< PreviousHVAC SPOTLIGHT 20 MEP Middle East | October 2019 www.mepmiddleeast.com already reached a peak in its effi ciency. Now we are coming towards how to utilise this equipment in the most intelligent possible way. That is what digitalisation enables. “The main stumbling block to adoption of digitally advanced and innovative technolo- gies is coming from a lack of standardisation. “There are many different manufactur- ers and organisations that are innovating in their own specifi c fi elds, but today there isn’t a single standard towards which we can work. “Systems need to integrate well together to create that perfect indoor climate we have been talking about. It is important for digital- isation to happen under a standard towards a specifi c common goal. “The other stumbling block I see is that even those organisations who have been pio- neering technologies have seen a lower than ideal adoption rate. “The reason for this is that consultants, cli- ents and stakeholders involved in choosing equipment do not want to specify or utilise something which only a particular manufac- turer can do. “While this is understandable, it penalises those companies that are innovating and pio- neering technologies faster than the others.” WHERE DOES THE RESPONSIBILITY LIE EXACTLY? “As a whole the industry should take it (standardisation) forward together towards a common goal. “Standardisation of digitalised technolo- gies is very important because it provides a benchmark for technologies to be compared. “I would say that technology adoption can start immediately, with individuals, clients and consultants putting forward specifi ca- tions that make sure the most advanced tech- nology is getting adopted, and then insuring the entire industry is innovating and moving in that direction. “If they do not adopt the technology availa- ble today the industry will not feel [the need] to innovate ahead. Those two things need to go together, adoption and innovation.” IS THE INDUSTRY REALLY READY TO INNOVATE? “I think the industry innovating with new technology is something that is motivated on a global platform. “Grundfos is a global organisation and we see different needs arising from different regions, and we innovate products that fi t regional needs and global demands. Innova- tion is something that is critical and key to keep on improving technology. “We can utilise what we have today in buildings in 25 years, but the resources avail- able to us today are not going to be available The industry needs to start looking at the cost of not innovating as it grapples with digitalisation. That’s the stance of Ronak Monga, segment development manager for commercial building services at Grundfos Gulf, Levant & Pakistan. Speaking to MEP Middle East on the back of a one-day think tank on the future of HVAC – during which he and his contem- poraries from Belimo, Refl ex, and Kingspan made their predictions on what is to come – Monga stressed the need for the sector to take greater responsibility for the direction it is heading. “VITAL” THAT HVAC SOLUTIONS BECOME MORE ENERGY EFFICIENT “HVAC is by far the biggest consumer of electricity in any building. “It is the system that makes sure there is a comfort that is maintained in any building and, if you think about it, the majority of our life, especially in the Middle East, is spent inside buildings. “Whether it is at work, home, play, school, hospital, university, airport or shopping mall, we spend the majority of our time inside buildings. “And inside these buildings there are sev- eral pieces of equipment and systems work- ing together to maintain comfort. “One comfort is maintaining temperature, humidity and clean air that is rich in oxygen. “Air conditioning in HVAC systems is working to create this comfort setting. And it is vital these systems work perfectly – they are the lungs of the building. “While they have to work perfectly they are also by far the largest consumer of electricity, which means that energy effi cient and comfort-creating HVAC systems are a high priority for anybody using a building, developing a building, designing a building, or construction it. “That is why all stakeholders need to align on this common goal to create perfect indoor climate, but in the most effi cient way possible.” THE STUMBLING BLOCKS FACING HVAC DIGITALISATION “Digitalisation is essential – it is the key to developing more effi cient and better per- forming buildings. “This is primarily because equipment has Ronak Monga believes that value engineering has been PAYIN PENAPENALTYHVAC SPOTLIGHT October 2019 | MEP Middle East 21 www.mepmiddleeast.com in that time. It is not a question of if, but when. Especially looking at the Middle East, we are ready for it. Innovation is the need of the hour. “Aligned with the vision of the govern- ments, which by the way are extremely motivating and encouraging for innovators like us, we are already seeing the demand misconstrued to mean a reduction in quality, and thinks the industry must step up to foster greater adoption of new technologies. of customers who want more from exist- ing equipment and equipment they will choose in the future. This demand not only helps us drive innovation but keeps us look- ing ahead rather than at what we’ve done today. “A lot of the time it is a misconception that innovative technologies cost more. The real NG THE value of adopting innovation and technolo- gies can be seen when you look at it from a holistic point of view. “Your building is like a human body, and it is important to look at the cost of not doing something sometimes rather than the cost of doing it. “There is one particular term that has Lack of standardisation Lack of standardisation penalising those penalising those companies striving companies striving for innovation for innovation ALTY PENALTYHVAC SPOTLIGHT 22 MEP Middle East | October 2019 www.mepmiddleeast.com HVAC systems are the biggest drain on a building’s energy consumption, so require special attention. Innovating in the future is not going to give us the same drastic improvements that we have seen [in pevious years] come up a lot recently and that is ‘value engineering’. “Value engineering, for me, is miscon- strued to mean reduced quality. “Value engineering means engineering so- lutions fi t for the need of your building in a very smart and innovative way which helps you reduce CAPEX during construction and OPEX during the lifetime of the equipment. “The key term here is ‘value’, and value is not cost: it is very important to differentiate between them.” WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD? “I think the biggest leaps in innovations in HVAC are going to come from digitalisation. “When Grundfos started innovating on these particular aspects [we found that] it is a very broad fi eld. Producing over 17million pumps means we can capture a lot of data. “What we do with this data is very impor- tant, and that is what digitalisation helps us achieve. It is important to think outside of a particular piece of equipment and start thinking about the system as a whole, a building as a whole, and that building as part of a city as a whole. “When you start looking at the macro view and the holistic picture you start seeing the use of this big data in a much bigger way, a much better way. “The direction [we should be going in] is how do we utilise the data coming out of our equipment to do a much more effi cient operation? “The question is how does digitalisation really create a big impact in HVAC systems? “Pumps, which are a critical part of air conditioning systems, are typically designed in the same way they were 25-50 years ago. “Changes haven’t been revolutionary, they have been evolutionary. “Manufacturers have improved material technology, design technology, and produc- tion technology in order to drive effi ciency and reliability. But the result of that is that we have come to an extent that innovating in the future is not going to give us the same drastic improvements that we have seen in the years since. “So now we need to see what creates the difference. “The difference is going to come from how you operate the equipment which you have designed and produced in an effi cient way to run effi ciently for your specifi c need. HVAC is highly driven by demand, if I have fi ve peo- ple in a building compared to 500 the cooling needs are different. “How do you adapt tech and performance of pumps to this specifi c and ever-changing demand? “How you do this well is the invention and adoption of more sophisticated control technology that is only going to learn and become better through digitalisation.” YOUTUBE October 2019 | MEP Middle East 23 www.mepmiddleeast.com THE LATEST FROM CONSTRUCTION WEEK’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL TOTAL VIEWS 1.4m SUBSCRIBERS 6,505 Voltas' predictions for a digital future Masdar and EDF announce joint venture ESCO Masdar and French low- carbon electricity leader EDF have put pen to paper on an agreement to establish a 50:50 joint venture energy services company. Video link below: youtu.be/8kRhRhO9wUI As digitalisation continues to gather pace, the construction industry and MEP sector within it should be braced for change. Video link below: youtu.be/tN2XTZbEicQ S01E33 MEP Engineered S01E34 MEP EngineeredCONTACT A MEMBER OF THE TEAM TODAY FOR INFORMATION For sponsorship enquiries: Tom Martin Senior Sales Manager Tel: +971 4 444 3465 Email: tom.martin@itp.com For event enquiries: Teri Dunstan Events Manager Tel: +971 4 444 3227 E-mail: teri.dunstan@itp.com For nomination enquiries: Tom Oxtoby Editor, MEP Middle East Tel: +971 4 444 3419 Email: tom.oxtoby@itp.com For table booking enquiries: Lacie Curtis Table Sales Executive Tel: +971 4 444 3223 Email: lacie.curtis@itp.com BOOK YOUR TABLES TODAY! www.mepmiddleeast.com/awards Wednesday 6th November 2019 Celebrating their 13th year, the MEP Middle East Awards will once again recognise the most worthy projects, companies and individuals from the mechanical, electrical and plumbing sector in the Middle East. Visit www.mepmiddleeast.com/mepawards for more information or contact one of our team today. GOLD SPONSORS SILVER SPONSORS CATEGORY SPONSORPRIZE SPONSORMIDDLE EAST MARKET FOCUS GLOBAL BIM MARKET VALUE EXPECTED TO TIP $10.3BILLION MARK BY 2022 SPECIAL REPORT FROM MEP MIDDLE EAST Essential information for mechanical, electrical, plumbing and HVAC professionals An ITP Media Group Publication | October 2019 Vol. 14 Issue 10 BIM BUILDING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PAVING THE WAY TO THE FUTURE RELUCTANCE TO ACCEPT CHANGE STIFLING BIM USE OBSTACLES TO APPLICATION NEW MEMBERSHIP BODY PUSHING THE BIM AGENDA MAKING INROADS INTO THE INDUSTRY A CLOSER LOOK AT WHY THE WIDER USE OF TECHNOLOGY IS FAST BECOMING ESSENTIAL FOR THE INDUSTRY2019 For sponsorship enquiries: For nomination enquiries: For event enquiries:For table booking enquiries: David Bentley Sales Manager Tel: +971 4 444 3396 Mob: +971 50 454 1321 Email: david.bentley@itp.com Greg Wilson Group Editorial Director Tel: +971 4 444 3112 Email: greg.wilson@itp.com Teri Dunstan Events Manager Tel: +971 4 444 3227 E-mail: teri.dunstan@itp.com Lacie Curtis Table Sales Executive Tel: +971 4 444 3223 Email: lacie.curtis@itp.com GOLD SPONSORCATEGORY SPONSOR CATEGORY SPONSOR BOOK YOUR TABLES TODAY! #MEA Do not miss the celebration of the year for the region’s architecture sector at the 12th annual Middle East Architect Awards. Visit www.middleeastarchitect.com/awards for more information or contact one of our team today. WEDNESDAY 20TH NOVEMBER 2019 IN ASSOCIATION WITHEDITORÊS VIEW October 2019 | MEP Middle East 27 www.mepmiddleeast.com Building information modeling – more widely referred to as BIM – means different things to different groups of people in the construction and MEP sectors. For the latter in particular, it is often asso- ciated with an upturn in fortune; a key to un- locking some of the barriers to success that has stifl ed some fi rms in the region. The concept of BIM is simple enough; a fully integrated computer simulation of a proposed structure, displaying both physical and representations of functional character- istics of proposed places before ground has even been broken. The software was conceived to mitigate risk, create a streamlined build process and, as a result, save time and money – the latter in particular a key mission objective for boss- es across the region. No group of leaders should appreciate the wider adoption of BIM more than those call- ing the shots at the region’s MEP contracting fi rms. With MEP professionals typically the last on site to complete fi nishing works, it often means problems are kicked down the road until their arrival. It means if a hole for a piece of piping is in the wrong position because someone hasn’t followed the blueprints properly, then the MEP crew is forced into action to rectify the issue. Not only does this prevent them from get- ting on with the job they are actually there for, but more often then not they cop the blame for the delay in handover, too. BIM promises much, including the end to such primitive errors in execution. In this MEP Middle East special report, we’ve recruited Ahmed Abou Alfa to tell us more about his recently formed non-profi t UAE BIM Association and how the body is planning to foster a wider understanding of modern technology. We’ve also spoken with Herman van Eeden at Exactal who, as Knowledge Partner, debunks some of the myths that surround BIM and the quantity surveying profession. Like all new ways of working, BIM is being treated with caution by those who have built the Middle East into what it is today using traditional methods. But with digitalisation taking hold, those who move quickest into new sectors will be best positioned when the penny drops for everyone else. Tom Oxtoby MEP Middle East Editor tom.oxtoby@itp.com With digitalisation becoming a real conversation, is the penny about to drop on building information modeling? TWO CENTS ON BIM Traditional building blueprints are becoming a thing of the past as the construction industry continues to go digital.28 MEP Middle East | October 2019 www.mepmiddleeast.com MARKET FOCUS ike most breakthroughs in technol- ogy, building information modelling (BIM) is taking time to penetrate the Middle East market. While analysts from Zion Market Research forecast the global market to grow to $10.36billion in 2022, increasing at a CAGR of more than 19%, the uptake across the GCC is being hampered by a number of factors. Cash, as always, is king in the construc- tion industry, and a lack of liquidity both lo- cally and further afi eld have put the brakes on fi rms making the switch from traditional ways of working. Complexity of software, a lack of resources to draw on to train staff up to operational standards, and general apprehension about a switch to new methods have also been touted as barriers to adoption. The UK faced a similar problem before government moved to mandate the use of BIM on large scale projects, and such was the success of the approach that it will soon become the standard for developments of all sizes nationwide. The benefi ts of the technology are simple enough to digest, with developers able to render a scale model of any structure to see exactly how it will sit in its proposed environ- ment. This facilitates navigation of potential prob- lems before a concrete slab has been laid or a steel beam commissioned, mitigating risk throughout the process. One of the primary functions of BIM soft- ware is to remove the potential for confl ict throughout all phases of the project – a nota- ble problem reported by both consultants and contractors in the Middle East. From the engineers delivering the build to Lthe architects who have designed the struc- ture, everyone is able to sing from the same hymn sheet when utilising BIM technology. It is part of the reason why the emirate of Dubai has followed the UK’s lead to mandate BIM for large scale projects – those topping out at more than 40 storeys – including pub- lic sector developments such as universities, schools and hospitals. However, market analysis produced by the UAE BIM Association with the assistance of nearly 3,000 respondents showed that exactly two thirds (66%) of industry professionals do not agree with mandating BIM. Moreover, research showed that only around 20% or those surveyed said their company was harnessing BIM as an in-house investment. Of those who are using it more widely in their operations, 60% claimed they were do- ing so because of demands imposed on them by clients. However, the BIM market could receive an injection thanks to the adoption of technology in neighbouring markets. Research from Honeywell anticipates that seven in 10 fi rms will increase spend on IIoT by 2024. Major BIM market infl uences include the likes of Autodesk, Beck Technology, Nem- etschek AG, Trimble Navigation Ltd, Synchro Software, Pentagon Solutions, Bentley Sys- tems, AECOM, Asite Solutions, and Dassault Systèmes SA. References: 1. UAE BIM Association UAE Market Analy- sis V0.0 2. zionmarketresearch.com/report/building- information-modeling-market WATCH EDITOR TOM OXTOBY TALK BIM ON CONSTRUCTION WEEK’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL October 2019 | MEP Middle East 29 www.mepmiddleeast.com MARKET FOCUS DELAYEDDELAYED ARRIVAL Adoption of BIM has been a long time coming Adoption of BIM has been a long time coming in the Middle East, but times are changingin the Middle East, but times are changingNext >