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FM GIANTS THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO THE REGION'S CONSTRUCTION PROFESSIONALS JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | CBNME.COM FM INNOVATORS LEADING FACILITIES MANAGEMENT COMPANIES DISCUSS VARIOUS TOPICS AND ISSUES AFFECTING THE INDUSTRY, SUCH AS CONTRACTUAL GAPS, WORKER WELLBEING, WORKING CLOSELY WITH REAL ESTATE DEVELOPERS, BREAKING INTO THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, AND SO MUCH MORE.
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CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 3 FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS 12 OP-ED OPEN-SOURCE TECHNOLOGY FOR INFRASTRUCTURE DIGITAL TWINS A digital twin is a realistic and dynamic digital representation of a physical asset, process, or system in the built or natural environment 16 TALKING POINT THE NEED FOR TRANSFORMATION It’s time for Hotel Industry to adopt Facilities Management to address their needed transformation 18 IN CONVERSATION CASA MILANO TURNS 2 Azhar Sajan, director of Casa Milano, discusses the brand’s two- year anniversary 24 SUSTAINABILITY REDUCING GLOBAL CARBON EMISSIONS Embodied carbon and the construction industry’s role in reducing global carbon emissions 44 TALKING POINT SMARTLY DESIGNED SUSTAINABLE SPACES Sustainable living spaces are not the calling card of the future anymore; they are the need of the now 46 TECHNOLOGY PUMPS Your answer to safer, stronger spaces 48 BRAND BUILDING DRIVEN BY PASSION GLAZE Granite & Marble CEO Umesh Punia discusses his entrepreneurial journey, the brand’s unique offerings, and exciting future plans 52 INTERVIEW FILLING IN THE GAP Virtual Human Resources (VHR) is expanding in the region 56 TRUCKS CONTINUOUS GROWTH UD Trucks announces exceptional growth across the MENA region in 2021 CBNME sat down with leading facilities management companies to discuss various topics and issues affecting the industry, such as contractual gaps, worker wellbeing, working closely with real estate developers, breaking into the hospitality industry, and so much more 28 IN THIS ISSUE CBNME
MARCH 29, 2022 VIRTUAL EVENT As a celebration of women business leaders across the Middle East and Africa, Mastercard has partnered with Entrepreneur Middle East to present the first ever Women SME Leaders Awards 2022. We are inviting every women SME leader across all walks of life- individuals and organizations- to take part. There are no costs for attending or nominating at this event. Good luck to all and let’s celebrate women SMEs together! RECOGNIZING THE ACHIEVING WOMEN OF MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
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8 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM J LL, one of the world’s leading real estate investment and advisory firms, has shared insights on what is on the horizon for the regional property market in 2022. Some of the key trends identified were: > The year for mainstreaming of sustainability: The role of built environment in creating a more sustainable future is now in the spotlight. Stakeholder pressure is rising with regulators, occupiers, lenders and investors expecting more from the built environment sector. > Key construction cost trends for 2022: The UAE construction projects market rebounded during 2021, with the residential sector being the highest performer within construction asset awards. This trend is expected to continue thorough-out 2022 with an increasing demand for residential units. The UAE Vision Programmes, UAE 2022 federal budget and the oil price recovery should create positive market sentiment, ultimately driving construction activity over the course of the year. > Preparing for the workforce of the future: While the COVID-19 crisis has incited a massive paradigm shift in the way people work and live, it is also providing a once in a lifetime opportunity to shape a better future of work. Future successful companies will be those that are bold and proactive in shaping their workplaces according to the changing needs and preferences of a liquid workforce, where solutions are tailored to meet individual employee needs and help them thrive. EDITOR’S NOTE CBNME CEO Wissam Younane wissam@bncpublishing.net DIRECTOR Rabih Najm rabih@bncpublishing.net GROUP PUBLISHING DIRECTOR Joaquim D'Costa jo@bncpublishing.net +971 50 440 2706 BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Rabih Naderi rabih.naderi@bncpublishing.net +966 50 328 9818 EDITOR Kasun Illankoon kasun@bncpublishing.net ASSISTANT EDITOR Jochebed Menon EDITORIAL DESIGN Christian Harb MARKETING EXECUTIVE Aaron Joshua Sinanbam aj@bncpublishing.net PHOTOGRAPHER Alexander Bungas Keep up to date with all the latest news, features and much more on our website and social media platforms CBNME.COM Kasun Illankoon Deputy Editor kasun@bncpublishing.net SUBSCRIBE subscriptions@bncpublishing.net For all commercial enquiries, contact sales@bncpublishing.net T +971 50 440 2706 All rights reserved © 2021. Opinions expressed are solely those of the contributors. Construction Business News ME and all subsidiary publications in the MENA region are officially licensed exclusively to BNC Publishing in the MENA region by Construction Business News ME. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission of the publisher. Images used in Construction Business News ME are credited when necessary. Attributed use of copyrighted images with permission. All images not credited courtesy Shutterstock. Printed by UPP PO Box 502511 Dubai, United Arab Emirates P +971 4 4200 506 | F +971 4 4200 196 CBNME @CBNME CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME KEY TRENDS IDENTIFIED FOR 2022
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12 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM OPEN-SOURCE TECHNOLOGY FOR INFRASTRUCTURE DIGITAL TWINS A digital twin is a realistic and dynamic digital representation of a physical asset, process, or system in the built or natural environment. As was the case with BIM nearly 20 years ago, digital twins are now reshaping the built world in terms of how infrastructure is designed, constructed, and operated. The industry has always faced challenges managing the volume and variety of data, as well as the varied ways it changes over time. This can be overwhelming for infrastructure professionals, whether their specialty is in project delivery or in operations. The advent of digital twins has helped the industry advance existing BIM-centric processes by improving data quality and accessibility. Importantly, infrastructure digital twins can be achieved “in place,” without having to disrupt or replace existing workflows or systems. CBNME OP-ED BY KEITH BENTLEY, FOUNDER AND CTO, BENTLEY SYSTEMS
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 13 OPEN-SOURCE TECHNOLOGY FOR INFRASTRUCTURE DIGITAL TWINS Regardless of infrastructure type, over time the digital twin of an asset or a project will become both its lifeblood and its central nervous system. That is ¬-¬¬ it’s going to be really valuable. We believe that to achieve sustainable infrastructure digital twins, it is imperative that you build your systems around open-source technology so the keys to your destiny remain in your hands. You are not going to “buy” your digital twins from a single vendor. Instead, you’re going to assemble, build, customize, and evolve your twin from pieces from many vendors, the mix of which will change over time. Each of them will tell you how “open” they are. Only those who are open sourced (meaning you have the ability to use your digital twin and the source code that powers it without a fee) really mean it. Building the Foundation for iTwin.js When we announced iTwin.js, we described that the foundation upon which it is built is the most open, productive, intuitive, and powerful development environment for capital projects and infrastructure assets, ever. The iTwin.js library (www.itwinjs. org) is a comprehensive collection of JavaScript packages that build on the most open, popular, and flexible standards for modern cloud and web development. Though it can be used from any programming language, it is written in TypeScript (my favorite programming environment ever, by far) and leverages open technologies including SQLite, Node. js, NPM, WebGL, Electron, Docker, Kubernetes, and of course HTML5 and CSS. The same codebase can produce cloud services and web, mobile, and desktop applications. The source code is hosted on GitHub and is distributed under the MIT license. (N.B. full disclosure – there is a native Node.js module that Bentley builds and distributes via NPM for each platform. It is not open source but is delivered with a right-to-run.) By leveraging these open technologies, we have created the Bentley iTwin platform that is relevant for many different use cases. Our platform handles some important and difficult tasks such as persistence, visualization, scalability, security, and interoperability. Of course, your digital twins will have different mixes of data sources and features depending on the type of asset. The goal of an open platform is to allow anyone working on one aspect to easily combine their efforts with people working on other aspects. That means the whole thing doesn’t need to be written all at once and from one vendor. In the software world there are many data sources. An open platform helps us to combine everything we use with little effort. A good infrastructure digital twin platform should do the same. By building your platform on open- source technology, you provide your users, and others who will extend the platform, with the ability to change it. They can copy the program source and access their data without paying a license. An open-source strategy has worked extremely well in other industries, but it has yet to be fully adopted in engineering, BIM, or CAD. The reason is that there has not been a meaningful platform open enough to allow people to layer on it, and even enable competitors to create solutions that work together with it. To create an infrastructure digital twin (we call it an “iTwin”), we fuse together many types of data sources. One source is what we call “digital context”— observations sampled or surveyed in the past. Another source is “real time” or current data, such as IoT sensors, control systems, ERP systems, and emergency response systems. The data source that “THE LIVE AUCTION MODEL WAS NO LONGER POSSIBLE, SO WE ADAPTED OUR TIMED AUCTIONS TO ACCOMMODATE THE CHANGE. CUSTOMERS WERE ABLE TO CONTINUE TO ADAPT THEIR FLEETS TO ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.” >>>
14 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM makes infrastructure digital twins most challenging is engineering and/or BIM data, because they often represent some future state of the twin. The concept of “future state” is a challenging computer science problem because it is nonlinear (i.e. there can be multiple valid states extant simultaneously). That’s the main reason infrastructure digital twins have never existed heretofore. Obviously all three data sources, past, present, and future, change continuously but with different granularity. Nonetheless, if you could fuse all those data types, it’s clear that infrastructure digital twins will provide the basis for new applications to improve asset performance, including sustainability, productivity, occupancy, energy, safety, and maintenance. The questions are then: “How do you structure the data?,” “What transaction model?,” “How to visualize past/current/future in a single window?” and “How do you make the system secure?” The answers will vary for each data type. If every organization working on just one part of a digital would has to solve all those problems on their own, they’d never finish, and nothing would work together. The answer, like all computer science problems, is to layer on top of a comprehensive but extensible platform that supplies implementation of the pieces. For that platform to be both technically and economically feasible, I argue that it must be an open-source project sponsored by a profit-motivated organization. I offer iTwin.js from Bentley as that platform. If you feel there’s some part of it that you would rather work differently, you can change either by forking our code, or, hopefully, by generating pull requests to our repositories on GitHub. That way the ecosystem strengthens itself. CALLOUT: Data for Digital Twin Development When we’re asked about the data that comprises a digital twin, our answer is that the types of data vary with the use case. But getting started does not have to be difficult. In the simplest example you might just want to go out and take pictures or LiDAR with your mobile device, then turn that into a digital mesh of your asset. That’s a wonderful start, because while that mesh may not start as very “sophisticated,” it is very accurate. The process provides you with the digital context for creating a digital twin. For engineering/BIM data we’ve created free “connectors” that synchronize with the most popular formats (e.g. .dgn, .dwg, .rvt, .ifc, etc.). There are also APIs for others to create their own connectors. Since a single iTwin may hold data from an eclectic mix of connectors, you can continue to design with your current set of authoring tools and seamlessly synchronize with multidiscipline, multivendor, and multi-organization infrastructure projects. The purpose of an open, scalable, vendor-agnostic platform is to enable an ecosystem of developers to create and bring to market solutions that solve real infrastructure problems by leveraging digital twins. Over the past few years, we have seen this ecosystem of user organizations, strategic partners, and third-party developers grow. All who work with iTwin.js, and the Bentley iTwin platform, are focused on building solutions to tap the vast potential of infrastructure digital twins. CBNME OP-ED
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 15 One company developing on the iTwin platform is Digital Energy. They focus on solving complex value chain problems by embedding efficiencies in artificial intelligence solutions for industrial planning, supply chain, and work execution. Their application, ODIN Safety, helps asset owners to predict and manage real-time worker health and safety conditions for warehouses and the process industry. The app synchronizes and visualizes data including 3D engineering, artificial intelligence- powered health, safety, environment (HSE) data and IoT to better predict what will happen, where, and when to enable safe and prioritized operations. “As a developer of novel digital AI advisors to asset heavy industries, the ability to portray insights and analytics in real-time on a digital twin makes adoption faster and impact for clients clearer,” said Dr. Morgan Eldred, founder and chief ventures officer, Digital Energy. “Within ODIN Safety, the digital twin shows the evolution in potential risks at various locations enabling clients to better intervene and prioritize efforts using 4D visualization of risk and heat maps of high-risk areas. The Bentley iTwin platform enables open, scalable, and quick application development that provides an incredibly powerful way to bring complex context to organizations, teams, and people.” At Bentley, we are dedicated to having developers, like Digital Energy, engage, share, and learn from each other. We created a partner program for software vendors and systems integrators to get support and guidance to help them innovate, accelerate, and scale their development efforts to deliver digital twin solutions. Learning and expanding the knowledge in the platform is important to us and to our users. Through accreditation, developers gain an understanding of the basic principles and components of developing software applications including data synchronization and federation, visualization, and querying iTwin data. Empowering People to Do More We developed the Bentley iTwin platform to be as open as we can make it. People now use it to solve problems that have nothing to do with Bentley Systems. We did not do this to be charitable. We did it because we believe that as our platform is leveraged by third parties in creative ways, then we will be relevant when they succeed. We are fostering an ecosystem of innovation that will grow around a common set of source codes and data types that can be defined with open-source tools that are built on open standards. In my opinion, as an industry the opportunities for improving outcomes enabled by infrastructure digital twins are vastly larger than at any point in the 37 years I’ve been in this business. At Bentley Systems, we’re excited about that potential, but we don’t aspire to be “the infrastructure digital twin company,” since it’s clear there will be need for many hundreds of such companies. Instead, we intend to be the “infrastructure digital twin platform company” working in an ecosystem of innovation along with partners leveraging that platform. We think this will create a world where infrastructure digital twins really can improve the quality of life for everyone on the planet. OPEN-SOURCE TECHNOLOGY FOR INFRASTRUCTURE DIGITAL TWINS
16 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM TALKING POINT CBNME I n the current state of the world economy, there is an endless list of industries in distress. Some of them are in deep turmoil, especially Aviation and Hotel. These are going through callous times, and going is getting more and more difficult. The pandemic and its after- effects have put their business model under intense scrutiny. It is time for them to introspect how to manage this torrent state of the industry and contemplate their next moves to stay afloat. Their losses are running into trillions, and the very survival is at stake. So instead of waiting for a miracle to happen, it is high time that the industry takes a giant leap to transform. The hotel industry in this turbulence is amongst the worst affected. It is time for the sector to tweak its business model that is lean, agile, tactical, and transformative. These need to align with the evolving market needs and trends; landscape demands path-breaking changes. The Hotel industry, even in the Pre pandemic stage, was already under pressure due to many factors, namely, Airbnb, real estate costs, and ever-changing consumer needs in terms of the guest experience. The pandemic has brought the Hotel industry on its knees, with occupancy levels plummeting and bottom lines in red with accumulated losses. It is time to introspect now and transform to overcome the worries. The recipe of recovery herein calls for a complete overhaul. Bring change in every context, from the hotelier’s business model. From revenue to cost to design to resourcing, each aspect would need a revisit. It’s time for Hotel Industry to adopt Facilities Management to address their needed transformation, says Tariq Chauhan, Group CEO of EFS Facilities Services Group THE NEED FOR TRANSFORMATION
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 17 THE NEED FOR TRANSFORMATION As a Facilities Management professional and a professional entrepreneur, I would bring some critical aspects of FM related transformation that Hotel Industry needs to adopt. For a long time, they have ignored FM as a necessary tool of sustainable practices. In the interest of all its stakeholders and the state of the industry, this has become an absolute necessity. The changing face of real estate and its property management cost is one of the many essential factors that require FM intervention for better cost management. It is not a tool of facilities upkeep only but a holistic optimization of assets and cost-efficiency. This careful cost management is amongst the few steps that hospitality and leisure need to prioritize. I am sure if this is adopted effectively, it can significantly impact the Hotel industry survival dynamics. On average, hotels spend runs in double digits between Capex and Opex on its maintenance, far higher than any other built environment benchmark. I can’t entirely agree with the contention of some of the Hotel industry professionals that being a customer-centric business. The guest experience perspective demands additional specs; therefore, the higher cost is justified. No specific indicator should require additional spend other than a change in maintenance related service level requirements, what we call customized SLAs. It is more to move away from the fixated mindsets of hoteliers that industry needs are unique. Not at all; built environments have their specific set of SLAs but do need to elevate costs. For a long time, the hotel industry has not adhered to FM protocols critical to life cycle management. It is paramount in managing longevity as well as long term cost management. The sector is by and large operated in operations and maintenance modes with little focus on preventative planned maintenance. Their quagmire between revenue centric approach with occupied rooms being revenue source. They have been dragging their feet on preventive measures to more reactive responses. Hotels are by and large known for being high-cost guzzlers in maintenance cost. Unfortunately, its impact is lost in the translation with blame on its guest experience sensitivities that is not true in most cases. The FM regime is well known for its cost-effectiveness and time and again proved its mettle in upholding its true impact. It is high time that the Hoteliers community adopt FM in its entirety than just tactical maneuvers in outsourcing. It is common to see more and more Hoteliers outsourcing housekeeping, laundry or banquet staffing services, but these are more supply chain initiatives with fewer FM considerations. Time is ripe for transforming building & asset maintenance strategy to more effective ways with an eye on cost-benefits and quality services upkeep. There is no room for argument that any built environment cannot achieve a better end- user experience by ignoring critical PPM guidelines. This elevates the customer woes, besides the cost. It is just in Hotel; the guest experience feedback does not necessarily capture maintenance- related provisions in their HMA, Hotel Management Agreements. This, in fact, is often a common contentious issue between the Hotel management companies and owners. Both continue to bicker over the Capex & OPEX costs, who should bear it, and what to classify between their accounting treatment. More so, operators want to manage gross margins whilst leaving operating expenses to owners with a headache. Therefore, it is time for stakeholders to guard their interest. The IFM regime can indeed protect to their benefit to manage costs efficiently and protect the property’s fabric. “AS A FACILITIES MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONAL AND A PROFESSIONAL ENTREPRENEUR, I WOULD BRING SOME CRITICAL ASPECTS OF FM RELATED TRANSFORMATION THAT HOTEL INDUSTRY NEEDS TO ADOPT.”
18 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM IN CONVERSATION CBNME How have the last two years been for Casa Milano since its launch, especially given the changes in customer needs during the pandemic? Casa Milano was launched in October 2019, so just as we were beginning to grasp the dynamics of the market, the COVID-19 pandemic struck the world in the month of March, and the resultant lockdowns and movement restrictions brought business activities globally to a standstill. To say the least, our sales took a hit. While the world was laying off its employ- ees, we built our B2B team from scratch and established key relations with luxury developers across the country. Along with this we also reached out to retail customers who are our main target, as the lockdown had given them ample time to refurbish their homes which had now become their offices, classrooms etc. we distributed catalogues in AZHAR SAJAN, DIRECTOR OF CASA MILANO, DISCUSSES THE BRAND'S TWO-YEAR ANNIVERSARY, LESSONS LEARNED, NEW OFFERINGS, AND AN EMPHASIS ON E-COMMERCE AND MOBILE APP CASA MILANO TURNS 2
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 19 THE NEED FOR TRANSFORMATION >>> High net worth areas like Emirates Hills, Dubai Hills, Meydan, Meadows to raise brand awareness. Some of our team’s first meetings with the clients happened on the Zoom platform during this period which helped us to understand the client’s needs. We also started providing complimentary design services to our cus- tomers which made them visualize their bathrooms in a different light. COVID-19 gave an opportunity to a lot of people to modify their house as they got enough time at home to think of revamping plans, which worked well in our favour. What have you learned the most about business in the last two years, and what do you want to focus on now? The last two years have been a roller coaster of a ride for all of us at Casa Milano. I very vividly remember my father’s words, “Son, you’ve completed the easy task of setting up the showroom and now comes the more challenging part of running it successfully.” I did not fully comprehend what he said at the time. As fate would have it, Covid struck, within 6 months of us opening the showroom. But we at Casa Milano took it up as a challenge given first of the many hur- dles to be faced. What I have learnt from the past 2 years is that it is up to you how well you can turn ad- versities into opportunities. Now that we are 2 years old, I want to focus on expanding into other emirates starting with Abu Dhabi and to the Middle East, as well as partnering with the right brands. You have great business acumen, where do you draw your inspiration from? Well thank you, it's very kind of you to say that. Coming from a business family, I have my uncle Ri- zwan Sajan, my father Anis Sajan as well as my elder brother Adel Sajan to look up to and I do draw some traits from all of them. However, it’s my father who is my biggest inspiration. He is very zealous about everything he does be it business or his passion for cricket. That has made him the man he is today. The core values of the family remain the same but it's my father’s passion that I want to imbibe. My dad has also taught me that it’s really important to have a healthy relationship with all the stakeholders of my business. How would you describe your leadership style? I believe I am a peoples’ person. In most companies, the business heads are respected out of fear, but I want my people to respect me for who I am. What are the brand's latest offerings? We started as a luxury sanitaryware and tiles brand, but I am delighted to announce that we have now also ventured into designing & beautifying outdoor spaces with bespoke landscaping & pool services and Parquet by Corà for indoor spaces. Not only that, we are going to introduce a new department for kitchen in partnership with Arredo3, Italy’s 3rd largest kitch- en brand. AZHAR SAJAN is the director of Casa Milano. Casa Milano is the UAE’s premier luxury sanitary ware and tiles retailer. It offers exclusive products manufactured by over 40 of the world’s top-notch brands including Tonino Lamborghini, Versace, and Roberto Cavalli. At the age where his peers are figuring out their studies or looking for a job, Sajan is spearheading a luxury brand while pursuing his bachelor’s degree in Business from the American University of Sharjah. He is known for his never-ending zeal to learn and take up opportunities. Sajan emphasises that it is okay to make mistakes as they are lessons in disguise and stepping stones to becoming the best version of yourself. Shams Bawany, Director Casa Milano ; Sahil Sajan , Marketing & Sales, Casa Milano; Rizwan Sajan, Founder and Chairman Danube Group, Abdul Hamid Ahmed; Adel Sajan, Managing Director, Danube Group
20 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM IN CONVERSATION CBNME AFTER THE PANDEMIC, CUSTOMERS’ POINT OF VIEW HAS CHANGED TO A GREAT EXTENT AS THEY WERE CONFINED TO THEIR HOUSES, WHICH BECAME THEIR OFFICE, PLAYGROUND ETC. PEOPLE WOULD DEFINITELY MOVE TOWARDS E-COMMERCE IN THE FUTURE. E-commerce and a mobile app are major investments for the company. Do you think this is the way retail will go in the future? Most certainly. Though it may take some time for people to get used to buying home solutions products online it’s not impossible. Especially after the pandemic, customers’ point of view has changed to a great extent as they were confined to their houses, which became their office, play- ground etc. People would definitely move towards e-commerce in the future. We too are working on our e-commerce website and mobile app for Casa Milano, which we shall launch soon. Could you tell us about the projects you're working on right now in the region? We are working with a mix of projects that includes residential, commercial and even some hotels. We have also supplied tiles to 2 pavilions at the Expo 2020. For residen- tial projects, we supplied villas in Jumeirah, Emirates Hills, Dubai Hills, Meydan etc. We have even supplied to a couple of res- taurants like CZN Burak. Where do you see the future taking you, especially with regard to both general design and the direction of your company? The design trends are ever-changing and we will definitely keep up with the trend in terms of our offerings. As for the company, as I mentioned before, we are working towards opening more showrooms and reaching out to more people and fulfilling their dreams of luxury. Calcutta Gold and Sarah Noir from the Marble Experience collection by Italgraniti. Marble Experience is the collection wherein three essential principles meet: selection of the finest marbles, technological innovation and exclusive materials, for the design of unique surfaces.
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22 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME LEGAL T he non-competition arrangements are not uncommon in employment contracts; it is an agree- ment between the Employer and the Employee, under which the former restricts the latter from directly joining a competitor or using the company’s data, records, information after termina- tion. Such agreements, in their classic application, should not trigger a legal difficulty once the standard requirements are fulfilled, and the nature of the work, subject of protection, lacks any complexity of translating the non-competition arrangement and its purpose. However, the legal difficulties trigger when applying the concept in a complex and senior role. Said agreements are widely common in construction employment agreements due to the na- ture of the practitioners’ role and the data subject of the project. Thus, acts of breach should be meticu- lously examined to be detected. This article focuses on the non-compete arrangement in the construction industry by addressing the theory between the content of the non-compete agreement, the applicable law, as compared to the courts’ practice in the UAE. BETWEEN THEORY AND APPLICATION Non-compete Arrangements in Construction, BY AHMED ELSAYED, ASSOCIATE AT BSA AHMAD BIN HEZEEM & ASSOCIATES LLP
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 23 NON-COMPETE ARRANGEMENTS IN CONSTRUCTION, BETWEEN THE THEORY AND APPLICATION Purpose of non-compete agreements in the Construction industry The first question that might come across in that regard is why would it be neces- sary to have a non-compete agreement in the construction industry. Indeed, the construction industry includes various key participants with different com- mercial and business interests that need protection from their ex-employees. It is highly reasonable for all of them, in dif- ferent meanings, to have a non-compete agreement to protect their respective busi- nesses. For example, we have the Owner who seeks to protect its business after terminating his representative engineer on the project. Also, the contractor seeks to preserve its commercial interest after ter- minating his senior engineers. Many other examples that make the non-compete agreements are most desirable in the con- struction industry. The formation of the agreement There is no such standard formation of the non-compete agreement. It would be such (a) a standard clause that the employers most often enclosed in their standard employment contract, or (b) a separate agreement annexed to the employment contract. Practically, both forms are acceptable in terms of framing the arrangement. Nonetheless, it would be advisable for both parties to have a separate agreement, considering the rea- sons elaborated below. As to the subject of the arrangement itself, there are no such one-size-fits-all purposes. Thus, the parties, mainly the employer, based on the nature of the de- sired protected interest, should tailor the agreement to protect its commercial inter- est after terminating the contract with the employee The obstacles of applying the non- compete in the UAE In principle, the UAE employment leg- islator, under Article 127 of the UAE employment law, expressly recognizes the non-compete agreement. Nonetheless, the codified frame is insufficient, whereby, the courts to the furthest extent, intervene to decide whether to apply the concept or not. The problem starts when the court needs to activate the agreement practi- cally. At the outset, the court needs to ex- amine some of the requirements to be ful- filled to consider the non-compete clause in principle. Primarily, these requirements are collectively related to the reasonability behind the clause, such as, inter alia, (a) the reason for having the agreement, (b) the duration, and (c) the territorial ap- plication. (a) The rationale behind the non- compete In that regard, the court examines whether the non-compete agreement in the first place is reasonable to be applied or not. To do so, the court examines the consequences of breaching the agreement by the employee. Most often, the court to do this task evaluates the role and respon- sibilities of the ex-employee, whether he/ she used to possess a high level of data/ records/information that would affect the future employer’s business once leaked. (b) The duration For the activation of the non compete agreement, the jurisprudence requires the agreement to be similarly reasonable from the duration perspective. It is not accept- able for the court to see an indefinite or unreasonably long term non-compete agreement. The courts have established that the latter would nullify non-compete agreements in which the employers pur- sued compensation after a long period from terminating the employees, whereby the court assessed that such application of the clauses constituted an abuse of right. (c) The territorial application Lastly, the court must establish a reason- able territorial application of the non- compete clauses. The courts do not apply non-compete clauses without a pre-es- tablished territory, especially in instances where the employer’s business does not cover the whole UAE territory. After examining all the above elements, the activation of the non-compete clause remains within the court’s discretion. Here comes the uncertainty, where there is an effective non-compete agreement, but the court does not activate it. This is primarily due to the court’s need to establish the last brick in the wall, i.e., the substantial damages suffered/ to be suf- fered by the employer in case of a breach. Similarly to any tort claim, the employer needs to establish the three elements for claiming compensation, i.e., the violation by the ex-employee, the damage, and the causality. This task would be feasible for the employer once the claim is based on a comprehensive non-compete agreement that will highly assist the employer to pre- sent its case. Conclusion The construction industry is one of the main practice industries that the involved employers need to include non-compete arrangements to protect their respective commercial interests and trade secrets For having an enforceable agreement, the employer needs to have a comprehen- sive agreement that, besides the standard requirements, should include in-depth technical provisions such as the definition of the potential breach that the employee could conduct, the type of the sensitive data, records, and any other confidential information that the employee would benefit the competitor. Despite the importance of non-compete agreements, it is susceptible for employers to understand and abide by the court’s standard for enforceability thereof and ultimately have their non-compete agree- ments recognized. “THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IS ONE OF THE MAIN PRACTICE INDUSTRIES THAT THE INVOLVED EMPLOYERS NEED TO INCLUDE NON-COMPETE ARRANGEMENTS TO PROTECT THEIR RESPECTIVE COMMERCIAL INTERESTS AND TRADE SECRETS.”
24 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME SUSTAINABILITY EMBODIED CARBON AND THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY’S ROLE IN REDUCING GLOBAL CARBON EMISSIONS T he chances are that you are reading this article on an electronic device rather than in printed form. But which medium produces the least carbon emissions? You may firstly think the electronic device is the least sustainable way to read the article as it requires power to operate, so you may reasonably conclude that the printed matter is responsible for less carbon emissions, however, it is not as simple as that when you consider the embodied carbon. A study by Alma in Finland determined that it takes between 150-190kg of CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent, the common scale for measuring the climate effects of different gases) to produce a newspaper or magazine. Apple, the producer of iPads on which millions of publications are read every day, claim that the total lifecycle emissions of a typical model is 130kg CO2e of which only 30% are associated with customer use (iPad Environmental Report, Apple). There are many factors that could influence these findings, such as where the REDUCING GLOBAL CARBON EMISSIONS BY MATTHEW ANTHONY, ASSOCIATE – ADVISORY AT AECOM
energy is sourced for production and the use of sustainable materials. So, whilst these figures cannot be taken as absolutes, they do provoke holistic thinking about carbon emissions. It also suggests that whilst the printed media may have zero ‘operational’ emissions, its carbon footprint can be higher than an electronic device. Turning this thinking to the built environment, we know that this sector has an important role to play in reducing global emissions. According to the World Green Building Council and the UN Environment Global Status Report, buildings are currently responsible for 39% of global emissions; 28% from operational emissions from energy required to heat, cool and power them and 11% from materials, construction and maintenance activity. These figures are not likely to decline either. As the world’s population continues to grow, the International Energy Agency predicts that the total global building stock will double by 2050. Plans for action achieving net-zero carbon emissions have been announced by governments and organizations worldwide. However, if these targets are going to be met, the embodied carbon responsible for 11% of global emissions from the construction industry alone must be understood, measured, and minimized where possible. Embodied carbon in the built environment The lifecycle carbon impact of a building can be split into four stages: production, construction, operation and end-of-life. The production stage accounts for approximately 33% of a building’s carbon impact and includes the extraction of raw materials, transportation and manufacturing into buildings products. The construction stage accounts for a further 8%, and includes all construction activity, including transport of materials and labor to site, installation and commissioning. This means that before a building is ready for occupation, it has already incurred approximately 41% of the total carbon impact ‘upfront’. During occupation, we enter the operation stage where all direct emissions from energy consumption are incurred, accounting for around 42% of lifecycle carbon impact, with embodied carbon seen in maintenance, repair, refurbishment and asset replacement activity accounting for a further 11%. The remaining 6% of carbon impact is found in the end-of-life stage where demolition, waste processing and disposal is undertaken. The greatest potential for a reduction in the carbon impact of a project is therefore found not only in the operation stage, but in the design stage where upfront carbon can be reduced. Research by C40 Cities, Arup and the University of Leeds suggest ways in which a reduction in embodied carbon can be achieved and highlights the importance of switching to lower carbon materials and using materials more efficiently to reduce the upfront carbon incurred. This can only be substantially achieved with an understanding of a material’s embodied carbon, quantified by an embodied carbon assessment. More general practices during the design stage can be implemented, such as decreasing reliance on duplication in specifications and ensuring buildings are not over- specified either for intended loads or use. Measurement challenges There is currently a reliance on stated embodied carbon quantification from environmental information on the REDUCING GLOBAL CARBON EMISSIONS >>>
26 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM lifecycle of a product, for which a standardized Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) process has been outlined by the International Organisation for Standardization (ISO) in ISO 14025. However, there are several challenges with using EPDs, not least because they are constantly being updated as manufacturing processes and material selections change, resulting in complex and inconsistent databases. Further complications are found in the methodology for creating an EPD, which relies on the definition of the product using appropriate Product Category Rules (PCRs) that use Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies. LCA studies vary in terms of assumptions and considerations depending on the availability of data and can therefore lead to inconsistencies in comparing products that fulfil the same function. Factors such as location, production methods, supply chain conditions and lack of third-party review create additional inconsistencies in EPDs that see various databases being used and no clear benchmark data available. Demand and practice in the UAE In the UAE, the Emirates Green Building Council (EGBC) is taking the lead in establishing working groups and raising awareness of embodied carbon in the construction industry, but they acknowledge there is a way to go. The EGBC Embodied Carbon Working Group has been formed to provide useful guidance to the industry with the aim that some legislation may follow to compel the sector to meet targets. While no specific legislation exists, the UAE National Climate Change Plan (2017- 2050) and a recent declaration of UAE becoming a net zero carbon country by 2050 – the first Middle East country to make such an announcement – provides a framework to which the issue of embodied carbon cannot be ignored if these targets are to be achieved. The plan itself, which does not explicitly mention embodied carbon, positions the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment as leader in raising awareness in partnership with stakeholders to act. Perhaps the most exciting opportunity to incentivize embodied carbon reduction is found within project financing, where performance against sustainability goals influence the interest rates available and access to loans. Widely referred to as ‘Sustainability Linked Loans (SLL)’ and guided by principles such as those published by the Loan Market Association (Sustainability Linked Loan Principles, May 2021), these financial products reward borrowers for achieving pre-determined sustainability targets, which rely on the ability to measure, quantify and convey performance against them. This way of financing also meets the ESG demands of lenders who are under scrutiny for lending to fossil fuel industries. In the Middle East, Aldar Properties announced in July 2021 that they secured a 300 million AED SLL with HSBC linked to KPIs, becoming the first MENA company to do so. Summary Conversations around reducing our carbon impact are usually focused on emissions resulting from direct user activity. We all need to drive and fly less, use less electricity, produce electricity from sustainable sources, recycle and reuse where possible. However, the traditional focus on operational carbon reduction and a misunderstanding of the true impact of embodied carbon remains and needs to be addressed. Direct emissions from any built asset can be roughly equivalent to the embodied carbon incurred ‘upfront’ during the manufacturing and construction phase alone – and continue to be incurred throughout the asset’s lifecycle. The need for the industry to understand, measure and reduce embodied carbon to meet the demands of an informed client is therefore critical to the effort to reduce global carbon emissions if current targets are to be met. Raising awareness of the issue is just the first step. CBNME “CONVERSATIONS AROUND REDUCING OUR CARBON IMPACT ARE USUALLY FOCUSED ON EMISSIONS RESULTING FROM DIRECT USER ACTIVITY. WE ALL NEED TO DRIVE AND FLY LESS, USE LESS ELECTRICITY, PRODUCE ELECTRICITY FROM SUSTAINABLE SOURCES, RECYCLE AND REUSE WHERE POSSIBLE.” SUSTAINABILITY
iFM is a wholly owned Holding Company under Eltizam Asset Management Group. iFM is a tech focused facilities management company with entities focused on the full spectrum of physical asset classes. Delivering Exceptional Integrated Facilities Management Solutions with Comprehensive Global Standards
28 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME FM GIANTS COVER STORY
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 29 VENUE PARTNER FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS CBNME SAT DOWN WITH LEADING FACILITIES MANAGEMENT COMPANIES TO DISCUSS VARIOUS TOPICS AND ISSUES AFFECTING THE INDUSTRY, SUCH AS CONTRACTUAL GAPS, WORKER WELLBEING, WORKING CLOSELY WITH REAL ESTATE DEVELOPERS, BREAKING INTO THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, AND SO MUCH MORE.
30 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM T he FM Giants Roundtable was hosted at the world’s largest and tallest observation wheel, Ain Dubai, located on Bluewaters, the must-visit island destination. Set against the backdrop of Dubai’s dazzling skyline with breath-taking land and sea views, Ain Dubai, at over 250 meters tall, eclipses anything that has come before it, heralding a new era in the world of entertainment. The 48 double-glazed uber-luxurious cabins boast the capacity to collectively carry up to 1,750 passengers at a time. The custom built, fully air-conditioned cabins offer unrivaled and unforgettable 360-degree views of Dubai in premium comfort. Ain Dubai is the latest addition to the extensive Dubai Holding entertainment portfolio. As one of the largest diversified investment conglomerates in the region, Dubai Holding continues to play an instrumental role in the sustainable growth of the Emirate across various sectors in line with the UAE Government’s diversification strategy. The event saw leading facilities management C-Level executives from Deyaar Facilities Management, EFS Facilities Services Group, ServeU Facilities Management, and iFM Holdings, sit down and discuss various topics and issues facing the industry. The close to two hour event was combined with a five-star dining experience along with a spectacular view. FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 31 “Ain Dubai gives us an experience of Dubai from the eyes of our leaders and their vision to bring the UAE to where it is today. We have seen the nation evolve and going up on the world’s largest observation wheel encapsulates the country’s transformation in one frame and truly is an inspiration where we are headed in the time to come. From ground zero to the sky, everything was managed immaculately and I cannot wait to go back with my family. “ Mohammed Alsharaf Divisional CEO, iFM Holdings “It was very innovative of BNC Publishing to host their Panel Discussion in the world’s largest & tallest observation wheel, Ain Dubai by Dubai Holding. Being the latest landmark to join Dubai’s long list of record-breaking world attractions, the hospitality, and F&B of the Attraction are definitely top-notch, and the excellent staff made us feel very special.” Satinder Singh COO at EFS Facilities Services Group Ain Dubai in Numbers 5 tonnes The weight of each permanent spoke cable that holds the wheel rim in place. 1 football pitch Length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional football pitch. 2,400 Distance in kilometres of all the cable wires housed inside the spoke cables if they were joined end to end. That’s the same distance as Dubai to Cairo. 6 Airbus A380s The equivalent weight of the wheel rim. 250+ Height in meters of Ain Dubai, making it the world’s tallest observation wheel. 167 Height in metres of world’s second tallest observation wheel – the High Roller in Las Vegas, USA. 35 Height in metres of world’s third tallest observation wheel – the London Eye in London, United Kingdom. 126 Length in meters of the legs that support the structure. 15 London buses can fit inside each leg. 25% More steel used in to construct Ain Dubai than iron was used on The Eiffel Tower. 11,200 tonnes of steel used in the construction of Ain Dubai. “Ain Dubai is the newest addition to Dubai’s skyline and the world’s tallest and largest observation wheel. It was a completely new experience for me and I am truly honoured to be part of this CEO roundtable inside a VIP cabin, probably first of its kind. You truly feel on top of the world. Most importantly what caught my eye was this huge picture of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum which reminded me of his quote “Many leaders promise, but we deliver”. I would like to thank BNC Publishing for having come up with this unique concept. A big thank you to Ain Dubai for hosting me and my industry colleagues at this amazing venue.“ Mohamad Abou Laban CEO at Deyaar Facilities Management “Construction Business News ME choosing Ain Dubai as the venue for the round table discussion was perfect with an apt setting to discuss Facilities Management whilst overlooking the mammoth Dubai skyline and identifying buildings where we operate from a different height. Initially there was skepticism on the location for an intense discussion but arrangements in the Ain Dubai cabin were impeccable from audio and video to catering and the exemplary service during the entire event. For all those with a concern on health and safety; it is very safe and there is no sense of paranoia. Highly recommendable venue for events corporate or otherwise.” Marc Daly Director - Hard Services at ServeU Facilities Management
32 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM Mohamad Abou Laban Managing Large Task-Force The value of employee well-being by the FM Companies and Clients contracting manpower services For any company the biggest asset is their staff and it is important that we take care of them. With the recent weekend changes, Deyaar FM decided that our white-collar staff will work a 4 and half day week to increase productivity and motivation of staff. We are already noticing a change in the right direction. Deyaar FM had its staff accommodation previously located in Jebel Ali. Taking into consideration the location of our existing projects, we decided to shift to a new upgraded accommodation in Al Quoz. We were able to reduce the travel time of our staff from an hour to 15 minutes. This had a huge impact on staff productivity. Such initiatives are necessary as everybody is raising their standards now, and clients also expect FM companies to provide sufficient welfare provisions for their staff. One of our core values is passion and we have adopted that into our business – this means making the staff feel that they are part of a big family so that they deliver services to our Clients with passion. CEO, Deyaar Facilities Management FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 33
34 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS Expanding into the Hospitality sector How can the FM Industry break into the hospitality sector? Deyaar FM first entered into the hospitality sector three years ago and now have more than 25 facilities that we provide various services to. The most important point is to understand the challenges each Client is going through and tailor a solution accordingly. The pandemic hit the hospitality sector hard and it accelerated those problems. This is a sector where the preference was to have their own in-house staff which helps them have a better control on the services being offered. Also, this is a sector where the staff are provided continuous training to develop their skills all the time. Losing a customer in the hospitality sector not only results in loss of revenue on that day but also future business with the same Customer and referrals that he or she may have. The hospitality sector has peak and low seasons of demand, hence by outsourcing, they have the flexibility of having the minimum number of staff during low seasons, ramping up during the peak season and vice versa. In this way, the risk is transferred to the facilities management service provider. The standards implemented by some of the big FM Companies have helped bridge the gap between a Hotelier’s expectation and what FM Companies can provide. Leading FM companies now have a clear understanding of the service levels required to be successful in this sector. The pandemic has been a driver to this as most hotels had to go into complete or partial lockdown. For Deyaar FM the hospitality sector is extremely important as we look to expand on our credentials by providing tailor made solutions to each and every Client. Establishing a relationship with developers on projects How can the FM Industry establish an open line of communication with developers at the beginning of new construction projects It is important for the developer to engage with facilities management consultants during the development stage and the earlier you reach out, better the benefits they reap. From my knowledge, the bigger developers do engage with FM Consultants on their master plan design review, service charge calculations, the operating model, etc. So, they will look at the design from an operability and maintenance perspective. They can help identify obstacles that may arise when a particular design or system is chosen, make more cost-efficient and practical recommendations aligned with the asset owner’s goals, and preserve its long-term value. One of the reasons why developers are hesitant to engage FM Consultants at an early stage is that it would incur a cost. However, this could avoid potential risks down the line once the building is operational. This will also help transitioning of management between construction and operational teams and to lay a solid foundation to go with the lifespan of that facility. Contractual Gaps What are some of the gaps seen by the FM Industry when it comes to contracts and tendering processes? Contracts can be very tricky at times. In most cases, we have seen that the contracts are non- negotiable which puts FM Companies in a difficult spot. Despite a proper explanation of risks from the FM service provider, most Clients do not entertain any comments and are reluctant to change the terms. For example, limitation of liability is an issue, most Clients request unlimited liability irrespective of the value of the Contract. From an FM Company perspective, the liability has to be limited to the Contract. Another example is Termination at Convenience. Irrespective of how good your performance is, this clause can always be applied and the Contract can be terminated which puts the FM Company at risk. We look to expand on our credentials by providing tailor made solutions to each and every Client. “ “ > Deyaar Facilities Management became functional as a division of the Deyaar Development PJSC Group in 2007. The company is a leading provider of integrated facilities management solutions for real estate, commercial and retail developments in the UAE.
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 35 When it comes to Tenders, we have observed for most projects that the submission timelines are very short and it is a race against time for FM Companies. However, once submitted, there is a lot of delay in decision making. Certain tenders have taken six months or more to be finalized. There should be sufficient time given to FM Companies to do a proper evaluation of the facility and prepare the right solution for services to be rendered. Some Clients engage third party consultants for their tender process to ensure the tender process is effective. Most Clients are familiar with the new trends of output driven contracts. However, we quite often see a combination of input and output driven contracts. At the end every Client wants the service provider to be creative and think outside the box and this happens when you have output driven contracts. With more than twenty years of experience working in the GCC facilities management industry, Mohamad is a top-performing and result-oriented professional. He is customer-focused with proven success in growing territories and opportunities through utilising comprehensive knowledge of products and over-exceeding goals. Mohamad has a proven track record in implementing international best practices, improving safety standards, increasing profitability and driving efficiency. Consistent performer who identifies areas for improvement and implements robust initiatives to reduce cost, increase productivity, and positioning an organisation for long-term growth. He is the winner of CEO of the Year 2021 by CBNME and FM Executive of the Year 2021 by FM ME Awards. Mohamad was also ranked 8th in the Power 30 FM list in 2021. ABOUT MOHAMAD ABOU LABAN
36 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 37 Mohammed Alsharaf Managing Large Task-Force The value of employee well-being by the FM Companies and Clients contracting manpower services Our corporate culture is one that believes our people are our biggest asset. We invest in people development through a training centre benchmarked against international standards such as BICS, we share our experiences among our team members and make paths for our staff’s careers through the new projects we win. Our blue-collar staff are placed in 5-star accommodation that are near the projects, transported in air-conditioned vehicles and strictly adhere to all Covid-19 protocols. All our staff, on and off site receive PCR tests on a regular basis. Employee well-being is vital for our organisation across all roles, and we believe it is essential for a company’s overall health, that the employ- ees are in the best shape, be it mental or physical. The fundamental platform of a robust business is its employees’ engagement and productivity, thus building a stronger organisation across the board. It is all interrelated in my opinion - an organisation that emphasizes the importance of its employee’s well-being and increases recognition, will in turn boost morale, enable workforce optimisation, yield more value in less time and lastly, increase the company’s reputation, therefore attracting better talent. It’s all a chain of circumstances that signifies the value of employee well-being, therefore, the organisation’s well-being. Afterall, we are our people. Divisional CEO, iFM Holdings
38 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM Balancing Soft and Hard Services Improving the integrations of the FM sector. It is imperative to know your customers’ process to excel in the industry. We believe in preventative maintenance to streamline our work processes, planning ahead can reduce the requirement for reactive maintenance for the future, therefore decreasing the risk of unplanned employee schedules and maintaining the ultimate experience for our customers. The best way forward is to target sectors that need FM ser- vices, such as untapped markets or niche businesses. It is essential to a built environment business to balance hard and soft FM services and a major factor to make this pos- sible is the investment in software and tools that enables an organisation to have efficient practices in place. Expanding into the Hospitality sector How can the FM Industry break into the hospitality sector? The hospitality and FM sectors go hand-in-hand; it is critical for the life cycle of a hotel or any other hospitality property to invest in FM services from its foundation. A cost-effective measure, FM is paramount in transforming asset management strategies successfully. First things first, we need to understand the client’s critical requirements to create an immaculate end-user experience; this goes back to the preventative measures rather than reactive measures. Planning ahead for seasonal requirements is another key element to successfully working with the hospitality sector; the extreme weather conditions here require a systematic approach and professional capability and a company that can meet such demands and is ready to put themselves on the spectrum. Lastly, we need to understand that the hospitality industry has been impacted by the global pandemic and demands looking into ways to control costs. We need to understand their structure, requirements and put forward costs that are essential for the longevity of the property’s life cycle therefore, gaining their trust and showing your loyalty towards their business as opposed to just aiming for financial gains. FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS Yield more value in less time. “ “
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 39 Establishing a relationship with developers on projects How can the FM Industry establish an open line of communication with developers at the beginning of new construction projects? Every step of the way, it is crucial to know your customer - know who you are talking to so you can provide a targeted approach or solution to each one. We believe it would be beneficial for all the stakeholders to have FM providers involved in the early development stages for a variety of reasons, such as inhibiting any major repairs that may be required in the future, rec- ommending configurations that can prove beneficial for the developer at a future stage, save costs during the developmental stage as opposed to the increasing expense during the repair stages. We can open a line of communication with the developers by showing them the added value of including FM in the early stages of the project and regarding us as advisors rather than just service providers. Integrating Technology Creating a one-stop integrated software solution. How can prop-tech firms guarantee a smooth transition of software services to FM Companies? Change is daunting, for any organisation in any industry, however it is essential to keep up with technology to avoid falling behind. Prop-tech firms can guarantee a smooth transition if they have a process in place that considers all the challenges that may be presented during the implementation process. A variety of key points should be considered such as the availability of time, a comprehensive training schedule, a dedicated team with a key manager who are well-versed with the technology and lastly, but most importantly, effective migration of data. It’s all about the process and acceptance of change on the FM side of things, we at iFM understand that technology is an enabler and key driver in our industry. Investing in technology will encourage transparency with our clients along the supply chain and will enable us to monitor KPIs and measure competences. Contractual Gaps What are some of the gaps seen by the FM Industry when it comes to contracts and tendering processes? The FM contract must be as precise as possible when it comes to the scope of services to be performed along with the KPIs that need to be achieved. I have seen a variety of gaps in the process during the RFP process such as, the requirement of services is not always outlined clearly, incomplete asset register and information gathering, communication difficulties and short timelines. It is central to a successful relationship for an FM contract to be as extensive as possible with the information included. As the range of services increase, the contracts need to highlight every element methodically to avoid any issues after the contracts and tendering process. Enhancing User Tech Experience Adapting to new technologies can be demanding but how can prop-tech vendors better position themselves to explain the intricacies of their product without time being wasted? It is an endless loop, FM needs technology to provide seamless services and tech companies need us to utilize their solutions, when in fact we both need each other to sustain our businesses. If prop-tech companies put forward their solutions to us with the support of a visual aid of ‘how it works’, I believe they will have our attention. The key elements iFM Holdings would look for are meticulous dashboards that include a one-stop solution for our needs, the provider should understand what we need as a client and their technology solutions should help us overcome our issues. We, at iFM Holdings, would look for a flawless solution that includes mobility solution, ease of communication and payment for the end users. Mohammed Alsharaf is the Divisional CEO of iFM Holdings, the Facilities Management entity of the Group. He is a highly accomplished executive with over 20 years hands-on experience in asset and facilities management. Before joining Eltizam Group, Mr. Alsharaf was managing mega projects in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Upon joining in 2017, he led major expansions in the FM services for the Group and focused on operational service delivery while bringing outsourced functions in-house with the goal of maximising profitability. As part of his remit, Mohammed managed the technological transformation for paperless FM operations as he solidified Eltizam Group’s promise of delivering high customer satisfaction and increased employee happiness. With his leadership, the FM activities of the Group yielded 400% growth in annualized revenue from 2017 to 2021. He is also leading the Group’s exemplary FM services internationally. ABOUT MOHAMMED ALSHARAF
40 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM Managing Large Task-Force The value of employee well-being by the FM Companies and Clients contracting man- power services Investing in our people is important as they are most asset in the organisation. At ServeU, we invest in people moving up, getting promotions and we recently has one our cleaners getting promoted to electrician due to the training we give and to motivate the employees to develop new skills. At ServeU we have various initiatives technology driven and psychological that enables our employee engagement to be very strong and effective. We believe and practice that the role of the task force is not just to do their day job and the role of the management is not just to manage the task force. As Management it is our responsibility to empower our task force to be more ef- ficient and provide them with opportunities to progress. Herein lies successful manage- ment rather than having our employees on a leash. Expanding into the Hospitality sector How can the FM Industry break into the hos- pitality sector? Traditionally it was normal for the hospital- ity sector to outsource the soft services side of their but in 2021 we have engaged with some high-end hotel brands wherein we have provided MEP maintenance work force as well. From a client perspective they have a twofold approach to this move; firstly, assurance for the trained skillset that a FM company can provide and secondly engag- ing for a technology advantage whereby they can use the various technological practices of the FM company to maximise their asset value. Director - Hard Services, ServeU Facilities Management Marc Daly FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS Establishing a relationship with developers on projects How can the FM Industry establish an open line of communication with developers at the beginning of new construction projects? The early engagement between a devel- oper and a Facilities Management service provider is fundamental and imperative to maximise the performance and life of the building and associated assets. With the advancement of the UAE construction industry and the maturing FM market this engagement has started to surface with PPP (Public Private Partnership) consorti- ums engaging with FM Service Providers. ServeU has in the last 18 months been in dialogue with established organisations to foster this early engagement.
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 41 “THE PROPERTY TECHNOLOGY FIRMS HAVE A STRONG ADVANTAGE WHEN IT COMES TO SOLUTIONS SINCE THEY HAVE A VERY CLOSE COLLABORATION WITH THE PROPERTY DEVELOPERS AND CONSTRUCTION PRIME CONTRACTORS WHICH CAN BE FURTHER EXTENDED TO THE FM COMPANIES.”
42 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM 42 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY 2022 Contractual Gaps What are some of the gaps seen by the FM Industry when it comes to contracts and tendering processes? The legacy gaps in FM industry contracts have narrowed to a great extent over the last decade. This maturity in the FM market can be attributed to the awareness across the customers and the increased engagement between the customers and the FM service providers. A key focus area to bridge the gap is the reporting and almost dynamic visibility of performance. At ServeU we firmly believe and propagate what Peter Drucker said, “You can’t manage what you can’t measure”. We continuously work with cus- tomers to develop and enhance reporting dashboards sup- ported by PowerBI that gives them visibility and an aware- ness of our performance whilst allowing them to understand the performance of their assets. Enhancing User Tech Experience Adapting to new technologies can be demanding but how can proptech vendors better position themselves to explain the intricacies of their product without time being wasted In-line with Dubai’s innovation-driven growth for the Dubai Strategic Plan 2030; we have implemented technology driven CAFM utilisation on 98% of our contracts. We have implemented a customised maintenance app exclusively for ServeU customers at EXPO2020. Furthermore, we have provided many of our customers with handheld devices at no additional cost burden for them to log and track jobs being attended by our teams. Our revamped customer app for the B2C segment is ready to be launched with a core focus on the customer journey and experience which is not just seam- less but extremely easy to use and navigate. In 2021 we also introduced an innovative issue logging mechanism whereby even if the customer does not have any app the issue can be logged using WhatsApp. What is even more interesting is that the customer’s report is immediately acknowledged with a reference number they can use to trace the status. This technology adaptation and our continuous innovation drive has resulted in us retaining more than 94% of our customers with win rate on new bids being in the high percentile as well. The Property Technology firms have a strong advantage when it comes to solutions since they have a very close collaboration with the Property Developers and Construction Prime Contractors which can be further extended to the FM companies. The statistics shows that there are only around one tenth of Proptech firms when compared to Fintech which creates a great niche for a seamless solution to provided right from design to facilities management enabling longevity to the asset life. The Proptech companies are well positioned to provide bespoke solutions for FM services that will ultimately benefit owners and residents since their engagement from the design stage is very high. With over 10 experiences in the FM industry Marc has led FM operations in the UAE, KSA & UK with a keen eye on efficiency improvement on asset performance and service delivery. With technology being the main driver for both these areas; Marc has played a leadership role in implementing technology in FM operations for leading clients to help deliver efficiency through their assets and achieve benefits to their budget bottom line. ABOUT MARC DALY FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS We have implemented a customised maintenance app exclusively for ServeU customers at EXPO2020. “ “
44 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS “WE LEARN A LOT FROM WORKING WITH MULTINATIONAL COMPANIES, LOCAL CLIENTS, AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT CLIENTS AND SEE HOW THEY ARE IMPLEMENTING THEIR WORKER WELL-BEING INITIATIVES.” 44 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 45 Managing Large Task-Force The value of employee well-being by the FM Companies and Clients contracting manpower services At EFS, we have six pillars within our HR framework, and out of the six, we have a specific one that focuses on the employee’s well-being. We are dedicated to the safety and security of our blue and white-collar staff. When it comes to financial well-being, we have created support systems that will allow our employees coming from India to have access to apply for National Bonds, for example, through our HR Department. Our internal department will support our employees to understand and maximize this investment opportunity and translate the benefits. In addition, we learn a lot from working with multinational companies, local clients, and local government clients and see how they are implementing their worker well-being initia- tives. If you get a chance to look at our facilities, you will not find people being unhappy or demotivated – this is a direct result of our workers’ welfare management team and per- formance management team. These workers work around the clock with the management team to ensure that every aspect of the staff is taken care of. Establishing a relationship with developers on projects How can the FM Industry establish an open line of communication with developers at the beginning of new construction projects? Developers are still hesitant to deal with facilities manage- ment companies at an early stage of their projects, espe- cially at the design stages of their buildings. Although we have been advocating for the early integration of FM consideration, it is a long-awaited initiative that the investors/developers need to take as facilities management companies services can help reduce the cost considerably. Further, this could be due to poor construction and design of the building that would necessitate a high service charge after the whole project is completed. Currently, for any project that we are taking over, you have key stakeholders such as the owner, tenants, and clients who will now expect us to fix issues that could have easily been avoided initially. COO, EFS Facilities Services Group Satinder Singh “There is a high retention factor for us due to our business development ethical policies that ensure the consulting with all parties involved.”
46 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM Contractual Gaps What are some of the gaps seen by the FM Industry when it comes to contracts and tendering processes? When we are talking about the contract gaps during the RFP stage, the procurement team’s objectives from the client-side are to make sure they get the value of the maximum savings for money. They don’t involve their operations team, who, in fact, are the ones managing the contract once awarded. On the other side, FM business development has a target to achieve that year, but they do not approach the operations team for their estimation. So, it is a miscom- munication between bidding and ac- tual contract expectations in reality. At EFS, we implemented these changes early on, and we made sure through our policies that no one can go into an RFP without consulting the operations review. So, as we do the estimations, we make sure to go on-site and determine the real cost. If a certain service is required, we then put a value against it based on the review. Then the pricing will be done by the business development team and secure the contract. Also, the expectations in the contract are sometimes unrea- sonable and hard to keep track of. So, we need to engage with the operations team and explain the feasibility of the contract. Currently, in the industry, the race for contracts leads up to ignoring the end-users, as well as the end-users often don’t know what is in the contract the FM provider has signed with the client. Ultimately, if the end-users are not satisfied, in the loop, they would end up requesting a new tender which leads to loss of business. At EFS, we have experienced great continuity with clients. It shows there is a high retention factor for us due to our business development ethical poli- cies that ensure the consulting with all parties involved. Satinder Singh is the COO of EFS Group. He is a veteran and has been with EFS for the last twenty-one years since its inception. Satinder Singh has extensive experience in electro-mechanical and specialized systems in diverse public & private organizations. In addition, he has over thirty-two years of facilities management experience, including commissioning, operations, transition management processes, condition audits, mobilization in global markets across business verticals like Banking, Integrated Work Place, Healthcare and Aviation. At EFS, Satinder strengthens the organization’s capabilities as a strategic leader, process development and technical expert to enhance overall operations for service excellence. efs.media@efsme.com ABOUT SATINDER SINGH FM GIANTS FACILITY MANAGEMENT INNOVATORS 46 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM
#LNMEforum LOGISTICSNEWSME @LOGISTICSNEWSME LOGISTICS NEWS ME CBNME.COM LOGISTICS FORUM 2022 INNOVATION IN TECHNOLOGY How blockchain, artificial intelligence and IoT is revolutionising the logistics and supply chain industries 1 WAREHOUSING How automation is reinventing the warehousing business and disruptive technologies are allowing warehouses to accommodate the F&B, retail and pharma sectors’ growing requirements. 2 SUPPLY CHAIN WOES The shipping network upended by the pandemic shows no respite – supply chains continue to find itself in a logistics knot, ports face a never-seen-before congestion and shipping rates are yet to fall. What is the solution? 4 SUSTAINABLE MOBILITY Green fuels, sustainable infrastructure and sustainable modes of transport 3 Topics FOR SPEAKING OPPORTUNITIES KASUN ILLANKOON +971 56 135 4769 kasun@bncpublishing.net JOCHEBED MENON +971 55 969 8037 jochebed@bncpublishing.net FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES CLAYTON RODRIGUES +971 50 929 3982 clayton@bncpublishing.net JOAQUIM D’COSTA +971 50 440 2706 jo@bncpublishing.net MARCH 29 FAIRMONT THE PALM
48 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME TALKING POINT S ustainable living spaces are not the calling card of the future anymore; they are the need of the now. Our relationship with living spaces has transformed, and while the desire for the great outdoors has been amplified, most of us have learned to do more from our homes – work, study and unwind. Dependence on our living spaces has increased exponentially, and this new way of living has resulted in everyone spending more time indoors than ever before, leading to homes coming under review for not just their support for wellness and support but also their (often lack of) sustainability credentials. Sustainability measures in living spaces require grave importance to be placed on their environmental footprint, their ecological as well as economic impact on the surrounding communities and natural habitat, and their consideration and contribution towards the wellness of its inhabitants and visitors. Curbing environmental degradation, curtailing carbon emissions, and reducing the depletion of natural resources are compelling concerns that architects, designers, and developers need to prioritize while ideating and developing buildings of all kinds. We need to collectively work towards creating spaces that are carefully designed for communities to have access to lush greenery, open-air spaces, eco-friendly amenities, clean energy utilization, and energy-saving within their reach and as a part of their lifestyle. The Key spot light of 2022 would be focusing on design elements that save water, healthy Air, home automation, maximizing renewable energy and WILL SMARTLY DESIGNED SUSTAINABLE SPACES DEFINE 2022 DESIGN TRENDS? BY YOUSUF FAKHRUDDIN, CEO, FAKHRUDDIN PROPERTIES
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 49 WILL SMARTLY DESIGNED SUSTAINABLE SPACES DEFINE 2022 DESIGN TRENDS? limiting use of plastic to transform city infrastructures making it more sustainable and energy efficient. Around 30% of all of the world’s CO2 emissions are the result of household energy consumption according to a 2019 study. Simple everyday chores such as cooking food, using the thermostat, running the dishwasher and washing machine and many more come together to contribute to this. Therefore, reducing energy consumption in homes through green and smart infrastructure can subsequently and significantly reduce CO2 emissions that are greatly dependent on the energy consumption requirement of various household resources The UAE has been the front runners with the Net-Zero by 2050 strategic initiative, with a nationwide drive aimed at achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, thereby making the United Arab Emirates the first Middle East and North Africa (MENA) nation to do so. UAE’s Net Zero 2050 strategic initiative also aligns with the Paris Agreement that is urging countries to prepare and implement long-term strategies in order to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and control the rise in global temperature, as compared to pre-industrial levels. In addition, much significance is being placed on certifications such as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and WELL (International Well Building Institute) to motivate developers to make the vital shift to sustainable developments and design. In addition, UAE’s 2040 vision of a sustainable development urban plan where innovation will center enhancing the quality of life and sustainable development which means more Green spaces and recreational areas will be developed and are expected to double in size. Home automation or smart homes have stated becoming an integral part of sustainable living. As more products and services have become more accessible and affordable, homeowners are more open to its intelligent integration in property designs that can lead to huge savings – energy, environment, and cost. The sheer ability of home automation designs to increase a home’s energy efficiency, boost security, and enjoy convenient controls at your fingertips has made it a hit amongst the homeowners and tenants alike. Moreover, a lot of Homebuyers and tenants are becoming increasingly conscious of how their lifestyle impacts the environment and are willing to do something about it. We at Fakhruddin Properties, have key focus on the wellbeing and optimization of energy consumptions in our new developments by keeping basic requirements in the forefront, some of the key features being installation of Nasa Technology Air Purification systems, home automation solutions monitoring the wellbeing and ambience of the homeowner by optimizing energy consumption costs. Smart and Energy efficient homes have long term positive impact on every stakeholder in developing and implementing Sustainable Strategies towards a regenerative future while there may be an initial setup cost involved. The wins with energy-efficient practices are plenty – green designs aren’t just about monitoring and control; they also offer incredible luxury and convenience. Buildings have been catalysts for change for centuries now, and without sustainable architecture, we cannot possibly create a positive environment for people or an environmentally minded community. Real estate holds the real power to shape the face of an urban sustainable environment and a community that functions in harmony with nature, putting sustainability at the top. At Fakhruddin properties our future developments will be based around developing a sustainable home and a refreshing lifestyle for our homeowners. “Home automation or smart homes have stated becoming an integral part of sustainable living. As more products and services have become more accessible and affordable, homeowners are more open to its intelligent integration in property designs that can lead to huge savings – energy, environment, and cost.”
50 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME TECHNOLOGY O ur building’s function much like a human body – they are complex ecosystems, comprised of diverse subsystems that must work in harmony to create safe and comfortable indoor environments. Just like a heart pumps blood around the human body, HVAC pumps are central to powering the smooth operation of building facilities. Pumps may remain out of sight, however, they are deeply linked to supporting human life in buildings. They are responsible for the supply and transport of water for heating and cooling throughout a building, helping to create indoor spaces that support occupant health and sustainability. While they are integral to the seamless operation of a building, pumps and related HVAC systems also account for a significant amount of energy consumption. Currently, building facilities account for an estimated 40% of all energy usage in our cities, and a similar proportion of greenhouse gas emissions. Global energy demands are projected only to rise, predicted to grow by 55% in the next ten years. In the Middle East in particular, energy consumption has grown faster than GDP since 1980 and continues to rise today. Given the region’s future energy demands, now is the perfect time for countries in the Middle East to adopt solutions that improve energy efficiency, and ultimately to reduce the region’s carbon footprint. This approach also supports wider national strategies for sustainability. The UAE, for example, has outlined a strategy to reduce carbon footprint by 70% by 2050. Innovative pumping technology can make a true difference when it comes to improving energy efficiency, consequently reducing energy consumption, and saving costs. For HVAC systems, approximately 5% of the lifetime carbon footprint can be traced to the manufacturing of components. The other 95% comes from energy usage during the operating life of the equipment. Evidently, improving performance deficiencies that arise during operation is the key to enhancing energy efficiency. Furthermore, HVAC and plumbing systems operate highly efficiently when first installed. However, over time, system efficiency ‘drifts’ away from the original levels of performance. This is known as performance drift, which PUMPS: YOUR ANSWER TO SAFER, STRONGER SPACES BY KEVIN LAIDLER, SALES DIRECTOR, MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA, ARMSTRONG FLUID TECHNOLOGY
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 51 PUMPS: YOUR ANSWER TO SAFER, STRONGER SPACES ultimately leads to energy waste, high operating costs and more greenhouse gas emissions. As performance drift ensues, system performance deteriorates, which may also result in more failures or reduced comfort for occupants. The key is improving these performance deficiencies by reversing and preventing the loss of energy efficiency. Buildings today often operate below their optimal efficiency because facility managers lack the time or tools to collect, analyze and evaluate data from their cooling system. Without data, or the ability to analyze it, managers cannot properly optimize the systems. In my experience with Armstrong Fluid Technology, the most significant opportunity to improve a building’s energy efficiency lies in our choice of HVAC and plumbing systems. Selecting the right smart systems is key to creating a high-performing building that better supports sustainability. In the last decade, technology for HVAC systems has been improved, combining high performance with intelligent energy management, to deliver up to 70% energy efficiency savings compared to traditional systems. For example, variable speed pumps, such as Armstrong Design Envelope Pumps, are an effective solution to optimize system performance. These pumps respond to real-time system conditions to dynamically adjust equipment operation and match system demand. So the heart of your system now has a brain. The result is highly efficient systems that deliver substantial energy savings and costs compared to conventional fixed speed pumps. These pumps not only reduce the carbon footprint through their lifetime, but also during installation, as the pumps can be mounted in the pipeline, regardless of size, as they do not require the inertia concrete bases. These smart pumps can be integrated with Active Performance Management systems, like our Pump Manager solution, that enables pump performance to adjust and reduce the impact of performance drift. Innovations such as these enable pumps to operate at optimum levels based on demand to consume as little energy as possible. They also help enable condition-based maintenance, providing real time alerts when they detect issues, allowing for early detection to prevent failures and service disruptions. The truth is every building has a role to play in supporting sustainable development. HVAC systems account for 35% of total building consumption, revealing the important role they play in the ecosystem of our buildings. The reason building operators may hesitate to upgrade is because more sophisticated systems require investment. However, the returns from using more efficient systems are impressive. Simple payback on energy upgrade projects is typically reached within 3 to 5 years. Furthermore, the energy and carbon savings continue for the life of the system. Properly executed energy upgrades deliver up to 40% savings on energy consumption related to HVAC operation. If we embrace innovative energy saving solutions in the building services industry, then we can begin to make a difference. Employing systems with the in-built capability to optimise energy efficiency is extremely beneficial for creating indoor spaces that will support occupants and our planet for generations to come. “IN MY EXPERIENCE WITH ARMSTRONG FLUID TECHNOLOGY, THE MOST SIGNIFICANT OPPORTUNITY TO IMPROVE A BUILDING’S ENERGY EFFICIENCY LIES IN OUR CHOICE OF HVAC AND PLUMBING SYSTEMS. SELECTING THE RIGHT SMART SYSTEMS IS KEY TO CREATING A HIGH- PERFORMING BUILDING THAT BETTER SUPPORTS SUSTAINABILITY.”
52 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME BRAND BUILDING Main Role…. “My main role has always been the same, sourcing dynamic, top-quality marble from all around the world while maintaining the best prices. Natural stones can be quite deceptive for the end user, and our job is to source and stock the best options,” he adds. In addition, he supervises, monitors imports, and uncovers the best value for investment on behalf of the clients using only the best expertise, network, and resources. How it all started…. At the onset of his entrepreneurial journey, Punia notes that the marble and granite industry did not really evolve much until 2002, or 2003. The stone market was limited to a few Italian marbles and some granites, there really wasn’t much variety in what people were stocking in the UAE. During the real GLAZE Granite & Marble CEO UMESH PUNIA discusses his entrepreneurial journey, the brand's unique offerings, and exciting future plans Driven Passion by “MARBLE HAS ALWAYS BEEN AND WILL ALWAYS REMAIN THE MOST DEFINITIVE DECLARATION OF LUXURY IN ANY BUILDING, YOU CAN’T MAKE A MONUMENT WITHOUT MARBLE.’’ A pioneer in the region’s marble industry for over two and a half decades, GLAZE Granite & Marble CEO, Umesh Punia, has elevated the natural stone industry by offer- ing a rich narrative of the timeless charm of marble, and an even richer experience to its clients hoping to transform their living spaces.
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 53 estate boom in the early 2000’s he witnessed a great demand which also drew in countless architects and designers from London, Singapore, Hong Kong, New York, and all over. They were looking for those special and exotic stones that were usually reserved for only the most exclusive projects around the world for the new developments in Dubai. That’s when the market then began to evolve. So much continues to evolve to this day. Trend tracker and trendsetter In having kept a discerning view on what’s trending in the flooring, cladding and countertop market for over twenty-six years, Punia has made marble his passion. Discovering new and quality marble has always been more of an obsession than a livelihood. “When I started traveling to Italy in the late 90’s, visiting the world’s most important stone galleries, I was fascinated and excited every time I stumbled upon a new exotic stone. I would jump at the chance to learn its origin, source, chemical composition, and I eagerly studied its grain size, texture, hardness, polishing degree, so that I could add it to my own growing collection. The greatest passion in my work is adding more and more better- quality marble to our stone gallery. This passion is the biggest reason why we have the largest collection of stones in the world and not just in the Middle East.” Connoisseur's collection Marble offers an incomparable luxury that holds the power to elevate the aesthetics of any room. Like a Hermes bag or a Rolex watch - it is a statement, a declaration of success, an arrival. “Marble is no less of an investment than a gemstone stone from a reputable jewellery house. You must understand, people don’t buy marble as a basic necessity, people invest in marble for their home or office for future generations to marvel upon.” A well-known connoisseur will certainly not settle for cheap ceramic flooring. He or she looks for splendour and magnificence spilling out of each corner in the room, including the flooring. Marble does just that. It adds grandeur and opulence. This is why marble has stood the test of time and its beauty will never diminish. State-of the-art stone gallery Over the years, Punia has been one of the frontrunners in changing the way marble and other natural stones are sold in the UAE. Years ago, marble was kept in open dusty yards, like any ordinary construction or masonry stones. GLAZE conceptualised marble from a totally different perspective. When i saw the way marble was displayed and showcased in the PUMPS: YOUR ANSWER TO SAFER, STRONGER SPACES Glaze boasts the only State of the Art stone facility and gallery in the Middle East. Customers can walk through the stone gallery to experience the intricacies of the exact product that will end up in their floors, homes or offices. Owing to the UAE's visionary leadership and business-friendly reforms, Mr. Punia affirms that the UAE is the perfect place for businesses to thrive and grow. Having started from ground up, Glaze, today prides itself on having a clear vision for its global clientele and offers an everlasting experience with unparalleled level of attention to detail. >>>
54 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME BRAND BUILDING top galleries in Europe, I was mes- merized and inspired. Moreover, this attitude translated into all aspects of the business, not only hand picking the best stones from every corner of the world, but also the way we showcased and dis- played these materials in our stone gallery, with exceptional training provided to our sales team. We feel proud that today the quality of natural stone in the UAE, not only in our gallery but in that of some of our competitors as well, is far ahead of other GCC countries and the Middle East as a whole. Initial- ly, people were surprised that we were trying to sell stone as a lux- ury product, and my answer has always been the same - why not? You spend millions to buy quality cars, furnishings, or artwork for your home, why not on the floor which you use much more than your Ferrari? Understanding the value of these stones radically changed the way the marble business and its trade takes place in the UAE. I consider this as my biggest accomplishment and con- tribution to the industry." ‘Experiential gallery’ conceptual- ised for customers The Glaze gallery is not just a beautiful building and a clean space. It's an experience. Wheth- er it’s the layman, or a specifier for an architectural studio, sit- ting in an office, you can’t really grasp the intricacies of a natural stone. When any designer, home- owner, or contractor walks into the Glaze gallery, they see and appreciate what makes every stone unique. All stones may be beautiful in their own right, but to select the exactly perfect shade that fits with the design concept of a space is a difficult task. “Our clients always remark that it would have been a mistake to not walk through the gallery, a s nature’s designs are simply irre- sistible. For us, it was so impor- tant to create the right ambience and environment where people can appreciate our greatest pas- sion.” Unique offerings creating a busi- ness niche Glaze has collaborations with top brands like Neolith, Caesarstone, Coante, ARIOSTEA, KoZo, and GEOLUXE. It also possesses ex- clusive agreements with top quar- ries in Italy, Spain, Turkey, Greece and Brazil. This allows a continu- ous flow of material and exclusive access to the very best collections. Glaze’s huge inventory, the great- est in the Middle East allows the team to deliver immediately for projects of any scale. What’s next Glaze’s willingness to conceptual- ise marble from a totally different perspective has been the driving force for growth. The manage- ment is looking forward to the new stone gallery opening in Abu Dhabi, in ICAD Mussafah. This will build avenues to adding new natural stones, as well as engineered stones to the collection from different parts of the world. “After more than two decades in the industry, we can really guarantee that we are sourcing the best selections for our clients from every corner of the world in our state-of-the-art facilities”, he added. With over 400 unique options available, Glaze provides customers with the most expansive range of natural stones. Rare and exotic stones like Amazonite are only available at Glaze through their exclusive agreements with top quarries around the world.
56 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME INTERVIEW What brought you out to the Middle East? I was contracted to supply staff in the UAE to a client 15 years ago. This then spawned into working with Etihad Airways and several other major aerospace and engineering clients. We grew with those clients and in some cases we became their H.R. department carrying out all of the client’s recruitment, which we still do for many large clients today. What are some sectors that you’re looking to get into? One of the reasons for VHR’s success over the years has been that our main focus has been on our sectors and clients. We do not wish to dilute that focus as we pride ourselves on being a specialist recruitment agency. Based on the transferable skills and the fact our clients are expanding into these areas, we are looking at expanding our renewable energy sector and are also developing our science and technology sectors. We are looking to expand within our existing sectors and solutions, such as offering contract staffing solutions in Saudi Arabia and the wider GCC, plus ground up expansion into North America. Shed some light on the business in the UAE and how you scout for the best talent in the market? The main sectors that VHR focuses on in the UAE are Construction/Civil Engineering & Defence/Aerospace. We work with large subcontractors on projects such as One Zabeel, Sea World and several other projects across the region. The big push is now on Saudi Arabia, there’s a lot of work going on, particularly with the Red Sea developments. The UAE and indeed the wider GCC are markets that people want to work in, so often the key is not “finding” people but identifying who is the best fit for our client. VHR’s experienced teams and sector focus mean that we know what good looks like, and can ensure we deliver the right people to the clients. FILLING IN THE GAP VIRTUAL HUMAN RESOURCES (VHR) IS EXPANDING IN THE REGION. JOCHEBED MENON SPEAKS TO THE TEAM AND LEARNS ABOUT THE NEW SECTORS AND MARKETS THEY ARE FORAYING INTO AND HOW ETHICAL RECRUITMENT IS CRUCIAL TO THEIR OPERATIONS DANNY BROOKS CEO and Founder of VHR
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 57 FILLING IN THE GAP | VHR IS EXPANDING IN THE REGION What have been some of the challenges VHR encounters in the region? By far the biggest challenge remains the challenge to get paid on time and as per contract, I am sure this is not unusual to VHR. As VHR provides its own staff to clients, the risks are higher on VHR more than “traditional” recruitment companies who source staff for client’s permanent teams. We must pay staff each month by law, yet clients can and do take increasing times to pay us. COVID travel issues have meant that the labour pool has been quite stretched inside of the UAE. However, you can bring people in on a tourist visa and turn them into an employment visa, which we have done. I think one of the initiatives that we have adopted successfully over the year is creating our talent through VHR’s tailored programs. Ethics is still a big issue. There remains several companies who are prepared to offer “free recruitment” to end users. The issue being, the staff sourced are the ones who are “paying” for the jobs. Nothing in life is free and the fact that those at the lowest level are paying for a chance for work in some areas is worrying. At VHR, we pride ourselves on being an ethical recruitment firm. This is at the front and centre of everything we do, and we make sure all the workers are treated fairly. The staff receive good living accommodation, working arrangements, and get paid well. Walk us through your recruitment process. Each client has their own individual process, and we work hand in hand with them to ensure that our solution is seamless. As a general overview, our experienced teams technically qualify the individuals via interviews and tests. Once that’s been passed, we will then vet their CV to check their employment histories and qualifications, carrying out references as appropriate. The final list is then submitted for review by the client with final interviews and tests. What’s changed since you joined VHR? When I joined VHR, our focus was on aerospace & aviation, and we then expanded to construction, alongside a few other areas. In the past four years, we have broadened our focus here in the GCC which has been a good challenge for us. VHR has been in the UAE since 2006, but as part of the programme to set up in Abu Dhabi, we took our business “on shore” so that we can sponsor unlimited licenses. This sets us apart from most of our competition who are still operating from freezones and can only really offer partial solutions to clients. Being here for so long and having become part of the true UAE economy has set us apart over the last few years. Why is there a need for a recruitment agency, especially in the construction sector? There are two main advantages; flexibility and time – an agency can offer you the ability to save time reviewing the hundreds of applications you may get for a role and focus on speaking to just the two or three who can meet your needs. >>> ADRIAN MANSFIELD Divisional Direct for the Middle East, VHR Danny Brooks, CEO and Founder of VHR Adrian Mansfield, Divisional Direct for the Middle East, VHR “COVID TRAVEL ISSUES HAVE MEANT THAT THE LABOUR POOL HAS BEEN QUITE STRETCHED INSIDE OF THE UAE. HOWEVER, YOU CAN BRING PEOPLE IN ON A TOURIST VISA AND TURN THEM INTO AN EMPLOYMENT VISA, WHICH WE HAVE DONE.”
58 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME INTERVIEW Flexibility is not something all agencies can offer, but one that VHR can offer. In many of our locations our clients crave flexible staffing. Most of our clients work on projects and those projects have a timeframe. In the GCC the same is true, but the only way to meet the visa needs was to bring staff on permanently. This can lead to large swings in staffing numbers and lots of risks and time lost for clients. VHR has solved that issue. VHR provide flexible labour support at all levels, not just “blue collar”. We supply manpower to all levels of the construction space here in the region. We are unique because we “employ” that flexible labour force, then we offer clients the ability to bring people in for a project for six or nine months, and then we place them somewhere else. The costs and risks for the client are limited and known at the outset. From a client’s perspective, they get the quality labour they need for a project. They don’t have to worry about releasing a whole load of people at the end of that project and putting them back into the market for work. Possibly as important, if not more so, the labour/staff get stability, a full visa with us and full employment status. They get their salary every month, whether they’re working on a project or not. We cover all those bits and pieces, so they get that stability of work. Can we talk about ethical labour standards especially in the engineering and construction fields in the Middle East? One of the big issues here in the Gulf is the cost of getting an employment visa and travel. There remains far too many agencies and clients who are willing to pass that cost on to the workforce and therefore leave that workforce carrying a debt burden before they have started work. As I’ve said before nothing is free and if you as a client aren’t sure who is paying for the flights and visa then ask the agency. If it’s not you and/ or the agency don’t show it as part of their fees, then it’s going to be the worker. It’s incredibly difficult for any worker to get out of that debt because you’re telling somebody that you’re going to get Dhs2000 or Dhs3000 per month as a salary, and it costs them USD10,000, or perhaps Dhs50,000 to get here in the first place. They’re simply never going to pay that debt off. I have always been an advocate for Ethical Practices and as Director of VHR I was part of the formation of the Fair Labour Alliance that works with clients to help educate on the benefits of ethical labour supply. VHR offer all our staff free recruitment and we would not work with a client that expected the staff to pay for their roles. Thus, with VHR, staff never have to worry about getting into debt just to get a job. We cover it all. The companies we work with are very much of the opinion that everything should be free to the employee. The staff don’t need to pay for everything. The whole salary goes to them without any deductions for visas or travel. When it comes to working conditions, we work very closely with our clients to ensure the individuals we supply have proper accommodation and it’s of a suitable standard. Unfortunately, there have been a few contractors in the region’s construction sector that have had bad work camps. We know where the good camps are, we know where the good locations are, and we help our labour and workers find the best accommodation. But equally, we work with employers and know which are the better ones. What is your recruitment agency doing to lift the labour standards in the region? We’ve got two major factors that we try and focus on. First is emphasising the benefits of ethical recruitment to the workers and our clients. If you’re paying a good fee for quality labour on the delivery of a big project, the result will be excellent for both the worker and the client. “WHEN IT COMES TO WORKING CONDITIONS, WE WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH OUR CLIENTS TO ENSURE THE INDIVIDUALS WE SUPPLY HAVE PROPER ACCOMMODATION AND IT’S OF A SUITABLE STANDARD.”
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 59 After all you wouldn’t buy an expensive car and then fit it with poor tyres or put bad gas in it. Why would you staff a project with staff who are so burdened by debt they simply aren’t focused on your project? Likewise, staff treated well and paid a fair wage (free of debt), can see how they are help themselves and their families. That leads to our clients getting a motivated and committed workforce. The second is for us to ensure we are working closely with our clients to make sure that they are abiding by local labour laws. We ensure that we have access to the project leaders and our staff and review this regularly. So, if there’s ever an issue or a problem, we could try and resolve that as quickly as possible. We have in the past, not very often, but we have had to act against clients. We’ve taken people off projects for certain clients because we didn’t feel their working practices were right, and that again goes back to flexibility from the point of view of the candidate. Tell us about your role at VHR. I joined VHR in September 2020. I’ve been here in the UAE since 1999 and have worked on various major construction projects including the Dubai Airport, Abu Dhabi Midfield Terminal, and several high-rise buildings. I’ve been involved in most of the mega projects in one way or another. In my current role at VHR, I manage the Middle East in terms of moving VHR forward in mobilising staff to various construction projects within the region. With your vast experience in the Middle East construction sector, please talk us through some of the new trends in the construction industry. A lot of recent trends have been in relation to bring in the most modern techniques to the UAE construction sector. The implementation of things such as BIM systems have been put into place on all major projects, especially on the modelling side, increasing use of technologies on site, now even down to the supervisor levels. Now everybody used iPads and laptops on-site with live modelling of the areas they are responsible for. Long gone are the days of paper-based systems and manual drawings. It means that we’ve got far better coordination of the services on a project and far better coordination between the different disciplines. How is this impacting recruitment? It means that the technical aspects are very much becoming more prevalent. It’s great to be a degreed engineer, but you need to be on board with the latest technologies moving forward. Tell us why the construction sector requires the services of a recruitment agency. Historically what has happened is companies have tended to hire directly and the costs involved with the onboarding side of things such as getting the visas and other details have been quite high. We, as VHR, employ the people ourselves. We bring them in on our visas. We take care of all the onboarding, and we then lease out the staff to our various clients. This means we can cut down the recruitment time substantially. Often this would take clients six to 12 weeks, whereas VHR can deliver qualified staff to site in days not weeks. We provide, in a lot of cases, accommodation for the staff. All of that is built into our tailor-made packages. We take care of the entire process of getting somebody either internally within the GCC, onboard, on the ground and ready to work. This is the reason that our services are very well received, it’s a very clean and simple process. There is no doubt that the person who arrives on the site has all the legal requirements with regards to labour law and work visa, and they get straight to work. Another advantage is that when the projects end the process of removing staff from the site is very simple. They just send us written notifications and the people are removed from the site. After which we place them on other projects that we may have. We work with some of the biggest construction and project management companies in the GCC. We are looking at expanding our work in 2022 and increasing the footprint for our flexible solutions to cover the whole of the GCC, especially Saudi Arabia. What have been some of the challenges the pandemic brought about? The inability to travel has posed a bit of a challenge. People are not as keen to travel. They feel more secure in their home bases. I believe this will be a short-term issue. It seems that the world is certainly getting to grips with the pandemic now. It’s opening again for business worldwide. Some countries are further ahead than others, but I think that probably by the end of the second quarter of next year, I wouldn’t dare say that the pandemic will be finished, but it won’t be a pandemic per se. STEPHEN GRISDALE General Manager - Construction Stephen Grisdale, General Manager - Construction FILLING IN THE GAP | VHR IS EXPANDING IN THE REGION
60 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CONTINUOUS GROWTH CBNME TRUCKS U D Trucks has announced sales growth in the MEENA (Middle East, East and North Africa) region of approximately 30 percent in 2021, continuing an upwards trend for the brand, which had experienced 6 per- cent growth in the previous year. The Japanese commercial vehicle manufacturer recorded an increase in sales in most markets, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan and a number of countries in East Africa. UD Trucks’ flagship market, Bahrain, saw an increase of around 40 percent, reinforcing the brand’s number one status in the country. The trucks brand also saw an increase in sales by about 30 percent in Qatar. Sales also grew in Saudi Arabia, which is UD Trucks’ biggest market by volume, by 24 percent. The United Arab Emirates, which hosted the regional launch of the brand’s Euro 5 models, registered an increase of 22 percent compared to 2020. Outside the Middle East, UD Trucks earned positive traction in Pakistan where it enjoyed an impressive year. Similarly, the brand registered significant growth in East Africa in 2021, where a number of strategic deals for both heavy-duty and medium-duty trucks were signed off, de- spite the challenging business climate. The growth came as a result of a fantas- tic collaboration and coordinated effort by UD Trucks and its partners through- out the region and their joint focus on supporting UD customers. The brand’s well-built and robust products, the intro- duction of the Euro 5 range and upgrades to the Euro 3 line-up, a strong retail net- work and partnerships, and the impact of its ‘Better Life’ strategy, have all played significant roles in the company’s success. UD Trucks’ widest-ever range, which covers almost all segments in the heavy- duty and medium-duty truck sector, and the nature of the brand’s product portfo- UD Trucks announces exceptional growth across the MENA region in 2021
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 61 CONTINUOUS GROWTH | UD TRUCKS lio have also been crucial factors in this growth. The range has been developed to meet the market’s needs by covering all key segments in the industry. UD Trucks’ focus of launching new trucks that will enhance profitability for customers by lowering the total cost of ownership has also been crucial. An important factor in the Japanese brand’s expansion has been the introduc- tion of upgraded Euro 3 models as well as the brand’s new Euro 5 range of its popular Quester and Croner trucks. The launch of the Euro 5 models is a result of UD Trucks’ strategic vision and objective to ensure peace-of-mind for its customers by allowing them to better prepare for running more environmentally-friendly fleets as new regulations are introduced across the fast-developing region. The new range reduces NOx emissions by about 43 percent compared to Euro 4 models, while providing an enhanced driving experience and safety. The up- grades to the Euro 3 trucks are centred around creating a more driver-centric experience. They receive similar upgrades to the Euro 5 range, including a new instrument cluster, the ESCOT auto- mated manual transmission, body builder module and the UD Trucks Telematics Services. Another factor in the brand’s growth is its exceptional regional retail network. Their commitment to providing and de- livering the highest quality customer ser- vice and aftersales support is supported by comprehensive warranty offers and readily available spare parts, which prior- itise the smooth operation of customers’ businesses. UD Trucks’ Telematics servic- es allow its customers and retail partners to follow the trucks’ performances over time, creating a closer relationship with the brand’s customers. 2021 was also the year that saw UD Trucks implement its ‘Better Life’ strategy. The strategy has allowed the truck brand to demonstrate its commitment to providing sustainable logistics solutions and to delivering a better life for both people and the planet. This strategy reflects UD Trucks’ objective to becoming a Japanese leader of sustainability in the industry. Mourad Hedna, President of UD Trucks MEENA, commented: “The resilience our brand showed in 2020, built around a consistent and comprehensive strategy and supported by our strong regional partners, provided a solid platform for us to build on in 2021. Registering about a 30 percent sales increase in one year is a remarkable feat. I am grateful to the UD Trucks MEENA team, our customers, partners, and stakeholders throughout the region for their hard work and dedi- cation. Together, we look forward to an- other positive year as we continue on our path to become a sustainability leader.” > UD Trucks registered sales increase of around 30% in the MEENA region > Qatar ranked first in growth followed by Bahrain and Saudi Arabia > Saudi Arabia remains UD Trucks’ biggest market in the region > Introduction of Euro 5 products, upgrades to Euro 3 models, strong retailer network and ‘Better Life’ strategy played key roles in the growth Mourad Hedna, UD Trucks MEENA President
62 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME MACHINERY F eaturing zero hydraulics to help eliminate job site leaks and zero emissions to help control job site pollution, this 19-ft (5.79 m) scissor lift is purpose-built for applications where stringent environmental regulations must be met. Every component on the DaVinci scissor is fully optimized, including the control, lift, drive and steering systems, to reduce the machine’s energy consumption by up to 70% as compared to a traditional scissor lift. This reduced energy consumption allows for the use of a single, lithium ion battery. “The DaVinci AE1932 scissor lift represents the next generation of electrification,” says Shashank Bhatia, senior director of engineering for MEWPs at JLG. “While there is no shortage of battery-powered or electric scissor lifts on the market today, these other models continue to include hydraulic cylinders for actuation, which require hydraulic oil for operation, leaving the possibility open for messy leaks on sensitive job sites. JLG continues to push the envelope in innovation around the entire construction ecosystem, from our rental partners to job sites. This new JLG all-electric machine unlocks new possibilities and applications where these types of machines could not be used in the past due to concerns surrounding leaks.” Control System DaVinci™ lifts use a distributed architecture where each system (lift, drive and steer) is connected independently, helping reduce voltage drops and latency, ELEVATING THE ACCESS INDUSTRY JLG INDUSTRIES, INC., AN OSHKOSH CORPORATION COMPANY, AND LEADING GLOBAL MANUFACTURER OF MOBILE ELEVATING WORK PLATFORMS (MEWPS) AND TELEHANDLERS, ELEVATES THE ACCESS INDUSTRY ONCE AGAIN WITH ITS NOW AVAILABLE ALL-ELECTRIC DAVINCI™AE1932 SCISSOR LIFT.
CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 | 63 ELEVATING THE ACCESS INDUSTRY | JLG INDUSTRIES INC. while enabling the control system on the scissor to connect and communicate directly with each system. Because the control system is fully connected to the entire machine, the DaVinci scissor can transmit data back to operators, fleet managers and service technicians via Bluetooth and cellular networks. This sets the stage for new features like the DaVinciGo app. This app provides real-time machine health and battery status information and the ability for service technicians to perform remote diagnostics and push over-the-air software updates. Drive System The drive system on the all-electric DaVinci lift has permanent magnets which generate torque and create motion to spin the motor. It is estimated that permanent magnet performance can increase the efficiency of a motor by up to 20-30% on average. Motors with permanent magnets have a long life and require zero serviceability. Steer System For smooth operation, the independent controllers of the DaVinci lift’s steering system are designed to help reduce tire scrubbing on job sites, which helps control tire wear and limits damage to sensitive flooring. The AE1932’s intuitive steering system allows DaVinci lift operators to easily maneuver the machine into and around, narrow-access and space-restricted areas to get work done where it’s needed. Lift System The lift system on the new DaVinci scissor lift is designed with an electromechanical lift actuator, replacing the hydraulic cylinder design of traditional electric scissor lifts. Since there are no hydraulics, the AE1932 does not leak, which means it can be used without diapers. “The simplified design makes the AE1932 noticeably different when working at height,” says Nunez. “Traditional battery-powered lifts have hoses routed throughout the scissor stack, whereas the DaVinci lift has no hoses for a clean, modern appearance with significantly reduced maintenance and service requirements.” Furthermore, the DaVinci scissor lift system is engineered to recover energy as the platform descends, sending it back to the battery to help maximize use between charges. Battery System DaVinci lifts can be fully charged in as little as 3-1/2 hours, increasing its utilization throughout the workday as compared to traditional electric powered lifts that require up to 3 times longer to charge. For additional productivity gains, the system can also be opportunity charged in 5 minutes or less for 100 ft (30.48 m) of drive, plus enough torque for loading. >>> “TRADITIONAL BATTERY- POWERED LIFTS HAVE HOSES ROUTED THROUGHOUT THE SCISSOR STACK, WHEREAS THE DAVINCI LIFT HAS NO HOSES FOR A CLEAN, MODERN APPEARANCE WITH SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED MAINTENANCE AND SERVICE REQUIREMENTS.”
64 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM CBNME ENERGY The DaVinci lift’s lithium-ion battery can last up to 10-years, which means that the battery should not need to be replaced, and requires no maintenance, throughout the entire design-life of the scissor lift. In addition, the DaVinci lift features an advanced battery management system that monitors the machine’s charge and usage, while providing detailed diagnostic information about the battery and charge systems via the DavinciGo App. Performance Specs The all-electric DaVinci AE1932 scissor lift answers the industry’s expectation for performance and productivity in 19-ft (5.79 m) scissor lifts, including an indoor/outdoor 606 lb (275 kg) capacity rating. The DaVinci AE1932 lift has a 4-mph (0.80 km) travel speed, which is up to 2x faster than a traditional scissor lift. This enables the machine to move quickly around job sites. Another productivity enhancing feature is progressive elevated drive speed. This function slows the unit down as its elevated, instead of defaulting to 0.5 mph like a standard scissor lift, a JLG industry first. The machine has a compact footprint, weighs 3,450-lbs (1,564.89 kg) and 25% gradeability. DaVinci lifts also comply with the latest ANSI and CSA industry standards, featuring a load sensing system, self- closing gate and the JLG QuikFold rail system. It comes standard with JLG™ Mobile Control, allowing users to drive, steer and load the scissor lift from any iOS or Android mobile device. “With its productivity features for end-users, the DaVinci AE1932 scissor lift sets a new benchmark in the industry for both performance and maintenance,” says Nunez. “WITH ITS PRODUCTIVITY FEATURES FOR END-USERS, THE DAVINCI AE1932 SCISSOR LIFT SETS A NEW BENCHMARK IN THE INDUSTRY FOR BOTH PERFORMANCE AND MAINTENANCE.”
66 | CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS NEWS ME | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 WWW.CBNME.COM D oha Oasis exhibits the typical challenges associated with rapid urbanization. These include ensuring the highest possible transportation capacity as well as maximum energy efficiency and space utilization. TK Elevator is meeting these requirements – among other things – with two TWIN elevator systems, the only elevators with two cabins operating independently in one single shaft. They have lower energy requirements and allow faster passenger transportation. TWIN can move up to 40 percent more passengers than conventional elevators. Due to a smaller number of shafts, TWIN occupies up to 50 percent less space. This creates additional commercial usable area and offers architects greater design freedom. Peter Walker, CEO at TK Elevator, says: “With our solutions specially adapted to the needs of Doha Oasis, we offer all passengers a smooth, safe and comfortable mobility experience, and operators the best possible building utilization. TK Elevator stands for German engineering excellence and thus for quality, innovation, and efficiency. Doha Oasis perfectly showcases the possibilities our sophisticated technologies offer – in commercial and planning terms, as well as with regard to user experience.” Doha Oasis is in the heart of Doha, the capital of Qatar. The mixed-use project with a total construction area of 470,000 square meters includes a 28-storey, 7-star hotel tower with 245 luxury residential apartments, penthouses, and numerous stores. In addition, this development encompasses the first indoor amusement theme park in Qatar. CBNME SUSTAINABLE MOBILITY TK ELEVATOR ENSURES COMFORTABLE AND SUSTAINABLE MOBILITY IN DOHA OASIS TK ELEVATOR MAKES A SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE UNIQUE RESIDENTIAL, COMMERCIAL AND MALL COMPLEX, DOHA OASIS IN QATAR. WITH MORE THAN 170 TRANSPORT SYSTEMS, THE COMPANY PROVIDES MAXIMUM INDOOR MOBILITY EFFICIENTLY, SAFELY, AND COMFORTABLY
Your go to delivery solution! Introducing New Renault Duster Cargo An efficient, reliable & modern fleet solution This is a first-of-its-kind Cargo SUV model which is now available across Al Masaood Automobile , Renault showrooms in Abu Dhabi & Al Ain. Bluetooth Automatic Transmission Fuel Efficiency Cruise control with speed limiter ½ a ton boot capacity Call us at 800 300 500 to place an enquiry Or visit our website https://abudhabi.renault.ae/DusterCargo.html
NEW IVECO S-WAY: HIGH TECHNOLOGY AND EFFICIENCY FOR ON-ROAD MISSIONS The new IVECO S-WAY, with a completely redesigned and reinforced cab, offers a wide choice of Euro III/V diesel engines, a delivering class-leading power from 360 HP to 560 HP Euro III / 570 HP Euro V and superior fuel-saving devices, such as anti-idling feature, Ecoswitch, Ecoroll and Smart Alternator. 12-speed HI-TRONIX automated transmission with the most advanced technology in its category, electronic clutch and best-in-class torque-to-weight ratio. NEW IVECO T-WAY: HIGH PRODUCTIVITY AND SAFETY ON OFF-ROAD TERRAINS With a complete line-up of AWD and PWD versions and the the 16-speed HI-TRONIX automated gearbox, the IVECO T-WAY features a host of functionalities such as Rocking Mode, Off-road Mode, Creeping Mode and 4 reverse gears to tackle with ease the toughest off-road conditions. The new architecture of the EBS system, combined with disc brakes on all wheels, greatly improves the vehicle’s performance and the driver’s safety in the most demanding applications. DRIVE THE NEW WAY