First-ever Excellence in Construction Award winners unveiled at CityBuild Abu Dhabi

Pioneering woman 'opening doors' in construction

First-ever Excellence in Construction Award winners unveiled at CityBuild Abu Dhabi

A pioneering senior executive who has broken male domination of the region's building industry boardrooms has received the first-ever Woman in Construction Award.

Receiving the award at CityBuild Abu Dhabi, a new trade show for the Middle East building and construction industry, Fatima Obaid Al Jaber, Chief Operating Officer of Al Jaber Group, said: “By receiving this award I hope to be opening the doors for more women to follow.”

Al Jaber was among a number of winners to receive CityBuild Excellence in Construction Awards during the show at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre which runs until 21 April 2010.

“The judges were looking for an individual who has overcome the real and perceived obstacles of working within a male-dominated industry,” said Graham Wood, Group Director of CityBuild Abu Dhabi organisers IIR Middle East. “Fatima Al Jaber has forged a successful career in this competitive industry, providing a pioneering role model and inspiration for future generations of women working in construction.”

Fatima Al Jaber has been voted by Forbes Arabia among the top most influential women in the Arab world. She sits on Al Jaber Group's board as an Executive Director and her key responsibilities include overseeing the management of contracting, logistics, industrial, trading, investment and real estate subsidiaries. She is also on the boards of the National Investor and Abu Dhabi Takaful Company.

The CityBuild Excellence in Construction Awards have been introduced to recognise outstanding performance and excellence in the industry with all entries reviewed by an advisory board composed of leading names in the industry, the organisers said.

The CityBuild Honorary Award, made to an individual or organisation that has made a significant contribution and demonstrated outstanding service to the construction industry, went to the Department of Economic Development, Abu Dhabi.

In the Construction Products Award category, the winner of the Best Water Technology product was Waterwise Systems, by Green Precast Systems and Technologies. Best Building and Construction product was Archilede by Iguzzini Middle East. Green Product of the Year was Environmena Power Systems.

In the Architecture and Design Award category, winner of the Best Sustainable Design Award was Administration Building by Make Ltd. The Best Sustainable Construction Award went to Reem Emirates Aluminium. The Innovation Award went to Greencast Precast Systems and Technologies.

CityBuild Abu Dhabi runs until 21 April 2010 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre bringing together industry suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, architects, engineers, importers and procurement decision makers. The new show is being held alongside Cityscape Abu Dhabi, the international real estate investment and development event.

The founding sponsor of CityBuild Abu Dhabi is Kludi RAK. Associate/Awards Sponsor is Mapei. The Summit’s sponsors include BASF’s Construction Chemicals and KNAUF Drywall Systems division. The event is also supported by the Chartered Institute of Business, Building Smart Middle East, Donate a Brick, Emirates Environmental Group, the Middle East Drymix Mortar Association and the UAE Contractors’ Association.

Showing respect to Arabic cultural tradition and Islamic values and by special request, Cityscape and CityBuild Abu Dhabi have announced that the exhibitions will be open to ladies’ only from 3 until 8pm on Wednesday 21 April.

For more information, please visit: www.citybuildabudhabi.com

Photo captions:

1: “I hope to be opening the doors for more women to follow,” said Fatima Obaid Al Jaber, Chief Operating Officer of Al Jaber Group.

2: CityBuild Excellence in Construction Award winners with their awards.

CityBuild Abu Dhabi :1,600 civil projects worth $560 billion still active in UAE

1,600 civil projects worth $560 billion still active in UAE

Latest Proleads study released at CityBuild Abu Dhabi analyses current status of UAE civil construction market

Dubai, United Arab Emirates: A total of 1,296 projects valued at more than $418 billion are currently being built in the United Arab Emirates, with an additional 303 projects worth $143 billion already in the design, planning and or bidding stage, according to the latest market analysis published by UAE-based research company Proleads Global today.

Proleads Global compiled the study, on behalf of CityBuild Abu Dhabi, a new trade show for the region’s building and construction industry which opened today (18 April 2010).
The inaugural construction showcase aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current civil building market within the UAE.

“The construction boom has slowed down in the UAE as it has elsewhere but there is still 1,600 projects worth over $560 billion either in execution or about to start construction in a more sustainable approach to development,” said Graham Wood, Group Director of CityBuild Abu Dhabi organiser IIR Middle East.

The total state of the UAE civil construction market covers a total of 2,552 projects with a combined total budget value of almost $930 billion. Out of that total it finds 842 projects with a total value in excess of $350 billion on hold as a result of the economic slowdown and a further 111 projects valued at more than $14 billion have been cancelled.

For the most part, the Proleads investigation considered projects with a budget value greater than US$10 million and divided the market into five sectors; commercial; retail; hospitality; residential; and healthcare and education sectors.

In a sector breakdown, the Proleads investigation shows the total commercial sector consists of 462 projects valued at US$253 billion. Although a large proportion of projects are in execution, both in terms of budget and number, many have been placed on-hold or even cancelled since the fourth quarter of 2008. New project construction starts have also slowed, while those completing are increasing, the report says.

The total retail sector consists of 336 projects valued at US$148 billion with 64% of projects still active. The hospitality sector consists of 392 projects valued at US$162 billion with 63% active.

The residential sector consists of 682 projects valued at US$306 billion with 62% projects active. Proleads says the rate at which projects are being cancelled in this sector has increased over 2009 although the largest proportion of projects are still in execution both in terms of budget value and project number.

The education and healthcare sector consists of 680 projects valued at US$58 billion with 64% of projects active. Within this sector, 20% of the budget value is in the pre-execution stages. Across all sectors cash flow has seen some decline during 2009 but is set to recover slightly during 2010.

“The Proleads report will provide invaluable intelligence for companies attending CityBuild Abu Dhabi to help them address the challenge of developing strategies for surviving the construction downturn as well as improving competitiveness,” added Wood.

CityBuild Abu Dhabi runs until 21 April 2010 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre bringing together industry suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, architects, engineers, importers and procurement decision makers. The new show is being held alongside Cityscape Abu Dhabi, the international real estate investment and development event.

The founding sponsor of CityBuild Abu Dhabi is Kludi RAK. Associate/Awards Sponsor is Mapei. The Summit’s sponsors include BASF’s Construction Chemicals and KNAUF Drywall Systems division. The event is also supported by the Chartered Institute of Business (CIOB), Building Smart Middle East, Donate a Brick, Emirates Environmental Group, the Middle East Drymix Mortar Association and the UAE Contractors’ Association.

For more information, please visit: www.citybuildabudhabi.com


About CityBuild Abu Dhabi
CityBuild Abu Dhabi is organised by IIR Middle East, the largest trade and consumer event business in the region with a portfolio of more than 40 large scale events across a variety of industries. IIR Middle East is part of Informa plc (www.informa.com) the largest publicly owned organiser of conferences and courses in the world with more than 10,000 events annually.

About Proleads
Based in the United Arab Emirates, Proleads focuses on construction markets across 19 countries in the Middle East, North Africa and Asia. The Proleads online database contains over 8,000 active projects containing details of scope of work, ownership, budgets, schedules, companies involved, contact details along with the latest update of projects. Proleads estimates the accuracy of its data at 90%. For more details, please visit www.projectsandleads.com

Public-private partnerships to lead the way in multi-billion dollar infrastructure projects, say organisers of CityBuild Abu Dhabi

New strategies to survive the construction slowdown

Public-private partnerships to lead the way in multi-billion dollar infrastructure projects, say organisers of CityBuild Abu Dhabi

The financing of major multi-billion dollar infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, electricity, water and universities in the Middle East is likely to be driven in future by increased use of public-private partnerships, according to industry observers.

“The fact is that international investors are finding it tough to secure traditional infrastructure project funding in today’s new world economic climate,” says Graham Wood, Group Director of CityBuild Abu Dhabi, a new trade show for the region’s building and construction industry from 18-21 April 2010 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre.

Since 1995, project finance deals have been completed around the world totaling more than $1.5 trillion but global activity dropped by 40% in 2009 as funding costs made long-term finance scarce and expensive.

“The construction boom may have slowed down within the Arabian Gulf, now with a more considered approach to development, but there are still about $114 billion worth of construction and infrastructure projects due to be awarded over the next 12 months,” Wood added. “In addition, the market is being driven by projects in Abu Dhabi. Presently the UAE capital accounts for more than half of the top ten infrastructure projects by value, in the Gulf.”

CityBuild Abu Dhabi will bring together industry suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, architects, engineers, importers and procurement decision makers and is being staged alongside Cityscape Abu Dhabi, the international real estate investment and development event. As part of the Construction Summit at CityBuild Abu Dhabi speakers will address the challenge of developing strategies for surviving the construction downturn, as well as maximising competitiveness and utilising alternative funding models.

“Abu Dhabi is already leading the way in private financing to pay for infrastructure,” said Wood. “It is using public-private partnership (PPP) funding methods with the new campus at Al-Ain University and the new Paris-Sorbonne and Zayed Universities in the capital.”

PPP funding works on the basis of the government agreeing to payments over the life of a contract or 20 or 30 years with the contracting consortium investing initial capital expenditure – though in this case the Abu Dhabi government has taken an equity stake in the special project vehicle set up by the consortium.

“The PPP approach is also being used on a highway through Abu Dhabi to the UAE’s border with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries such as Qatar and Bahrain are looking at the using the system,” he added.

“In addition, a whole range of new trends are emerging in the region’s construction sectors as businesses assess the impact reduced client finances are having on budgets, tenders and supplier criteria. Margins are under pressure with contractors and consultants being squeezed to achieve better value and there is tighter due diligence than before as organisations attempt to reduce risk.”

Industry advisers are also urging a back to basics risk management approach when it comes to project financing. “The inherent risks faced by construction firms in the Gulf region over the past three to four years demonstrate how important a risk management plan is to a contractor,” said Cynthia Corby, Audit Partner, Construction Industry Leader, for Deloitte in the United Arab Emirates, in a recent report.

“In the current economic environment, it is important to get back to the basics of risk management by focusing on understanding the project owner’s requirements and resources, cost management tracking systems and cash flow management and thereby focusing on the fine balance between risk and reward.”

The founding sponsor of CityBuild Abu Dhabi is Kludi RAK. The Summit’s sponsors include; BASF’s Construction Chemicals and KNAUF Drywall Systems division. The event is also supported by the Chartered Institute of Business (CIOB), Building Smart Middle East, Donate a Brick, Emirates Environmental Group, the Middle East Drymix Mortar Association and the UAE Contractors’ Association.