency.

“The underlying problem is that thousands of different chemicals, many of them well recognised to be hazardous, are allowed to become components of building materials. Very few of these chemicals have been tested to identify their toxicity, environ-mental fate or the danger they pose to human health.

“Although the primary stated purposes of the USGBC are to promote both energy effi ciency and human health, even its most

the potential to jeopardise the indoor air we breathe, the water we drink and the overall safety of our habitats. This is a timely les-son,” said Dr. Mark Cullen, Chief of Internal Medicine at Stanford University Medical School, who also reviewed the report.

In response to the report, US-GBC senior VP Scot Horst said: “There is validity in what these people are saying, and we want to work with them to improve LEED. LEED could say there should be no chemicals in any building and no energy used and no water, and every building should give back water and energy. We could do all that, and no one would use the rating system. We can only take the market as far as it is ultimate-ly willing to go.”

EHHI is a non-profi t organisa-tion dedicated to protecting hu-man health from environmental harms through research, educa-tion and the promotion of sound public policy.

It comprises doctors, public health professionals and policy experts committed to the reduc-tion of environmental health risks to individuals.

• The LEED credit system is heavily weighted to encourage energy-effi cient building performance. Nearly four times as many credits are awarded as energy conservation technologies and designs (35 possible credits) as for protection of indoor environmental quality from hazardous chemicals (8 possible credits). • It is possible for new construction to be certifi ed at the ‘platinum’ level with no credits awarded for air quality assurance in the category ‘indoor environmental quality’.• The only drinking water quality assurance that LEED requires is compliance with federal Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) standards. Yet these standards are widely recognised to allow human exposure to hazardous chemicals above ‘maximum contamination limits’ set to protect human health.• LEED neglects to address the occupational chemical risks faced by workers who manufacture building products, cleaning products and furnishings.

ISSUES ARISING FROM THE REPORT

prestigious Platinum award does little to ensure that hazardous chemicals are kept out of certifi ed build-ings,” said Wargo.

“LEED needs to be amended to better ac-count for the potential health hazards of the toxic chemicals used in modern building mate-rials. Energy effi ciency and sustainability are laudable goals, and LEED has done much to advance them. But health is important, too, and now it needs to receive careful consideration in building design,” said Dr. Philip Landrigan, Ethel H. Wise Professor and chairman, Department of Preventive Medi-cine, at Mt. Sinai

School of Medicine in New York, who reviewed the report.

“Green building technologies — even while they bring impor-tant energy benefi ts — have


NEWS ANALYSIS

The return of wind towersThe answer to energy-free air-con is literally blowing in the wind, says Dr Ben Richards Hughes of Heriot-Watt University, Dubai CampusR&D

The way in which we use energy in construction has a direct im-pact on global warming through carbon dioxide emissions. De-signers, engineers and architects are under increasing pressure to build sustainable structures. However, we often overlook suc-cessful methods used in the past in pursuit of future technologies.

“Before inventing or proposing new mechanical solutions, tra-ditional solutions in vernacular architecture should be evaluated and then adopted or modifi ed and developed to make them compat-ible with modern requirements,” Haasan Fathy.

Buildings account for up to 40% of the world’s energy use. Break-ing that fi gure down further, 60% of the total energy consumption of buildings is in the HVAC sec-tor. In the UAE, the air-condi-tioning units in commercial and domestic dwellings are a major contributor to the total carbon dioxide emissions. However, this was not always the case.

Middle Eastern architecture has matured over time, shaped by the hot acrid climate. The Malgalf or wind tower adorned traditional buildings. These were used to trap cooler air at a high level to deliver to the occupants at a low level, often through wa-

ter reservoirs so as to regulate humidity. This method offered comfortable indoor conditions at zero cost to the environment and the user. With the advance-ment of construction techniques and technologies, these systems have been phased out in favour of mechanical systems consuming large amounts of energy.

However, this traditional tech-nique has been developed and applied to modern equivalents, with considerable success in Eu-rope, where the climate is less susceptible to large temperature variations. The wind vents are de-signed to suit the aesthetics of the building, but function in the same way, trapping air at high level and delivering to the occupants be-low. The wind vent contains an in-ternal structure that divides the duct into quadrants, thus provid-ing a delivery fl ow irrespective of wind direction. The remain-ing quadrants are used as exhaust chambers for stale or used air.

The patented tech-nology uses solar-driven internal fans to ensure a consistent stream of ventilated air, and therefore en-ergy consumption is nil. Air is captured at high level and channelled down

The use of natural air for ventilating occupied spaces gives the opportunity to reduce or eliminate the health-related complaints of HVAC users.“

chanical methods or energy con-suming techniques is a complex task. However, a year-long study into energy-free cooling devices has yielded several alternatives which may offer the equivalent of energy free air-conditioning to new build and pre-existing struc-tures.

The benefi ts of the system are not only in energy consumption and carbon dioxide reduction. The use of natural air for venti-lating occupied spaces provides the opportunity to reduce or eliminate the health-related com-plaints encountered by HVAC us-ers. Numerous studies in Europe and worldwide have lauded the health benefi ts of natural venti-lation over mechanical methods. Thus the system may offer clean-er and healthier environment for UAE citizens.

These developments may lead to the fi rst genuinely energy-free air-conditioning, which means ex-citing times for the UAE. Thus it could be that the next step in zero carbon construction is already here, and always has been …

Dr Ben Richard Hughes is the Re-search Project Outreach Co-Ordi-nator for Heriot-Watt University, Dubai Campus. He has spent 16 years as a mechanical engineer, from apprentice to doctorate, and in 2009 was elected as a Sir Joseph Whitworth Scholar in recognition of this achievement.

into the building below through existing ductwork and ventilation delivery points; hence retrofi t-ting to existing structures is an option. The device is low-cost, and the simplicity of the system ensures minimum maintenance.

Adapting this technology to the climatic challenges of the UAE offers a signifi cant opportunity for energy reduction, and to an overall reduction in carbon diox-ide emissions for the region. Pre-liminary investigations utilising Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation models of the technology in the UAE climate have been carried out by Heriot-Watt University, Dubai Campus. The studies have demonstrated the potential for modern wind towers to be implemented into both residential dwellings and commercial structures. Follow-ing the success of this study,

full-scale fi eld testing is now expected to commence

in the latter half of the year.

Adapting this exist-ing European system

to meet the occu-pancy comfort de-mands here in the UAE requires the

integration of a cool-ing system. Providing

cooling without us-ing me-

NEWS ANALYSIS


New air-con slashes energy costsCombines desiccant and evaporative cooling benefi ts; uses salt solution instead of refrigerants

AIR-CON

A new air-con uses salt solutions instead of refrigerants, thus elim-inating greenhouse gas emission concerns, and a thermally-acti-vated absorption cycle that can slash the electricity needed to run the refrigeration cycle by 50% to 90%. It can also be powered by natural gas or solar energy. The technology has been patented by the US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Renewable En-ergy Laboratory (NREL).

Combining the benefi ts of des-iccant and evaporative cooling has long posed a formidable chal-lenge. In a hot and humid region like Dubai, evaporative cooling can reduce the temperature, but not enough to make it pleasant at the height of summer.

Hence refrigeration-based air-con remains the most effec-tive means of keeping cool, but in Dubai it uses up to 70% of the total electricity output in the re-gion. The strain on electricity resources has been seen recently with record temperatures in Ku-wait, together with record power consumption levels that could see the introduction of manda-tory power cuts in that country.

The DEVap, which stands for desiccant-enhanced evaporative air-conditioner, uses membrane technology to combine the effi -ciency of evaporative cooling and the drying potential of liquid des-iccant salt solutions. Evaporative coolers are a lower-cost alterna-tive to air-con in dry climates that do not get too hot or humid. Wa-ter fl ows over a mesh, and a fan blows air through the wet mesh to create humid, cool air. In hu-mid climes, adding water to the air creates a hot and sticky build-ing environment. Furthermore, the air cannot absorb enough wa-ter to become cold.

However, the DEVap is said to solve that particular problem by

relying on the desiccants’ capac-ity to create dry air using heat and evaporative coolers’ capacity to take dry air and make cold air. “The concept of combining the two is by no means novel, but no one has been able to come up with a practical and cost-effective way to do it,” said NREL mechanical engineer Eric Kozubal.

“The idea is to revolutionise cooling, while removing millions of metric tons of carbon from the air. We had been working with membranes, evaporative coolers and desiccants, and saw an op-portunity to combine them into a single device for a product with unique capabilities.”

NREL used desiccants consist-ing of highly-concentrated aque-ous salt solutions of lithium chlo-ride or calcium chloride. These have a high affi nity for water vapour, and can thus create very dry air. Due to the complexity of desiccant cooling systems, they

The idea is to revolutionise cooling, while removing millions of metric tons of carbon from the air. “ –Eric KozubalMekky

core. The desiccant and evapora-tive cooling effect together create cold-dry air,” explained Kozubal.

The air is cooled and dried from a hot-humid condition to a cold and dry condition all in one step. This all happens in a fraction of a second as air fl ows through the DEVap air-con. The result is an air-conditioner that controls both thermal and humidity loads.

Kozubal expects that, over the next couple of years, he will be working on making the device smaller and simpler, and perfect-ing the heat transfer to make DEVap even more cost-effective. NREL said it will ultimately li-cense the technology to industry.

“We would like to work with manufacturers to bring DEVap to market and create a more effi cient and environmentally-benign air-conditioning product,” said Ron Judkoff, principle programme manager for Building Energy Re-search at NREL.

have traditionally only been used in industrial drying processes. Inventing a device simple enough for easy installation and mainte-nance has hampered desiccant cooling in the commercial and residential markets.

To solve that problem, the NREL device uses thin mem-branes that simplify the process of integrating airfl ow, desiccants and evaporative cooling. These result in an air-con system that is said to provide superior comfort and humidity control.

The membranes in the DEVap air-con are hydrophobic, which means water tends to bead up rather than soak through the membranes. That property allows the membranes to control the liq-uid fl ows within the cooling core. “It is that property that keeps the water and the desiccant separated from the air stream. We bring the water and liquid desiccant into DEVap’s heat-mass exchanger


NEWS ANALYSIS

Integrated design a major challengeASHRAE’s fi rst female president advocates ‘Modelling A Sustainable World’ as way forward

ASHRAE

The traditional approach where-by an architect designs a build-ing’s shape, orientation and en-velope, and then transmits these drawings to the mechanical and electrical engineers “misses rich opportunities for optimising building performance via an ini-tial collaborative approach.”

This is the message from new-ly-inaugurated ASHRAE presi-dent Lynn G. Bellenger, the fi rst female president in the society’s 116-year history. A building-energy modelling professional and a high-performance building design professional, Bellenger is from Pathfi nder Engineers & Ar-chitects in Rochester, New York.

“It is going to require a real cultural shift in our industry to transform the design process, and it is a shift that has to occur if we are going to reach our goal of net-zero-energy buildings,” is the message of Bellenger’s presiden-tial theme, entitled ‘Modelling a Sustainable World’.

In energy simula-tion, daylight analy-sis, CFD and BIM software, “we have power-ful modelling tools that en-able us to cre-ate and refi ne our vision of a building – its appearance, sys-tems, op-

eration and performance. “Those resources, used effectively in an integrated design process for new buildings and in analysing retro-fi t opportunities in existing build-ings, will help us guide building owners, architects, developers and contractors in building ori-entation, shading and shape and in selecting materials, windows, equipment and systems that opti-mise building performance.”

Bellenger said that, tradition-ally, designers constructed physi-cal models of major projects to illustrate their concept of the

building’s form and appearance. These scale models took days and weeks to prepare and, once

completed, could only be changed with great dif-

fi culty. “Today we have the tools to

create a virtual model that can be completed more com-pletely, and can be modi-fi ed easily to consider op-

tions in size,

The most valuable lesson we can share is that buildings operate as systems rather than a collection of components.“

Numerous studies of unsuccess-ful projects can trace the project failure to a lack of communication between the architect and the en-gineer; between the mechanical and electrical engineer; between the engineer and the contractor.

“To succeed in the twenty-fi rst century, it is imperative that we cultivate strong communication skills and embrace collaboration with the design team as the only way to optimise building perfor-mance,” said Bellenger.

“Our members need educa-tional programmes on how to accurately and effi ciently model new and existing buildings, and how to interpret the results. We must provide training on mod-elling existing buildings and calibrating those models without compromising integrity. We have to develop techniques to model innovative HVAC systems.

“And, above all, we must look at buildings as systems, and ex-pand our understanding of build-ing science beyond HVACR. To become experts in high-perfor-mance buildings, we must im-prove our knowledge of building envelope performance, thermal mass effect in buildings, passive solar, daylighting, human com-fort and much more,” concluded Bellenger.

shape and appearance. But far more than just being a visual representation, our models can simulate energy performance, access daylighting options and predict thermal comfort.

“To exploit the full capability of these modelling tools, we must transform our design approach from a sequential approach – where one discipline completes its work and hands off the design to the next, to a collaborative pro-cess – where all of the disciplines involved in the building design and construction work as a team

from the beginning to evaluate options and optimise the design.

“Integrated building design required thinking about the building and its elements as in-terlinked and interdependent systems, so that a single design refi nement may simultaneously improve performance of several building systems.”

Bellenger said “our biggest challenge is implementing inte-grated design in daily practice.

As the envelope, lighting and HVAC loads diminish, the remaining loads become important. A realistic estimate of plug and process loads is critical to optimise HVAC system sizing and performance during design. It is also essential to control after occupancy. Consider an offi ce building that has a daytime plug load of 1 W/ft². If 10% of the equipment remains on at night, then the annual energy-use

intensity for those plug loads is roughly 5 kBtu/ft². But if 30% of the equipment remains on during unoccupied hours, the energy use almost doubles.

In future zero-energy buildings, plug and process loads are expected to be the largest energy end use. Owners and occupants have to understand the negative impact of failing to control plug and process loads during unoccupied hours.

PLUG AND PROCESS LOADS

tial theme, entitled Modelling a Sustainable World’.

In energy simula-tion, daylight analy-sis, CFD and BIMsoftware, “we have power-ful modellingtools that en-able us to cre-ate and refi neour vision of a building – itsappearance, sys-tems, op-

completed, could only be changed with great dif-

fi culty. “Today we have the tools to

create a virtual model that can be completed more com-pletely, and can be modi-fi ed easily to consider op-

tions in size,

Bellenger’s mission is to trans-form the design profession

THE BIG INTERVIEW


Green buildings are not only more energy effi cient, but are also healthier and improve worker productivity, which impacts directly on a company’s bottom line. MEP Middle East speaks to Buro Happold principal Kevin Mitchell.

The greenbottom line


THE BIG INTERVIEW

itchell began his career in the UK with a general MEP engineering con-sultancy. “I was really lucky as a young engi-neer to get involved in a broad range of projects, from healthcare to edu-cation, spanning large new-builds to very small projects. I spent part of

the fi rst eight months of my life as a consult-ing engineer on-site, so I got to see every-thing hands-on and exactly how things all fi t together.” Mitchell recalls , as a 21-year-old, learning some very pointed lessons from a 60-year-old foreman who said: “This is what 8˝ pipework looks like; you have drawn it ten metres in the air. How am I going to get it up there?” .

“From my graduate training I went into the R&D side. I was really fortunate to work under Terry Wyatt, ultimately one of the presidents of CIBSE in the UK, for about fi ve years.” Mitchell says his research focused on technologies such as chilled beams and displacement ventilation, which at the time had only just been introduced to the UK market from Scandinavia. Similar to the Middle East, where this technology is only now starting to make inroads, it was faced with a different set of climate and humidity challenges.

“There was reluctance from many users and building owners, and especially develop-ers in the UK, to adopt this technology into commercial offi ce space. How do you rent the space? How will the market and the ten-ants react?” says Mitchell. His research on chilled beams and displacement ventilation focused on the potential of weatherproof, comfortable environments to boost business productivity. “If your employees are sick 15% of the time, and you can reduce that rate by 5%, you add 5% to the bottom line of your business.”

Mitchell was then introduced to multi-disciplinary engineering and the concept of integrated design, a key component of green building, an area that the Middle East market is focusing on at the moment. An important element of integrated design is engaging with “the user groups who are ultimately going to utilise the facility” so as to ensure their specifi c needs are met. This lead to a stint of healthcare and scientifi c-type projects for large pharmaceutical com-

panies, such as laboratories, R&D centres and Greenfi eld hospitals in the £200 million bracket. “I guess this is where my heart lies, in the holistic design side of the industry,” concludes Mitchell.

Subsequently he worked in Canada from 2001 to 2005. “Culturally and business-wise I found it much more focused and very much more direct. The best way I can describe it really is that the Canadian market is a mix-ture between that of the American and the English. You had the North American com-mercial approach that was direct and task-focused, combined with the UK approach of analysing and prototyping. Importantly for me, it also was a multi-disciplinary, holistic design approach,” says Mitchell.

During this time he became involved in cli-ent relationship management. “As we all do in the course of our careers, we move from the technical side towards more client inter-action. I picked up a couple of quite large-scale client relationships in North America.

Again a particular cultural characteristic of this market is that it is very strong on rela-tionships. If you tell your client you are go-ing to do something, it is a personal commit-ment, and you certainly never let your client down,” says Mitchell. This is also highly rel-evant for the Middle East market, he adds.

Mitchell then returned to the UK market as key account manager for various trans-portation clients, for projects such as runway and lighting system refurbishment at major airports, which posed particular logistical and safety challenges. Three years later he was ready for the next challenge … “What was going on in the Middle East at the time, and still is to a certain extent, was quite fas-cinating.

“What brought me here, quite honestly, were the fabulous projects and the great challenges associated with them. I guess for all of us in our lifetimes there are going to be certain career opportunities and certain hotspots in the world, and for me, as I am sure for lots of other people, the Middle East presented an opportunity I could not resist,” says Mitchell. “What excites me is the big challenge – be it technical, relationship or logistical.”

That is when he made the move to Buro Happold, a major player in the Middle East for 30 years with a name built on strong relationships, “and of course a great reputa-tion for delivering quality engineering solu-tions on really exciting projects as well. The combination of the lure of the projects in the Middle East and working with a practice like Buro Happold was really exciting for me.”

Mitchell has been in the Middle East for two years now, but is not ready to leave just yet … “To be honest, with the excitement of the projects here and the long-term future for all of us in the Middle East, I cannot see myself moving for a long time. I do not think boredom will set in any time soon.” Interest-ingly, his initial research interests are now standing him in good stead in this market.

“My MSc in Energy Engineering was de-veloped from the MSc in Building Services Engineering. I completed the degree from 2004 to 2006 under the direction of Professor Tim Dwyer, who is also a director-at-large

with ASHRAE. The course focused on the impact that MEP and building design has on energy usage, and the infl uence we all can have on energy consumption and conserva-tion in the built environment, which accounts for such a large proportion of global energy use. We looked at energy use from a built environment perspective as well as from the macro or global scale. This was not nearly as hot a topic then as it is now,” says Mitchell.

“Personally I am really encouraged at how receptive the Middle East and our clients are to new technologies and innovations. There are obviously some technical concerns, es-pecially with chilled beams and the high humidity levels here, but those issues can be engineered around through good design, and good maintenance and control systems especially. So I think we are seeing a pick up in those technologies.

“Certainly the benefi ts to the occupants are global, regardless of the location of the facility. Occupants in general will have a far more comfortable environment and, I believe, because of this productivity will be boosted. Certainly I believe the fl exibility of the space will be far greater, which will benefi t landlords as well.” An added advan-

There are huge opportunities here for harnessing solar power, both at a local and macro level. This is where I think

the MEP sector really has an opportunity – I would say almost a responsibility – to make headway here. “

THE BIG INTERVIEW


tage of chilled beams in particular is that the technology can be easily retrofi tted to exist-ing buildings, with reduced noise levels and less maintenance as added benefi ts.

“Post-handover and maintenance are key issues. Again it is good to see a lot of clients and designers focusing on these aspects of design and construction, together with life-cycle costing. It is not just a fi rst-cost con-sideration anymore – maintenance, running costs and ultimately refurbishment and re-newal have to be taken into account as well. This has meant there are some fantastic developments taking place at the moment,” says Mitchell.

“Here where you have everything from the tallest building in the world to giant land reclamation projects such as Wadi Hanifah, which we recently completed, a constant challenge is innovation and embracing new technologies. The climate also poses partic-ular challenges in terms of MEP engineer-ing, especially for sustainability.

“A lot of outsiders say it is not sustainable to build here, but they have not had the op-portunity to live and work in the Middle East and see all the good things going on here,” says Mitchell. This also extends to the ongo-ing investment in infrastructure for the pub-lic realm, which is particularly prevalent in the region.

“The focus on investing in infrastructure – social infrastructure as well as highways, etc. – is fabulous, with the overall aim of making communities and the entire society more attractive and habitable throughout the year. We are currently working in con-junction with the Municipality of Jeddah on the Jeddah strategic plan. The city is set to double in the next 20 years, but we are sup-porting the city to develop and implement a set of strategic planning tools to manage the city’s growth in a sustainable way.”

One of these new opportunities is an in-creased focus on sustainability. “The launch of Estidama and the creation of the Pearl rat-ing system in Abu Dhabi have provided an excellent focal point for sustainability, and I am sure Dubai’s green building regulations will follow suit.” Mitchell says a particular benefi t of Pearl is that it can be adapted to local conditions, “rather than trying to sup-plant another rating system onto the region, which is always a tricky fi t.” Mitchell says sustainability also poses particular chal-lenges in terms of power and water infra-structure.

“Obviously we are coming up to full sum-mer now, so the main infrastructure systems will be under tremendous strain. Abu Dhabi, for example, is creating awareness by install-

ing water-saving devices in villas. With great challenges, comes an even greater opportu-nity for innovation as it really forces the is-sue. The necessary investment for nuclear power generation has been committed, so there is a great mix of short-term, interim and long-term initiatives at the moment,” says Mitchell.

A good approach to inculcating a policy of ‘reduce, reuse and recycle’ is “through bet-ter design of facilities and the systems that service those facilities, as well as better con-trol and management.

“How are those systems used in reality? I believe post-occupancy, again, is a huge op-portunity for us an industry in the region.” This touches on the highly relevant topic of renewables, which Mitchell says is an impor-tant growth area.

“There are huge opportunities here for harnessing solar power, both at a local and macro level. Take solar water heating: such a large proportion of our residential building stock use electric water heaters, which place a huge demand on the power infrastructure.

A gradual phasing-in of solar water heating for residential use will make a huge differ-ence,” says Mitchell.

“This is where I think the MEP sector re-ally has an opportunity – I would say almost a responsibility – to make headway here. We have service providers for district cooling, but it would be great to see power genera-tion at a community level, utilising solar or related applications. For example, we have a huge landfi ll space problem, so there is po-tential for waste-to-heat and ultimately using that heat to generate electricity.”

However, Mitchell cautions that these myriad opportunities need to be channelled properly for maximum effect. “The chal-lenge for community, society and ultimately government is how to co-ordinate all these efforts. I think the UAE and the Middle East as a whole has a great opportunity in this regard. A lot of these measures are not be-ing implemented unfortunately, and we as a profession and the MEP sector have to work as hard as possible to encourage this and to demonstrate the benefi ts.”

Design practice Woods Bagot and multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy Buro Happold have announced ‘Zero Emissions Design’ (ZERO-E), a new model for large-scale sustainable development that signifi cantly advances the construction industry’s contribution to realising a zero carbon economy by 2050.

Involving the expertise of multi-disciplinary teams, underpinned by cutting-edge parametric technologies and based on a comprehensive approach to sustainability, ZERO-E was created to deliver on the promise of zero-carbon and zero-emissions development. While current approaches to sustainable development reduce the environmental harm caused by the construction and operation of new buildings, ZERO-E goes beyond reducing the impact of new development to creating buildings that contribute to the healing of compromised human and ecological systems.

The joint initiative represents an emerging,

revolutionary approach to sustainable design, and challenges the industry to fulfi ll its leadership role in support of the UN Compact on climate change and China’s commitment, made in November 2009, to reducing carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP by 40% to 45% by the year 2020, compared with 2005 levels. As its test case, the joint team has chosen a typical development type for China.

“The construction industry has known for some time that increasing the sustainability of buildings and cities is key to turning the tide on climate change. This joint initiative is not only an entirely new model for sustainable design, it is also a call to action and an invitation to our development and construction partners to join us,” said Woods Bagot CEO and global executive chairman Ross Donaldson.

“As an industry we must take urgent steps to change the planning, design and construction of the built environment if we are to help deliver a zero-carbon global economy,” said Buro Happold MD Gavin Thompson.

‘ZERO-E’ TO LEAD ZERO CARBON ECONOMY DRIVE

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PROFILE

here are six divisions within AFE, namely elevators, building prod-ucts, security and LV systems,

scaffolding and formwork, MEP and air-con. Established in 1973, air-con is the oldest division, followed closely by elevators in 1974 when AFE clinched the Hitachi agency. “It was v e r y progressive of us to an-ticipate the demand for elevators and

escalators for high-rise buildings in Dubai, although we could not have anticipated the extent of the con-struction boom that was to follow,” says Shamsul Haq.

The growth of the Elevator Division has chronicled Dubai’s devel-opment, from the Cham-bers of Commerce

Al-Futtaim Engineering (AFE) Elevator Division GM Syed Shamsul Haq talks about upwards growth in Abu Dhabi, and the latest developments in vertical transportation.

Going upbuilding to Atlantis on Palm Jumeirah. Even though the global fi nancial crisis has had a major impact on the construction industry in Dubai, in particular, Shamsul Haq says there is still work to be had. “Dubai’s construction sector is not dead. You have to be selective, but there are good projects still out there.” He points to the Elevator Division’s ongoing in-volvement at Hotel JAL Tower and Al Hikma Tower, all on Sheikh Zayed Road, and The Ad-

dress Hotel at Dubai Mall.“Dubai is not as it was before, but

there is still work. Dubai passed through a period which was a bit unnatural to the extent of there be-ing too much work. Companies had to pass through this phase without really getting to grips with the work

that had to be done. So in a sense this is now the time to learn from past

experience and prepare, which is how we are approaching it. We are looking

at our strengths and weaknesses, and how we can improve

upon areas where we are lack-

ing,” says S h a m s u l Haq.

Has the downturn meant the end of the trend of high-rise buildings? “If you look at the big-ger picture, at the GCC level, defi nitely overall there are more high-rises now than there were in 2006. Qatar and Saudi Arabia have a lot of high-rise projects. So the trend will continue,” is Shamsul Haq’s fi rm prediction. “It is quite natural to have a construction boom followed by a lull in activity. In one area there will be saturation, and in another area opportunity.”

He says Abu Dhabi went through a similar experience of a decline in construction activity, while Dubai was booming. “Dubai is relatively quiet now, while our major activity is in Abu Dhabi. We are supplying 50 elevators and es-calators, including many high-speed elevators to Nation Towers on the Corniche, and we also have the Investment Corporation Headquar-ters coming up. We are also involved at Masdar University,” says Shamsul Haq.

Explaining how the division operates, he says it sources products for individual projects according to specifi c requirements. “We are at the high end of the market, involved with complex and demanding projects, so it is not a cookie-cutter approach whereby we buy 20 elevator kits to fi t in here and there. There is a product in that range, but that is for home-style elevators, another market segment.

“Mostly elevators are custom-made for par-ticular projects. Hotels have their own require-ments, while shopping malls will have different needs. This is really the ambit of the consult-ants, but we get involved here as well, assisting them in the design and traffi c-analysis stage, determining how many elevators are needed, and what capacity and speeds.”

Shamsul Haq says the fi rst question that needs to be addressed is simply: how many ele-vators will be suffi cient? “For the same number of people, for example, depending on the util-ity of the project, different models, types and speeds of elevators will be required.” He cites a recent fi ve-star hotel project in Makkah, Saudi Arabia as to the importance of understanding specifi c customer needs.

In terms of the actual traffi c analysis, the



PROFILE

If you look at the bigger picture, at the GCC level, defi nitely overall there are more high-rises now than there were in 2006. Qatar and Saudi Arabia have a lot of high-

rise projects. So the trend will continue. “Syed Shamsul Haq

numbers rose slowly in the afternoon and then tapered off in the early evening as cus-tomers checked in, and then rose again in the early morning as customers checked out. Now while a fi ve-star hotel in Dubai is compa-rable to a fi ve-star hotel in Los Angeles, it is totally different in Makkah, where the call to prayer or Azan means the entire hotel has to be evacuated fi ve times a day within a 20 to 30 minute window period.

“If it is not done properly at the design stage, not much can be done later on, as the struc-ture has already been completed. In terms of the Makkah project, the elevator supplier was requested afterwards to supply additional el-evators, which posed particular problems in terms of access and optimisation. Thus it is very important to understand the exact nature of the customer’s requirements from the out-set,” says Shamsul Haq.

This implies a very close working relation-ship with clients. “Our relationship is not a once-off. We always think in terms of the en-tire lifespan of a project, which could mean serving the same customer for 30 years. We do not sell and then go away. We stay with the customer to ensure a safe, reliable and com-fortable service over the long term.”

Shamsul Haq maintains “it is the aftersales support that determines the overall quality. Total quality is determined by the product quality, the installation quality and the mainte-nance quality. The customer’s fi nal experience is a combination of all three of these elements. The product has to be well engineered, the installation has to be executed professionally, and proper aftersales maintenance and sup-port have to be provided. That makes up the totality of the customer’s experience.”

The Elevator Division “has a huge main-tenance structure in terms of engineers and technicians, and providing proper training. This is a highly specialised area, which is why we only maintain products that we are the agents for, where we are confi dent we can pro-vide a service that will let the customer sleep well at night and not have to worry. Some com-panies do try and maintain other brands. We know the challenges in maintaining and keep-ing our own elevators in perfect condition, and the technical skills required.”

This is also due to the safety-critical nature of elevators. “In our business, safety is abso-

lute. If air-con breaks down, it is uncomfort-able but not life-threatening. Therefore we have to ensure our elevators are maintained properly, using genuine parts, and serviced by properly trained professionals.” Shamsul Haq says the ideal situation is for elevators not to break down at all, but this is unlikely due to the complexity of the equipment and the de-mands placed on it.

“We provide preventative maintenance on a monthly basis, which is the normal servicing. At the same time we try to look at things in a more proactive manner by providing predic-tive maintenance. We do not wait for problems to occur in order to respond. Ideally we like to repair or change things before problems be-come manifest.”

In addition, every problem or breakdown reported is analysed properly in order to as-certain any trends or commonalities. “Some-times after we analyse two to four calls we will reach a conclusion that this is a type of prob-lem in a particular area. Our focus is on areas related to the technical aspects, which is in our control. We have a suffi cient inventory of

spare parts because all of our contracts cover comprehensive maintenance services. That means we assume total responsibility, aiming to keep our elevators operational 24/7/365,” says Shamsul Haq.

In terms of major projects in remote loca-tions, the Elevator Division will have a standby team in order to cut down on the response time to any problems. “We had such standby teams at Atlantis and Festival City, for exam-ple, as part of the overall AFE presence on these projects. We were able to respond within ten minutes, whereas the industry norm is two to three hours. In fact, we recently received a request from a client asking us to confi rm a response time of six hours, and we said we are much better than that …”

What are some of the latest trends in ver-tical transportation? Shamsul Haq says that energy effi ciency and green buildings are hav-ing a signifi cant impact. “In terms of elevators getting old, and their energy effi ciency not be-ing what could be expected, we can propose modernisation for certain brands. We do not

replace the entire elevator; instead we replace some parts and the control systems basically, so a more effi cient system is in place at the end. All the world-class brands now have vari-able voltage, variable frequency (VVVF) type controls, while regeneration is also possible with some elevators, whereby some of the en-ergy consumed is put back into the system.”

Another trend is double-decker elevators. “Buildings are designed generally with the same fl oor heights, so a double-decker eleva-tor will have a car on one fl oor and the second on another. The same machine is pulling two cars; one addresses odd-numbered fl oors and the other the even-numbered fl oors. Previous-ly it was technically diffi cult for double-decker elevators to accommodate fl exibility in fl oor heights, but Hitachi and some other manufac-turers now have this capability. In future there is likely to be such innovations as wireless controls as well and a trend for higher speeds; Hitachi has perfected design of the fastest el-evator in the world with a speed 1080 m/min elevator (18 m/sec).

Fastest elevator in the world

18 M/SEC

The Burj Khalifa and Address Hotel at Dubai Mall

DISTRICT COOLING


he US$25 million facility in Jebel Ali will cater to the re-quirements of the district cool-

ing and oil and gas sectors across the Middle East. Known as ELIPS (Empower-Logstor Insulated Pipes Systems), the facility represents Dubai’s success in bringing fresh investments into the Emirate. Fur-ther, it demonstrates Dubai compa-

nies’ progressive outlook in investing in new ventures, expanding existing facilities to pro-vide full integrated solutions, and producing raw material internally instead of importing it, said Empower CEO Ahmad Bin Shafar.

“Empower decided to enter into this JV with an eye on securing the supply chain of pre-insulated pipes used in district cooling networks, which constitutes 20% to 25% of to-tal capital outlay. The facility will ensure time-ly delivery and installation of pipe networks that will have a major impact on Empower’s project timelines,” said Bin Shafar.

ELIPS will ensure high quality of insulation and casing of pipes, enhancing effi ciency and maintenance costs of district cooling serv-ices. It will boost the supply chain by elimi-nating artifi cial price fl uctuations created by various players due to the demand-supply gap, added Bin Shafar.

A JV between Empower and Logstor of Ger-many promises to cut supply-chain costs

and boost the cost-effectiveness of dis-trict cooling, which is facing a diffi cult

time as large-scale developments are being scaled back.

Is district cooling still

a hot topic?

Preben Tolstrup, CEO of Logstor, which owns a 49% stake in ELIPS, said: “We are the world’s leading pre-insulated pipe manufac-turer, with more than 50 years’ experience and ten factories worldwide, serving custom-ers in more than 50 countries. With the prime purpose of supplying top-quality district cool-ing pipe systems to the entire region, the world’s most advanced technology to be in-troduced at this new plant will set the stand-ards for many years ahead.”

“This factory represents an opportunity for Empower to achieve backwards integration. It will also consolidate our status as a leading regional player in pipeline systems by meet the industry’s primary requirement for pre-insulated pipes. Empower’s position as the region’s number one company for district cooling is more realised now with the open-ing of this factory,” said Bin Shafar.

Logstor has been serving the Gulf since 1992, and is now marking its commitment to serve the region by establishing an anchored presence with ELIPS. Depending on dimen-sions and output from 100 to 300 pipe joints a day, the factory will offer job opportunities for a wide range of competences, from opera-tors to highly-skilled engineers.

ELIPS will use spray technology for manu-facturing large-diameter pre-insulated pipes,

which will ensure high-quality products and also result in savings in raw material costs as compared to traditional injection technology. This technology also enables the JV to enter the oil and gas industry, which is not possi-ble with traditional injections. Currently, only one out of fi ve existing pre-insulated pipe manufacturers are using spray technology.

In confi rmation of this view, Empower – the largest district cooling provider in the MENA region – recently added Mirdif Gate Build-ings to its burgeoning portfolio. Key projects already supplied include the Dubai Interna-tional Financial Centre, Dubai Healthcare City, Jumeirah Beach Residence, Business Bay and City of Arabia. The latest project was preceded by extensive studies before investing into cen-tral stations and networks to fi ne-tune the re-turn on investment in both the short and long term, added Bin Shafar.

“Dubai is moving rapidly towards increased use of district cooling as an alternative because of its effi ciency in rationalising electricity con-sumption, conserving natural resources and reducing operating and maintenance costs,” he said. The 320 TR Mirdif plant will provide serv-ices to 59 buildings.

Bin Shafar was careful to add: “Empower is very clear in identifying priorities and respon-sibilities; it focuses on enhancing performance through a group of management and opera-tional teams. Empower’s network is scalable to cope with any demand that might occur at any time in any of its projects in Dubai.”

Recently it was reported in the media that Empower had informed developers such as ETA Star in the International Media Produc-tion Zone (IMPZ) on the outskirts of ‘New Dubai’ that it would no longer be supplying dis-trict cooling services to ongoing projects such as The Centrium.

Ken Currie, business development manager

Aslan Al-Barazi: Ice thermal storage is a hot ticket


DISTRICT COOLING

at TAS ME, said that district cooling provid-ers have to resort to technology in order to survive the global downturn. “The prevailing uncertainty has meant that district cooling plants have been built with only a third or even a quarter of the actual load connected. This is a nightmare scenario.

“However, some developers are still build-ing, so you are still required to provide chilled water.” Additional problems are that conces-sion agreements are not fi nalised, fi nancial models no longer work, billing has to be cut back, and future load forecasts are weak.

What can the industry do to mitigate such risks? “There are technological solutions to limit the capital outlay and the cost of distribut-ing chilled water. If you can cut down the cost of both, and keep the lenders happy, then you will be on a much better wicket.”

Currie said this approach calls for a close ex-amination of the actual cost of providing your fi rst tonnage of refrigeration. “The question is how much it will cost you before you can turn on the switch and produce your fi rst chilled water,” he maintained.

One such solution is packaged or modular district cooling. “This requires a smaller foot-print. Plant can be located at ground level, with no need for a basement, and hence no major excavation or dewatering. You can throw down rough foundations, bring in one or two self-contained modules, and start to produce chilled water straightaway. This can be a tem-porary solution, or you can place the units in a

fi xed position right at the beginning and then add

modules as needed.”Modular district cooling plants are

movable assets and can be

transported to wherever they will be needed the most. Another option is a distributed cool-ing system, which utilises a common piping and pumping network.

“The benefi t of such a system is that it is infi nitely extendable, while it can also use dead or wasted space such as internal wells and multi-storey car parks. You can even have supplementary thermal storage systems on roundabouts, tied together with small-diame-ter piping,” said Currie.

It is clear that developments such ELIPS will have a signifi cant impact on the district cooling industry by helping it contain costs and thereby provide a more cost-effective service. Other good news for the industry is DEWA’s announcement it will introduce smart metering. “Commissioning will be within six months,” DEWA CEO and MD Saeed Moham-med Al Tayer said in June.

Smart metering devices provide utilities and end users with more reliable information about consumption, which means consumers will be able to track their water and power con-sumption, and conversely help reduce this, as the GCC’s per capita consumption is one of the highest in the world. “We are now waiting for district cooling providers to modify their plants with thermal storage to increase their energy effi ciency,” said Al Tayer.

IMEC Electro Mechanical Engineering executive director Aslan Al-Barazi confi rms that ice thermal storage can help control com-mercial cooling costs. The technology is gain-ing popularity due to new DEWA legislation requiring district cooling providers to use 20% thermal energy storage from their total project load capacity (the options being either water or ice thermal storage).

“There are many other benefi ts in using ice thermal storage. These include the advantages of peak design cost assessment, energy and space savings and emergency cooling in case of power failure, as well as taking advantage of day/night tariffs when these eventually come into play,” said Al-Barazi.

IMEC is the exclusive representative for Fafco SA from Switzerland, which manufac-tures an ice storage system using static tanks to make ice at night by means of the charging process of an ice chiller. It then discharges the

cooling load through the ice tank during the high on-peak rate period in the daytime. The system also allows project engineers to achieve colder chilled water supply temperatures for special types of project applications.

“Fafco heat exchangers, situated on top of the tank, are easy to maintain and deliver maxi-mum thermal performance with minimum gly-col content,” said Al-Barazi. Ice thermal storage is well-proven in district cooling applications in Europe and the US, which means the UAE has access to a vast pool of international data and experience in this regard.

Despite the problems it is facing at present, district cooling still has a long-term future. At the International District Energy Association’s 2009 District Energy Space Awards, in the ‘Beyond North America’ category, Qatar Cool won gold (number of buildings) and silver (to-tal building area). In 2009 the district cooling service provider contracted 44 new buildings, serving 11 million square feet.

Meanwhile Dohaland’s signature Mushrei-reb project has gained momentum with the de-veloper beginning work on the district cooling plant in Phase 1A. And elsewhere, district cool-ing is also making an impact: Denmark has just inaugurated its fi rst pilot district cooling system as a fi rst step in an ambitious carbon emissions reduction strategy, while Malaysia is investing US$16.9 million in a massive dis-trict cooling system to serve Cyberjaya near Kuala Lumpur.

With the prime purpose of supplying top-quality district cooling pipe systems to the entire region, the world’s most

advanced technology to be introduced at this new plant will set the standards for many years ahead. “

Preben Tolstrup

Ahmad Bin Shafar: Empower’s network

is ‘scalable’

Preben Tolstrup: More district cooling is in the pipeline

TECHNOLOGY


arper says the pluggable system from Apex Wiring Solutions of the UK “has been demonstrated locally to save at least 70% of the in-stallation time on-site.” MEP contractor BK Gulf has al-ready deployed the system successfully at Al Zeina, a precinct of Aldar’s Al Raha Beach development in Abu

Dhabi. PEM is now in talks with local and international MEP contractors for hospitals, hotels, residential and commercial develop-ments within the region.

PEM’s advantage is that it already under-stands manufacturing and the integrated project management required to effectively provide this type of Solution. “We already manufacture the supporting systems such as switchgear, MCCs and control systems, so when the opportunity arose to introduce a

A new pluggable wiring solution is expected to revolutionise electrical installation prac-tice in the MEP sector. Prime Electrical Manufacturing (PEM) engineering and busi-ness development manager Darren Harper highlights the benefi ts for contractors.

Prefabricated wiring completes the circuit

Darren Harper points out the pluggability of the system

pre-manufactured wiring solution to our port-folio, it made perfect sense. The Apex Wiring system is a natural progression for us, as well as the Middle East construction industry. We manufacture all of the products locally to en-sure adequate product lead time to actively support our clients.”

Harper says the system has already gar-nered all the necessary Abu Dhabi Distribu-tion Company (ADDC) approvals and com-plies with DEWA regulations. The systems have already been successfully implemented in Dubai and Abu Dhabi on a number of projects. “We are currently looking to in-crease the roll out in these regions, and will be expanding into Al Ain with Saudi Arabia close behind.”

So how does the system work? In terms of traditional wiring installed in any type of building, be it a villa or high-rise complex, single-core cables are pulled through PVC or metallic conduits and termi-nated at the distribution board (DB), sockets and switches. This requires a signifi cant amount of labour on-site to complete the tasks within the required pro-g r a m m e . There is

also major material waste due to unused off-cuts, theft and loss. “The Apex system ne-gates all of this due to the manufacturing and installation process used,” says Harper.

PEM provides a fully pluggable solution from DB to fi nal connection. “We make all the wiring accessories and light fi ttings plug-gable, as they are assembled away from site in our purpose-made manufacturing facility. Pre-wired, fl exible, pluggable conduit (avail-able in PVC and metal) is also made to spe-cifi c lengths, and facilitates the connection between the wiring accessories and the DB. Once materials are on-site, the system is in-stalled quickly and simply plugs together. In a single visit, both cable and conduit is in-stalled, and the fi nal connection is made by simply pushing two connectors together. No tools; no waste; no mess; no damage,” stress-es Harper.

The reduction in on-site labour inherently reduces the cost of installation. This

is achieved by reducing the number of workers required to install the product, there-fore reducing the amount of supervision, and whilst the obvious benefi t would be the reduction in wages, Harper highlights the ad-ditional cascade benefi ts to the client. “Whilst salaries is a signifi cant saving, do not forget the additional costs of daily travel, housing and welfare of the site workers. Couple this to the rising visa costs and the real shortage of true skilled workers, and the argument against this system becomes very weak. We are all aware that the per-ceived cost of labour in the


TECHNOLOGY

The system is designed to help everyone in the

supply chain from client to consultant to MEP

contractor by simplifying the electrical installation

process.“UAE is very low, but when we consider the actual productivity achieved, we can demon-strate that the actual rate is in line with most other European countries.

“When considering the commercial ben-efi ts, it is very easy to lose sight of the other advantages our solutions provide. Do not underestimate the safety, effi ciency and pro-gramme benefi ts we offer, all of which con-tribute to a better building,” argues Harper.

“This market is historically based on ‘best price’ materials, which causes some confu-sion when proposing a prefabricated solution, as the cost of a pre-engineered, designed and manufactured Apex system cannot easily be compared to traditional conduit and cable costs. The costs only become comparable when you consider a fully-installed system. Communicating such concepts is a new ap-proach within the UAE, but in the downturn contractors are realising the effects and bur-dens and lack of effi ciency that often prevails with over-supply of labour is affecting the out-

• First and second fi x completed in one visit at worst case 15m / hour, allowing succeeding trades quicker access• Pluggable connections between cables, DB and all spur units, AC fan coil’s, sockets, light fi ttings and other fi nal connections means a fully integrated and pluggable system on site• Third fi x visit always takes place after room fi t-out. The wiring solution comprises factory-manufactured accessories, therefore no dirty trades or tools are required in the furniture, soft furnishings, plastering and painting are completed, eliminating the possibility of any damage during this process.• DB termination (third fi x) completed in nor more than 1 hour• General termination (third fi x) is simply pushing two plugs together

LABOUR BENEFITS

turn cost of projects. We must remember that the fundamental design of the electrical lay-out does not change, only the method of in-stallation; therefore the same-size cables are connected to the specifi ed accessories, light fi ttings and distribution boards as detailed in the original design.

“The system is designed to help everyone in the supply chain from client to consultant to MEP contractor by simplifying the electri-cal installation process. The system is not limited to mains-only applications, and can be used for control circuits, allowing the single installation to cater for all client needs.”

Harper adds that the Apex Wiring solution greatly reduces a contractor’s and client’s exposure to risk. “These can be due to vari-ous factors which are generally outside of the MEP contractor’s control, but normally come at a cost to their business. Remember that time is a risk; unproductive labour is a risk; the incorrect use of tools is a risk; an incor-rect installation is a risk; and all of these lead to the biggest risk of all, which is cost. The Apex system reduces, and can indeed elimi-nate, all of these if deployed correctly.

Harper concludes: “Locally we have been demonstrating an average 20% cost-saving overall and installations some 70% quicker than traditional methods. The material costs are greater than that of traditional material, but the overall savings are signifi cant and clear for all to see. It is often not until a cli-ent initiates and completes an installation that they appreciate and accept the scale of the direct and indirect benefi ts that can be realised.”

CONTRACTORS


We look at the major challenges and opportunities, and value and cost drivers.

Contractors face myriad challenges

EP services in the region have experi-enced an incredible growth rate of 19% over the last three years, due to the construction boom and soaring oil pric-es. However, this fi g-ure tumbled to 5.5% between 2008 and

2009 due to the slowdown in the construction industry resulting from the global fi nancial crisis. Despite this, the market is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 11% dur-ing the next fi ve years, according to Frost & Sullivan senior research analyst Vivek Vijaya-kumar. Following the recent sharp decline, growth is expected to pick up again towards the end of 2010, or at the beginning of 2011 at the latest, and then continue its upward trend until at least 2013. This is very good news for the MEP contracting sector in particular.

Indeed, the MEP contracting sector in the UAE seems in an ideal position to take advan-tage of the new growth trend. “The UK is defi -nitely the more challenging business environ-ment at present. It is really down compared to a year ago. In comparison, the sector over

here is far more stable, and there are still op-portunities available.

“Our challenge at present is to take advan-tage of these opportunities, and to formulate an all-encompassing growth strategy to take us forward,” said Drake & Scull International PJSC (DSI) MEP director Charles Lever. Al Habtoor-Specon MD Thrasos Thrasyvoulou concurred: “Personally I believe that, after the initial shock of the downturn in late 2008, the market in general has absorbed this and stabilised.”

STABILISATIONAs an example of this stabilisation, sub-con-tractors are expected to be able to bid for the MEP and related fi nishing works contracts on the long-delayed Dubai Lagoon project within the next four months. Developer Schön Prop-erties said the project will require one or two additional contractors for each set of works, depending on the size of the sub-contractor.

For Zones 2 and 4, there are seven sub-con-tracts outstanding, including the MEP and el-evator contracts, as well as those for fi nishing works such as joinery, paint work, marbling and kitchen fi t-outs. Sensaire has already commenced with the MEP works for Zone 3, which are scheduled for completion in 2011, while the MEP works for Zone 1 have also be-gun, with a view to handing over the fi rst eight residential towers by the end of 2010.

Salah Yatim, project director for Commo-dore Contracting Company, the main contrac-tor for Zones 2 and 4, said: “We will be fi nalis-ing the other packages for Zones 2 and 4 with Schön in the near future. Each package will be awarded according to the overall programme. One or two sub-contractors will be required, depending on the size of the company, and whether or not they can cope with the work across the two zones.”

“We will hopefully be inviting companies to bid for the additional subcontracts for Zones 2, 3 and 4 in the next three to four months, depending on the market conditions,” con-

fi rmed Schön Properties VP Danial Schön. The development, which currently covers 1.9 million square feet and consists of four sepa-rate residential zones, will be handed over to end users in stages, with different contractors working on different zones at different times.

PROBLEMSWhat are some of the problems facing the MEP contracting industry at present? “The market is fragmented and highly competi-

The opportunities are the challenge, says Charles Lever


CONTRACTORS

tive due to the presence of many small- and medium-scale companies at the local level, which have capacities to carry out either one or two of the three types of services by com-peting directly with other contractors, or by sub-contracting with top companies, thereby providing more opportunities for the growth of local players,” said Vijayakumar.

However, increased competition has had an impact on pricing. “I have recently seen a drop in prices. A lot of MEP contractors, in order to sustain themselves, are becoming more com-petitive. I hope they will not go to the extreme of dropping prices to the level where quality is sacrifi ced and projects cannot be executed properly. This is a dangerous thing, in my opinion. Clients must be very cautious in this respect,” warned Thrasyvoulou.

A notable trend of the current MEP con-tracting market is the focus on infrastructure. The slowdown has meant that “the infrastruc-ture now has time to catch up,” said Lever. “The pace of building was so rapid during the boom period that infrastructure tended to lag behind general construction. A lot of un-fi nished projects in Dubai will invariably be

The market has stabilised, says Thrasos Thrasyvoulou

VALUE DRIVERS

Innovation: Increased effi ciency of chillers and variable speed DC motors on pumps and fans.Value engineering: ‘No frills’ standardised products such as air-handling units that can be produced at minimum cost and lead time.Plug-and-play: Structured cabling in cores, Internet protocol security and controls that use the IT network, or intelligent fi re detec-tion systems.BIM: Increased use of BIM in high-value, high-risk areas such as plant rooms and ris-ers is enabling contractors to design systems more effectively, and to take into account the need for installation, maintenance and replacement. The benefi ts in terms of clash detection, automatic component scheduling etc. are increasingly important for specialist contractors.Prefabrication: Plant-room assemblies, riser modules, fan-coil units and valve as-semblies are good opportunities for prefab-rication, whereas many contractors prefer to site-install elements such as pipework, where there are fewer programme and qual-ity benefi ts to be secured, and a greater risk of rework should co-ordination errors occur.Design rationalisation: Specifi cation re-views and rationalisation of containment are two examples from electrical contract-ing where savings can be secured. Similarly, moving from a unique specifi cation to a performance specifi cation on some lighting components may give greater fl exibility.Globalisation: An increasing range of stand-ard-compliant products can be sourced low-cost in China and the Far East.

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scaled back so they can be completed in the context of the current market conditions.”

Simon Rawlinson and Andy Dedman, writ-ing on building.co.uk, agree that this is a trend of the broader global MEP contracting sector. “High levels of investment in public sector facilities, which emphasise low running costs and occupier productivity and comfort, have generated a healthy workload for MEP

contractors. Increasingly stringent building regulations require holistic solutions that, in turn, require greater integration between the design and installation of the building enve-lope and the building services.

SPECIALIST“Similarly, specialist building types such as data centres and hi-tech factories require huge power and cooling capacities, as well as extremely high levels of resilience and stand-by capacity. On both hi- and low-tech projects, the opportunity to reduce energy demand and carbon emissions by smart design and in-stallation is substantial, demonstrating once again the pivotal role of the M&E specialist in reducing carbon.”

Rawlinson and Dedman also point out that “building services contracting differs from

CONTRACTORS


ALEC MEPBased in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, ALEC is a high-level contractor with a US$1 billion a year turnover. It established its MEP business unit in 2006, focusing on turnkey MEP solutions, full maintenance and call-out FM, and energy-optimisation strategies, including energy audits on existing buildings.www.alec.ae

ARABIAN CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING COMPANY (ACEC)Located in Doha, Qatar, ACEC is a conglomer-ate established in 1967. It is ISO 9001-2000 certifi ed, offering a complete range of electrical and instrumentation systems and control and automation systems, representing well-known manufacturers in Europe and the Middle East. www.acecgroup.com

DANWAYEntered the fi eld of generator hire and service in 1976, growing from 25 employees to 1 200 at present. Comprises MEP, contracting, industrial and retail systems and interiors and joinery.www.danwayllc.com

DRAKE & SCULL INTERNATIONAL PJSCA regional market leader delivering world-class, integrated engineering through design-and-build MEP, civil contracting and water, power and infrastructure engineering. Established in Abu Dhabi in 1966 and in Dubai soon thereafter, it has since expanded as far as South East Asia.www.drakescull.com

ETA M&E DIVISIONThe MEP division of the ETA-ASCON Star Group. Offers design, supply and installation services in air-con, electrical, sanitary, plumbing, fi re protection, ELV and BMS systems.www.etamne.com

THERMO LLCEstablished in 1976, focusing on multi-services co-ordination and a combined team approach, it offers conceptual design and development all the way through to procurement, installation, testing and operation and maintenance.www.thermo.ae

MAJOR MEP CONTRACTORS

most other trades in terms of the role of di-rect labour, the importance of the work un-dertaken by sub-subcontractors, the extent of co-ordination required between trades, and the extent of design work that can be shared between consultants and specialists.

“In other trades, there can be a greater de-gree of fragmentation in the delivery of work on-site. Ductwork and ductwork insulation, for example, are often carried out by different trade contractors. Similarly, water and air sys-tems can be installed by different specialists. Furthermore, specialist trades related to dis-crete systems such as sprinklers, fi re alarms and lightning protection need to be brought into the supply chain. Other elements of the supply chain are component manufacturers, as well as specialist consultants such as test-ing and commissioning engineers.

“Depending on the procurement route adopted, an integrated services contractor may be asked to deliver a one-stop service that could include some or all of the services design, as well as the co-ordination and man-agement of the works on-site. At the other extreme, some main contractors have cho-sen to split up the MEP works into trade and system packages so as to minimise layers of

VOLTASFounded in India in 1954, it offers engineer-ing solutions in HVAC, refrigeration, electro-mechanical, water management and treatment, BMS and indoor air quality.www.voltas.com

EMIRATES ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING (AL ROSTAMANI)The Al Rostamani Group, founded in 1957, has a diversifi ed portfolio including construction, building materials, infrastructure development, telecoms and recycling.www.alrostamani.com

AL HABTOOR-SPECONEstablished in Dubai in 1970, Al Habtoor Engineering is one of the largest construction companies in the Middle East, with 35 000 employees. Al Habtoor-Specon focuses on MEP.www.habtoor.com

ROTARY-HUMM M&E SERVICESThe Rotary Group is a member of the Hastie Group, a leading MEP services provider in Aus-tralia, New Zealand and the Middle East.www.hastiegroup.com.au

MAC AIR LLCA multi-disciplinary company established in 1998, offering total building MEP and FM.www.macairllc.com

SENSAIRE SERVICES LLCEstablished in the UAE in 1983 as an air-con installation and maintenance contracting company, it has transformed into a true building services engineering contractor.www.sensaire.ae

Sub-contractors are becoming increasingly important


CONTRACTORS

COST DRIVERS

Cost penalties: There are some systems, such as ventilation, where some cost penal-ties are incurred due to the need to reduce fan speeds to save energy which, in turn, requires larger ducts and air-handling units. Sourcing of low-cost sheet metal for duct-work and simplifi ed air-handling plant has helped to mitigate these costs.Commodity prices: The movement of cash into commodities in search of better returns and as a hedge against dollar depreciation has pushed up copper prices by more than 20%. Most MEP products have a high degree of value-add, so a big jump in commodity prices should not result in a corresponding rise in factory gate prices. However, steel and copper pipework and large-diameter cables contain a higher proportion of metal and will be affected more.Preliminaries and margins: Building serv-ices contractors have higher overall margins than main contractors, refl ecting the costs of running design teams and the high level of co-ordination and supervision required on a typical project, and the need to invest in fi xed assets such as prefabrication facilities and BIM libraries.

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overhead and management, and to maximise commercial leverage.

“Another aspect of services design and pro-curement that differs from architectural and structural trades is the scope for ambiguity around responsibility for design, design re-view and co-ordination. Delegation of design responsibility from the consultant is com-monplace throughout the industry, either through full design-and-build procurement or contractor-designed work packages.

POTENTIAL“In the current marketplace, any inconsist-ency in contractual documentation has the potential to be used as the basis of a claim. As a result, the specifi c range of consultant duties on a project should be stated in tender and contractual documentation,” Rawlinson and Dedman stress.

“Testing and commissioning is another critical element of the installation process, but one that is not always given the priority it deserves. Initiatives such as BSRIA’s Soft Landings programme involve the consultant and contractor team being engaged to work with the building user during design, pre-handover and during the fi rst three years of

operation to support operative training, per-formance optimisation and capture of user feedback.”

Apart from such issues relating to the in-ternal set-up of the MEP contracting market, the sector in the UAE, for example, also faces specifi c geographical challenges. “Dubai, due to the previous unsustainable boom and the sudden global downturn that soon followed, has suffered more than other areas in the Gulf in terms of growth, fewer new projects, and a slowdown in existing projects, espe-cially hotels and residential/commercial de-velopments,” said Thrasyvoulou.

This has lead to many MEP contractors looking further afi eld for work, to Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and even as far afi eld as Syria and even South-East Asia, in the case of DSI. “For us, the region has a lot of opportu-nity, so we are looking at expanding across the entire region,” said Lever.

VALUEHastie Group Limited, for example, has just clinched four projects in Qatar with a total value of A$66 million. “These projects dem-onstrate the value our Middle East customers place on our ability to provide an integrated

range of MEP services from a single source,” said Hastie Group MD David Harris.

Hastie has been appointed by Leighton Contracting Qatar to provide MEP services, including fi re and CCTV, infrastructure con-trol systems (SCADA) and instrumentation and chlorination work for an A$233 million water infrastructure project that includes nine reservoirs. It will link two Qatari communi-ties. Hastie began work on the project in June, with completion expected in 15 months.

Ironically, while many of the major local MEP contractors are looking increasingly be-yond Dubai and even the UAE, other global players are turning to the UAE for growth. Voltas of India saw its MEP revenue shoot up by 13% for the year ended 31 March 2010, mainly due to its international order book, which includes several high-profi le projects in the UAE. This includes a recent AED6.25 billion, 26-month contract for the T2 and T3 towers in Abu Dhabi’s Central Market project, awarded to Voltas by main contractor Arabian Construction Company LLC, on behalf of cli-ent Aldar Properties PJSC. The scope of work includes supply, installation, testing and com-missioning of the complete MEP systems for the two towers.

Testing and commissioning is another critical element of the installation process

SITE VISIT


he AED85 million MEP works contract for general contractor Al Ahmadiah Ak-

tor is being undertaken by Drake & Scull International PJSC (DSI). The project manager is DG Jones & Partners, while the design was by RMJM, an architectural fi rm that specialises in school design.

The design of the new ASD campus has incorporated the latest sustain-able trends, with wind patterns and orienta-tion being considered carefully in terms of the direction and placement of structures. In order to conserve energy, the buildings have been designed so that windows are not in direct sunlight, while special shadings have been designed.

DSI Manager of Projects Ahmed Shaker

MEP Middle East visits the site of the new campus of the American School of Dubai (ASD) in Al Barsha to update progress on this fast-track project.

Back to school

(Left to right) Mushtaq Patel, assistant safety officer; Pradeep Panakkada, senior HSE project in charge: MEP, Dubai operations; Ahmad Shaker, manager of projects; Rami Farouq, electrical engineer; Yousef A.H. Syed Ahmed, electrical project engineer; Mr. Karam, mechanical engineer (under training); Zahir Akram Hamad, mechanical project engineer; Yagoob Ali Al Manzeer, mechanical engineer; and Mohammad Khatibur Rahman, project manager

explains that DSI’s works are progressing very well as per the MEP works schedule. The anticipated opening date of the new ASD campus is 14 September to coincide with the new academic year.

“The main challenges have been the timeframe and complexity of design,” says Shaker. “Schools and hospitals, for example, cannot be compared to commercial projects like apartment buildings. They are far more

complex structures that require careful inte-gration of multiple requirements.”

DSI is not unfamiliar with the rigours and exigencies of educational facilities, with Za-yed University in Dubai and KAUST in Saudi Arabia already under its belt as top-notch achievements in this specialised fi eld.

ASD superintendent Dr. Harold Fleetham says that, while there are 973 students at ASD’s existing campus, the new campus has been designed to cater for 1 600 students, with enrolment taking place in stages.

The fi rst year will see approximately 1 400 students enrolled, with the balance to be in-troduced later. The new campus is divided into two separate schools, namely elemen-tary (comprising kindergarten to Grade 5) and secondary (comprising middle school and high school).

Air-handling units87


SITE VISIT

A major challenge on the project has been overall co-ordination of the MEP works

Schools and hospitals are far more complex and

require careful integration of multiple requirements. “

Ahmed Shaker

Described as an ‘integrated, world-class facility’, it will feature an auditorium, black-box theatre, fi eld house, running track, regu-lation soccer fi eld, other large playing fi elds, separate elementary and secondary gyms, two swimming pools, elementary play areas, secondary school and elementary school li-braries, two cafeterias, music rooms, meet-ing spaces, a wireless school environment and landscaped garden areas.

In addition, DSI was also responsible for the total security system, which has been designed to the highest international standards. This posed its own challenges to achieve within the larger civils framework, says Shaker.

DSI’s involvement focused on fi ve sectors. Sector A is the plant room and chiller yard, Sector B is the admin building and theatre, while Sectors C to E comprise classrooms, laboratory facilities and playground areas. There are 11 rooftop Daikin-McQuay chill-ers, and 86 AHUs in total.

“At the end of the day we have opted for AHUs and a variable air volume (VAV) system as opposed to fan-coil units, as the former is far more fl exible, as well as provid-ing better environmental control.” The ex-tensive cabling needed for the chillers was completed in a record two weeks, right down to fi xing of the cable trays.

There are twelve primary chilled water pumps and eight secondary pumps. The air-con system is ducted, with preinsulation in-ternally and GI sheeting externally. The total electrical load is 10MW, with two substations and nine transformers in total, says Shaker.

“A big challenge was that we passed the DEWA inspection with fl ying colours, and we received high praise for our high level of completion in terms of the substations. From the air-con point of view, we fl ushed ‘wild air’ through the system by the end of July, and delivered chilled water soon there-after,” says Shaker.

“We proud ourselves on our professional-ism, attention to detail and quality and our speed of delivery – all attributes that have stood us to good stead on this fl agship project,” concludes Shaker.

Shaker says the project site is 92 903 square metres, which equates to a million square feet. The total gross internal fl oor area is 58 622 square metres. In comparison, the existing campus is 31 424 square me-

tres. Designed to withstand the inclement UAE weather, the new ASD campus is also expected to set a benchmark for educational facilities in the region in terms of quality, aesthetics and technology.

Consultant: EHAF Consulting & EngineersMain contractor: SEG QatarMEP contractor: Drake & ScullValue: US$200mStatus: Under constructionType: Commercial buildings

SAMIRIYA TOWERSClient: Mr. Ali Mohammed Al-KhayareenConsultant: MZ & PartnersMain contractor: Gulf East Trading & ContractingMEP contractor: Orbit Al KhaleejValue: US$124mStatus: Under constructionType: Commercial buildings

NDIA-PASSENGER TERMINAL COMPLEXClient: NDIA Steering CommitteeConsultant: Bechtel/HOKMain contractor: Sky Oryx JV/Taisei Corporation and TAVMEP consultant: Anel & EkinValue: US$807mStatus: Under constructionType: Passenger terminal

RESIDENTIAL TOWER IN VIVA BAHRIYA - VB 02Client: Sheikh Mohammed Bin Hamad Al Thani/UDCConsultant: MeinhardtMain contractor: SEG QatarMEP contractor: In-houseValue: US$31-100mStatus: Under constructionType: Residential

SIDRA MEDICAL & RESEARCH CENTREClient: Qatar Foundation (QFESCD)Consultant: OHL/Contrack InternationalMEP contractor: Qatar Kentz/VoltasValue: US$2.4bnStatus: Under constructionType: Hospital

LIBRARY FOR QATAR UNIVERSITYClient: Qatar UniversityConsultant: Arab Architects GroupMain contractor: Tadmur Contracting & Trdg Est.MEP contractor: In-houseValue: US$69mStatus: Under constructionType: Educational facilities

PALM TOWERSClient: Dar Investment & Development Co.Consultant: MZ & PartnersMain contractor: Al Seal ContractingMEP consultant: In-houseValue: US$218mStatus: Under constructionType: Mixed-use

BUSINESS PARK & HOTEL FACILITIES IN NAJMAClient: Sheikh Mohammed Bin Hamad Al ThaniConsultant: Arab Engineering BureauMain contractor: Redco ConstructionMEP contractor: Qatar Electro Mechanical GroupValue: US$101-250mStatus: Under constructionType: Mixed-use

SHMOUKH TWIN TOWERS IN C-RING ROADClient: Real Estate Services Group

AL JASSIMYA TOWERClient: Sheikh Jassim Bin KhalifaConsultant: EGECMain contractor: Commodore Qatar ConstructionMEP contractor: In-houseValue: US$100mStatus: Under constructionType: commercial buildings

AL-WAKRA HOSPITALClient: Public Works AuthorityConsultant: GHD GlobalMain contractor: Joannou & Paraskevaides OverseasMEP contractor: ConspelValue: US$508mStatus: Under constructionType: Hospital

NEW ARRIVAL TERMINAL AT DIA - PACKAGE 2Client: Qatar AirwaysConsultant: GHD GlobalMain contractor: Arabian McNamara ContractingMEP contractor: Arabian AirconditioningValue: US$30mStaus: Under constructionType: Airport

AL MAJID RESIDENTIAL TOWERClient: Ahmad Mahdi Ali Al MajidConsultant: Arab Engineering BureauMain contractor: Al Seal ContractingMEP contractor: In-houseValue: US$57mStatus: Under constructionType: Residential

REGION IN FOCUS


We take a closer look at some of the major MEP projects underway in Qatar, courtesy of Ventures Middle East.

Top MEP projects in Qatar

Al Wakra Hospital

Sidra Medical & Research Centre

Samiriya Towers


BUSINESS LEADS

For the latest Middle East MEP project information, visit

PROJECTS IN QATARMEP Middle East and Ventures Middle East have teamed up to provide you with essential project information.

Client: Ezdan Real Estate/QGIRC/Al Sari TradingConsultant: M.Z. & PartnersMain contractor: Not appointedMEP contractor: Not appointedValue: US$751–1 000 millionStatus: Under designType: Mixed-useContact: www.ezdanqatar.com

ASIA TOWERS

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Ezdan Real Estate Company, big-gest property developer in Qatar by market value, has joined with Qatar General Insurance & Reinsurance Company and Al Sarri Trading

a built-up area of 560 000 square metres. The project also includes commercial and entertainment fa-cilities and hotel apartments.

The project will serve as a launch pad for future Ezdan developments. The retail market in Qatar is set to more than double by mid-2011, with several new shopping centres under construction. Real estate brokerage fi rm Engel & Volkers reported in April that Qatar would see an addition of 400 000 square metres of retail space coming to the market by mid-2011.

Project Title Client Consultant Main Contractor

MEPContractor

Value(US$. Mn)

ProjectStatus

Type ofProject

New Qatar National Museum Qatar Museum Authority / QP Jean Nouvel Not Appointed Not Appointed 31 - 100 project under design Recreational Facilities

Mixed Use Development in Marina District

Diyar Al Kuwait KEO International Not Appointed Not Appointed 800 project under design Mixed Use

Mesaieed Housing Develop-ment - Phase 2

QP/Qatar Real Estate Investment Co;

Arab Engineering Bureau Not Appointed Not Appointed 2,000 project under design Residential Development

Al Emadi Twin Towers Mr. Mohammed Esmail Al Emadi

Arab Consulting Engineers

Not Appointed Not Appointed 101 - 250 project under design Commercial Buildings

Residential Building in Fox Hills

Buzwair Real Estate/QDREIC Faim Design Not Appointed Not Appointed 2.5 - 15 project under design Residential Buildings

Apartment Building at Al Sadd Mr. Nasser Abdul Aziz Nasser Al Nasser

Consulting Engineering Group

Not Appointed Not Appointed 16 - 30 award awaited for the main contract

Residential Buildings

Manarat Lusail Mr. Mohamed Abdel Ghani Al Mansouri

Architectural Consulting Group

Not Appointed Not Appointed 31 - 100 project under design Commercial Buildings

Offi ce/Residential Building at Najma

Mr. Abdul Jaleel Abdul Ghani Nasser


Al Bandary Contracting

Not Appointed 31 - 100 project under construction

Mixed Use

Hotel & Offi ce Buildings at Al Rayyan Road

Mr. Abdul Rahman Al Muftah South West Architecture Al Muftah Contracting

Not Appointed 40 project under construction

Mixed Use

Al Dar Hotel Mr. Mohammed Al Majed Al Jazeera Engineering / EGEC

Not Appointed Not Appointed 16 - 30 project under design Hotel

Asia Towers Ezdan Real Estate/QGIRC/Al Sari Trading

M.Z. & Partners Not Appointed Not Appointed 751 - 1,000 project under design Mixed Use

Seven Mosques at Various Locations - Package 3

Public Works Authority Lusail Engineering Consultant

Not Appointed Not Appointed 2.5 - 15 project under design Others

The Regent Doha Ghanem Al Thani Holding KEO International Ramco Trading & Contracting

Not Appointed 101 - 250 project under construction

Hotel

Al Meera Mall at Rayyan Al Meera Consumer Goods Company

United Consultant Not Appointed Not Appointed 16 - 30 project under design Shopping Centre

Corporate Building for Energy City Qatar

Energy City Qatar ABS Not Appointed Not Appointed 101 - 250 award awaited for the main contract

Commercial Buildings

4 Offi ce Towers in Marina District of Lusail

Salam International/QDREIC M.Z. & Partners Not Appointed Not Appointed 275 project under design Commercial Buildings

Shopping Mall in Abu Nakhla area

Al Meera Consumer Goods Company


Noors Engineering Company

Not Appointed 12 project under construction

Shopping Centre

Entertainment District - Precinct A & B

ADIH/Majid Al Futtaim/QDREIC RTKL/Forrec Not Appointed Not Appointed 1,500 project under design Mixed Use

Community College in Dukhan Qatar Petroleum Technital Qatar Not Appointed Not Appointed 16 - 30 project under design Educational Facilities

Note : The above information is the sole property of Ventures Middle East LLC and cannot be published without the expressed permission of Ventures Middle East LLC, Abu Dhabi, UAE

comprises four residential towers spread across 30 000 square metres in Doha’s West Bay area. Each of the four towers will be 55 storeys, and include 1 600 residential units, with

Doha skyline in Qatar

Company to develop the QR2.5 bil-lion Asia Towers project — one of the largest real-estate projects in Qatar, expected to be completed in three years. The development

LEGAL


Dennis Brand, Traprain Consultants, looks at how ‘design-build’ differs from traditional ‘design-bid-build contracts.

erhaps the best way of describing ‘design-build’ is to describe what it is not. The traditional ‘design-bid-build’ method of construction is a sequential process in which the owner or developer fi rst contracts with a design professional to pre-

pare a concept or basic design, then a detailed design for construction. This includes specifi -cations to solicit competitive bids for construc-tion, and fi nally the award of a construction contract to the lowest bidder.

In ‘design-build’, one entity performs both design and construction under a single con-tract. Often the ‘design-build’ contract is award-ed by some process other than competitive bid-ding; thus ‘design-build’ differs from traditional ‘design-bid-build’ in two ways. First, the design and construction components are packaged into a single contract and, second, the single contract is not necessarily awarded to the low-est bidder after competitive bidding.

POTENTIALWhy ‘design-build’? ‘Design-build’ has the po-tential to reduce overall project costs because the ‘design-build’ contractor performing the design has a better feel and appreciation for the construction costs of the various alterna-tives, and can therefore produce a design that is less expensive to build and has an incentive to do so. Another way to look at this advantage is that it moves value engineering from after contract award, with the contractor proposing cost-reduction ideas and sharing the savings with the owner, to pre-award (with the owner enjoying most of the cost-savings).

‘Design-build’ may result in earlier comple-tion and occupancy of the project because there is no downtime between completion of design and start of construction. Furthermore, the ‘design-build’ contractor can begin con-struction of early phases of the project – for example, grading foundations, etc. – before design of later phases (building envelope, inte-rior partitions, electrics, etc.) is complete. This

process is sometimes referred to as ‘fast-track’. It eliminates the traditional liability gap which one fi nds with the design being produced by the design professional under his contract and the contractor constructing the design under his construction contract. Design profession-als can obtain insurance coverage only for pro-fessional liability insurance, which covers neg-ligence, error and omissions, and virtually all design contracts limit the designer’s liability to this. However, there can be non-negligent er-rors and omissions on the part of the designer which cost the owner money, but for which the designer is not liable. An example of this is where the designer undertakes reasonable subsurface investigations, but fails to detect a rocky outcrop that will require additional work on the part of the construction contractor.

In the traditional ‘design-bid-build’ ap-proach, the owner warrants the correctness of the plans and specifi cations to the construc-tion contractor. In the event of an error where the construction contractor incurs additional costs, that cost is met by the owner with little prospect of recovery from the designer. ‘De-sign-build’ eliminates this gap because the de-signer-builder has no one but himself to blame for defective plans, specifi cations or differing site conditions.

Where the designer designs the project around current-generation products, any pro-posed substitution of new or alternative prod-ucts after bidding can require revisions to the structure and/or mechanical or electrical com-ponents to accommodate the new product. In such an event, the question arises as to who is going to pay for the resulting charges? ‘Design-build’ solves this problem; the ‘design-build’ entity selects the equipment and then designs the building around the selected equipment, which seems a more logical way to proceed.

The traditional ‘design-bid-build’ method of contracting can suffer from under-optimisation when individual project participants seek to optimise their own positions – for example, the total cost to the owner of the steel frame of a

building includes the cost of the engineering to determine the required steel sections plus the cost of the steel. The designer has little incentive to achieve the minimum amount of structural steel, his concern being to spend only suffi cient design time necessary to en-sure there is enough steel to meet both gravity and seismic loads.

INCENTIVEWith ‘design-build’, the entity has an incentive to use the optimum amount of engineering in order to achieve the optimum amount of steel required for the structure. This is not to say that the ‘design-build’ results in unsafe struc-tures; rather, it reduces unnecessary quantities of steel and concrete, etc. which do not neces-sarily add to the robustness of the structure.

‘Design-build’ may reduce the administra-tive burden on the owner because there is one award and one contract to administer. The total cost of the project becomes apparent earlier with ‘design-build’. In traditional ‘design-bid-build’ construction, costs are not known until bid opening, and it is possible to spend money on a design that the owner may not be able to build. Frequently construction bids exceed the project budget, which results in the project having to be redesigned to bring it to within budget, thus delaying completion.

What is the risk? Under the traditional ‘de-sign-bid-build’ contract arrangement, the own-er has full control over the details of the plans and specifi cations, and does not publish them for bids until it is satisfi ed that they refl ect the owner’s requirements. With ‘design-build’ the owner gives up some of this control.

Moreover, the owner must confi rm its re-quirements much earlier. With traditional ‘design-bid-build’, if the owner is at all indeci-sive as to its requirements, it can clarify them during the design phase after it sees where the designer is heading. With ‘design-build’, such changes can be very expensive and disruptive, impacting on both costs and completion. [email protected]

CONTRACTSDesign-build

P


METAL MONITOR

Settlement ConversionCopper Cash Seller & Settlement: £4,669.96 Exchange Rates Copper 3-months Seller: £4,694.89 Stg/$ 1.4641 Lead Cash Seller & Settlement: £1,284.81 $/JY 92.06 Lead 3-months Seller: £1,306.98 Euro 1.2546

THE FOLLOWING STERLING EQUIVALENTS HAVE BEEN CALCULATED, ON THE BASIS OF DAILY CONVERSIONS:

MAY 2010THE LONDON METAL EXCHANGE LIMITED AVERAGE OFFICIAL AND SETTLEMENT PRICES US$/TONNE

PrimaryAluminium(dollars)

AluminiumAlloy(dollars)

Copper

(dollars)

Lead

(dollars)

Nickel

(dollars)

NASAAC

(dollars)

Cash Buyer 2,039.76 1,909.00 6,836.71 1,881.68 21,995.26 1,962.58Cash Seller & Settlement 2,040.53 1,916.00 6,837.68 1,882.68 22,008.16 1,974.21

Cash Mean 2,040.14 1,912.50 6,837.20 1,882.18 22,001.71 1,968.39

3-months Buyer 2,068.87 1,930.79 6,872.05 1,912.61 22,063.16 1,981.84

3-months Seller 2,069.71 1,942.63 6,874.08 1,915.05 22,089.21 1,994.47

3-months Mean 2,069.29 1,936.71 6,873.07 1,913.83 22,076.18 1,988.16

15-months Buyer 2,168.37 1,996.32 6,901.58 1,952.95 21,713.16 2,080.79

15-months Seller 2,173.37 2,006.32 6,911.58 1,957.95 21,813.16 2,090.79

15-months Mean 2,170.87 2,001.32 6,906.58 1,955.45 21,763.16 2,085.79

27-months Buyer 2,244.05 2,056.32 6,781.32 1,929.05 20,653.95 2,153.16

27-months Seller 2,249.05 2,066.32 6,791.32 1,934.05 20,753.95 2,163.16

27-months Mean 2,246.55 2,061.32 6,786.32 1,931.55 20,703.95 2,158.16

Neither the LME nor any of its directors, officers or employees shall, except in the case of fraud or wilful neglect, be under any liability whatsoever either in contract or in tort in respect of any act or omission (including negligence) in

relation to the preparation or publication of the data contained in the report.

Settlement ConversionCopper Cash Seller & Settlement: £4,405.59 Exchange Rates Copper 3-months Seller: £4,425.98 Stg/$ 1.4752 Lead Cash Seller & Settlement: £1,154.81 $/JY 90.94 Lead 3-months Seller: £1,171.70 Euro 1.2210

THE FOLLOWING STERLING EQUIVALENTS HAVE BEEN CALCULATED, ON THE BASIS OF DAILY CONVERSIONS:

JUNE 2010THE LONDON METAL EXCHANGE LIMITED AVERAGE OFFICIAL AND SETTLEMENT PRICES US$/TONNE

PrimaryAluminium(dollars)

AluminiumAlloy(dollars)

Copper

(dollars)

Lead

(dollars)

Nickel

(dollars)

Tin

(dollars)

NASAAC

(dollars)

Cash Buyer 1,930.66 1,836.86 6,498.02 1,702.82 19,377.73 17,303.86 1,871.45Cash Seller & Settlement 1,931.39 1,842.70 6,499.30 1,703.95 19,388.64 17,319.77 1,879.36

Cash Mean 1,931.02 1,839.78 6,498.66 1,703.39 19,383.18 17,311.82 1,875.41

3-months Buyer 1,960.05 1,843.59 6,528.16 1,727.23 19,440.68 17,332.27 1,894.59

3-months Seller 1,960.95 1,853.18 6,530.00 1,729.05 19,464.09 17,360.68 1,903.50

3-months Mean 1,960.50 1,848.39 6,529.08 1,728.14 19,452.39 17,346.48 1,899.05

15-months Buyer 2,060.91 1,898.18 6,569.77 1,765.36 19,256.59 17,454.32 1,984.09

15-months Seller 2,065.91 1,908.18 6,579.77 1,770.36 19,356.59 17,504.32 1,994.09

15-months Mean 2,063.41 1,903.18 6,574.77 1,767.86 19,306.59 17,479.32 1,989.09

27-months Buyer 2,136.00 1,954.77 6,445.45 1,746.45 18,335.00 - 2,056.14

27-months Seller 2,141.00 1,964.77 6,455.45 1,751.45 18,435.00 - 2,066.14

27-months Mean 2,138.50 1,959.77 6,450.45 1,748.95 18,385.00 - 2,061.14

LME AVERAGE SETTLEMENT PRICES IN EURO

Metal Euro Settlement Conversion Rate

Primary Aluminium 1581.73

Aluminium Alloy 1509.07

Copper 5322.44

Lead 1395.20

Nickel 15876.90

Nasaac 1539.21

$6724Copper 3-months seller

NON-FERROUS METAL PRICES

LME AVERAGE SETTLEMENT PRICES IN EURO

Metal Euro Settlement Conversion Rate

Primary Aluminium 1626.41

Aluminium Alloy 1527.17

Copper 5450.33

Lead 1499.45

Nickel 17535.89

Tin 14005.79

SHG Zinc 1568.08

Nasaac 1573.47

$6771Copper 3-months seller

The London Metal Exchange (LME) is the world’s premier non-ferrous metals market. The LME offers futures and options contracts for aluminium, copper, lead, nickel and NASAAC, among others. Many of these materials are indispensable in the MEP sector. The latest historical data from the LME is presented to give readers insight into this dynamic trading market. For further information visit www.lme.co.uk.

PRODUCTS


ABB, a leading power and automation group, has offi cially launched a new line of energy-effi cient variable speed drives, called ACS 2000, designed to offer regional industrial customers energy-savings, reduced maintenance costs and fl exible operation.

ABB’s new drive is an air-cooled, general-purpose AC drive designed for high reliability, easy installation and fast commissioning. It is a perfect solution targeted at fan, pump and compressor applications, in cement, water, power generation and oil and gas industries.

The drive is rated from 400 to 1 000 kVA in voltages up to 6.9 kV, and is ideal for applications

ENERGY-SAVING DRIVES

ABB’s new ACS2000 air-cooled, general purpose AC drive reduces total cost of ownership

to its compact size and lighter weight compared to a drive requiring a transformer, it also results in lower transportation costs and requires less space in the electrical room.

At the launch event held recently in the UAE, ABB local business unit manager for drives and motors in the Gulf, Aki Maenpaa, said: “With the introduction of the ACS 2000 drive, we will be able to bring signifi cant energy savings to industrial customers across the Middle East and Africa region. Moreover, customers will also be able to benefi t from a lower total cost of ownership thanks to the drive’s easy installation, maintenance and low energy consumption.”

The direct-to-line technology results in quick and easy installation and commissioning as there is no transformer involved. Installing a medium voltage AC drive is easier through ABB’s ‘three in, three out’ cabling concept. Simply disconnect the direct-on-line cable; connect the drive; and connect the drive to the motor. Furthermore, the design of the ACS 2000 features withdrawable modules, which allows for easy front access to all drive components.

ABB is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 117 000 people.www.abb.com

FEATURESType of converter: VSI (voltage source invert-er)Typical applications: Pumps, fans, convey-ors, extruders, mixers, compressors, grinding mills, suitable for retrofi t of existing motorsConverter cooling: Air (A)Power range: 315 to 800 kW (A)Input section: High-voltage IGBTs: active front end (AFE) for operation with two-winding transformer or direct-to-line connectionOutput selection: High-voltage IGBTs: Five-level VSI, Nine-level output waveformOutput voltage: 6.0 to 6.9 kVMaximum output frequency: 75 HzField weakening: >15 Hz (maximum 1:5)Special features and benefi ts: Available for direct-to-line connection or for connection to a separate input isolation transformer; constant network power factor over whole speed range; reactive power compensation; direct torque control (DTC); fuselessExamples of options: Redundant cooling fan; extended I/Os for supervision functions; various fi eldbus interfacesType of motor: Induction motor

that do not require an engineered drive. The ACS 2000 is packed with innovative technology, and offers a host of benefi ts such as fl exible line-supply connections, lower harmonics and reduced energy consumption, plus easy installation and commissioning.

Depending on the customer’s preference or existing installation, the drive can be used with an input isolation transformer, or it can be connected directly to the line supply (direct-to-line). Moreover, the ACS 2000 direct-to-line has the advantage that the drive can be operated without a transformer, which can account for up to 40% of the total costs of a drive system. Due

THE LAST WORD


Leminar Air Conditioning has clinched an exclusive distribution agreement with RWI Industries. We speak to RWI GM Fareed Majeed and Leminar GM Pramodh Idicheria.

partnership is aimed at further entrenching RWI’s position as the leading provider of closed-cell rub-ber insulation in the UAE, given that it accounts for 56% of the Mid-dle East rubber insulation market share, supplying the majority of the region’s requirements for rubber insulation pipes, sheets and other rubber-derived products. With the solid foundation and strong back-ing of Leminar in terms of a distri-bution network in the UAE, RWI has full confi dence that its new partner will be able to hit their sales target for Gulf-O-Flex this year. On the other hand, the new distributor plans to capitalise on its association with an established player in the UAE rubber insulation market and a trusted partner of many construc-tion companies in building world-class developments.

Is green building/energy efficiency playing a significant role in the in-creased demand?

The growing demand of the envi-ronmental market, which is made up of alternative energy, energy effi ciency, water and wastewater treatment, solid waste manage-ment and green building tech-nologies, is driving construction majors to adopt measures that are in line with green building codes and sustainability efforts. Amidst this growing trend, RWI is promot-ing the importance of sustainable design through its range of eco-friendly rubber insulation prod-ucts.

Could you give some more detail on RWI’s factory expansion plans?Spurred by the growing demand for RWI products across the region’s most important industries, RWI has adopted a strategy to maintain continuous growth and expansion. The latest of these efforts involved an AED30 million investment to triple its production to 3 600 con-tainers per year by 2013.

RWI GM Fareed Majeed and Leminar GM Pramodh Idicheria

What is driving rubber demand in the region? Contractors today are focusing more on minimising the costs of their projects, leading them to iden-tify the capacity of high-quality rub-ber insulation to save time, as well as labour and maintenance costs, in the long term. This trend is also indicative of the market’s continued movement towards maturity.

Can this be taken as a sign that growth has resumed following the downturn?Even at the height of the fi nancial crisis, we were able to maintain stable production outputs and reach our annual targets, and this is be-cause of the steady demand for our products from our global clientele.

What are the particular HVAC applica-tions for Gulf-O-Flex?Gulf-O-Flex is a versatile range of rubber insulation products which can be used for pipe and duct in-sulation, and hot water and chilled water applications to meet the re-quirements in the oil and gas fi elds,

construction, shipping and automo-tive industries.

What are Leminar’s plans for increas-ing product uptake?Leminar plans to leverage the mar-ket standing of Gulf-O-Flex as a leading and well-accepted brand in the GCC region as the primary selling point, which will help the company secure AED30 million in annual sales in the UAE. The new distributor is also planning to fur-ther strengthen the brand’s position by providing customers with excel-lent service that matches the unpar-alleled quality of the product. Lemi-nar is eyeing Abu Dhabi and Qatar, as both are currently the most ac-tive construction markets, and therefore pose the biggest growth opportunity for our products.

The distribution agreement stands to raise the profile of both companies in the region?Under the terms of the agreement, Leminar will represent the Gulf-O-Flex brand for HVAC applica-tions exclusively in the UAE. The

AED30Minvestment to triple production at RWI

GROWTHFlexible

Leminar is eyeing Abu Dhabi and Qatar, currently the most active construction markets, thereby posing the biggest growth opportunity.“Pramodh Idicheria

WINSTA® – Die bessere Alternative

für die perfekte Gebäudeinstallation

www.wago.com

WAGO Middle East (FZC)SAIF Zone, Q4-282P.O. Box 120 665, Sharjah, UAEPhone: +971 6 5579920 Fax: +971 6 5579921

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So, get to really know WAGO… Since 1951, WAGO’s innovative interconnect and automation solutions have served industries including: building installation, transportation, mechanical engineering, power plants, as well as chemical and process industries.

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Printed Circuit Board Terminal Blocks

mep middle east - august 2010

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