ITP MEDIA GROUP / BUSINESS DECEMBER 2020 • ISSUE 770 ALEC UNRAVELS THE SECRET BEHIND ENGINEERING DUBAI’S NEXT ICONIC PROJECT “ACHIEVING THE UNTHINKABLE WITH ONE ZA’ABEEL” ALTEC.COM +1 205-317-1069 SALES@ALTEC.COM BUILT TO LAST SALES | SERVICE | SAFETY TRAINING | TOOLS & ACCESSORIES For over 90 years, Altec equipment has been used by leading companies across the United States and in over 100 countries around the world. Through advanced engineering, rigorous testing, and robust manufacturing capabilities, Altec Cranes are among the most reliable in the industry and are built to withstand the harsh climates of the Middle East. Altec’s portfolio of cranes features lifting capacities ranging from 16 tonnes to 40 tonnes and boom lengths from 21 meters to 46 meters. Mounted on your choice of commercial chassis from the US, Europe, or Japan, Altec units are backed by direct parts and service support across the Middle East.CONTENTS DECEMBER 2020 • ISSUE 770 ALEC’s MD, Barry Lewis, talks about how they conquered the engineering complexities of the “iconic” One Za’abeel project CO V ER S TOR Y 24 GENDER DIVERSITY Reed Smith speaks to Ranju Warrier about how the industry needs more women role models MODULAR TECH Kuwait’s Alshaya Enterprises discusses with Disha Dadlani why they made the switch to pre-fab SITE VISIT Sharjah Sustainable City reveals major updates on Phase 1 of the project with Disha Dadlani EXPO EXCLUSIVE Monaco Pavilion’s Albert Croesi shares design and construction details with Ranju Warrier EDITOR’S LETTER Ashley Williams analyses how public-private partnerships will be the next business opportunity PROJECT UPDATE The Construction Week team reveals all its site visits from the past 12 months giving you exclusive details about each development 10 12 14 18 20 30 STAT OF THE MONTH THE LINK: 930-TONNE FINAL LIFT Ithra Dubai’s One Za’abeel marks a construction milestone on its 226m-long “centrepiece” QUOTE OF THE MONTH “STEM-RELATED CAREERS” KPMG on growing demand for engineering jobs in the Middle East 08 06 DECEMBER 2020 CONSTRUCTION WEEK 3 EVENTS CW Awards 2020 has now increased seating capacity from four to eight people per table at the JW Marriott Marquis on the 9 December. Book your tables now! 344 CONSTRUCTION WEEK DECEMBER 2020WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM PUBLISHED BY AND © 2020 ITP MEDIA GROUP FZ-LLC. PO Box 500024, Dubai, United Arab Emirates TEL +971 4 444 3000 WEB : www.itp.com Offices in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, London & Mumbai ITP MEDIA GROUP CEO Ali Akawi MANAGING DIRECTOR Sue Holt EDITORIAL CW EDITOR ashley.williams@itp.com CW DEPUTY EDITOR anup.oommen@itp.com CW DIGITAL EDITOR ranju.warrier@itp.com CW MULTIMEDIA REPORTER disha.dadlani@itp.com MEP EDITOR tom.oxtoby@itp.com PMV EDITOR dennis.daniel@itp.com FM EDITOR rajiv.pillai@itp.com ADVERTISING GROUP COMMERCIAL MANAGER Saraswati Agarwal TEL +971 4 444 3352, EMAIL saraswati.agarwal@itp.com SENIOR SALES MANAGER Moutaz Gadelhak TEL +971 4 444 3177, EMAIL moutaz.gadelhak@itp.com ITP LIVE GENERAL MANAGER Ahmad Bashour TEL +971 4 444 3549, EMAIL ahmad.bashour@itp.com STUDIO SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHERS Efraim Evidor, Adel Rashid STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS Aasiya Jagadeesh, Ajith Narendra, Fritz John Asuro PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION GROUP PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION DIRECTOR Kyle Smith PRODUCTION MANAGER Basel Al Kassem PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR Mahendra Pawar SENIOR IMAGE EDITOR Emmalyn Robles CIRCULATION DISTRIBUTION & WAREHOUSE MANAGER Praveen Nair MARKETING DIRECTOR OF AWARDS & MARKETING Daniel Fewtrell ITP GROUP CEO Ali Akawi CFO Toby Jay Spencer-Davies WEB www.ConstructionWeekOnline.com SUBSCRIBE online at www.itp.com/subscriptions NOTICE The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for errors or omissions contained in this publication, however caused. 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MEDIA WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM The most important project, contract, and tender information, updated every week To have your copy of Construction Week delivered to your doorstep, subscribe by logging on to www.itp.com/subscriptionsMARBLE GRANITE QUARTZITE ONYX TRAVERTINE QUARTZ PRECIOUS STONE Surface Solutions, Designed By Nature www.glaze.ae/ Statuario MarbleQUOTE OF THE MONTH WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM6 CONSTRUCTION WEEK DECEMBER 2020 “EMPLOYER ENGAGEMENT THEMES” AT UNIVERSITIES COULD HELP MAKE RIGHT CAREER CHOICES Students in the UAE and wider region are confident that the skills they learn at university will help them compete in the global jobs market. However, a similar percentage want more career guidance, according to a new study conducted by KPMG and The Talent Enterprise in collaboration with Dubai International Academic City. Referred to as “What About Youth?”, the research, while highlighting the importance of career guidance at the university level, also focused on the significant rise in the number of students who have been choosing engineering- related careers. More than 20% of the participants said that they would like to pursue a career in STEM, they are also calling out on regional universities to establish initiatives to promote STEM and entrepreneurship- focused careers to keep up with regional government priorities in order to develop a highly-skilled workforce for a more diversified economy. Construction Week spoke to Marketa Simkova, partner and head of people and change for the Middle East at KPMG, to understand how companies could work with universities to reduce the gap between educational curriculum and the requirements of employers. Simkova explained: “Many universities follow employer engagement themes, and career counsellor themes, where they would work closely with the employers. Each of these companies would have a network of employees typically hired from that university. This type of engagement will help university students understand how it is to work for the company, and what is their value proposition. The companies would also explain the kind of skills and students they are looking for.” The research found that with the UAE now set for more space missions, STEM-related careers across science, engineering, technology, robotics, and artificial intelligence gained popularity among students, with 21% showing interest in these fields. “In the UAE, the government focuses heavily on the diversification of the economy. There has been a particular focus on engineering, science, and research. All the recent developments, from the Mars Mission to sending the first astronaut to space, as well as the medical discoveries related to COVID-19, plus the investment in advanced engineering, has created an awareness among youth for STEM-related careers pathways,” added Smikova. The role of women in engineering and construction is a hot topic of discussion, starting from their career choices to their position in leadership roles. According to the research, women are more passion-driven towards their work, and many are keen to pursue careers in human resources, education, social, and life sciences. However, more needs to be done to encourage women to choose STEM- related careers and take up challenging roles in engineering and construction. Stressing on how there has always been a need for women role models in STEM fields for young female students, Simkova said: “Positive role modelling” is the need of the hour for female students. Simkova concluded by saying that universities should work more with alumni, and share success stories of women who have a great career in engineering and construction. Such stories would point at the right role models in the industry, encouraging female students to pursue careers in these fields. KPMG’s Marketa Simkova, discusses the demand for engineering jobs among youths in the Middle East and the need for more female students to take up STEM-related subjects Many universities follow employer engagement themes, and career counsellor themes, where they would work closely with the employers [Image: CW Archives/ Shutterstock] DEVELOPED BY Own your luxury apartment in Bahrain’s most luxurious residential project +973 17 000661 To view our virtual tour of the luxury apartments please call our sales team on: INTERNATIONAL PROPERTY AWARDS WINNER 2020-2021 RESIDENTIAL HIGH RISE DEVELOPMENT Delivering the Ultimate Luxury Lifestyle Experience in Bahrain BaySTAT OF THE MONTH ITHRA DUBAI’S “THE LINK”: A 226M-LONG STRUCTURE, 100M OFF THE GROUND, WITH A 66M CANTILEVER Property development giant Ithra Dubai, which is wholly-owned by the Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD), has marked a major milestone on it’s One Za’abeel project – the twin-tower development near Dubai World Trade Centre on Sheikh Zayed Road – with the completion of the final lift of the 930-tonne second section of ‘The Link’, which has reached its final position – perpendicular to the twin towers – 100m above the ground. The structure qualifies One Za’abeel and The Link for a Guinness World Records™ attempt as the “Longest Cantilevered Building” in the world. Although The Link is a 226m-long structure made from a composite material of steel and concrete suspended perpendicular to the One Za’abeel twin towers, its 66m cantilever is anchored at only one point while the rest floats above The Happiness Bridge offering views of The Burj Khalifa, The Museum of the Future and the Downtown Dubai skyline. The Link has been constructed of seven steel modules – named Assembly A-G – that were slid into place before they were lifted into their final position. The lift of the 192m-long first section of ‘The Link’ to its final position took place in September. The lift — one of the heaviest in the region — was carried out over a period of 12 days, with a total weight of 8,720 tonnes. More than 110 special jacks and heavy-duty strand jacks were used for the operation, collectively by a team of global experts in the fields of construction, engineering, and contracting. The second and final lift joined the cantilevered structure with the first section of The Link and was executed over the course of four days. More than 55 jacks and strand jacks, and 12.2km of strands were required to lift this final portion weighing over 930 tonnes. Commenting on the milestones of The Link, the chief executive officer of ALEC, Kez Taylor, tells Construction Week: “We were prepared for contingencies, and everything went according to plan and both of these lifts went ahead as scheduled.” 100M OFF THE GROUND, WITH A 66M CANTILEVER More than 55 jacks and strand jacks, and 12.2km of strands were required for the 930-tonne final lift to join the cantilevered structure with the first section “For instance, when COVID-19 hit, we were very quick to react. We used a lot of our digital technologies and acted on very accurate data. We set up war rooms. We made sure that we were very quick to react to the constant changes.” The Link, when completed, will house Michelin-starred restaurants, observation decks, an infinity pool on its roof, and an infinity view – with a glass floor and glass walls that appear to float in mid-air. The Link – perpendicular to the twin tower buildings – is 80m in height and 80m in width. Commenting on the construction of The Link, the chief development officer of Ithra Dubai, Raad Jarrah, told CW: “The One Za’abeel Towers were not built straight, vertically, like most buildings. Every level was inclined about 1.5mm as part of the precambered build. “This was designed on purpose because when the two towers received the weight of The Link they moved inward towards The Link, and aligned. They would now be genuinely vertical as you would expect from any other building.” 8 CONSTRUCTION WEEK DECEMBER 2020WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM The Link quali es One Za’abeel for a Guinness World Records™ attempt as the “Longest Cantilevered Building” in the world [Photo courtesy: Aasiya Jagadeesh / ITP Media Group]HOW LIQUID SILICONE CAN DOUBLE ROOF LIFE HOW LIQUID SILICONE CAN DOUBLE ROOF LIFE ENERCON explains to Construction Week how liquid silicone is the ideal solution for roof refurbishment Roof maintenance is no less important than a car maintenance, but because roof is out of sight, it is out of mind. However, there has been a prevalent mindset - where we do not treat roofs as the most critical component of our building. In some cases, even after knowing that there is a certain problem, which needs fixing at the roof top, we neglect it until it becomes inevitable. On the other hand, unfortunately there has not been any good quality product on offer specifically for roof refurbishment/maintenance. But what is the solution for this? The answer: liquid silicone. Liquid silicone is a patented advanced technology, which is an ideal solution typically for any type of roof refurbishment. High OPEX and repeated maintenance have been the biggest paint point for most of the building owners and facility management companies. Extending the life of your roof is one of the smartest decisions any owner, facility manager or property manager can make. Thanks to liquid silicone, this has made it finally possible. Liquid silicone is a cost-effective and long-term roofing solution. Ponding Water Inorganic nature and high energy chemical bonding of silicone (the chemical bonding of silicone-oxygen atom), makes silicone coating a permanent barrier to water, even under a ponding situation. Water content either from ponding or water vapours try to penetrate the membrane, but tight interatomic bonding repels the water, making silicone hydrophobic. No matter how long silicone coating is exposed to ponding water, it will not let water penetrate the surface. Cool roof and UV resistance High surface tensions are a natural chemical tendency of silicone coating, which makes it a permanent barrier to sunlight. This makes the roof substrate cooler and UV resistant. Ease of application The biggest challenge in roof maintenance is the removal of existing waterproofing system, which takes 75% of the time and effort of the contractor. Liquid silicone’s ability to bond with almost any existing surface has made it a revolutionary system for roof maintenance, and this factor significantly contributes towards cost savings both for contractor and for building owners. Liquid silicone is a single component, moisture cured coating which has self- levelling properties, and thus all one needs to do is to open the bucket mix it, pour it, then spread it. Durability High elongation and tensile strengths are inherent features of liquid silicone and when these two features are coupled with excellent UV resistance and waterproofing capabilities, it makes silicone coating the most long-lasting roofing system. Environmentally friendly Liquid silicone is engineered and formulated using “solvent free green polymers” with negligible VOC content. It outperforms other conventional solvent based and solvent free products, such as aliphatic urethanes, asphalts, thermoplastics and acrylics. Liquid silicone is an advanced technology, which has profound economic benefits up its sleeve. All of these features mentioned by ENERCON make it a cost-effective, sustainable, and innovative solution for roofing refubishment. SOLUTIONS DECEMBER 2020 CONSTRUCTION WEEK 9WWW.CONSTRUCTIONWEEKONLINE.COM ENERCON discusses the bene ts of how liquid silicone can improve roof life across buildings [Image:Supplied]Next >