ME Consultant October 2014

008 OCTOBER 2014

INSIGHT AND ANALYSIS FOR CONSTRUCTION SPECIALISTS

Intelligent URBANISM

Engineers define the concept of a smart city

Interview

New Ramboll ME managing director Richard Beard

Preview

Atkins reveals the latest design details for Dubai Opera

Specification

The best practices for office buildings in a desert climate

Contracts

How clients and consultants can form better agreements

Your fEET dEsErvE spEciAl TrEATmENT.

Even when you love your job, spending this much time on your feet can be a real pain. And that high-end footwear can only do so much. But we don’t think your shoes are the only answer.

You can make a big difference when people listen. visit our website at www.nora.com/corp or talk to our dubai office at +971 (4) 450 8175

Next time you talk about long-term facility plans, ask for comfortable, ergonomic materials like nora ÂŽ flooring. When you work this hard, your body deserves a little ease.

CONTENTS

October 2014

05 05

On topic NEWS ANALYSIS FROM ACROSS THE MIDDLE EAST EVENT

Cityscape Global 2014 offered more than a hint of déjà vu

08

DEBATE

Smart City summit demanded straight answers from engineers

14 14

20

In practice COMPANY PROFILES, OPINIONS AND INTERVIEWS FOCUS

Examining contracts between developers and consultants

18

05

08

OPINION

14

Gary Laing, country manager Bahrain for Hyder Consulting

20

INTERVIEW

Richard Beard, Ramboll’s new Middle East managing director

24

OPINION

Lee Barry, quantum expert for DIALES Expert Services

26

INSIGHT

The best practices in specification for commercial projects

30

PROFILE

Melkan Tabanlioğlu reveals the progress on Crystal Towers

34 34

On site

30

BUILDING REVIEWS, CASE STUDIES AND SNAPSHOTS PREVIEW

Discovering the design details behind Dubai Opera House

40

SNAPSHOT

London’s Cheesegrater AKA the Leadenhall Building

44

COMPANY NEWS

WSP buys Parsons Brinckerhoff and HBA reveals new leader

46

PROJECT NEWS

New launches from Emaar, Meraas, Kerzner and Deyaar

48

THOUGHTS

MJU’s Muwafak Al Juboory on why he became an architect

26

40 October 2014 Middle East Consultant 1

WELCOME

Editor’s note Group

Do consultants add brand value?

S

hortly after the announcement of Emaar’s BLVD Heights in Downtown Dubai, I received a call from a senior practising architect to ask whether I knew who had designed the project.

To his disappointment, I was completely in the dark. The information in the public domain included a stirring description of the swimming pool and luxuriously appointed apartments, yet made no mention of the consultants or the contractor involved.

This led us to discuss whether consultants add brand value to a project. We concluded that in the eyes of many GCC developers the answer appears to be ‘not really’.

There’s no doubt that the mega developers want to use the best consultants in the market, to deliver schemes of the highest quality, but it’s not the top priority to flag them up in a marketing campaign.

Unless you belong to the elite group of famous architects, including Gehry, Hadid and Foster, you’re not guaranteed to get your name in the official press release.

The lamentable fact is that many developers will see more value in shouting about a tie-in with a luxury fashion brand than a respected consultant who may not be known to the man on the street.

It was pleasing to see some developers at Cityscape Global rightfully mention their consultants; for example, Deyaar was clearly proud of signing up OMA, and used the consultant as a selling point for its new Dubai scheme.

But some of the other developers I spoke to at Cityscape Global seemed to talk about their projects as though they’d designed and built them just by themselves.

To any developers that are reading, I would urge you to big up your consultants a little bit more and give credit where credit is due.

I would also like to hear your thoughts on the matter, so please drop me a line, as I plan to explore the topic in a future issue.

GROUP CHAIRMAN AND FOUNDER DOMINIC DE SOUSA GROUP CEO NADEEM HOOD GROUP COO GINA O’HARA

PUBLISHING DIRECTOR RAZ ISLAM raz.islam@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5471 EDITORIAL DIRECTOR VIJAYA CHERIAN vijaya.cherian@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5713

Editorial EDITOR OLIVER EPHGRAVE oliver.ephgrave@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5475 SUB EDITOR AELRED DOYLE

Advertising COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR MICHAEL STANSFIELD michael.stansfield@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5497

Marketing MARKETING MANAGER LISA JUSTICE lisa.justice@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5498

Design ART DIRECTOR SIMON COBON

Circulation and Production DATABASE AND CIRCULATION MANAGER RAJEESH M rajeesh.nair@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 440 9147 PRODUCTION MANAGER VIPIN V. VIJAY vipin.vijay@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5713

Digital DIGITAL SERVICE MANAGER TRISTAN TROY MAAGMA Published by

REGISTERED AT IMPZ PO BOX 13700, DUBAI, UAE TEL: +971 4 440 9100 FAX: +971 4 447 2409 WWW.CPIMEDIAGROUP.COM

Oliver Ephgrave, Editor, Middle East Consultant

Printed by Printwell Printing press LLC © Copyright 2014 CPI. All rights reserved While the publishers have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of all information in this magazine, they will not be held responsible for any errors therein.

2 Middle East Consultant October 2014

WE MAKE SAFETY OUR PRIORITY WE ARE WSP...

ONE TEAM WORKING SAFELY

Abu Dhabi, UAE PO Box 112046 Tel: +971 2 418 0999 Fax: +971 2 418 0998

Dubai, UAE PO Box 7497 Tel: +971 4 350 5000 Fax: +971 4 350 5001

Sharjah, UAE PO Box 1924 Tel: +971 6 598 1777 Fax: +971 6 598 1666

Doha, Qatar PO Box 13885 Tel: +974 4 020 6450 Fax: +974 4 020 6451

For more information about how we can add value to your project, please contact: info@wspgroup.ae www.wspgroup.com

Composite Facade System, Mineral Render

Qatar Convention Center and Tower, Doha Architect Murphy / Jahn Inc, Chicago / Berlin / Shanghai Build Under construction 2012 Application of FOAMGLAS® Façade insulation, about 6000 m2, T4+ slabs, 80 mm thick, adhesively bonded and mechanically fixed to the structural wall Finish Lime renders in thick layer

3

4

2

1

Render system 1 Concrete wall 2 Lime adhesive 3 FOAMGLAS® slabs, bonded and mechanically fixed

HIGH RISE BU OR ILD EF IN D A

GS

THE BE ST FA C

Qatar Convention Center and Tower have been designed by Murphy Jahn Inc. with a creative and inspirational power, just like other projects for which they are famous, be it Deutsche Post building in Bonn or the Sony Center in Berlin. Qatar Convention Center and Tower will be an iconic symbol for the Doha skyline – a 550 m high tapering obelisk, containing a total of 112 storeys. It will also comprise a 100,000 square metre convention center. When architects are looking for aesthetic quality, it is the chance to explore new insulation system solutions for façades – systems which will have high impact resistance.

No maintenance, no degradation within time and, most important, fire safety – these substantial benefits are only possible due to the specific FOAMGLAS® insulation properties, providing high compressive strength, dimensional stability and non-combustibility.

FIR

E F A ES 6 E13 84, E M AST

4 Reinforcing mesh 5 Lime render layer 6 Final layer of render

Ecological and fire safe, a recommended building material.

Web: www.foamglas.ae

Email: info@foamglas.ae

Dubai office Tel: +9714 434 7140

Doha office Tel: +974 465 5360

05

EXHIBITION Cityscape Global 2014 offered glimpses back to the past

08

DEBATE Smart City summit asked tough questions to consultants

On topic W

EXHIBITION

Going global Last month’s lively Cityscape Global more than lived up to its name, showcasing a new wave of megaprojects in Dubai as well as Turkey

ith eight halls of exhibitors parading vast models of megaprojects and corridors brimming with eager visitors and investors, a walk around this year’s Cityscape Global came with a distinct feeling of déjà vu.

Taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre, from 21 to 23 September, the event saw regional and international developers unveil 27 projects worth a combined $10.9 billion – a marked change from the recession years where new project launches were few and far between.

In a post-show report, analyst JLL stated: “Cityscape does not make the Dubai real estate market, but it does provide a good indicator of current sentiment and prevailing market trends.”

The report observed the new launches by master developers, such as Nakheel, Damac and Meraas, along with projects that were re-launched due to an improved market sentiment.

“While some of the smaller developers are still active, it is clear that more of the projects are now being undertaken directly by the major master developers and other government-backed entities.

We consider this a positive trend as it should allow for more co-ordination and a more stable market,” added JLL. A key question for attendees was ‘how will all the proposed new projects be funded?’ According to JLL, the fact that many local banks remain overexposed to the real estate sector, and with RERA enforcing tighter rules around pre-sales, developers are having to look at more innovative strategies to fund projects.

“In this respect, government-backed developers have a distinct advantage over smaller independent groups. With debt in limited supply, developers are looking at strategies to raise equity through IPOs or other measures, and we would expect to see more activity in this space over the rest of 2014.”

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 5

ON TOPIC CITYSCAPE REVIEW

But with the rise in development activity – recalling levels seen at Cityscape Dubai 2008 and before – is there another crash around the corner? According to the Middle East director of Ramboll, a consultant which exhibited at this year’s Cityscape Global, the Dubai market is now in a better position.

Richard Beard comments: “Dubai is going through much more sustainable growth – at Cityscape there is much more confidence. Some of that has been assigned to Expo 2020, but I actually think that Dubai had matured before the expo announcement and had become a much steadier place to do business.

“A lot of investor confidence came back – the big developers have all become a lot more thoughtful and you see the likes of Nakheel and Emaar doing some really great projects around town. I think that Dubai, and also the UAE, is seen as a fairly good place to put your money and a good place to live.

On the back of that, hopefully we will see some more sustainable development.”

JLL states that Dubai’s residential market is now much more stable than before the crash. “Another major difference between 2014 and 2007/8 is that…the Dubai residential market is stabilising as it nears the peak of its current cycle.

“We welcome this trend as the price and rental growth seen over the past two years is unsustainable.

With our data suggesting average apartment sale prices increased by just 1%, while average villa rents remained flat over the past quarter, it is clear that conditions are stabilising.”

It added:“We welcome this trend which will help make Dubai a more competitive and attractive city in which to live and work.”

Beard also points out that Cityscape Global is not just about Dubai. “The other emirates were heavily promoting their products and some other countries like Turkey and St Kitts were all vying for investors’ money.”

With 32 Turkish exhibitors at this year’s event, it is clear that GCC investors are a key target for the country. At the event, Turkish developer DAP Yapi launched 1st Marina, a mixed-used project on the Kartal shore in cooperation with Emlak Konut GYO Inc, a subsidiary of the Housing Development Administration of Turkey (TOKI).

“We have made one building shaped like a boomerang and another like a honeycomb. We also have the world’s first building shaped like a human being.”

ZIYA YILMAZ, DAP YAPI 6 Middle East Consultant October 2014

According to chairman of the board Ziya Yilmaz, the scheme involves no external consultants as the 2,000-person company contains the design and engineering expertise in-house. The project features a shopping mall, hospital, hotel, private pool, office blocks, residential units and a mega yacht marina.

Describing the curvaceous design, Yilmaz comments: “The idea comes from the letter ‘S’. It is a bit difficult to make this shape, but somehow we overcame the challenges.”

Other projects on the boards for DAP Yapi include a tower that twists 108 degrees – 18 degrees more than Dubai’s very own twisty building Cayan Tower. “The idea is that a man and a lady are dancing the tango,” adds Yilmaz.

“We are now making another office project – it’s the world biggest letter ‘Z’, like Zorro,” laughs

ON TOPIC CITYSCAPE REVIEW

$11BN

Combined value of projects launched at Cityscape Global 2014

Yilmaz. “We are also making the biggest letter ‘I’, ‘Y’, and ‘A’, to spell my name: ‘Ziya’. We have made one building shaped like a boomerang and another like a honeycomb. We also have the world’s first building shaped like a human being.”

Another Turkish company exhibiting at Cityscape was architecture firm Agaoglu. Chief investment officer Niyaz Albay explains why so many Turkish exhibitors were present.

“To be frank, it is not a case of ‘we came here’; it is a case of ‘they called us’. Investors in the Middle East want to buy property in Turkey; therefore Turkish companies are here.

“They [investors] said ‘we want to get a second home in Turkey’. Therefore, all of the companies are selling. I am very happy [for the other companies] and they are all doing very well.” Albay adds that Turkey is very appealing to investors from the

Middle East, partly due to “the negative impact of the Arab Spring”.

He continues: “The people from the region are looking for a second home and decided to go to Turkey. Why? Because before they used to go to the western countries but realised it is far, expensive and there are many obstacles to getting a visa. Turkey is just four hours by plane, with many flights from Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. Also we share the same values, culture and have many things in common.”

Responding to an article in last month’s Middle East Consultant, ‘Turkey in turbulence’, Albay insists that there is no issue with corruption, and president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is growing the Turkish construction industry.

“Corruption is only gossip. I am not a fan of Erdoğan, but he is a great leader for investment – he is helping Turkey to move forwards.

“He has a vision for 2023 to complete everything and make many developments – roads, big projects, social houses for poor people. In terms of the completed infrastructure, nothing has failed.”

Albay adds that the Turkish government introduced a law in August 2012 to allow GCC nationals to buy a unit under their name. “Last year we sold 14,000 units as a country to the GCC. There is no corruption – they are trying to keep it safe for investors.”

When it comes to investment in Dubai, Ramboll’s Beard believes that the emirate’s diversified economy is paying dividends. “I think there was a lot of excitement at Cityscape and a lot of investors investing, which is obviously good.

“It’s about growing Dubai and diversifying the economy over the stated aims of tourism and investment. I see a lot of confidence in the market, but I think it is steady confidence.”

JLL states that the trends at this year’s Cityscape Global – the predominance of schemes from

master developers, increased market stability, and innovative funding strategies – provide a “fascinating insight into both the similarities and the differences between the market now and that during the previous boom in 2007/2008.”

However, Beard is cautious about using the term ‘boom’. “I don’t see a boom yet, but who knows how the next 12-24 months will play out,” he says.

Boom or no boom, the large scale of the projects on display, and the palpable optimism of exhibitors and investors, offers plenty of reasons to be optimistic – as well as cautious – about the state of the regional construction industry.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 7

ON TOPIC SMART CITIES

DEBATE

Intelligent urbanism

Representatives from the likes of Atkins, Buro Happold and WSP converged to discuss the topic of smart cities at a recent conference hosted by MEED in Dubai

8 Middle East Consultant October 2014

ON TOPIC SMART CITIES

T

he topic of intelligent and futuristic cities appears to be dominating discussions at present. In addition to the recent Future Cities conference at Cityscape Global, an alternative event, Smart Cities, was organised

by MEED and took place from 8-10 September at the Sofitel Palm Jumeirah.

While much of the event dealt with the energy sector, a panel discussion entitled ‘How designers, architects and contractors are

preparing for new technologies and helping cities reshape their landscapes’ involved Bart Leclercq, head of structures design at WSP, and Dr Robert Cooke, associate at Buro Happold.

Another speaker from the consultant community was Simon Moon, CEO of Atkins Middle East, who gave a presentation on the first day called ‘Evaluating the opportunities to propel the Middle East into the forefront of Smart City development’.

The term ‘smart city’ is open to interpretation and the consultants in the panel discussion were asked what it means to them. For Cooke, the smart city involves taking intelligence and applying it in the built environment.

He explained that Buro Happold looks at the “smart movement” within spaces. “About 10 years ago we worked on the Ascot racecourse, but we actually developed a piece of software that we modelled to predict people’s movement, and

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 9

ON TOPIC SMART CITIES

Simon Moon, Atkins.

that enabled the developer to get twice as much utility out of that space,” said Cooke.

“A lot of it is about people movement,” he continued. “We have a research centre in Berlin.

The programme there is to look at intelligent e-mobility – having electric buses, cars, bicycles, all integrated together. This is so people have the choice on which method of transport they can take – all on a common platform of information.”

When it comes to the Middle East, the firm has also been involved in the installation of sensors in Mekkah to monitor pilgrims’ movement to enable a safer environment during Haj. Cooke stated that Buro Happold is also working on a ‘smart city’ with Mubadala in Abu Dhabi.

“The interesting thing is how you apply it, certainly on the large scale. The involvement of the telecommunication companies is absolutely key in being able to apply everything,” added Cooke.

For Atkins’ Simon Moon, smart cities are “the ultimate collaboration of urban design and technology to create liveable and inclusive cities which are more resilient, more enjoyable and desirable places for people to live, work and play”.

He told delegates that the process of making the cities of the future economically, socially and environmentally successful is “one of the most exciting challenges of our age”.

Moon continued: “This is incredibly motivating for our planners, architects and engineers because it is about working collaboratively to create a better future. Fundamentally, smart cities need to be people-centric – we need to combine the forces of great urban infrastructure design and technology to enable urban environments that people are attracted to.”

When asked whether Middle East urban centres are embracing the idea of the ‘smart city’, Leclercq replied: “In the last 10 years we’ve seen a lot of developments, which contribute to the smart city topic. We see a lot of developments on sustainability – some very good initiatives from local governments [such as] Estidama. Masdar is an important example.

He asserted that building information modelling (BIM) is an important innovation, yet believes there needs to be greater development in the use of the technology in the Middle East.

“I see a lot of changes happening in the market due to BIM becoming more and more important.

Unfortunately it’s still slightly held back because there are so many different applications and so 10 Middle East Consultant October 2014

“We need to combine the forces of great urban infrastructure design and technology to enable urban environments that people are attracted to.”

SIMON MOON, ATKINS many different people getting involved in it that there’s not really one complete platform yet.

“BIM is mandatory now. However, it’s not very clear yet how you are going to submit to the local authorities in BIM, [as well as] how they want to review the models. It’s not worked out yet, which is a pity.”

Moderator Edmund O’Sullivan from MEED grilled Leclercq and Cooke about whether architects are just producing beautiful renderings and not actually engaged in the reality of developing ‘smart cities’.

Cooke remarked that architects should not be the ones defining the smart city from the outset.

He stated: “I think that architecture is the last place you want to start when you design a smart city. We [Buro Happold] have set up a road map for a smart city and ‘architect’ isn’t mentioned.

“You need to define what data needs to be collected, how you collect it; you need to define who’s going to operate the system and how it’s going to be governed. The architect is interested in how it is going to appear. Obviously, an urban planner is interested in how it works. [This is] all important – not necessarily how it appears.”

Leclercq replied: “You do have to be careful – it’s not all about pretty pictures. But I think [architects] are very much engaged – engineers and architects are constantly talking about what you can do with buildings.”

He emphasised that the onus in on developers to drive the concept of smart cities. “It’s all about money at the end of the day – the price tag attached to all of these solutions is quite high. [In many cases, the developer] will say ‘I don’t have the money for it’.

“The responsibility lies with the clients, with the brief they describe. If the architects and engineers design to that particular brief then it will be a smart building.

“There are lots of projects that started really ambitiously. But as they progressed and went into more detailed design, many of the initiatives that were in there at the beginning [were discarded] later on.”

Leadership in project delivery Outstanding results

Sir Bani Yas Island Desert Resort and Leisure Centres Abu Dhabi

For over 85 years Sweett Group has been managing the delivery of major developments around the globe. We apply our extensive knowledge and innovation to realise the visions of our clients while ensuring their investments are optimised.

Project management Cost management Dispute resolution Specialist services

www.sweettgroup.com

On tOpic SMART CITIES

Cooke pointed out that the requirements of the end user are not always addressed by developers.

“It’s all about the user, and often the client is not interested enough in them,” he said.

“The brief needs to come up with the best user experience now and in the future, to be adaptable and flexible for the future. That’s never written in the brief.”

Leclercq added: “It’s never written in the brief, so it’s not there in the first place. If you come up with something really smart, the client is going to say, ‘hold on, I’m not paying for this – I didn’t ask for this.’”

He went on to state that some developers may be drawn towards ‘smart’ buildings for the wrong reasons. “I’ve got a feeling that the incentive to be smart, or to be looking smart, is because of the imagery it gives. It’s better to sell the building, or the property, because it gives some nice, spectacular animations and pictures. I think it’s a little bit of a gimmick sometimes, but there are some really good ideas behind it as well.”

Cooke believes that the environment is not a key factor in the development of smart cities. “I don’t think sustainability is one of those drivers,” he remarked. “I think it is about getting more from less.

“To a certain extent, there is an element of resource efficiency in there, but that’s predominantly from an economic perspective.

It’s not [necessarily all about] ‘let’s save the environment’. Does Dubai want its taxis running around empty? No. It wants to make sure its fleet is fully utilised and people are getting the most out of that.

“The predominant force is not having to spend more money on more taxis, more pipes, more power stations – it’s getting more out of what we’ve got.”

Yet Atkins’ Moon remarked that several developers in the Middle East are now expecting ‘smart’ designs. “In our experience, the region’s visionary clients now expect designs which encourage active integration and participation in the community,” he said. “The public realm should support healthier lifestyles by integrating social infrastructure, culture, leisure and hospitality and by making our public spaces more accessible, enjoyable and inclusive.”

So what is the solution to make sure that more developers follow suit? According to Cooke, the authorities have an important role to play. “The 12 Middle East Consultant October 2014

Dr Robert Cooke, Buro Happold.

“If it’s not smart then you’re going to have to retrofit it in the future – you’re going to have to pay twice for it.”

Dr robert Cooke, buro HappolD government, in a way, needs to incentivise that focus on the user – for all infrastructure projects and commercial buildings.”

He also pointed to the growth of technology companies and the fact that the major corporations are aggressively seeking to sell more high-tech products. A key challenge, according to Cooke, will be the procurement and integration of technology within buildings. He continued: “One of the issues we face is the procurement of technology and infrastructure…how it’s integrated with the user and how the FM company uses it.

“People will need to look at how they set the contracts up and who is responsible for what, to get an integrated, holistic approach. They need to make sure that they are gathering the data but

they are able to utilise it. In the procurement approach, we [as consultants, should be] aware of those ambitions [so that they are] properly [integrated] with the contractor.”

Leclercq stated that mobile phone apps are helping to enable ‘smart’ operations of buildings.

“You can find a lot of development companies providing apps right now and actually monitoring the buildings and the ways they are performing [such as] how much water is being used. I saw these universities where they can see water consumption on a daily basis, and the way electricity is being used. You are going to see a hell of a lot of applications over the next couple of years appearing.

“Some of them are very exciting and immediately accessible from your mobile phone in the building. You will be able to find out whether the building is doing well or not so well.”

Cooke stressed that it is crucial to integrate monitoring technology in new buildings and infrastructure. He explained: “In many ways, the existing physical and social infrastructure in Dubai and Abu Dhabi is an asset but it’s also a huge liability for the future. You’ve now got to put sensors along that infrastructure and potentially some type of controls.

“Look at all the buildings that have been built without controls and monitoring. The vast majority of buildings in Dubai can’t be particularly well monitored, let alone controlled – you’ve got massive liability there.

“We have to move forward extremely aggressively now. Everything we build now infrastructure wise, building wise, if it’s not smart then you’re going to have to retrofit it in the future – you’re going to have to pay twice for it.

“Anyone that says ‘it’s too expensive’, the government level needs to be pushing back down and saying, ‘you think it’s expensive now, think how expensive it’s going to be to retrofit it all’.”

Moon shared a similar sentiment and said the sheer volume of ongoing and planned infrastructure development means the region’s cities “cannot afford to lock themselves into a legacy of unsuitable and unsustainable infrastructure”.

He added: “What this adds up to is that we here in this region really need to make our cities smart. This is exciting because mankind is at its most inventive and innovative when need is at its greatest.”

For over 90 years since its foundation, the Rawlplug brand has been synonymous with innovation, reliability and safety in the development and manufacture of construction anchors and ancillary products. Company’s portfolio includes high-quality mechanical fasteners, chemical anchors, threaded products, drills, circular saws, manual and power tools. Along with high quality products and outstanding customer service, Rawlplug also supports all areas of your business with technical support and advice.

S I N C E

1 9 1 9

For more information please call our UAE number +971 4 347 57 18 or visit www.rawlplug.com

IN PRACTICE CONTRACTS

Focus Examining the nature of contracts between regional consultants and developers, and the opportunities for improvement

E

very client wants their project to be completed and every consultant wants to be paid for the service they provide. Yet the mechanism for ensuring both requirements are met is little more than a few signed sheets of paper.

Bearing in mind that millions of dollars hinge on contracts between developers and consultants in the Middle East, are the terms and conditions fair to all parties and up to international standards?

14 Middle East Consultant October 2014

IN PRACTICE CONTRACTS

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 15

IN PRACTICE CONTRACTS

MANY DEVELOPERS IN THE REGION WILL TRY

to drive down the price as much as possible before hiring a consultant, according to Christopher Cooper, commercial director for WSP Middle East.

“Some clients do appreciate a value proposition, but there is a ‘souk mentality’ which comes out of a cost proposition.

Sometimes it’s a case of who is cheapest wins.

“Other clients know that if you cost a little bit more that’s because you do it right first time and you’ll cost less in the long run. But even then, when push comes to shove, clients feel they have done a good job in negotiating when they get 10% off your initial price,” he says.

Ammar Al Assam, executive director for Dewan, agrees that price negotiations are all part and parcel of working in the Middle East, as well as the construction industry in general. “Negotiation is part of the culture and it is a normal process that the buyer wants the best price and service, and the seller wants his best fee structure. This is not reserved for the Middle East – it’s global in our industry – although it may seem more prevalent here.”

He states that it’s better for a consultant to walk away from discussions if a client does not appreciate its fair value. “The issue is that the client has to appreciate the value he is getting from paying a ‘fair’ fee to his consultant.

“If the client doesn’t appreciate that level of service and the fee doesn’t work for the consultant, then it’s best for the parties to not discuss further. Good consultants know their fair value and the same applies for good clients that appreciate quality and value.”

Adding an extra 10% to the initial cost, to counter the inevitable haggle down, is a practice to be avoided according to Cooper.

“I know a lot of consultants would always say, ‘I’m going to get

“If the client doesn’t appreciate the level of service and the fee doesn’t work for the consultant, then it’s best for the parties to not discuss further.”

10% knocked off, so let’s factor in 10%’. But that means you get an ever decreasing circle, and it’s something we avoid. If you can demonstrate the method that you’ve used, hopefully people will appreciate that.”

When it comes to the contract itself, Cooper believes that the majority are biased towards the drafting party i.e. the employer, the lead consultant, or a contractor on a design and build project.

“The international companies really should have gotten past that a little bit. Some of the one-sided terms include working on 16 Middle East Consultant October 2014

variations without agreement, prolonged payment terms, license to terminate anything and express guarantees. A lot of time and effort is wasted. I meet with a number of clients who say ‘this has been brought up by other consultants’. Shouldn’t they just change it rather than wasting our time?”

However, Al Assam states that contracts are often more balanced in agreements with smaller developers. “Contracts of large developers are written by big law firms who are employed by the client, hence the contracts will always be more skewed towards the interests of the client. For smaller firms, typically the consultant’s contracts (FIDIC-based, as an example) are used and these are often fair and equally sided.”

If the terms are really one-sided, it sometimes pays to stick to your guns, according to Cooper. “I have complete faith in what we are trying to achieve, because we have negotiated things with clients – quasi-government entities – that have said it is nonnegotiable with them.”

He adds that this is a recent development. “A couple of years ago we may have had to accept certain terms and conditions that we wouldn’t want to accept. Now, the good consultancies are doing well and we need to be treated as the partners working towards the common goal as we should be.”

Regarding the phrasing of contracts, Al Assam points out that ambiguities often arise. “There is always some level of ambiguity in contracts, especially when it comes to issues of liabilities, deliverables etc,” he says. “But I think both clients and consultants these days are quite legally savvy and contract management is a big part of the market.”

Cooper notes that ambiguities may arise due to issues with translation into Arabic. “A lot of UK legal terms in contracts are not recognised within the Arabic language – terms like ‘gross negligence’ have no reasonable translation. Therefore they are open to some form of interpretation.”

Yet he remarks that contracts in the UAE are often easier to understand than those in the UK, which feature an abundance of ‘legalise’ terminology. “They are not as bad here because a lot of the Latin words are related to common law jurisdiction – the UAE’s civil code is written in more plain English.”

But is the UAE’s civil code actually fair towards consultants?

Very much so, according to Al Assam. “We have had a very limited number of cases in our 30-year history because typically [disputes] are resolved amicably and fairly in discussion.

“For those that have gone to court, we have found the legal system very fair and relatively smooth. We always try to avoid the court system because it does damage the relationship and the legal fees tend to be extensive.”

Cooper agrees that the civil code is fair in principle. “The civil code is based on honesty and fairness, but it also recognises that people are free to enter into certain agreements. The law is the law, and any type of agreement can’t circumvent that.”

However, he notes that disputes sometimes arise due to a misunderstanding of the civil code. “In a lot of cases, people don’t

IN PRACTICE CONTRACTS

fully understand the civil code and therefore the contracts are one-sided. Why start with such a one-sided agreement if the law of the country is trying to be reasonable?

“Therefore you will see a lot of cases revert back to very basic civil code elements. For instance, the agreement we entered into freely is unfair because we should have gotten paid.”

He says that developers will usually have access to more legal resources in the event of a dispute. “Consultants don’t have the resources available that potentially others do. But on a client side you are making a lot of money so therefore you can pay for a lot more people.”

Yet Al Assam notes that disputes between clients and consultants can be resolved by discussion, rather than litigation.

“Any self-respecting consultant will know when to draw the line and not accept terms that are punishing. Fairness and equity are the name of the game.

“Also, a relationship between a client and a consultant is usually long and becomes personal and friendly. Disputes can be resolved in discussion and negotiated. Our market and the culture in the Middle East is generally not like the western world – specifically the US – which is very litigation driven.”

Cooper asserts the Middle East market is moving towards the international modus operandi, rather than hinging on the ‘relationship’. “The whole region has become more contractual – before it was a case of ‘that’s the contract but it’s all about the relationship’. I think that comes from consultants wanting to make sure they are covered.”

He adds that contractors are more advanced in this sense.

“Contractors tend to be more contractual – there’s a reason why they’re called that – they’re not called ‘producers’. Historically, I think consultants are not as contractual as they should have been.

There are quite a few grey areas around ‘design development’ and ‘variations’, for instance.”

– So what is the best way for consultants to protect themselves when working with new clients? Al Assam sums it up by stating: “It’s a combination of doing due diligence on the client and the people behind the client, negotiating a fair contract, going with your instinct and having a little bit of luck.”

He points out that it is not always possible to do credit checks on clients, as it would be in the UK. “We just use local intelligence,” he says. “For example, has anybody worked with them before, do we know of them, what have they done, etc.”

Cooper introduces the notion of a ‘collaborative’ contract, which he says is more prevalent in western markets. He explains: “They are a tool which can be used by all parties to work together in achieving the common goal of effective project execution. They promote the proactive highlighting, and joint management, of project risks in a ‘no blame’ and open culture, while recognising the need for continuous improvement and innovation.”

He elaborates on the need to work towards a common goal of project execution. “It’s the thing that everyone – the developer, the contractor and the consultant – has in common. Everyone

wants that end product to be done and I think that sometimes people forget about that.

“The byproduct of moving that way is that people get involved a little bit earlier because you consider all the stakeholders.

Therefore, you can understand people’s drivers better. It’s quite hard to articulate what you actually want on a piece of paper.

“It also creates more of a collaborative culture and therefore better behaviours. If you are working together, that’s better than always trying to score off each other.”

“In a lot of cases, people don’t fully understand the civil code and therefore the contracts are one-sided.”

He admits that there are challenges to setting up this type of approach. “There’s a lot of work that’s required in terms of getting them up and running and working properly. You could say they are better for longer-term, framework-type commissions.”

Yet is the region ready for more collaborative contracts between consultants and developers? Al Assam is unsure. “Ideally we should be moving in this way, but I don’t believe time is in our favour in this part of the world. Project cycles are often very fastpaced and contracts are signed usually well into the project cycle, as we tend to work on LOAs,” he says.

Cooper is more optimistic, and adds: “I think there is some indication that those type of agreements are coming into the region. The majority of people that are working in Dubai and Qatar are expats, and lots of people have experience of other types of arrangements in other countries they have worked in.

“You hear a lot of collaborative-type phrases being used like ‘for the benefit of the project’ and ‘let’s work this out together’.

But sometimes when a client says ‘for the benefit of the project’ they often mean ‘you have to do that for free’. It’s not always being used in the right context.”

He agrees with Al Assam’s assertion that time pressures are an obstacle to establishing collaborative contracts. “There’s an obsession here of having physical evidence of work being done – getting the hoarding up and digging a hole. People don’t value the time as much on the planning side. I think that’s something that may scupper things a little bit. Collaborative set-ups are all about time spent at the pre-planning stage and getting it right first time.”

The best way forward, according to Cooper, is to lead by example. “Consultants like us at WSP are trying to foster more collaborative agreements with partners. I’m hoping that clients can see the benefits and then roll them out. That’s when you get the grass shoots growing.”

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 17

IN PRACTICE GARY LAING

Opinion

Gary Laing is country manager Bahrain for Hyder Consulting

Road to success

Bahrain faces several challenges related to an upturn in infrastructure investment

Public sector spending in Bahrain is on the up, due in no small part to the GCC funding committed by Kuwait, KSA, UAE and Qatar.

The outlook, therefore, should be for a bright and prosperous future. Client bodies within the governmentfunded agencies will be buzzing with excitement at the prospect of making significant progress with their long-term infrastructure plans.

But with such an upturn in investment, which will also see an increase in privately funded investment programmes, comes a few challenges, in particular for the client bodies in the public sector.

Funding rules vary, but in essence they require many of the projects, in design and construction, to be led by consultants or contractors from the funding country, or at least a preference is given to organisations from those countries.

These rules are bringing new faces to sit around the table with clients; not always a bad thing as progress and change go hand-in-hand.

However, new faces means unfamiliarity with process, client standards, existing infrastructure and market demands; and inefficiencies will manifest themselves in these circumstances. Such inefficiencies will add to the already considerable workload of the clients, who are already dealing with an exponential increase in investment over a very short time period.

Historically, major infrastructure projects in Bahrain have been procured through traditional methods 18 Middle East Consultant October 2014

allowing the clients full control over the design and overall projects. The pace of change in the investment profile will, however, lead to a fundamental change in procurement to engineer-procure-construct (EPC) and build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT). These methods are already apparent in wastewater projects and it is expected that highways projects will follow. Challenges again arise from such changes, as they require different skills and mindsets, different interfaces and different experienced personnel to deliver successfully.

The rapid rise in investment, both in public and private sectors, brings a need for increased effort in planning and coordination. The challenge, not to be underestimated, for the Central Planning Office is to provide this support without the Northshore team, which ended its commission last year. There are examples across the region where inadequate planning and integration of private and public sector investment has severely disrupted programmes of work.

With all things considered, Bahrain is becoming a more buoyant market – the investment brings with it a message of positivity and prosperity for the people of Bahrain.

The prosperity will be built on a huge amount of hard work by many unseen individuals in the client bodies – unsung heroes who have to deal with the significant challenges ahead. We, the consultants and contractors who feed off the investment, will have to meet the challenges together with the clients if there is to be a successful period of investment and improvement of infrastructure in Bahrain. We must enter this period together and work extremely hard to emerge as partners on completion.

onstruction Intelligence eport

An industry in words The Construction Intelligence Report will offer an in-depth analysis of the Middle East construction market, covering a broad range of topics from property development and megaprojects to infrastructure and finance. The report will feature an exclusive survey on regional salaries and industry trends, as well as interviews with key executives, sector updates and country reports. This annual report will serve as a one-stop guide for industry professionals, enabling them to make more informed business decisions.

Sponsor logo

Premium positions DISPLAY

Sponsored by

RATE

Front Cover Sponsorship*

*Your logo on the front cover with associated status, two-page profile interview format and a full page advertisement

$40,000

Country Sponsorship**

**Your logo on the section divider of country with associated status, two-page profile interview format and a full page advertisement

$20,000

Outside Back Cover

$14,400

Inside Front Cover

$12,000

Inside Front Cover DPS

$21,600

First Right Hand Page

$9,600

Bookmark

$11,250

83

Infrastructure Us molenderio te nienihiciae quae sinveni as apel iusanda ndicae sum fuga. Luptas aut acil issus acea possum volorporro iliquibust re occae voluptae. Ut doluptatibus sinvendicte plic totaspide prorrorit, inciis estibus.

82

The right workflow and processes defined, BIM enables organisations to improve the quality of building design

Dolor Sitamet

Run of page advertising PUBLISHING DIRECTOR RAZ ISLAM raz.islam@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5471 EDITORIAL DIRECTOR VIJAYA CHERIAN vijaya.cherian@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5713 ADVERTISING COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR MICHAEL STANSFIELD michael.stansfield@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5497 COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR JUDE SLANN jude.slann@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 433 2857 MARKETING MARKETING MANAGER LISA JUSTICE lisa.justice@cpimediagroup.com +971 4 375 5498

DISPLAY

RATE

Double Page Spread

$14,400

Full page

$8,000

Half page

$5,000

83

Example of section divider

BIM – Business Enabler or Technology Red Herring?

Lorem Systems' Dolor Sitamet explains why it is so important for BIM providers to create systems that will push forward the concepts of simple and effective cooperation between all stakeholders involved in a project Luptas aut acil issus acea polvolorporro iliquibust re occae dimitis dolor?

The UK government’s decision to require that all suppliers involved in public sector construction projects use Building Information Modelling (BIM) tools and techniques by 2016 is to be applauded. The intention is to drive better value from capital investment and realise a 20% reduction in lifetime costs, whilst supporting environmental commitments by facilitating a more integrated approach to design. It is also about changing the culture between the client and the rest of the supply chain, replacing the traditional, rather adversarial business practices with a collaborative approach that should also drive innovation.

However, misinformation is rife. BIM is not just about 3D data but about creating a holistic information resource that also includes 2D data sources, documents, spreadsheets, and more.

I believe the key to realising the government’s BIM vision is to create simple, effective cooperation among the design, construction and operation aspects of the infrastructure lifecycle. Overcoming these traditional silos

provides a chance to reduce duplication, minimise errors, streamline processes and facilitate collaboration.

However, while the majority of new bids now demand some level of BIM compliance, requirements are often opaque at best. Let’s set the record straight: BIM, when done correctly, is about information sharing enabled by information mobility (across engineering disciplines and the infrastructure lifecycle).

It provides contractors and owner operators with access to key design data that can be used to transform effectiveness throughout the construction and operations processes. Yes, it drives better use of 3D across the industry, but not only 3D. 2D data remains important, as does information held in documents, spreadsheets, and other databases, all of which contribute to a holistic BIM approach.

Luptas aut acil issus acea polvolorporro iliquibust re occae dimitis dolor?

BIM is ultimately about creating an asset model from day one that can be used consistently throughout the project to drive efficiencies

and improve collaboration. Indeed, BIM also encompasses information management as much as information modelling. It enables a contractor to feed design information into project planning tools and resolve potential conflicts before arriving on site. It also empowers the sharing of space information with facilities management teams before the building goes live to drive effective up-front planning, as well as the sharing of other crucial design, engineering, and construction information that can later be used to help drive cost-effective operations decision making and renovations work.

Leveraging a collaborative platform and technology to share and integrate information, within an incremental approach that accommodates all of the specialised design simulation and analysis software best suited for each project role, will best enable the industry to achieve the desired widespread adoption of BIM. The government’s stance on BIM is to be commended. Demanding Level 2 compliance by 2016 is pragmatic and achievable and promotes the very real promise of intelligent infrastructure that is better performing in terms

of its energy efficiency, resilience to natural and man-made disasters, safety, and cost-efficiency.

However, while industry adoption and interest are positive, it is essential that organisations take a step back and truly assess information requirements.

Luptas aut acil issus acea polvolorporro iliquibust re occae dimitis dolor?

BIM is a business process not a technology.

With the right workflow and processes defined, BIM enables organisations to improve the quality of building design, reduce costs and achieve the collaborative workflows required to drive true innovation.

However, misinformation is rife. BIM is not just about 3D data but about creating a holistic information resource that also includes 2D data sources, documents, spreadsheets, and more.

I believe the key to realising the government’s BIM vision is to create simple, effective cooperation among the design, construction and operation aspects of the infrastructure lifecycle. Overcoming these traditional silos provides a chance to reduce duplication,

minimise errors, streamline processes and facilitate collaboration.

However, while the majority of new bids now demand some level of BIM compliance, requirements are often opaque at best. Let’s set the record straight: BIM, when done correctly, is about information sharing enabled by information mobility (across engineering disciplines and the infrastructure lifecycle).

It provides contractors and owner operators with access to key design data that can be used to transform effectiveness throughout the construction and operations processes. Yes, it drives better use of 3D across the industry, but not only 3D. 2D data remains important, as does information held in documents, spreadsheets, and other databases, all of which contribute to a holistic BIM approach.

BIM is ultimately about creating an asset model from day one that can be used consistently throughout the project to drive efficiencies and improve collaboration.

Indeed, BIM also encompasses information management as much as information modelling.

It enables a contractor to feed design

information into project planning tools and resolve potential conflicts before arriving on site. It also empowers the sharing of space information with facilities management teams before the building goes live to drive effective up-front planning, as well as the sharing of other crucial design, engineering, and construction information that can later be used to help drive cost-effective operations decision making and renovations work.

Luptas aut acil issus acea polvolorporro iliquibust re occae dimitis dolor?

Leveraging a collaborative platform and technology to share and integrate information, within an incremental approach that accommodates all of the specialised design simulation and analysis software best suited for each project role, will best enable the industry to achieve the desired widespread adoption of BIM. The government’s stance on BIM is to be commended. Demanding Level 2 compliance by 2016 is pragmatic and achievable and promotes the very real promise of intelligent infrastructure that is better performing.

84

Two page profile

$12,000

85

Example of two-page profile advertisement

Distribution, circulation and readership

50,000

copies will be printed and distributed across the GCC in January 2015 with issues of:

IN PRACTICE RICHARD BEARD

Interview

“It is about the team and recognising that not one person can be Superman.”

20 Middle East Consultant October 2014

IN PRACTICE RICHARD BEARD

READY TO RAMBOLL

Richard Beard, Ramboll’s new Middle East managing director, on how he hopes to awaken a sleeping giant of regional consultancy

T

THREE WEEKS INTO HIS NEW JOB AND Richard Beard, Ramboll’s managing director for the Middle East, is still learning about the regional projects that the Denmark-headquartered company has worked on.

“I keep finding more projects that the company has done that I didn’t know about. It’s a sleeping giant that has worked across many great projects, but the brand is not quite out there in the market place at the moment,” Beard says, in a soft yet assertive delivery.

“But I don’t think many people would know that Ramboll worked with Benoy on Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi, for example,” he adds.

A key reason for the British national’s appointment is to boost the brand, and with almost 30 years’ experience in the construction industry, Beard appears to be well placed to lead the company forward.

Reminiscing on how it all began, he reveals his career started in “the old-fashioned route” with a contractor apprenticeship in the UK. “I left school at 16 and joined a contractor and really established myself at the cutting edge, which is building things.

We all had our LEGO sets when we were kids and to do it for real was good,” he remarks.

“After four years I decided it was good experience but I wanted to develop myself academically. So I took three years out, gave up contracting and did a degree at Swansea University in Wales.”

He says that an element of false information made him move over into the consulting world. “I was told the working hours would be less and the travel would be more. The first one was wrong – the hours were as long, if not longer, than contracting – but the travel side was what interested me.

“In a short space of time I joined Halcrow in the UK in 1990 and got some really good general design experience working on very major civil engineering projects such as the second Severn Bridge and the Jubilee Line extension.”

Beard explains that he “threw it all away” to come to the Middle East with Halcrow, to build a new supply base in Mussafah, Abu Dhabi. “At the time, in 1994, it was in the middle of nowhere.

“It was quite exciting coming from an environment where things took a long time to happen, to a very dynamic and quick environment; in the Middle East, projects get thought about, delivered and implemented in very short timeframes.”

Beard spent the next 10 years growing a marine business, based in Halcrow’s Dubai office, and working on major ports around the Gulf such as Jebel Ali Port and Khalifa Port.

“Then 2008 hit,” he says, dramatically. “I guess Halcrow restructured – as did most businesses – to deal with the challenges at the time. I moved out of the marine engineering field and became managing director for Halcrow in the UAE.” A few years later, Halcrow was acquired by CH2M Hill, and Beard looked after the infrastructure division in the new structure. “It was interesting and exciting. But this year, another great company [Ramboll] came along and started talking to me,” he comments.

Beard claims he was won over by the values and the culture of the firm. “It’s a pure engineering and design company, which is my background, rather than having a programme/project management focus. That attracted me, and I met some of the great people that worked in the company.

“They are really keen in investing and growing the Middle East region. The cultural values were the real key for me – October 2014 Middle East Consultant 21

IN PRACTICE RICHARD BEARD

Ramboll has worked on a masterplan for Fujairah.

getting back into a European culture that is focused on people, the community and sustainability. I think it was all of that which enticed me. Ramboll also has a robust strategy and is strengthening the management to deliver this.”

Beard reiterates that, like himself, many construction professionals in the Middle East do not know the full extent of Ramboll’s expertise. “If you go to the buildings arena, Ramboll is very well known in terms of high rise and structural engineering. Yet it is not so well known in transportation.

“We’re working on some great projects – we’re doing the DVE role on the Doha Metro at the moment, which is a fantastic project. We’re looking to increase people’s awareness of our rail capabilities in the region. In the maritime space, Ras Laffan Phase Two is a great job with Qatar Petroleum.”

So what are the main reasons for this lack of awareness about Ramboll’s activities? “I think the problem is we are quite coy,” remarks Beard. “We don’t go out and shout about what we do.

We are a bit Nordic and modest in our approach.

“It’s not about shouting ‘rah rah’, but people need to understand what we’ve done, what the brand is and what we stand for. We’ve got very strong values – we’re a trust-owned company, which gives us the flexibility of working on the kind of projects we think we are valuing, sustaining, helping communities, etc.

“We are still privately-owned and we don’t have the kind of stock market pressures that other companies have for growth.

We have a very strong strategy – it is about becoming a leading, well-known company in the region, but it is certainly not about being the biggest. We are more of a niche player.”

He explains that the regional Ramboll business covers the ‘new markets’ – Middle East, India and Asia – with managing directors for each of the three regions reporting to the firm's

22 Middle East Consultant October 2014

managing director of new markets, Yaver Abidi. As leader for Ramboll Middle East, Beard’s remit covers offices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Jeddah and Riyadh, and a workforce of 500 people.

Beard says the company is pushing to increase its share of international work (outside the Nordic countries) to 4050% from the current 20-30%. He continues: “If you go to the Nordics, everyone knows the company – it’s very strong.

There are major crossings in energy, oil and gas.

“We are trying to push the brand. Part of the history of Ramboll in the region is it’s built on the back of three businesses – Ramboll, Whitbybird and Gifford. It’s about integrating those businesses and using platforms to grow.

“Putting three businesses together during a recession is tough for anyone. I know my predecessors had a tough time doing that. I think we’ve got a good foundation for growing and building a business.”

According to Beard, the largest sector for the regional business is buildings, followed by oil and gas and transportation and environment. He reveals that Ramboll ME intends to grow in the transportation sector and diversify in the environment sector, in an effort to “risk-proof” the business, and adds that the three core countries of the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia offer “plenty of work to go around” for consultants.

Many consultants are joining forces, according to Beard, and Ramboll is no different. “I think partnering will be a big part

IN PRACTICE RICHARD BEARD

“It is certainly not about being the biggest company in the region. We are more of a niche player.” of us moving forward,” he says. “We are in discussions with consultants to partner to deliver projects, and we are delivering projects jointly already. “[This is because] the challenges are huge – you just step into the rail space and the projects are enormous. Take the Riyadh Metro – that is just an amazing project where you’re seeing many consultancies team up and deliver.

“Doha Metro is another one where consultancies are teaming up. We are trying to be focused in what we go for – you don’t really see us in the water space. There’s plenty of other players already in there.”

“We are keen about transportation and masterplanning.

We have acquired Atelier Dreiseitl, a Singapore, China and Germany-based company which has a unique masterplanning and urban planning skill that we are using on a few projects.

There’s a lot going on.”

Beard reveals that Ramboll is also working on a commercial project in TECOM, Dubai, and the MDD4 project for Msheireb Downtown in Qatar. “That’s a very complex area of the site,” he says about the latter. “It’s by the metro station and we are designing 13 buildings on a common platform. It’s

about as complex as it gets for our structural engineers and it keeps them very happy.”

He continues: “In Saudi Arabia, we are doing a large environmental masterplan, working for Jeddah Municipality on stormwater and related issues. That is a very large project and has kept a team of 20-30 people very busy – we are just finishing that off and looking to the next stages.”

As the regional business appears to be getting busier and busier, how does Beard intend to manage it? “I’ve been in the Middle East for quite some time and seen many management styles. But I think with all the great projects here and the great teams, my management style is all about trust and empowering people,” he reveals.

“You hear this a lot, but I’ve found it’s the only effective way to run – you’ve got to get the right people around you and make sure they have a clear vision of what you want them to do and then move forwards. It’s about the team and recognising that not one person can be Superman. It’s very much a collaborative effort.”

Spoken with true Nordic-style modesty, it seems that Beard is an ideal match for the team at Ramboll.

Ramboll provided engineering services for Ferrari World, Abu Dhabi.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 23

IN PRACTICE LEE BARRY

Opinion

Lee Barry is a quantum expert for DIALES Expert Services, a branch of Driver Group PLC

Dispute doctor

The best way to engage experts in the event of arbitration

Since the global credit crisis in 2008 and 2009, the Middle East has seen a large increase in the number of disputes referred to arbitration.

There are many key decisions both parties need to consider when referring the matter to arbitration. For example, which disputes should be referred? Which legal team (lawyers and counsel) should be engaged and should claims support services be utilised?

Which experts are required and at what stage?

The discipline of the experts that need to be engaged will depend heavily on the nature of the disputes and also, to some extent, on the experts employed by the opposing party.

Experts can cover general issues such as delay, quantum, architectural, accounting, property revenue, project management and design, as well as specialist issues such as lift performance. Your legal team will be able to provide you with details of the types of experts you are likely to need to engage.

There are no fixed rules to state when you need to appoint an expert, except maybe the timetable for submission set out by the tribunal in accordance with Article 2 of the IBA Rules. Most appointments happen at one of these stages: prior to entering into the arbitration; after initial pleadings; or after all pleadings have been submitted.

In our opinion, engaging an expert early (at or prior to the start of the dispute) is the most advantageous option. This is because it reduces the need for repeat work, reduces costs and often results in an early settlement of the dispute.

However, this option is subject to ensuring all parties maintaining the expert’s independence. The choice of expert(s) is very important and may be 24 Middle East Consultant October 2014

fundamental in obtaining a positive outcome to the arbitration. Here are some pointers to consider.

Firstly, ensure your expert has experience and knowledge of the issues in dispute. Next, make sure your expert has worked in the region, or in a similar region/market to where the dispute has occurred.

Always consider the expert’s personal preference for analysis e.g. ‘as-planned versus as-built’ method.

If you have not used the expert before, then you may consider a ‘beauty parade’. You should also review the expert’s experience under cross-examination and consider his relationship with your legal teams, other experts, the opposition and the tribunal.

All experts must act independently, with their overriding responsibility solely to the tribunal (see Article 5 of the IBA Rules). It is essential that you allow your expert to provide their opinion, within the limitations of its instructions, without demanding they support your case regardless of the evidence or lack thereof.

That being said, providing further and better particulars (as long as admissible by the tribunal) may result in a different opinion by either expert.

Meetings between the expert, the party and the parties’ legal team are essential to ensure all documents have been considered and to resolve any misunderstandings. Finally, you should not be afraid to question the opinion of your expert as he or she will certainly be questioned under cross examination.

“Ensure your expert has experience and knowledge of the issues in dispute.”

CONSTRUCTION AND SUSTAINABILITY AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE NOVEMBER 18, 2014 CONRAD DUBAI www.bigprojectme.com/awards/2014

AWARDS 2014

THE INDUSTRY EVENT

THAT HAS THE WHOLE REGION TALKING RECOGNISING INDUSTRY EXCELLENCE

NOMINATION ENQUIRIES

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

GAVIN DAVIDS DEPUTY EDITOR +971 4 375 5480 GAVIN.DAVIDS@CPIMEDIAGROUP.COM

MICHAEL STANSFIELD COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR +971 4 375 5497 MICHAEL.STANSFIELD@CPIMEDIAGROUP.COM

GOLD SPONSOR

SUPPORTING PARTNERS

CATEGORY SPONSORS

IN PRACTICE SPECIFICATION

Insight

THE OFFICE Discovering the best practices in

specification for commercial projects

A

ccording to a recent report by JLL, prime office rents in Dubai are expected to rise due to increased demand for Grade A commercial space. Does this mean that developers and consultants are responding to this need and providing better quality office environments? Middle East Consultant speaks to two commercial experts – Richard Fenne, senior associate at Woods Bagot, and Christopher Seymour, partner and head of property, UAE, for EC Harris – to find out more.

26 Middle East Consultant October 2014

IN PRACTICE SPECIFICATION

“There is an unnecessary prevalence of glazing in office buildings, which places significant cooling demand and reduces efficiency.”

RICHARD FENNE, WOODS BAGOT

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 27

IN PRACTICE SPECIFICATION

What is MECO? Both Fenne and Seymour are part of a

Do you have any concerns over the quality of suppliers in the GCC, for products related to commercial buildings?

RICHARD FENNE: The suppliers in the large proportion of the

GCC are as high a quality as any international market. However, often the back-up behind these products is not as well established as in other more mature markets.

CHRISTOPHER SEYMOUR: The GCC has a varied geography and the supply chain, in terms of the right products and services, has equally varied availability. We always advise our clients on the viability of local sourcing products and services, which provides greater assurance around deliverability of the final built asset.

Should designers always try to source locally?

RF: Sourcing locally should always be the first option when

group of consultants and developers which launched a best practice specification (BPS) guide by Middle East Council of Offices (MECO). The council was formed in 2009 to promote the advancement of all facets of the office cycle in the Middle East, from design to occupation. It

considering procurement. However, life cycle carbon emissions and life cycle costs should be evaluated if possible, as part of the wider sustainable approach.

CS: With careful specification, the delivery of a quality commercial building is absolutely possible using many local products – and indeed this path is encouraged under Estidama.

focuses on research

Are more tenants and developers requesting LEEDcertified or Pearl-rated buildings?

understanding of

RF: Most corporate occupiers will typically have a developed

environment. The

CSR policy in place, including an environmental credential for their office occupation. LEED is the preferred choice as it is a recognised global standard, whereas Estidama Pearl rating only applies in Abu Dhabi. Developers who are seeking international companies as tenants are increasingly differentiating their buildings within the market by appealing to global corporate occupiers with such environmental accreditation.

council’s current

and creating open dialogue with developers, consultants and

which places significant cooling demand on the mechanical services and reduces building efficiency. The intensity of daylight in the GCC is such that adequate natural lighting levels can be achieved without extensive floor-to-ceiling glazing.

Is it best practice to incorporate shading systems externally, rather than relying on internal blinds?

RF: The primary objective should be to keep the light – and

therefore the heat gain – out of the building to reduce the required load on mechanical cooling. This is best achieved with external shading devices that are designed appropriately for the orientation of the façade; horizontal on south elevations and vertical on east/west elevations.

CS: External shading devices always work more effectively than internal blinds which, while shading direct sunlight, are a source of heat themselves as they warm up from the incident light. We see many examples of external shading in the Middle East, and a skilled architect can usually make good aesthetic use of them in the design of the building.

occupiers to

Do standards of office design vary across the GCC?

develop a better

Kuwait.

RF: There is a significant variety in the quality of office stock in the region. Through our benchmarking research for the guide, we found that the number of properties that are deemed to be of an international standard is limited. The UAE and Qatar are probably leading the way in improving office stock, particularly with mandating green building regulations.

CS: In reality, there are still only a few properties – a handful in the UAE – which offer true international standard accommodation. Such buildings achieve rental levels consistently higher than others in the market and stand as a testament to the value of good design.

Are many office buildings overly transparent for the desert climate?

MECO’s best

What are the best examples of commercial projects?

practice

RF: International Tower in Abu Dhabi’s Capital Centre,

RF: In the Middle East Council of Offices (MECO), best

specification guide

practice specification (BPS) guide, we dedicate a large section to the building envelope – a critical element in terms of dictating building performance in this region. We feel there is an unnecessary prevalence of glazing utilised in office buildings,

is available to

Gate Village in DIFC and the Standard Chartered headquarters in Dubai are all excellent examples of commercial buildings developed to an international standard.

a superior working

focus is the UAE, Qatar and KSA office markets, with burgeoning interest in Oman, Bahrain and

download at www. meco-online.me

“Modern workplace theory recognises that the open-plan office as a panacea for general productive knowledge workers is outdated.”

CHRISTOPHER SEYMOUR, EC HARRIS 28 Middle East Consultant October 2014

What role should the authorities play in regulating, or grading, commercial space?

RF: The authorities have a critical role in helping to define

appropriate standards for commercial developments. However, these standards will often relate to building codes which govern practical matters such as fire life safety. In terms of more qualitative issues that directly impact building occupiers, such as space standards, the onus remains on the developers to provide international benchmarks similar to those outlined in the MECO BPS guide.

CS: Specific building codes for building uses – including commercial offices – will be a natural progression in the maturity of the real estate governance in the region. The region

IN PRACTICE spECifiCation

can learn a lot from developments in the other economies; it is important to codify only those matters which positively affect the health, safety and wellbeing of the occupants of the building and sustainability of the region, as a whole. Other matters that enhance the value and quality of the asset overall are the domain of the market expertise and professional bodies .

Do open-plan offices make sense for all tenants?

RF: Flexibility is essential. Truly sustainable buildings

should follow the ‘long life, loose fit’ mantra which allows for adaptability and will appeal to the wide-ranging typology of occupiers in the region. Flexibility should be inherent within the design of the building, including for ease of floorplate subdivision, capacity for additional risers, density fluctuation and suitable fire life safety strategies.

CS: Modern workplace theory recognises that the open-plan office as a panacea for general productive knowledge workers is outdated, and that varying spaces with different functional uses is the right approach. This paves the way to make corporate real estate a business enabler rather than a service cost. In order to achieve this flexibility, the base building needs to provide an environment that can cater for different uses, power requirements and densities.

From top: Richard Fenne, Woods Bagot; Christopher Seymour, EC Harris.

Is it important for developers to utilise consultants with specific experience in commercial buildings?

RF: Engaging a project team with relevant sector experience

is vital to ensure that the asset is developed with a degree of acumen which will ultimately lead to a more efficient and desirable building.

CS: As with most asset types, employing an experienced consultant team will pay dividends in terms of speed to market, creation of the right product at an economical price and risk management. In the recent past, the focus on lifestyle developments has meant that some of the commercial office experience at a consultant level is more scarce than five years ago. Therefore clients should pre-qualify their team carefully to ensure that they receive the correct advice.

How can consultants and developers work together to maximise efficiency and quality in commercial projects?

RF: It is important that a robust project brief with an overall

vision is developed from the outset. This should capture lessons learned, blended with local market knowledge and pertinent project experience. From a consultant perspective, it is also essential to agree an appropriate procurement route and a sensible design programme.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 29

30 Middle East Consultant October 2014

IN PRACTICE MELKAN TABANLIOĞLU

Profile

“You are an architect, not when you create something, but when you realise your dream.”

No stranger to the region, Melkan Tabanlioğlu discusses the latest goingson at the respected Turkish architecture firm she formed with husband Murat

M Astana Media Centre, Kazakhstan.

MELKAN TABANLIOĞLU, ALONG WITH husband and business partner Murat, is a familiar name in the regional construction industry. Having built up a reputation for carefully-crafted projects in their native Turkey, the couple’s eponymous architecture firm has completed highprofile commissions across the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia.

It has picked up several awards along the way, including ‘Architect of the Year’ from Big Project Middle East in 2013.

Tabanlioğlu Architects was established in 1990 in Turkey, and has grown to employ more than 150 people, with branch offices in Dubai and Doha. The Dubai base was set up three years ago after the firm won the commission to design Crystal Towers for Al Fattan Group, in the centre of Jumeirah Beach Residence ( JBR).

Construction is well underway on the 30- and 35-storey towers, which will contain retail, luxury apartments and penthouses, a modern mosque and a hotel operated by Rixos.

The firm previously demonstrated its high-rise expertise with Istanbul Sapphire, the tallest building in Turkey at 261m, as well as Loft Gardens in the same city.

Other key projects include Bodrum International Airport, Tripoli Congress Centre in Libya, Sipopo Congress Centre in Equatorial Guinea and the Astana Arena in Kazakhstan. A recent completion was the Selcuk Ecza Headquarters, an eye-

catching office project in Turkey which resembles a high-end villa. It is also working on another congress centre in Dakar, Senegal. Tabanlioğlu’s Doha office was opened recently to work on an undisclosed cultural project.

In an effort to extend its roots in Dubai, Tabanlioğlu Architects has been exhibiting at Cityscape Global, formerly Cityscape Dubai, for the last 10 years.

This year’s show coincided with the launch of a monograph entitled ‘Tabanlioğlu Architects: Transparency and Modernity’, written by Suha Ozkan with essays from Philip Jodidio and Luis Fernandez-Galiano.

Melkan Tabanlioğlu was on hand at Cityscape Global 2014 to discuss the book launch and the latest developments at the company.

Tabanlioğlu Architects is known in Dubai for designing the Crystal Towers in JBR. What’s the status of the project?

We hope that in one year it will be finished, because construction is going very fast. It is now on the fifth floor – you can see the construction of the form and everything.

Of course, every day we are happy to see more progress. It is not easy to work next to the water – it is on the beach. In a maximum of one and a half years, all of the functions will be in front of us and we will start to use the building.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 31

IN PRACTICE MELKAN TABANLIOĞLU

the building, or if we are looking from the Palm Jumeirah, or when we reach the district.

Has the design been modified at all?

The vision is still there from when we showed the client the model. For us it’s very important to make your dreams come true. You are an architect, not when you create something, but when you realise your dream. Along the road there are many blocks in front of you as an architect – the engineers and the mechanical guys want to add something that you don’t want. The construction process is not always easy – the budgets, the clients, the requirements – there are many things. I think it is very important to look at the renderings and the real photo, and see if they match. Look at these images of our congress centre in Dakar [she points to a rendering and a photograph, which look practically identical]. This makes you and everybody else happy. This is a very hard process; architecture is creative but at the same time it is about coordination – you know all the things you want and have to fight with all the people during this process.

Which other consultants are you working closely with on the project?

“The Middle East is always important to us. We are spending a lot of time and energy in the region.”

What will the project bring to the city?

We are connecting people – JBR is very important because you can walk around. To make the city a real city, it is necessary to create life on the street. Unfortunately Dubai is not always reached in that way – normally you go directly into the buildings. You don’t have any connections between buildings, for instance, from Emirates Mall to here [Dubai World Trade Centre]. It is very important for us that people can walk through the building. You can use it as a big passage and you can reach the beach – everything will be together – retail, culture, malls, the hotel and all of the activities.

How will the towers affect the skyline of JBR?

Melkan Tabanlioğlu has been running the company with husband Murat for over 20 years.

I think they will be the focal point. The location is in the middle of JBR and it will attract attention. We are working so hard because the construction phase is very important.

As an architect you design something but the execution is what makes the building. All our team is working very hard to make our dreams come true. If we can achieve it I think we will be all happy. [We can admire it] from the front of

32 Middle East Consultant October 2014

We are working with the local consultant [OBE Architects].

Local values are always adding something to the buildings.

We are always saying ‘smart local’ or ‘local smart’. If you can find materials from the place you are constructing, it is always better. This is a big part of sustainability. We try so much to source materials from the region.

Is it a challenge to construct in Dubai?

No, it is not difficult in Dubai – there are many good construction companies here and many firms that are capable of doing good, big projects. We have a team that has a lot of experience – we know the capability of the people. It’s really important that your requirements match what they can do. There are many companies but you have to select the best one. I can’t say that all the Dubai companies are good or all are not.

How important is the Middle East to your business?

The Middle East is always important to us. We are spending a lot of time and energy in the region. We have an office in Dubai and we have set up in Doha too. My husband Murat is flying into Dubai a lot. I am going more to Africa and Doha, and sometimes here. The Dubai office is led by Mustafa Alper Alhan. He’s an interesting and cool guy – young and very clever. He is running the office and doing the coordination.

It is a tough client – we like him so much, but he is tough.

Everybody is trying to finish the project properly. In the construction period we had to grow because we are doing construction management at the site. Now there are 25

IN PRACTICE MELKAN TABANLIOĞLU

people in our Dubai operation. Recently we have been talking with other companies about other projects, but because of the confidentiality agreements, I cannot tell you.

Inshallah we can talk at the next stage.

Which other markets are key for the company?

Africa is important. We are number one there – we have worked on congress centres in Libya, Equatorial Guinea and now Dakar, Senegal. We have some very important projects in Kazakhstan. In Astana [the capital of Kazakhstan] we have the arena, media centre and now we are doing the train station. All the transportation stuff belongs to us and we will have some other projects as well. These are regions in which we have a lot of experience. We are doing all the coordination of the engineers and so on from our London office. We are working hard.

You launched a book at Cityscape. How does it feel to get it out to the market?

This is the second launch of the book. The first was at this year’s Venice Biennale Architecture Exhibition – Murat was the curator of the Turkish pavilion at the same time.

Because the event was focused on architecture, we wanted to show all the architectural work that we do. In the Middle East, Cityscape was a good opportunity for the launch – we have been coming here for more than 10 years. We now see [Dubai] as our second home. At Cityscape, there are organisations that are attending every year which we have good communication with, and many people that we work with – we think it is good timing. This is the second book for us – we launched our first in London in 2008 but it was smaller. This new book was designed and written internationally and it is very exciting for us.

Crystal Towers, JBR, for Al Fattan Group.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 33

ON SITE DUBAI OPERA

Preview

As work moves ahead on Dubai Opera, Atkins reveals the challenges behind designing a multi-use auditorium in the shadow of Burj Khalifa 34 Middle East Consultant October 2014

C

ON SITE DUBAI OPERA

COMPARED TO GLOBAL DESTINATIONS SUCH as London, Paris, Sydney and New York, Dubai had previously fallen short in providing world-class cultural venues. Therefore, when the Dubai Opera project was announced in March 2012, it felt like a big tick was soon to be struck off the checklist for entry into the elite group of international cities.

Yet aside from a few renderings by lead consultant Atkins, little has been revealed about the details of the potentially game-changing project. Thankfully, a presentation by Atkins’ Middle East design director Janus Rostock was held at Emaar’s Cityscape Global stand, giving visitors to last month’s show an opportunity to learn more about the scheme.

The complex project involved several development stakeholders – including Emaar and Mirage – plus a myriad of consultants working together. Building information modelling (BIM) was used to ensure the coordination of services, structures and architecture, and the various components.

Rostock stated that one of the main challenges was “to create an icon in the city of icons”. He continued: “It is a lowrise building, surrounded by the tallest building in the world, the biggest fountain, the biggest mall, and all of those things made it very difficult for us to do something that is unique.

“For us as architects, masterplanners and designers, it’s been important to do a building which is rooted in its context. It needs to be a building which is typical of Dubai.”

Inspiration for the design came from the creek and the traditional dhow fishing boats. Rostock explained: “It was on the creek that the Baniyas tribe first settled…the dhows themselves are very interesting in that they brought prosperity – they brought the trade and the different cultures. For us it was a good inspiration…the dhow is the vessel for cultural exchange.”

In addition to designing the opera house, the project involved the creation of a masterplan for a wider opera district serving as a cultural hub. “When we did the masterplan we originally looked to start a new type of neighbourhood in Dubai,” added Rostock.

“We are creating something with walkable streets, that is permeable and created on pedestrian comfort…more akin to some of the major cities around the world like Barcelona, Paris, London and New York.

“Dubai Mall is such an attraction that it almost pulls the life out of the Downtown area, so creating a juxtaposition to that was very important.”

Another key provision was a plaza in front of the building – something which Dubai “really lacks” according to Rostock.

He continued: “You’ve got lots of good internal spaces with retail offerings, but we don’t have a lot of good spaces for people to meet in public.”

The masterplan used passive sustainable design principals while allowing views towards the Dubai Fountain and Burj October 2014 Middle East Consultant 35

ON SITE DUBAI OPERA

The dhow was an inspiration behind the form of Dubai Opera.

“It looks simple, but it’s actually a very, very complicated shape which has few glass panels that are the same.”

JANUS ROSTOCK, ATKINS

The team DEVELOPER Emaar DEVELOPMENT AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT Mirage ARCHITECTURE, STRUCTURES, ENGINEERING Atkins THEATRE SPECIALISTS TPC INTERIOR DESIGN WA International LIGHTING CONSULTANT LDA ACOUSTICS Sandy Brown

Khalifa. The plaza also contains a water feature by WET Design, the consultant behind Dubai Fountain. “It’s all about the location of building – providing good shading through passive means – not about putting PV panels or wind turbines on the building,” added Rostock.

“Buildings need to sit in the right way so that they protect the open spaces and allow you to sit outside and be in shaded areas, but at the same time they allow the wind to come through and ventilate the open spaces. Through analysis, we put the buildings in locations that allow for natural breezes to come through the development.”

In most theatres, 75% of the façade would be devoted to back-of-house areas. However, a six-metre level difference meant that the designers could offer access to the back-ofhouse areas from the higher ground, while creating a lobby which wrapped around the entire façade. “It means that the building can be activated on all four sides and can sit as this jewel in the crown and be a truly civic building for the downtown area,” added Rostock.

A 100m promenade rolls out from the entrance, acting as a “processional walk” for theatre-goers. He continued: “Part of going to the theatre is getting the tickets, getting dressed and arriving. We had the opportunity to create this ‘red carpet’ walk so the audience coming to the theatre can walk through this

36 Middle East Consultant October 2014

plaza and have people sitting in the cafés watching them. They almost become the performers before they enter the theatre.”

The promenade reaches the upper level and also allows access to the VVIP boxes, without the need to pass through the entire complex. The treatment of the roof was also a key consideration, given that it offered an opportunity as a vantage point over Downtown Dubai.

Rostock added: “An opera house has lots of technical equipment which sits on the roof. One of the things we’ve looked at in much detail is how to articulate the roof. By adding a garden, the roof acts as a fifth elevation. This is very, very important and something the chairman [Emaar’s Mohamed Alabbar] was very clear about from the beginning.

“The roof terrace allows you to sit outside. Because of the height of the walls, you can actually pump cold air into the outdoor space, so even in the summer time you can sit out here, smoke a sheesha and look at the Burj.”

Behind the glass façade sits the lobby, which then meets the dark wooden-clad outer wall of the auditorium. This produces a ‘Russian doll’ effect when viewed from outside, according to Rostock.

“From the side elevation we have create this almost ‘Russian doll’ – the dhow inside the dhow, the ying and the yang, the solid with the void, the transparent and the opaque. It really

Emaar’s Downtown Dubai masterplan places the Burj Khalifa as its centrepiece.

shows how this is all encapsulated into one single form. It looks simple, but it’s actually a very, very complicated shape which has few glass panels that are the same.

“For us it was very important that we created a building that was as transparent as possible. The opera house will be used at night, so you want to be able to stand inside and look out and see the fountain outside. You also want people outside to look in and see the building alive. The opera house will act as a lantern at night and will be a true icon.”

The façade facing the plaza is shaded by external louvres, again with a wood cladding. “It gives you this horizontality of a boat but at the same time it allows unobstructed views out,” added Rostock.

He remarked that this shading device features Islamic patterns, similar to other “typical” Emaar buildings. “The elevation towards the plaza was a real challenge.

“Despite the fact that we managed to create a lot of passive shading, the plaza meant that this is the most exposed façade and it is the one we have to protect the most from the low afternoon sun.”

“Dubai Mall is such an attraction that it almost pulls the life out of the Downtown area, so creating a juxtaposition to that was very important.”

JANUS ROSTOCK, ATKINS

38 Middle East Consultant October 2014

The lobby can hold around 2,000 people to comfortably accommodate the maximum capacity of visitors spilling out of the auditorium. For the auditorium itself, the team looked at various theatres around the world as case studies, including DUCTAC in Dubai, the Oman Royal Opera House and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.

Theatre Project Consultants (TPC), a specialist that has worked on 1,200 theatres around the world, is part of the consultant team and has previously worked with Atkins on the Bahrain National Theatre.

For Dubai Opera, an intimate space was required, as Rostock explained. “A theatre is all about community, creating education, learning and participation. This means the interaction between the performers and the audience is very important,” he said.

“This is not a movie – you’re not able to zoom in – you’re going to have to be able to watch it from your seat. Therefore, the intimacy and the design of the auditorium is extremely important. Laurence Olivier once said he wanted to stand on the front stage and see into the eyes of the person sitting on the back row.”

According to Rostock, the Dubai Opera is the only auditorium in the world, of comparable size, to have three different modes – ‘concert’, ‘theatre’ and ‘wedding/banquet’.

This stemmed from the client’s requirement to have as much flexibility as possible.

With storage space in the basement, the lower level contains removable seats and the stage and orchestra sections can be shortened or widened depending on the requirements. For theatre mode, a proscenium frame can be added to direct the eye towards the stage.

Rostock continued: “In concert mode, the performers would like to sit in the same room as the audience themselves – they want to ensure that they are surrounded by the music and the sound. The Walt Disney Concert Hall is what we were looking at to create a really good concert environment.”

One of the biggest challenges, according to Rostock, arose from Alabbar’s requirement to have a full flat floor in order to host a banquet or a wedding. “We managed to get around it but it hasn’t been easy,” he added.

“The key for Emaar is to have the spaces work as hard as possible, so you can [have enough flexibility to] do an exhibition or a car launch. The same goes for the plaza – we can set up a cinema, we can do a car launch, an outdoor concert or outdoor seating. They want it to be as multi-active as possible.”

Quite remarkably, the project is due to be finished in little over a year, with work starting on site and the deadline for building completion slated for Q1 2016.

While Sydney’s revered but troubled opera house took 14 years to complete, Dubai’s very own version will be delivered in a fraction of the time. Only time will tell whether it has as much impact on the city, both as an icon and as a cultural hub.

Images courtesy of Emaar Properties

ON SITE DUBAI OPERA

17 - 20 NOVEMBER 2014 Dubai World Trade Centre 11:00 - 19:00 Daily

REGISTER ONLINE BEFORE 17 NOVEMBER to save the AED 100 entry fee www.thebig5.ae/mc1

KNOW.

GROW. BUILD. AT THE LARGEST CONSTRUCTION EVENT IN THE MIDDLE EAST ATTENDED BY 74,000+ PARTICIPANTS

• • • •

35,000+ new innovative international products 2 day Sustainable Design & Construction Conference Senior-level professional development workshops Technical presentations and case studies addressing the Middle East projects market

NEW Diamond Sponsor

Earn CPD points through 40+ certified, FREE educational workshops View the programme at www.thebig5.ae/education Platinum Sponsor

Information Services Partner

Free Zone Partner

Bathroom Solutions Partner

HVAC Partner

ON SITE LEADENHALL BUILDING

Snapshot

40 Middle East Consultant October 2014

ON SITE LEADENHALL BUILDING

In detail LOCATION London HEIGHT 224 metres AREA 2,000m2 (public) 84,424m2 (gross internal) 56,670m² (lettable) CONSTRUCTION 18,000 tonnes of steel 70,000m2 of cladding ELEVATORS 26

LEADENHALL BUILDING Now welcoming tenants as well as visitors to a new public square, London’s ‘Cheesegrater’ involved some of the top consultants in the business

L

LONDON’S 47-STOREY ‘CHEESEGRATER’ has achieved a number of milestones in the last month, with the opening of a public area at its base as well as the completion of the shell and hand-over to tenants for fit out.

Aside from its distinctive wedge shape, which earned the tower its nickname, the project is notable for its progressive programme, with 85% of the construction pre-fabricated offsite. Steel components were manufactured and assembled as far afield as Northern Ireland, and then transported to the site and lifted into place. Co-developed by Oxford Properties and British Land, the Leadenhall Building started construction in 2011 and contains 57,000m2 of office space.

The commercial floors utilise rectangular floor plates which progressively diminish in depth by 750mm towards the apex.

Three groups of passenger elevators serve the low-, mid- and high-rise sections of the building, and are connected by two transfer lobbies at levels 10 and 24.

The lower levels of the tower are recessed on a raking diagonal to create a 28m-tall public space at the south.

Protected by four glass windbreakers, this semi-enclosed public area creates a new walking route from Bishopsgate to Leadenhall Street. Covering an area of more than 2,000m2, it is the largest public space to have opened in the City of London for a decade.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 41

ON SITE LEADENHALL BUILDING

Architecture

Engineering

ROGERS STIRK HARBOUR + PARTNERS The building was designed by Richard Rogers’ firm, Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners. Like Rogers’ revered Lloyds Building next door, the tower expresses its entire framework on the exterior, which is made up of a series of constituent parts. A full-perimeter structure, known as a braced tube, defines the edges of each office floor plate to give the façade its most visible element. Other distinguishable features include the ladder frame that encloses the fire fighting cores and a circulation tower, which contains 26 passenger lifts and is painted bright yellow. The ladder frame contributes to the vertical emphasis of the building and anchors the building to the ground. The tapering shape is said to respect views of St Paul's Cathedral.

ARUP Arup was appointed to provide structural and building services engineering, vertical transportation, acoustics, lighting and security design services. As the braced tube structure avoids the need for a central structural core, the largest floors have no more than six internal columns, creating flexible workspaces. A naturally ventilated, triple-glazed cladding system contains 70,000m2 of glass. Blinds were installed in the cavity between the two inner layers of glazing, and these adjust automatically to prevent glare and overheating. The building’s asymmetric form presented structural challenges; as the building tapers, the attic levels incorporate generators, cooling towers, boilers, pipework and other services into a diminishing footprint.

42 Middle East Consultant October 2014

ON SITE LEADENHALL BUILDING

Technical consultant

Feasibility consultant

WSP WSP worked on the client's representative and technical compliance team, responsible for the administration of the construction contract, checking construction design documents, monitoring the quality of works and awarding practical completion.

WSP’s 40-strong team was supported by John Robertson Architects and EC Harris. Davis Langdon also helped to develop, procure and deliver the tower, providing cost management, environmental services and risk management. WSP project director Chris Hayter said: “This was a hugely technically challenging building. [We helped] our client negotiate the often complex contractual and technical challenges and risks involved with the project and are enormously proud to see it all come to fruition.”

M3 As various opportunities were considered for the site before construction took place, M3 undertook several feasibility studies. It identified the potential for a tall commercial building while selecting and leading the project team through design development and submission of the planning application. M3 helped to develop a project brief, which involved the challenge of dealing with views to St Paul's Cathedral, and gained a resolution to grant consent at the first committee meeting. M3 also managed the first ‘bottom-up’ demolition in the UK, which involved the removal of a 54m-tall 1964 building on the site. A structural deck acted as a work platform and as a safety barrier for the demolition work. This was jacked upwards as each successive office floor was removed.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 43

ON SITE ROUNDUP

Company update HBA appoints David T’Kint to lead MEA operations Longstanding HBA partner David T’Kint has been appointed to lead the hospitality design firm’s MEA operations.

With over 10 years’ hospitality design experience, T’Kint will spearhead HBA’s expansion and strengthen the firm’s design offering in the region.

Having lived and worked in Shanghai, Paris, the Maldives, Los Angeles and Singapore, he has successfully overseen the conceptual design of worldwide projects including the Kempinski in Beirut, Four Seasons in Kyoto, Raffles in Jakarta and Sifang Collective in Nanjing, China.

Commenting on his appointment, T’Kint said: “I am thrilled to join the talented team at HBA

DSE Oman wins 4 MEP deals Drake & Scull Engineering (DSE) Oman has signed four MEP contracts, worth a combined total of $46m.

DSE Oman will provide MEP services for a government facility in Al Ghubrah, Muscat. The company has commenced work on the project, which is scheduled for completion in 2015.

Elsewhere, the firm will undertake MEP works for a government complex in Nizwa. The project is spread over an area of 36,452m2, encompassing residential and essential services facilities, and is scheduled for completion in 2016.

In addition, DSE Oman will deliver MEP services for a leisure and tourism project in Muscat, as well as upgrading core MEP systems at an oil refinery.

Key projects for DSE include Muscat Royal Opera House, the National Museum of Oman and the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque. Currently, the company is delivering MEP services on Muscat International Airport and a hotel in Duqm.

Ahmad Al Naser, managing director of Drake & Scull Engineering (right), said: “The four recent project wins for the DSE team in Oman is a reflection of our expertise and experience in delivering large scale projects in Oman.

“DSE Oman wants to be a significant player in shaping Oman’s modern urban landscape and leverage its historical association with Oman to secure more projects in the infrastructure and construction sectors.”

44 Middle East Consultant October 2014

Dubai and to bring my passion for hospitality design to our clients in the MEA region.”

MEA is the second biggest growth market for HBA, with its Dubai revenue having increased by 50% over the last two years, accounting for almost 10% of the business’ total global revenue.

The firm has completed the Grand Hyatt Spa refurbishment and the new Al Manzil living room concept in Dubai, the refurbishment of the Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates lobby, the St Regis Saadiyat Island Resort and the St Regis Nations Towers in Abu Dhabi.

Upcoming regional projects include the Grand Hyatt Mecca in Saudi Arabia and the Saraya Aqaba Resort in Jordan.

ON SITE ROUNDUP

WSP TO BUY PARSONS BRINCKERHOFF Technical consultant WSP has confirmed it will acquire professional services consultant Parsons Brinckerhoff from Balfour Beatty, in a deal worth $1.35bn.

Canada-headquartered WSP will buy the US-based consultant for $1.24bn, plus a possible additional $110m, subject to adjustments.

In a statement, WSP said the terms of the acquisition have been approved by the boards of directors of both companies, while final approvals are expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of this year.

Parsons Brinckerhoff has around 170 offices and nearly 13,500 employees. Combined with WSP, the organisation would have a workforce of 31,000 employees around the world.

“Employees of both firms will benefit from the transaction, as we integrate our talents and make the most of our greater scale to continue to develop our people,” said Pierre Shoiry, president and chief executive officer of WSP (pictured, above).

Trimble acquires Gehry Technologies Trimble and Frank Gehry have entered into a strategic alliance to collaborate on "connecting the office to on-site construction technologies".

As part of the alliance, Trimble has acquired Gehry Technologies, the software and consulting services business that has been instrumental in delivering Frank Gehry’s designs, while assisting in keeping costs down and schedules on tracks.

“This merger is a dream for me. In Trimble, we find a partner who has like-minded ambitions and goals to create efficiencies in the AEC industry that allow the creativity of the architectural profession to flourish and deliver value-added creative solutions within the realities of our economic times. I am very

excited to expand our mission with a great new partner,” said Frank Gehry.

Steven W. Berglund, president and CEO of Trimble, said: “We are honoured to enter into an association with Frank. His unique architectural vision has always challenged the conventional. Equally impactful are his views on the potential for transforming the entire design-buildoperate continuum.”

The alliance is said to enable designers, builders and operators to collaborate more efficiently.

“We expect that our common commitment and our combined capabilities will accelerate the adoption of technology in this trillion-dollar industry with resulting breakout benefits,” Berglund added.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 45

ON SITE ROUNDUP

Project update Deyaar unveils Midtown, designed by OMA Developer Deyaar has revealed the masterplan for a 550ha upscale development in Dubai called Midtown, designed by OMA, the practice of legendary architect Rem Koolhaas.

The development will be located adjacent to Jumeirah Golf Estates on the southern end, skirted by the Dubai International Media Production Zone.

Midtown by Deyaar will include a total of 27 buildings, with two hotels on the northern and southern tips, 13 separate residential buildings on the east side and 12 buildings clustered into four groups.

While three buildings are joined into one group on the west side of the masterplan, all 27 buildings will share a one-level podium covering retail, parking and essential services.

Saeed Al Qatami, CEO of Deyaar, said: “Designed by OMA, which enjoys an impeccable reputation in architectural design, Midtown is a sterling example of Deyaar’s ongoing priority to bring to market best-in-class real estate offerings.”

Deyaar revealed the project at Cityscape Global, and has also recently launched Montrose and The Atria in Dubai.

KPF-designed $1.4bn Royal Atlantis revealed Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD), the investment arm of the Government of Dubai, along with developer Kerzner International Holdings Limited, has unveiled the $1.4bn Royal Atlantis Resort and Residences in Dubai.

Located on the crescent of The Palm, next to Kerzner’s immensely successful Atlantis resort, the project will include nearly 800 new guest

46 Middle East Consultant October 2014

rooms with architecture from Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF) and interior design by GA Design.

The 46-storey development will also feature 250 luxury residences, designed by Sybille de Margerie Design, as well a sky pool, almost 90m above The Palm.

Alan Leibman, chief executive officer, Kerzner International, commented:

“The success of Atlantis, The Palm has continued to exceed our financial performance expectations year-on-year and the time is right to usher in the next phase of this iconic development.

"The Royal Atlantis Resort and Residences will offer a new resort living experience, completely taking it to the next level, while adding an entirely new dynamic with our ultimate residences.”

ON SITE ROUNDUP

Unlocking hospitality CURRENT HOTEL SUPPLY IN DUBAI (NUMBER OF KEYS)

Emaar Properties has unveiled BLVD Heights – two residential towers in Downtown Dubai connected by a podium.

Ahmad Al Matrooshi, managing director, Emaar Properties, said: “Demand for stylishly designed apartments in Downtown Dubai continues to be strong, led by its appeal as the world’s most popular lifestyle destination.

“Homes in BLVD Heights will appeal to investors from around the world, providing them a sought-after address in the heart of the city.”

Emaar launched BLVD Heights simultaneously in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore.

280

BLVD Heights features 280 luxury one- to threebedroom apartments, in close proximity to the upcoming Opera District in Downtown Dubai

2012

2013

Q3 2014

53,400

57,000

60,150

62,800

FUTURE HOTEL SUPPLY IN DUBAI (NUMBER OF KEYS) Q4 2014

2015

2016

2017

2,400

2,800

6,000

7,600

Meraas launches island project La Mer Meraas Holding has launched La Mer, a mixed-use scheme near Pearl Jumeirah Island, with construction set to start in Q4 2014.

Spread across 88.2ha of existing and reclaimed land, La Mer will feature commercial, leisure, residential and hospitality components.

The island contains four zones – the beach, a leisure and entertainment hub, North Island and South Island.

On North Island and South Island, La Mer will include 688 apartments and

villas and a 160-key hotel, as well as retail and F&B outlets.

It is conceived as a leisure and entertainment hub with a focus on water play and beach sports in addition to skate boarding, outside gymnasia and youth activities.

The project will also include two yacht marinas and a park. Existing beaches are to be redeveloped in order to offer improved beach amenities to Dubai’s resident community and visitors.

October 2014 Middle East Consultant 47

Source: Hotel market overview by JLL

EMAAR’S BLVD HEIGHTS SET FOR DOWNTOWN DUBAI

2011

THE BACK PAGE MUWAFAK AL JUBOORY

Thoughts “I took the decision to build a history and to give it a name.”

From the early years, I tried to train myself to paint water colours and I was able to use my technique to find a

space within my feelings for environments made by man, and to see the world as fresh as a wet water colour painting.

In my early experience, I touched the beginning of what you could call an architect forming himself. That

experience changed to be a search for the architect, after my graduation from Mosul University and during my Masters degree study. I read most of Le Corbusier’s and Luis Khan’s writings and I was studying their free-hand sketches. I wanted to regenerate their feelings at the moment they made them, to build my understanding of what an architect is. At the same time, I studied semiology and semiotics to be closer to architectural interpretation.

The first day after I finished my Masters, I took the decision to build a history and to give it a name. After a

few years of travelling, I started MJU Group in the middle of 2004 as a design studio based in Dubai. At MJU, we provide architectural design, interior design and graphic design. For me, there is not much difference between designing a multistorey building and a small logo, as both are bringing ideas and feelings into existence and making them touchable. The moment you make your design is the moment you realise your feelings and put them in a physical form.

Nowadays, MJU Engineering Consultancy has around

Why I chose my job Muwafak Al Juboory, director, MJU Engineering Consultancy

A

s an architect, I grew up and studied in many different cities in Iraq, my country of origin. I had a dream that one day I would live and work in Baghdad, the city I loved and the place where I took a Masters degree in Architecture.

48 Middle East Consultant October 2014

20 architects, 43 engineers and three talented graphic designers. We pay more attention to architecture and interior

design and deal with them as one entity when defining the personality we give to our projects.

In my life there is no typical day, even though I may do similar activities. I used to spend most of my time in the

office with my design team, and the other part in meetings with clients or suppliers. Between all of this I can always find place for reading. If I cannot do any of that, I just turn my chair towards the window and look at Burj Khalifa. I like site visits when nobody is there to be able to see what I want to see.

As an architect I am happy about my journey and I feel satisfied every time I start a new project – I consider

that a sign of previous projects' success – although I cannot say I am satisfied in the general meaning of the word. There are many things I need to learn before I can say I am really satisfied.

If there was another Muwafak trying to find his way, but he could not be an architect, I would advise him to be a plastic surgeon or a water colour artist, to see

and create the transparency of the world even if he does it on paper only.

Visit Us Big 5 Hall Sheikh Saeed Arena Booth No : Ar A197

PRESENTING NEW HVLS FANS Why does the planet love our fans?

Less energy • Cleaner air • Smaller footprint Our fans use up to 30% less energy than an HVAC system alone. That makes your environment better for the environment.

Summer Installing HVAC is very costly for large spaces, making it unaffordable to many to invest and run it.

Low productivity and absenteeism due to the heat is a problem. Macro fans provide a cooling effect from 2ºC to 6ºC thanks to the evaporative effect on the skin. When used along with HVAC it helps distribute the cool air and by raising the thermostat temperature we achieve huge savings.

Winter One HVLS fan, by itself, can cool about 20,000 sq. ft. of building space. As a stand-alone cooling system in winter, Macro Air HVLS fans provide an efficient, cost-effective solution to cooling many large building types with high ceilings, like Manufacturing, Warehousing, Workshops, Showrooms, Commercial. Better cooling with low cost and energy saving up to 20%.

BENEFITS OF ALL THIS TECHNOLOGY.

Lowers air conditioning costs up to

20%

Khind Middle East FZE P.O. Box 261569, Jebel Ali, Dubai, UAE +971 4 886 0492

kme.enquiry@khind.com www.khind.ae

h & Ed lt u a

r ast uct fr

Leisu r

oper t Pr

In

y

e

Indu s

He

Transpo

n tio ca

re u

rt

y tr

Delivering an integrated range of

project and Programme management solutions Faithful+Gould is one of the world’s leading integrated project and programme management consultancies. For over 65 years we’ve provided services in all sectors of the construction industry to ensure projects meet client objectives, are delivered on time and on budget.

Across the world we have a network of over 2,300 consultants, of whom 450 are located in the Middle East.

To find out how your project can benefit visit:

fgould.com Middle East UK North America Europe Asia

Project MANAGEMENT Programme management cost management Planning management Contract advisory Project controls

A MEMBER OF THE ATKINS GROUP