< PreviousSUPPLIER NEWS www.fm-middleeast.com40 November 2021 RECYCLE In line with its commitment to raise sustainability awareness among the younger generation, Mai Dubai steps up its support to DGrade’s ‘Simply Bottles’ programme through sponsorship of Simply Bottles School Recycling Challenge for the school year 2021-2022. Mai Dubai has been an active partner of DGrade, a manufacturer of eco-friendly clothing, for the past two years, to help raise awareness on the importance of recycling plastic water bottles through engaging with teachers, students and parents across schools in Dubai. The goal of the recycling challenge is to increase recycling rates of plastic water bottles by encouraging students to recycle as many plastics water bottles as they can. The initiative also provides a platform for students to create their own recycling drives by collecting plastic not just from the school, but also in their homes, IOT Siemens Smart Infrastructure has completed the acquisition of French startup Wattsense, a hardware and software company which offers an innovative, plug-and-play IoT management system for small and mid-size buildings, expanding Siemens’ building products portfolio. Wattsense was started in 2017 and is headquartered in Dardilly, near Lyon, France. Wattsense optimises the technical management of small and mid-size buildings with a leading IoT solution that combines simplicity and interoperability. It enables the adoption of energy management practices in facilities with little or no building management system technology, meeting the needs of building professionals seeking efficiency and The goal of the recycling challenge is to increase recycling rates of plastic water bottles Mai Dubai steps up eff orts to educate youth on environmental sustainability in partnership with DGrade Wattsense allows customers to connect a wide range of devices and make them IoT-enabled Siemens acquires Watt sense to boost IoT systems for small and medium buildings neighborhood and local communities. Three live assemblies will be held at the Raffles World Academy, Dubai’s flagship school for the initiative, starting on the first week of October. To encourage more participants, the challenge is broken down into phases with the first part taking place in Dubai from the 3rd of October to 9th of December. The first challenge is open to all primary and secondary schools in the emirate that are registered with Simply Bottles. More challenges are set to follow in early 2022. Alexander van ‘t Riet, chief executive officer of Mai Dubai said: “We have a responsibility to the younger generations, and sustainability is one of those. This is why Mai Dubai is keen in engaging with students and other stakeholders in various sustainability awareness initiatives. We want to help ensure that every piece of plastic we produce is recyclable and can be reused, and this partnership with DGrade is one of the ways we are contributing to the reduction of environmental hazards for a sustainable society. We aim to bring positive changes in the local communities by involving and encouraging our younger generations.” This initiative is in line with Mai Dubai’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) objectives to help reduce waste through recycling and its mission to be socially and environmentally responsible. Mai Dubai promotes sustainable practices in its operations and facilities. sustainability. Lowering entry barriers while keeping capital expenditures low, Wattsense allows customers to connect a wide range of devices and make them IoT- enabled. Multi-protocol devices can be onboarded easily before being connected to the cloud and operated in a Software as a Service (SaaS) model. It makes the benefits of a cloud- based IoT management system for buildings accessible to a wider range of real estate types, including schools, offices, warehouses and retail. “Together with Wattsense we will accelerate the adoption of IoT systems in a wider range of buildings, bringing the sustainability, comfort and cost benefits to more people and businesses,” said Henning Sandfort, CEO of Building Products at Siemens Smart Infrastructure. “The SaaS business model and innovative technology stack of Wattsense perfectly complement our growing digital portfolio for our customers. We are excited to welcome the talented Wattsense team on board.” Siemens Smart Infrastructure is a pioneer in infrastructure digitalisation with more than 2.3 million devices connected to its cloud platform. IoT systems representation. Plastic bottles.www.fm-middleeast.com SUPPLIER NEWS November 2021 41 POWER Hitachi ABB Power Grids announced that it is the lead in a consortium that has been awarded a major contract worth several hundreds of millions of US dollars from the Saudi Electricity Company and the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company. The award is for the first ever large-scale HVDC interconnection in the Middle East and North Africa, enabling the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the Arab Republic of Egypt to exchange up to 3,000 MW of electricity – much of which is expected to be generated from renewable energy sources in the future. The connection will support the flow of power in multiple directions between three terminals and will be the first interconnection allowing the exchange of electric power between both countries. The global technology and market leader will be delivering advanced technologies for the high-voltage direct current (HVDC) power link between the countries. This includes the supply of three HVDC converter stations located at Medina and Tabuk in KSA, and Badr in Egypt1. The business will also be providing system studies, design and engineering, transformers, valves, high-voltage equipment, technical advisory, commissioning and service, in collaboration with two consortium partners – Saudi Services for Electro Mechanic Works in KSA and Orascom Construction in Egypt. The HVDC link will give Egypt access to the interconnected power grids of the Arabian Gulf, and KSA access to those of North Africa, whilst strengthening grid resilience and power supply security. Both countries have ambitious carbon- neutrality targets. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is working to increase the share of natural gas and renewable energy sources to approximately 50% by 20302, and the Arab Republic of Egypt intends to increase the supply of electricity generated from renewable sources to 42% by 20353. The connection directly contributes to the realization of these goals. The in-country value of the investment is significant, generating new jobs and knowledge transfer for people in KSA and Egypt. H.R.H. Prince Abdulaziz Bin Salman – Saudi Minister of Energy – unveiled that reaching such milestone highlights the sound directives and proper guidance paid by the two brotherly countries, significantly represented by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques - King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and His Excellency President Abdelfattah Al-Sisi. Among a package of economic, development and political agreements accorded by the two countries, the MOU came to light, strengthening KSA’s and Egypt’s prosperous cooperation in interconnecting their power grids. H.R.H. Minister of Energy pointed out that the electrical interconnection plans in the Saudi Arabia comply with Vision 2030, enjoying a due care from His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense. Leveraging its strategic location while optimizing its ownership to the largest power grid in the Middle East and the Arab world, KSA aims at being a regional hub for energy exchange and a prominent trader in the market. H.E. Egypt’s Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy, Dr. Mohamed Shaker El-Markabi, affirmed that the project reflects the depth of Egyptian- Saudi relations throughout their rich history and the wise leadership of both countries. El-Markabi also highlighted the unceasing endeavors of Egypt & KSA to attain sustainable social and economic goals across the entire Arab world. He affirmed that such joint interconnection is a kick-start for a pan- Arab interconnection, complementing their visions towards 2030. Egypt’s Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy added that the robust connection between two of the largest electrical networks in the region, promise stability and reliability on power supply, with a thrive in the economic and developmental returns on exchanging around 3000 megawatts of electricity. Exhibiting their fruitful expansion plans for renewable energy resources, such cooperation is considered as a safety valve for the unstable nature of renewable energy. Huge investments shall be dedicated in the near future to address such unsteady nature. The HVDC interconnection will transport up to 3,000 MW of electricity at 500 kV along 1,350 km using overhead power lines and a subsea cable across the Red Sea. The power will be able to flow in multiple directions between the three terminals – for instance, from Tabuk to Badr, but also simultaneously from Tabuk to Medina. The groundbreaking intercontinental link will enable the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arab Republic of Egypt to exchange electricity, increase grid resilience and support a carbon-neutral future Hitachi ABB Power Grids consortium awarded major contract for large-scale HVDC interconnection in MENA The power will be able to flow in multiple directions between the three terminals.5 MINUTES WITH... 42 November 2021 What does your role involve? I focus on MEP maintenance - supervising STP & swimming pool contracts, issue NCR to the developers, follow up on rectification works, and supervising planned and reactive maintenance. For some time now we have been working hard on residential unit preparation and operation, project hand over. THIS MONTH: ALI BORG, FACILITIES MANAGER, ANDORRA VILLAGE BY BAWANI INTERNATIONAL FMME delves into the roles and lives to understand what makes the region’s FM professionals tick 3.00 What is the most challenging aspect of your job? Given the huge demand for labour in the Kingdom and limited availability due to border restrictions, it’s very difficult to recruit and retain loyal and skilled technicians. Juggling cash flow is also a challenge, at the early days of any project money is tight, cashflow is critical and can impact on supply of materials and equipment. At the same time end users expect high service standards, it can be very difficult to achieve a balance. What do you like to do in your spare time? Taking care of my family, social time with friends and watching my football team play and hopefully win! 4.45 What is the most memorable project and why? A few years back I was working on the Butat project, Jeddah. I was the maintenance manager for five projects and at Tamlik tower with two compounds. The project was well established and all of the resources I required were available at my fingertips, this made the job much easier and less stressful. 2.05 0.00 Where do you see th FM industry in 5 years? Given the challenges around manpower, I can see increased automation and mechanisation of aspects of the FM industry supported by technology based advances such as better CAFM, widespread adoption of BIM or REVET, IoT and the likes. 4.05 www.fm-middleeast.com Managing Director Alex Reeve Group Sales Manager Vinay Ravindran Distribution and Circulation Manager Evijin Pathrose Distribution Coordinator Avinash Pereira Circulation Executive Rajesh Pillai 2021 What do you love most about your job? Operation of such a large and sophisticated compound pres- ents me with many challenges but also many opportunities to grow and develop as an FM professional. 1.45 Production Manager Denny KollannoorCELEBRATING SUCCESS AND ACHIEVEMENT IN THE CONSTRUCTION SECTOR ConstructionWeekOnline.com/awards #CWAwards MONDAY 13TH DECEMBER 2021 DUBAI, UAE EARLY BIRD TABLE BOOKINGS NOW OPEN ASSOCIATE SPONSOR Saraswati Agarwal Commercial Director T: +971 4 444 3352 M: +971 52 895 2214 Email: saraswati.agarwal@itp.com FOR SPONSORSHIP ENQUIRIES: Anthony Chandran Marketing and Events Manager T: +971 4 444 3685 Email: anthony.chandran@itp.com FOR EVENT ENQUIRIES: LEGAL PARTNERGOLD SPONSORSILVER SPONSORGOLD SPONSORNext >