Event Review

Construction Intel Summit – KSA debuts in Riyadh

Big Project ME recaps the inaugural live event of the Summit, which was held at the Al Faisaliah Hotel on November 23, 2022, and saw more than 120 attendees join in for a day of discussion and knowledge sharing

The first-ever Construction Intel Summit – KSA to be held live in Riyadh concluded on November 23, 2022, at the Al Faisaliah Hotel.

Focusing on three key themes: Visionary Designs: Design Considerations and Procurement Strategies to achieve Vision 2030; Project Interfaces: Integrating Multiple Contract Packages and Sequencing Workflows on the Kingdom’s Megaprojects; and Enabling Saudisation: Providing Pathways of Growth and Development to Saudi Construction Professionals, the summit saw a strong turnout on an unexpected public holiday, with well over a hundred and twenty attendees attending with the hope of connecting with the panellists and presenters on stage.

Following a welcome address by Gavin Davids, Head of Editorial and Content at Big Project ME, the day-long event was kicked off by Joe Tabet, the Managing Director of JT+Partners. He set the theme for the following sessions by outlining the scope of the Kingdom’s ambitions, highlighting the opportunities and possibilities that Vision 2030 would bring, and what the construction sector needs to do to be better prepared for the coming economic and societal changes.

Rachel Willacy, Regional Head of Procurement at Compass Project Consulting then led a panel consisting of Daniel Orti, Middle East Director of ACCIONA Cultura; Clive De Villiers, Managing Director of C-Quest International; Sean Doherty, Head of Project and Program Management MEA at JLL; and Min Lee, Architecture Director at Red Sea Global, in a conversation about how people and companies can help bring Vision 2030 to life.

This panel outlined the many challenges facing the Kingdom’s supply chain as it looks to deliver Vision 2030 and the many projects fuelling the transformation of Saudi Arabia’s economy and society. Amongst the topics discussed were capability constraints, resolution of legacy issues around capital and cashflow, and coping with increasing price pressures.

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“I was joined by significant players from across every facet of the built environment, including developers, consultants, and contractors. Their expertise spanned procurement, cost and commercial management, architecture, and design development, through to programme delivery and construction management,” Willacy said.

“The widespread and far-reaching discussion offered considerations, insights and vital lessons learned when developing giga projects at scale, pace and against a challenging global backdrop. Some of the key challenges explored by this panel included human-centric design, alternative procurement strategies attraction of young talent, fasttrack becoming the norm, modern methods of construction, and the global geopolitical landscape.

“The exploration of humancentric design means that there is a requirement for developers to think strategically, engage more holistically, and embed the endcustomer in design decisions,” she added. “Alternative procurement strategies also enable early contractor involvement to consider constructability, value engineering, and supply chain innovations.”

Hervé Hamelin, General Manager International for Kairnial, and Dhawal Armarkar, Regional Manager – Middle East, for Techture, then followed up with presentations on their respective companies and technology offerings. Hamelin focused on the importance of on-site quality and compliance for 2D and BIM projects, while Armarkar shared insights into how Techture is helping to fuel the digitalisation of the construction space in the Middle East.

SESSION TWO The second session of the day kicked off with David Clifton, Regional Director – Middle East and Africa for Faithful + Gould, a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group, moderating a discussion focused on the integration of multiple contract packages and sequencing workflows. He was joined by Adrian Dobbe-Holman, Regional Director – Middle East and Asia for Capital Consulting International; Fernando Freitas, director at Omnium International; Haitham Altebani, Principal Consultant at Asite Saudi Arabia; and David Watkins, Chief Delivery Officer at Diriyah Gate Development Authority.

Over the course of a wideranging discussion, the panellists covered a number of issues and topics concerning the volume of work in the Kingdom, and how to best achieve targeted schedules and deadlines.

With more and more construction companies looking to enter Saudi Arabia due to the number of opportunities available, Fernando Freitas pointed out that international contractors would need to be brought in to handle the amount of work available but warned that they would need to be afforded a learning curve, so as to get them up to speed in a challenging market.

However, both David Watkins and Haitham Altebani argued that the construction sector needed to embrace technology and evolve with the times, as companies didn’t have the luxury of time, given the accelerated delivery schedules.

“We need to look at what we can offsite – not only to help with the labour situation, but to also help with the quality levels,” Watkins said, while Altebani pointed out that there needed to be a shift in mindset from within the construction sector as the new generation of Saudis understand the value of technology and want their projects to be state-of-the-art.

“With a knowledgeable and

engaging group of senior industry individuals, the panel discussion was likely to be engaging and interesting. They didn’t disappoint in their content, opinions, and actions to consider for major programmes in the Kingdom,” said David Clifton. “Whilst the day was also an impromptu national holiday due to the superb exploits of the country’s football team in the World Cup over Argentina, the audience was still significant for what was a day off for all. This is testament to the topics and contributors that were engaged across the conference.

“Panel highlights ranged from discussing how as a consultancy industry we make ourselves redundant over the medium term to the coaching and development of the next generation, which whilst focusing on Saudi Nationals, is equally applicable in any organisation across the globe.

“My personal highlights were the continued revisiting of the notion of improved collaboration and the requirements to become fairer and more reasonable in the treatment of contracted parties. This is especially true in a growing market with capacity and capability constraints that makes KSA more of a sellers’ market.

“Although it was noted that the construction awards have yet to ‘move the dial’ to the level expected. In this regard, the conversation around tender fatigue due to too much work (or not enough awards), quantum of opportunities in the market and the concept of cover pricing was an honest and insightful overview of what is actually occurring in the country and the industry at this time,” he highlighted.

Once the panel discussion was over, Altebani returned to the stage to elaborate on his comments and discussed the importance of effective data leverage in a keynote presentation for Asite. He was then followed by Fady Kobersy, Head of Sales and Customer Success – MENA for RIB CCS, who provided the final presentation of the day, where he laid out how to build and enable a digital strategy roadmap for the construction industry.

Without a clear Saudisation strategy, all efforts end up being adhoc or fragmented, bringing less value and ROI to businesses and stakeholders”

SESSION THREE The final panel of the day was an all Saudi-affair, with Khalid Saleem Abdallah, Director, Strategy and Development, Saudi Arabia for Faithful + Gould, a member of SNC-Lavalin Group taking charge of a discussion featuring Mouse Mashraqi, Vice President, Human Resources and Shared Services at AECOM Arabia; Fahad AlBalawi, Head of Construction at AMAALA; and Mona Althagafi, KSA Countyr Director for SERCO.

This fascinating and open chat was a highlight of the Construction Intel Summit – KSA as it featured a slightly different format, with ongoing engagement with the audience throughout the discussion. The panel focused on a number of key topics around Enabling

Saudisation, with a number of development and graduate training programmes mentioned.

However, they also frankly and openly discussed the challenges facing Saudi graduates, mentioning the difficulties of overcoming stereotypes and cultural perceptions, along with the importance of showing that there was a pathway to leadership and growth within organisations – both private and public.

“Saudisation programs are ensuring the sustainability of the various businesses in KSA and the GCC – due to not only regulations, but also cultural-fit job factors, overhead cost efficiencies, knowledge – transfer mandates, and certain job profiles and categories,” said Khalid Saleem Abdallah.

“Without a clear Saudisation and localisation long-term strategy, all efforts end up being ad-hoc or fragmented, bringing less value and ROI to businesses and stakeholders.”

Alternative procurement strategies enable early contractor involvement to consider constructability, value engineering, and supply chain innovations”

“A lot of firms have launched internal initiatives for fresh graduates and professional Saudi staff, such as collaborating with various universities and adjusting the curriculum to suit job market demands. There is also formal training that is classroom based, to go alongside on-the-job coaching and mentoring, which is often site-based. Other arrangements include incubation with twinning and buddy engineers,” he added, pointing out that succession planning on all levels is necessary, but that it should be supported by a solid, well-thought-out strategy.

“The most successful programs are particularly associated with the following features: A clear strategy supported and committed to by the senior leadership of an organisation; internal governance and performance monitoring; and a Saudisation program that is aligned with, and takes care of, the social, young family needs, and cultural circumstances.

Finally, Abdallah pointed out that the future trends of Saudisation programs indicate that woman’s engagement, job-profiles, and productivity is trending upwards. He asserted that a solid, well-through out strategy, good governance and performance monitoring is essential in this regard.

“I’m very pleased with how our first-ever live version of the Construction Intel Summit – KSA went,” said Gavin Davids, Head of Editorial and Content at Big Project ME in conclusion.

“This was a challenging event to put together as it was our first foray into the Kingdom, and we had to overcome many unexpected obstacles, but I am delighted we took the chance to come here.

“I have been delighted by the passion, commitment, and knowledge present in the Kingdom, and I can assure you that we will be back again soon,” Davids said in conclusion.