big project me concrete supplement 2013

BIG PROJECT ME CONCRETE SUPPLEMENT 2013

POURING OVER AN INDUSTRY

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EDITOR’S COMMENTThe first half of the year was an incredible six months for the GCC construction market, with a total of $67 billion worth of new contracts awarded, a 19% increase from the same period in 2012.

Despite the resurgence in the UAE and the continued growth of the Saudi Arabian market, it was Qatar that led the way with $15.9 billion in deals signed in H1.

The massive 230% increase from the second period of last year is indicative of the major role that Qatar is set to play in the regional construction market.

What this means for the regional concrete market is easy to guess. There’s big business to be had and it’s no wonder that suppliers are gearing up for a massive increase in demand. It is forecast that the GCC demand for concrete will reach as much as $49 billion within the next two years.

Leading this demand is the massive market of Saudi Arabia, where one million homes are set to be built by 2015, along with massive infrastructure projects, which include hospitals, schools and transportation projects.

So heavy is the demand in the Kingdom, local suppliers have long struggled to keep pace, as has been well documented.There’s clearly huge potential and opportunities for the region’s concrete suppliers, from ready-mix to precast and everything in between.

However, concerns remain about regulating this supply and making sure it measures up to international standards on all levels, from green building to safety. There’s still much to be done, but it’s heartening to see suppliers here taking the initiative and leading the industry towards this change.

Big Project ME hopes this concrete supplement will provide some hard facts to the industry and allow you to make better and informed decisions as the pace of construction picks up across the GCC.

Gavin Davids, Deputy Editor

Publisher Dominic De SouSa

GrOuP COO naDeem HooD

ManaGinG DireCtOr RicHaRD JuDD eDiToRiaL

GrOuP eDitOr STepHen [email protected] +971 4 375 5477

DePuty eDitOr GaVin [email protected] +971 375 5480

rePOrter neHa BHaTiS +971 4 440 9118

maRKeTinG & aDVeRTiSinG

PublishinG DireCtOr RaZ [email protected] +971 4 375 5471

COMMerCial DireCtOr micHaeL [email protected]

sales DireCtOr caRLo [email protected] +971 4 440 9151

MarKetinG ManaGer caRoLe [email protected] +971 4 375 5498

DeSiGn

seniOr GraPhiC DesiGner ReBecca Teece JuniOr GraPhiC DesiGner peRciVaL manaLaYSaY

ciRcuLaTion & pRoDucTion

Database anD CirCulatiOn ManaGerRaJeeSH [email protected] +971 4 440 9147

PrODuCtiOn ManaGer JameS p [email protected] +971 4 440 9146

CONTENTSCONCRETE UNDER PRESSUREBig Project ME looks at how companies are adapting to the changing demand of the market.

THE RIGHT STUFF

PUMPED-UP TRUCKS

TRUE TO FORM

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EDITOR’S COMMENTThe first half of the year was an incredible six months for the GCC construction market, with a total of $67 billion worth of new contracts awarded, a 19% increase from the same period in 2012.

Despite the resurgence in the UAE and the continued growth of the Saudi Arabian market, it was Qatar that led the way with $15.9 billion in deals signed in H1.

The massive 230% increase from the second period of last year is indicative of the major role that Qatar is set to play in the regional construction market.

What this means for the regional concrete market is easy to guess. There’s big business to be had and it’s no wonder that suppliers are gearing up for a massive increase in demand. It is forecast that the GCC demand for concrete will reach as much as $49 billion within the next two years.

Leading this demand is the massive market of Saudi Arabia, where one million homes are set to be built by 2015, along with massive infrastructure projects, which include hospitals, schools and transportation projects.

So heavy is the demand in the Kingdom, local suppliers have long struggled to keep pace, as has been well documented.There’s clearly huge potential and opportunities for the region’s concrete suppliers, from ready-mix to precast and everything in between.

However, concerns remain about regulating this supply and making sure it measures up to international standards on all levels, from green building to safety. There’s still much to be done, but it’s heartening to see suppliers here taking the initiative and leading the industry towards this change.

Big Project ME hopes this concrete supplement will provide some hard facts to the industry and allow you to make better and informed decisions as the pace of construction picks up across the GCC.

Gavin Davids, Deputy Editor

Publisher Dominic De SouSa

GrOuP COO naDeem HooD

ManaGinG DireCtOr RicHaRD JuDD eDiToRiaL

GrOuP eDitOr STepHen [email protected] +971 4 375 5477

DePuty eDitOr GaVin [email protected] +971 375 5480

rePOrter neHa BHaTiS +971 4 440 9118

maRKeTinG & aDVeRTiSinG

PublishinG DireCtOr RaZ [email protected] +971 4 375 5471

COMMerCial DireCtOr micHaeL [email protected]

sales DireCtOr caRLo [email protected] +971 4 440 9151

MarKetinG ManaGer caRoLe [email protected] +971 4 375 5498

DeSiGn

seniOr GraPhiC DesiGner ReBecca Teece JuniOr GraPhiC DesiGner peRciVaL manaLaYSaY

ciRcuLaTion & pRoDucTion

Database anD CirCulatiOn ManaGerRaJeeSH [email protected] +971 4 440 9147

PrODuCtiOn ManaGer JameS p [email protected] +971 4 440 9146

CONTENTSCONCRETE UNDER PRESSUREBig Project ME looks at how companies are adapting to the changing demand of the market.

THE RIGHT STUFF

PUMPED-UP TRUCKS

TRUE TO FORM

4

12

THE HARD FACTS

16

21ON A STRONG FOUNDATION

24MACRO THINKING

28

30COMMENT

C

M

Y

CM

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AD234x290_BigProject_HR.pdf 1 6/25/2013 6:31:19 PM

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As the pace of construction in

the GCC accelerates while

infrastructure development and

expansion projects take shape,

it is easy to see why there is a sense of

renewed optimism around the various

supplier sectors that make up the

construction industry.

One vital supply line that is poised to

see a surge in demand is the concrete

sector, which is forecasted to reach $49

billion worth of demand within the GCC

over the next two years. Leading the

charge is Saudi Arabia, with more than

$30.5 billion of concrete forecasted to be

needed from 2014 to 2015.

Coming in second is the UAE, with $4

billion in demand forecasted, a reflection

of the country’s further advanced

infrastructure development. Overall, the

GCC construction sector shows no sign

of slowing down over the next few years,

with the demand for concrete following a

similar path.

Experts have predicted that Qatar and

Kuwait will also represent big business

for the sector, however the current focus

remains on the Kingdom and the UAE.

However, this increased demand poses

its own challenges and intensifies the

pressures on concrete suppliers.

E R Menon, the managing director of

Emirates Beton Readymix, a Dubai-based

ready-mix concrete manufacturer, says

that the last four or five years have been

especially challenging for his sector, given

the impact of the collapse of the real

estate bubble.

“As Emirates Beton, we’ve been in the

market since 2008. So you can say that

we started; and then the recession hit. So

we had a very tough time, being a new

company with a lot of overheads and so

on. Considering the boom that was going

on in 2007 and 2008, we had started the

company with a size which was adequate,

or big enough to cater to that market,” he

relates to Big Project ME.

Having been forced to tighten belts and

ride out the crisis, Menon says that having

a core customer base and a reputation

for quality helped ensure his company’s

survival during the lean years.

“In this company, we have some

captive volume, some captive business,

“WhEN WE TaLk abOUT ThE REady-Mix bUSiNESS, ThiS iS ONE fiELd WhERE i bELiEvE, Sad TO Say, ThE iNdUSTRy dOESN’T havE ThE baCkbONE OR ThE gUTS TO STaNd UP aNd Say ‘ThiS iS My COST aNd ThiS iS hOW i CaN SELL”

Big Project ME speaks to UAE based ready-mix suppliers to examine how the surge of construction is likely to impact them. Gavin Davids reports

ThE hARd

fAcTsSize of the concrete mArket

n total value of GCC demand: $49 billion

n Value of KSA demand: $30.5 billion

n Value of UAe demand: $4 billion

iN ThE MixThe boom at the end of the last decade brought many new companies into the market.


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so we’ve been able to stand up and tide

through this crisis. We had the best

projects over the last four or five years

which were running in Dubai. We’ve

done the majority of the towers that have

come up in Business Bay. There are some

multinational companies who give all

their work to us, like Brookfield Multiplex,

so we’ve been able to ride through 2011

and 2012 – which were very bad,” he adds.

Now that normality is returning to the

UAE’s construction sector, Menon says

that there needs to be a change in the way

the construction industry perceives the

ready-mix concrete industry.

“I believe, the ready-mix business is

one field where, sad to say, the industry

doesn’t have the backbone or the guts to

stand up and say ‘this is my cost and this

is how I can sell’,” he laments.

“There are many people in the industry

who are not professional and who’ll just

look at this business and think you can

buy some trucks and pumps and laugh

all the way to the bank. We tried to get the

Dubai Economic Department to exercise

some control over the issuing of new

licenses, but we didn’t succeed because

we were told that this is a decision

that should come from the federal

government.”

“As far as the UAE government is

concerned, it’s a free economy and it’s a

free country for business. Not like Oman

or something, where they have some

ministry controls or government control,”

he says. “Anybody can come in, and this

is what happened many years ago when

there were few block factories here and

the block market was booming. Twenty

companies came into the market within

two years and then the market collapsed.”

“Similarly, in 2003 we had maybe 11

or 12 ready-mix companies in Dubai;

by 2008 we had 37. When they saw that

there was work, they flooded the market.

These people don’t know their costs;

they don’t know how to operate. It’s not a

complicated business, but I believe that

this is a business that only people with the

relevant experience can handle,” Menon

says, with a touch of ire.

This is clearly a major bugbear with the

concrete supplier sector, or at least those

that operate the right way. Thankfully,

it is clear that the relevant government

authorities are listening to their concerns;

with the Dubai Municipality (DM)

announcing that all ready-mix concrete

suppliers operating in the Emirate need to

register with the influential organisation.

Engineer Yusuf Abdullah Al Marzooqi,

acting director of Buildings Department

at DM, says that a joint team of Buildings

Department and Dubai Central

Laboratory (DCL) has been formed to

take care of the registration, monitoring

and issuing conformity certificate for the

ready-mix concrete companies and onsite

mixing units. He adds that contracting

companies and engineering consulting

offices are being urged not to use the

ready-mix concrete in any construction

site unless it was supplied by a registered

“Consultants Come to us in the early stages when they’re planning and we show them the best way of doing it, formulate the speCifiCations”

Saudi concrete demand

n KSA population:28 million

n Housing units to be built by 2015: 1 million

n Amount of concrete used in 2008: 30Mt



n Estimated number of ready-mix concrete companies in KSA: 350

n Projected amount of concrete required in KSA: 190Mm3

Source: Global Cement

on a rollDemand is recovering after a difficult few years.


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so we’ve been able to stand up and tide

through this crisis. We had the best

projects over the last four or five years

which were running in Dubai. We’ve

done the majority of the towers that have

come up in Business Bay. There are some

multinational companies who give all

their work to us, like Brookfield Multiplex,

so we’ve been able to ride through 2011

and 2012 – which were very bad,” he adds.

Now that normality is returning to the

UAE’s construction sector, Menon says

that there needs to be a change in the way

the construction industry perceives the

ready-mix concrete industry.

“I believe, the ready-mix business is

one field where, sad to say, the industry

doesn’t have the backbone or the guts to

stand up and say ‘this is my cost and this

is how I can sell’,” he laments.

“There are many people in the industry

who are not professional and who’ll just

look at this business and think you can

buy some trucks and pumps and laugh

all the way to the bank. We tried to get the

Dubai Economic Department to exercise

some control over the issuing of new

licenses, but we didn’t succeed because

we were told that this is a decision

that should come from the federal

government.”

“As far as the UAE government is

concerned, it’s a free economy and it’s a

free country for business. Not like Oman

or something, where they have some

ministry controls or government control,”

he says. “Anybody can come in, and this

is what happened many years ago when

there were few block factories here and

the block market was booming. Twenty

companies came into the market within

two years and then the market collapsed.”

“Similarly, in 2003 we had maybe 11

or 12 ready-mix companies in Dubai;

by 2008 we had 37. When they saw that

there was work, they flooded the market.

These people don’t know their costs;

they don’t know how to operate. It’s not a

complicated business, but I believe that

this is a business that only people with the

relevant experience can handle,” Menon

says, with a touch of ire.

This is clearly a major bugbear with the

concrete supplier sector, or at least those

that operate the right way. Thankfully,

it is clear that the relevant government

authorities are listening to their concerns;

with the Dubai Municipality (DM)

announcing that all ready-mix concrete

suppliers operating in the Emirate need to

register with the influential organisation.

Engineer Yusuf Abdullah Al Marzooqi,

acting director of Buildings Department

at DM, says that a joint team of Buildings

Department and Dubai Central

Laboratory (DCL) has been formed to

take care of the registration, monitoring

and issuing conformity certificate for the

ready-mix concrete companies and onsite

mixing units. He adds that contracting

companies and engineering consulting

offices are being urged not to use the

ready-mix concrete in any construction

site unless it was supplied by a registered

“Consultants Come to us in the early stages when they’re planning and we show them the best way of doing it, formulate the speCifiCations”

Saudi concrete demand

n KSA population:28 million

n Housing units to be built by 2015: 1 million




n Estimated number of ready-mix concrete companies in KSA: 350

n Projected amount of concrete required in KSA: 190Mm3

Source: Global Cement

on a rollDemand is recovering after a difficult few years.

UNIBETON AND THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING GREEN

Unibeton is one ready-mix supplier that

has heavily invested in sustainability.

Its work in developing greener

production methods has won it numerous

plaudits and contracts. Through its

fleet management system ‘uTrack’ or

products such as Green Concrete and

Self-Compacting Concrete, Unibeton

is raising the bar in terms of the

contribution ready-mix contractors can

make to greener buildings.

“Maybe 80% of our concrete is what

you would call green,” says Christopher

Stanley, technical director of Unibeton

Middle East, who supervises much of

the research and development that the

ready-mix supplier undertakes.

Stanley adds that Unibeton is heavily

involved in the development of new

ready-mix concrete technologies,

spurred on by their involvement with

consultants and contractors, who often

provide insights into what the market

wants. For example, he says, a recent

project in Makkah saw it produce a

lightweight concrete of 70mpa for an

architecturally demanding project.

“Strong can be beautiful,” says Stanley.

“We had to develop new technologies

in order to do that. We try to be a one-

stop-shop. Consultants come to us in the

early stages when they’re planning and

we show them the best way of doing it,

formulate the specifications. During the

construction phase we’re there helping

them. This is where we score.”

firm with DM along with conformity

certificate or mark for the factory or the

mixing unit.

“The registered and approved

companies are listed on the DM website.

A manual that includes the instructions

and regulations is also available online,”

says Marzooqi. “The specification of

ready-mix concrete has been adopted in

coordination with the DCL. A circular on

this regard has been sent to all relevant

parties in addition to the publication of

the decision in the DM website.”

“Companies are given time to complete

the formalities for registration until 31

December 2013. The time to get the

conformity certificate or mark has been

extended to 31 December 2014, provided

that the applications were submitted

before 31 August 2013,” he adds.

However, while Menon welcomes

the move towards greater regulation, he

expresses concerns over the effectiveness

of such a strategy.

“I don’t believe it will serve any

purpose, the plants may be all certified

and working at 100% accuracy, but the

people who operate it may not have the

intention to operate it that way. Then the

market suffers,” he warns.

Another area of the ready-mix sector

that is starting to receive considerable

attention is its ability to help its clients

meet the green building regulations

laid out by the government authorities.

With Dubai Municipality set to introduce

its Green Building Code in 2014 and

Abu Dhabi already enforcing its own

green regulations, the pressure is on for

ready-mix suppliers to measure up to

specifications. Menon adds that Emirates

Beton has also been focusing heavily

on developing its own ‘green friendly’

materials, and has done so for a while

because of their projects in Abu Dhabi.

“We’re very much into that, we’re

looking at using cement replacement

materials which reduce carbon emissions

into the atmosphere, we’re also looking at

recycling materials that we already have,

waste materials,” he explains. “In Dubai,

technology is as advanced as any other

place in the world. You take the US, the

UK or name any place in the world, you’ll

find that Dubai will be on par, or better.”

So what lies ahead for the ready-mix

market? Menon remains quite optimistic

about where the UAE market is headed.

“I have spent more than half of my life

in Dubai, and it’s all been construction

related and in the ready-mix industry. We

have seen the market from the early 1980s.

We’re used to having three or four years of

good business, followed by a few years of

bad business, and then you had the same

cycle again. Each cycle, when it happens,

the boom has always been bigger and

better than the previous one. You can

draw a line like that across the curve. You

can draw a 45 degree angle almost, so you

can say that there has been consistency in

the market, even though the cycle of lows

and highs are there.”

“Dubai has always a very warm

environment, it has always been a

welcoming place for everyone. Since the

end of 2008, the recession set in and now

we have gone through that five-year cycle

and I believe it (the market) will come

back now. I don’t believe it’ll be as hectic

or as ballistic as what we had previously,

(but it’ll be back).” n

“THE SPECIFICATION OF READY-MIX CONCRETE HAS BEEN ADOPTED IN COORDINATION WITH THE DCL. A CIRCULAR ON THIS REGARD HAS BEEN SENT TO ALL RELEVANT PARTIES”

CONCRETE MARKET


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4-7 CONCRETE.indd 7 10/7/13 5:38 PM

Long before it flickered with the bright

building-tops of Sheikh Zayed Road,

Dubai’s skyline was an ornate and

visibly horizontal one. Much before the

discovery of oil altered the city’s economic,

social and cultural maps forever, Dubai’s

houses were humble establishments,

stuccoed, clay-roofed and free of electric

air-conditioning or thermal insulation.

It can be argued that the iconic and

large-scale projects such as the Palm

Jumeirah, popular during Dubai’s

economic boom, have gradually led to

aspects of its environment to decline.

Fortunately this was recognised by a

city government willing to overhaul the

emirate’s industrial practices. Soon solar-

powered water heaters and parking ticket

machines became the need of the hour;

and water desalination and waste disposal

plants increased in numbers. Abu Dhabi

followed suit, learning from the mistakes of

the past.

Sustainability went from being a

chapter in a school textbook to an urgent

perogative – a fact furthered by a WWF

Living Planet 2008 report, based on data

from 2005, that found UAE’s consumption

“Costs and additional time are required Compared to the Cheap and quiCk developments whiCh ultimately don’t meet the requirements of abu dhabi”

With ‘sustainability’ becoming a keyword, Big Project ME explores with experts how the industry will take to the burgeoning need for efficient construction.

The RighT STuff

n 4 billion Number of people living in cities globally.

n 30% Number of buildings in Dubai that could be given a green retro-fit.

makinG an impaCtEnvironmental concerns are now the focus of large-scale construction.

CONCRETE CODES bigprojectMe.com

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Long before it flickered with the bright

building-tops of Sheikh Zayed Road,

Dubai’s skyline was an ornate and

visibly horizontal one. Much before the

discovery of oil altered the city’s economic,

social and cultural maps forever, Dubai’s

houses were humble establishments,

stuccoed, clay-roofed and free of electric

air-conditioning or thermal insulation.

It can be argued that the iconic and

large-scale projects such as the Palm

Jumeirah, popular during Dubai’s

economic boom, have gradually led to

aspects of its environment to decline.

Fortunately this was recognised by a

city government willing to overhaul the

emirate’s industrial practices. Soon solar-

powered water heaters and parking ticket

machines became the need of the hour;

and water desalination and waste disposal

plants increased in numbers. Abu Dhabi

followed suit, learning from the mistakes of

the past.

Sustainability went from being a

chapter in a school textbook to an urgent

perogative – a fact furthered by a WWF

Living Planet 2008 report, based on data

from 2005, that found UAE’s consumption

“Costs and additional time are required Compared to the Cheap and quiCk developments whiCh ultimately don’t meet the requirements of abu dhabi”

With ‘sustainability’ becoming a keyword, Big Project ME explores with experts how the industry will take to the burgeoning need for efficient construction.

The RighT STuff

n 4 billion Number of people living in cities globally.

n 30% Number of buildings in Dubai that could be given a green retro-fit.

makinG an impaCtEnvironmental concerns are now the focus of large-scale construction.

CONCRETE CODES bigprojectMe.com


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of natural resources was the highest

globally. The construction sector continues

to play a huge role in this respect given its

thirst for energy, with the UAE following

global trends towards urbanisation.

Often a loosely-used term, a variety of

sectors have targeted “sustainability” as

per their need and capacity to provide for

it. Every aspect of the concept – economic,

social, developmental – can now be found

incorporating itself when sustainability

applies to construction.

“Sustainability is a very broad term

which encompasses a range of topics and

disciplines,” says Scott Coombes, Director

at AESG. “A product may be sustainable

because it is more efficient or effective than

it’s alternatives, it may help reduce energy

or water consumption, it could come from

from a rapidly renewable resource or it

may even improve a users well being.”

The urgency of the situation is clearly

catching the attention of the private

sector and a number of these issues

were discussed when Siemens recently

organised a roundtable conference in Abu

Dhabi. Attended by representatives of

governments and industry leaders from

across the GCC, the conference sought

to discuss the scope of sustainability

and energy conservation in the region.

Concerns such as subsidised energy prices,

scarcity of water resources and the lack

of renewable resources was centric to

the discussion, and the role of effective,

efficient technology was highlighted

as the need of the hour. It is therefore

unsurprising that sustainable architecture

and building materials are becoming

a decisive part of project design and

development. Industry experts and leaders

are working on techniques to utilise them

to their fullest.

“Assessing the total embodied energy

in a construction material is one of the

best ways to identify how environmentally

friendly and sustainable it is,” notes

Coombes. “The embodied energy in a

material is a method to account for the

total sum of energy (or its by products)

involved in the life cycle of the material,

including extraction of the raw materials,

manufacturing processes, transportation,

installation, and so on.

“One example would be the use of

materials with lower embodied green

house gasses, such as low embodied CO2

per kg, which would be better at mitigating

global warming”, he added.

Embodied energy includes the

transportation required in the stages of

construction, and, “the use of materials

harvested and manufactured in the same

region as the construction site helps reduce

the carbon footprint required for the

same”, said Coombes. “The use of recycled,

reused and rapidly-renewable construction

materials is another example of good

environmental and sustainable practice,

rather than using new, resource-intensive

materials.”

Sustainability is yet to have a dedicated

organisation gauging and setting standards

for construction products and materials.

This process in the UAE falls under

the auspices of the Emirates Authority

for Standardisation and Metrology

(ESMA), whose departments overlook

various aspects of construction, such as

engineering and mechanical products,

electrical and electro products and so

on. Building codes, however, constantly

“ThERE iS NO bETTER vENUE TO ShOwCaSE UaE’S SUSTaiNabLE SOLUTiONS ThaN aT ThE wORLd ExPO 2020”

Top EnvironmEnTal concErns for ThE Gcc counTriEs:

n Subsidised energy

n Scarcity of water

n Lack of renewable resources

n Total energy consumption

n Management of urban growth

n Lifecycle of buildings and materials

n Embodied enerby in materials used

hEavy PROdUCTiONThe construction industry is a massive user of the region’s energy and mate-rials resources.


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undergo updates and many universal

building codes are now growing to include

sustainability and ‘green’ standards for

construction projects.

“There are many regionally specific

codes and directives which have been set

for sustainability measures, such as those

related to standards in material emissions,

toxicity, or performance”, says Coombes.

UAE has taken pivotal initiatives with

its building codes; the capital Abu Dhabi

has established the Estidama system and

economic hub Dubai will soon make

its Green Building Code mandatory for

the private sector, both of which include

watertight government regulations and

have gained voluntary participation from

the private sector.

“The aim with Estidama was both to

push and pull. Firstly, it was to push for an

improved mandatory building standard

by making all projects achieve the rating of

Estidama 1 Pearl,” explains Francis Porter,

Senior Environmental Consultant at WSP

Middle East. “The pull was that within

the same framework, aspiring developers

could showcase their best practice

and achieve recognition by achieving

the voluntary 2 to 5 Pearls. Estidama is

attached to Abu Dhabi’s 2030 Plan and it

provides the mandate and zoning guidance

for construction in the city.”

Dubai has been working on its Green

Building Code for almost five years now;

mandatory for government buildings since

2011, the Dubai Municipality will in 2014

make its application mandatory for all

private sector construction projects in the

emirate too. Consisting of 79 regulations,

the code is largely a checklist of regulations

and techniques that will need to be

incorporated into all buildings constructed

thereon. Whilst, unlike Estidama, it does

not abide by a rating system of any sort.

Dubai’s Green Building Code will be

implemented with the cooperation of

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority

(DEWA), ensuring project completion and

handover is held back if the requirements

of the code aren’t met.

Undoubted as the benefits of

sustainability may be, prevalent questions

across global construction markets pertain

to the costs and economy of sustainable

construction. There have been concerns in

terms of the unwillingness of developers

and contractors to implement a system

that rakes in long-term advantages vis-

a-vis their probable need for short-term,

immediate profits.

“Costs and additional time are required

compared to the cheap and quick

developments which ultimately don’t meet

the requirements of Abu Dhabi, but these

impacts are reducing as more is known

about the system.

“Implementing Estidama provides

an excellent opportunity to showcase

the services previously only offered as

voluntary and with only an extended

financial payback due to low water and

energy costs. By earning credits they

have an immediate, up-front value to the

development,” says Porter.

“IMPLEMENTINg ESTIdaMa PROvIdES aN ExCELLENT OPPORTUNITy TO ShOwCaSE ThE SERvICES PREvIOUSLy ONLy OffEREd aS vOLUNTaRy”

a fOUNdaTIONThe industry must face up to the costs and economy of green construction.


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CONCRETE CODES bigprojectMe.COm

undergo updates and many universal

building codes are now growing to include

sustainability and ‘green’ standards for

construction projects.

“There are many regionally specific

codes and directives which have been set

for sustainability measures, such as those

related to standards in material emissions,

toxicity, or performance”, says Coombes.

UAE has taken pivotal initiatives with

its building codes; the capital Abu Dhabi

has established the Estidama system and

economic hub Dubai will soon make

its Green Building Code mandatory for

the private sector, both of which include

watertight government regulations and

have gained voluntary participation from

the private sector.

“The aim with Estidama was both to

push and pull. Firstly, it was to push for an

improved mandatory building standard

by making all projects achieve the rating of

Estidama 1 Pearl,” explains Francis Porter,

Senior Environmental Consultant at WSP

Middle East. “The pull was that within

the same framework, aspiring developers

could showcase their best practice

and achieve recognition by achieving

the voluntary 2 to 5 Pearls. Estidama is

attached to Abu Dhabi’s 2030 Plan and it

provides the mandate and zoning guidance

for construction in the city.”

Dubai has been working on its Green

Building Code for almost five years now;

mandatory for government buildings since

2011, the Dubai Municipality will in 2014

make its application mandatory for all

private sector construction projects in the

emirate too. Consisting of 79 regulations,

the code is largely a checklist of regulations

and techniques that will need to be

incorporated into all buildings constructed

thereon. Whilst, unlike Estidama, it does

not abide by a rating system of any sort.

Dubai’s Green Building Code will be

implemented with the cooperation of

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority

(DEWA), ensuring project completion and

handover is held back if the requirements

of the code aren’t met.

Undoubted as the benefits of

sustainability may be, prevalent questions

across global construction markets pertain

to the costs and economy of sustainable

construction. There have been concerns in

terms of the unwillingness of developers

and contractors to implement a system

that rakes in long-term advantages vis-

a-vis their probable need for short-term,

immediate profits.

“Costs and additional time are required

compared to the cheap and quick

developments which ultimately don’t meet

the requirements of Abu Dhabi, but these

impacts are reducing as more is known

about the system.

“Implementing Estidama provides

an excellent opportunity to showcase

the services previously only offered as

voluntary and with only an extended

financial payback due to low water and

energy costs. By earning credits they

have an immediate, up-front value to the

development,” says Porter.

“IMPLEMENTINg ESTIdaMa PROvIdES aN ExCELLENT OPPORTUNITy TO ShOwCaSE ThE SERvICES PREvIOUSLy ONLy OffEREd aS vOLUNTaRy”

a fOUNdaTIONThe industry must face up to the costs and economy of green construction.


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Also notable is the apparent dearth of

suppliers that can cater to the techniques

and demands of sustainable construction.

The general consensus across authorities

is that the apparent lack of suppliers

with products required for sustainable

production is manageable through

enforcement of green regulations, with

the expectation of creating a market need

– thus facilitating competitive supply – of

these materials.

All sectors of the construction industry

government officials, private developers,

contractors, architects, engineers - agree

that green construction is the way of

the future due to the rising necessity

to preserve the environment; more so

because of its visible benefits already.

“Estidama’s principles have greatly

helped the construction industry. As I

can recollect from firsthand experience, I

was involved with the construction of an

Emirati villa in Abu Dhabi in 2011, and its

windows were sliding-style, but not fitted

to suit building leakage standards”, says

William Whistler, managing director of

Green Building Solutions International.

“The developer went back to the

drawing board with those designs and

reworked them to be safer and more secure

in terms of a residential structure. Recently,

I conducted an air leakage test on a villa

with similar specifications from the same

developer and I was pleasantly surprised to

see better standards and safer techniques

employed in its construction, especially

with the windows! So indeed, Estidama has

raised the quality of construction.”

Sustainability has become a catchword

for every company operating in the

industry, and it is quite apparent that no

institution involved with construction can

– or wants to – ignore the phenomenon.

Coombes says that, in a region that

currently has one of the highest carbon

footprint densities in the world, these two

programmes have been fundamental in

driving the awareness and implementation

of sustainability practices into construction

projects.

“As both programmes are regionally

specific, they respond to the UAE’s specific

climate which helps focus attention on the

issues which matter most,” says Coombes.

“It is great to see that due to Estidama and

Dubai’s Green Building Code, construction

teams such as contractors, architects, and

engineers that previously did not have a

strong focus on sustainable design, are

now using their knowledge and expertise

to provide innovative solutions to address

sustainability concerns in the region.”

The UAE’s ranking on the list of

developed countries could be far

better given the promising, ambitious

leaders investing in its growth, and an

environmental soundness will only

contribute to attracting foreign investors

into the markets here.

Should Dubai win the right to host the

Expo 2022, sustainable construction will

assume more importance than ever.

“The World Expo 2020 is a chance for

UAE to display its commitment to the

environment and sustainability,” urges

Coombes. “With currently one of the

highest carbon footprint densities in the

world, the UAE has an opportunity to

demonstrate how we are addressing this

issue in the years leading up to the event,

and there is no better venue to showcase

these innovative solutions than at the

World Expo 2020.” n

“The UAe hAs An opporTUniTy To demonsTrATe how we Are Addressing This issUe leAding Up To The evenT”

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post tensioning bigprojectMe.com

Big Project ME talks to some of the leading post-tensioning contractors in the region and finds out about the latest developments in the industry

Post-tensioning as a technology has

been around for more than half a

century in Europe, Australia and the

United States, but it was only in the

mid-90’s that the technology first made its

appearance in the UAE.

As companies from the aforementioned

countries made in-roads into the Emirates,

local firms began to understand the

benefits of the technology and proceeded

to further popularise the technology.

Starting with bridges and buildings,

post-tensioning has quickly become the

accepted way forward for the industry,

edging out rival pre-stressed concrete

methods, such as pre-tensioning.

Furthermore, the UAE and regional

construction have moved towards

adopting bonded post-tensioning, a variant

of the technology that sees compression

being applied after the concrete is poured.

According to the Post-tensioning

Institute of Phoenix, Arizona, the

technology offers many advantages,

including allowing longer, clear spans,

thinner slabs, fewer beams and more

slender, dramatic elements. In turn, this

means that less concrete is used and there

taking the

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post tensioning bigprojectMe.com

Big Project ME talks to some of the leading post-tensioning contractors in the region and finds out about the latest developments in the industry

Post-tensioning as a technology has

been around for more than half a

century in Europe, Australia and the

United States, but it was only in the

mid-90’s that the technology first made its

appearance in the UAE.

As companies from the aforementioned

countries made in-roads into the Emirates,

local firms began to understand the

benefits of the technology and proceeded

to further popularise the technology.

Starting with bridges and buildings,

post-tensioning has quickly become the

accepted way forward for the industry,

edging out rival pre-stressed concrete

methods, such as pre-tensioning.

Furthermore, the UAE and regional

construction have moved towards

adopting bonded post-tensioning, a variant

of the technology that sees compression

being applied after the concrete is poured.

According to the Post-tensioning

Institute of Phoenix, Arizona, the

technology offers many advantages,

including allowing longer, clear spans,

thinner slabs, fewer beams and more

slender, dramatic elements. In turn, this

means that less concrete is used and there

taking the

stress


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post tensioning

“POST-TENSiONiNg CaN aLLOw a SigNifiCaNT REdUCTiON iN bUiLdiNg wEighT vERSUS a CONvENTiONaL CONCRETE bUiLdiNg”

is a lower overall building height for the

same floor-to-floor height.

“Post-tensioning can thus allow a

significant reduction in building weight

versus a conventional concrete building

with the same number of floors. This

reduces the foundation load and can be

a major advantage in seismic areas. A

lower building height can also translate

into considerable savings in mechanical

systems and facade costs,” a report by the

Institute says.

“Another advantage of post-tensioning

is that beams and slabs can be continuous,

i.e.: a single beam can run continuously

from one end of the building to the other.

Structurally, this is much more efficient

than having a beam that just goes from one

column to the next,” the report adds.

Stephen Burke, deputy general

manager of VSL, an international ‘special

construction methods’ specialist, adds

that post-tensioning is one of the most

environmentally friendly methods of

pre-stressing concrete, and that it offers

significant advantages to contractors.

“It’s environmentally friendly because

you’re reducing concrete quantities and

reinforcing steel quantities,” he tells Big Project ME, adding that the durability of

the concrete also increases significantly.

Furthermore, Engineer Mohammed

Hisham Al Toubah, managing partner

of Fastech Prestressing, a Sharjah-based

firm that operates throughout the UAE,

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Syria, adds that

bonded post-tensioning has proved to be

the safest method of pre-stressing concrete

in the UAE. “The unbonded system is not

commonly used here because the tendons

in unbonded systems use only one strand,

with each strand is covered by a plastic

protective sheet. There is no bond between

the concrete and the strand, there’s no

grout or material to catch the strand and

keep it in its place,” he explains.

Although the unbonded system is

used in Europe and Australia, Al Toubah

expresses reservations about them,

pointing out that these systems have

been developed or established without

structural studies based on the conditions

and environments found in the region.

“We have to do grouting as per

procedures; we have to use additives

and chemicals. But there is no structural

research that has been done on this

matter,” he says.

With an increased cycle of construction,

this poses a risk when it comes to

maintaining the quality of workmanship,

Al Toubah adds, stressing that local

knowledge of the technology is essential:

“For sure, the staff shall have to be trained.

If there’s no know-how, how will you train

people, workers or helpers to go on site

and work there? There has to be quality in

the materials and there has to be quality in

the performance of the people.”

As a result of this commitment, Burke

adds that the industry has been looking up

recently, with projects coming back on line

following the global credit crunch.

With the industry dependent on how

many projects are under construction in

the market, the signs are looking good for

the post-tensioning sector.

“I see a lot of growth coming from

infrastructure. I see in the region, a lot of

growth coming from rail projects that are in

the pipeline, you’ve got metro schemes, so

over the next five years I see a big push on

infrastructure in the region, generally,” the

man from VSL explains.

“KSA is a big market, Qatar because of

the World Cup, Oman is developing its

infrastructure and the UAE, they’ve got

a lot of their infrastructure in place, but

they’re still on the road to upgrading and

finishing it.” n


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SPECIAL FEATURE FORMWORK bigprojectMe.cOM

High rise construction is the new

normal in the Middle East as

developers try to get the most out

of the land that they own. With

space now at a premium, developers

are looking to build vertical, resulting in

buildings that rise hundreds of metres

into the sky.

This means that formwork has a crucial

part to play in the construction of these

buildings, and as such, the technology

associated with it has needed to catch

up quickly. Having an efficient formwork

system can make a crucial difference in

the success of a construction project, in

terms of speed, quality, cost and the safety

of the site.

Formwork comes in several forms, but

“WE viEW ThE WhOLE REgiON aS vERy bUOyaNT aT ThE MOMENT bUT ExPECT ThERE TO bE MUCh MORE CONSTRUCTiON gROWTh iN ThE COMiNg yEaRS”

With high-rise construction the norm in construction, Big Project ME examines how formwork technology is changing and adapting to meet market requirements

high fORMFormwork complexity has increased as high-rise construction grows.

TRue TO FORM


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SPECIAL FEATURE FORMWORK bigprojectMe.cOM

High rise construction is the new

normal in the Middle East as

developers try to get the most out

of the land that they own. With

space now at a premium, developers

are looking to build vertical, resulting in

buildings that rise hundreds of metres

into the sky.

This means that formwork has a crucial

part to play in the construction of these

buildings, and as such, the technology

associated with it has needed to catch

up quickly. Having an efficient formwork

system can make a crucial difference in

the success of a construction project, in

terms of speed, quality, cost and the safety

of the site.

Formwork comes in several forms, but

“WE viEW ThE WhOLE REgiON aS vERy bUOyaNT aT ThE MOMENT bUT ExPECT ThERE TO bE MUCh MORE CONSTRUCTiON gROWTh iN ThE COMiNg yEaRS”

With high-rise construction the norm in construction, Big Project ME examines how formwork technology is changing and adapting to meet market requirements

high fORMFormwork complexity has increased as high-rise construction grows.

TRue TO FORM


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SPECIAL FEATURE FORMWORK

SafETy fiRSTNew formwork systems allow for safer working environments.

when it comes to high rise construction,

the need for specialised systems increases

due to the complexity of the projects

being worked on. As such, manufacturers

have been developing new systems to

meet market demand. One such system is

being launched by Doka, the international

formwork supplier, as part of its exhibition

at Bauma 2013. It’s newly developed

gapless framed enclosure system, Xclimb

60, allows for construction crews to work

at the top levels of a high-rise structure

while being protected from dangerous

weather and wind conditions.

“The self-climbing system is simple to

adapt to varying layouts and inclinations,

enabling it to be used even on complex

high-rise projects,” says chairman

Josef Kurzmann. “Depending on the

requirements, users can choose between

two different designs, with frames that

have either polycarbonate or mesh inlays.”

The system allows for work to be safely

conducted at any height, he adds, while

also providing good natural daylight

inside the enclosed work decks through

translucent plastic inlays.

Simon Roachford, senior sales engineer

at C-Vision Construction Materials

Trading, adds that formwork technology

is now shifting focus towards being

stronger, yet more lightweight. This ties in

with an industry led desire to increase the

use of environmentally friendly material

on construction sites, says his colleague,

Waeil Al Chamma.

One of the main drivers of innovation

in scaffolding and formwork systems

is the need to improve the efficiency of

erecting and dismantling operations,

especially in wage-intensive markets.

With the development of Evermax,

a plastic-composite formwork panel,

manufacturer Ulma is aiming at greater

durability and higher efficiency. The

new formwork panel has a lightweight

thermoplastic core.

Two reinforcing layers ensure

mechanical properties similar to those of

plywood. The surface layers, on both sides,

deliver a clean finish and easy concrete

separation. They are resistant to abrasion

and can easily be repaired if damaged.

In contrast to plywood panels, Evermax

panels take up no moisture, they do not

bend and they do not rot, thereby ensuring

a longer lasting service life on projects.

This also ties into the increasing the

sustainability and environmental benefits

of the process Roachford says.

“Customers are more aware of green

issues and sustainability of formwork

“(WE’RE) USiNg MORE ENviRONMENTaLLy fRiENdLy MaTERiaL TO CUT dOWN ThE CONSUMPTiON Of NaTURaL MaTERiaLS aS WELL aS iMPROviNg ThE qUaLiTy Of CONCRETE”


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SPECIAL FEATURE formwork bigprojectMe.com

products,” he says, adding that “faster

construction schedules and better costing

as opposed to traditional formwork

methods,” are some of the additional

benefits of continued innovation in

formwork. “There’s more safety (now)

and it’s a lot less labour intensive,” Al

Chamma chimes in.

“(We’re) using more environmentally

friendly material to cut down the

consumption of natural materials as well

as improving the quality of concrete to

decrease the cycle of pouring,” he adds.

One of the major challenges formwork

manufacturers face is convincing

their client base to adopt and try out

new technologies. In a market that’s

traditionally been risk averse, there

is often resistance to change, despite

the obvious benefits on offer. As such,

manufacturers are working closely with

their clients to help develop formwork

systems that fulfil specific requirements.

“Our value proposition is that when

we develop the formwork concept, we

incorporate aspects and experience that

give our customers new insights and

create genuine added value for them”,

says Josef Kurzmann. “As a supplier we

work alongside our customers in all

stages of a construction project, from the

development stage through until close-

out. To do this, we offer a wide range of

services to ensure that the very best use is

made of the formwork systems.”

Roachford adds that he spends a lot

of time “trying to make customers more

aware of better engineered, efficient

systems, like C-Vision’s Hydraulic Core

System.”

“This is a system that we have evolved

in order to cut down on construction

time and costs and also more

sustainability with products such as

C-Visions Vinci 80 Panel System capable

of 250 – 300 pours before the plywood

needs to be changed.”

However, he asserts that there has been

significant interest in the products, and

predicts that there will be an upswing in

the adoption of the technology over the

coming years.

“We view the whole region as very

buoyant at the moment but expect there

to be much more construction growth in

the coming years in all GCC countries.” n

Big Project ME asks Peter Vogel, director

Middle East, Doka Group, three questions

about the formwork industry

Has tHe industry cHanged tHe way it views forMwork?Nowadays, the building sector expects more

from formwork suppliers than just delivery

of products and systems for a vast range

of projects. Globally, high-quality systems

are a basic requirement, but we still face

the challenge to shift away from traditional

formwork from the smaller segments in

the Middle East. These is an increased

demand for concepts that optimise the entire

construction process, so that goals are

reached quickly, efficiently and safely. Hence

our customers expect their own customised

solutions for each project.

witH construction going vertical, wHat lessons Have you learnt froM past projects?We know that formwork technology is

faced with two challenges: shortening

the construction process and establishing

construction methods aimed at improving the

quality of the structure. The tendering phase

requires planning an ingenious formwork

solution, which requires skill and judgement

derived from years of experience. In building,

climbing operations on an advancing

structure core are often a make or break

factor that decides whether the whole project

stays on-schedule and on-budget. To achieve

a smooth work flow, it is not enough to look

at the formwork solution in isolation, it is

essential to optimally integrate them into the

overall construction strategy.

wHat are your expectations for tHe forMwork industry?Building projects are becoming increasing

complex. At the same time, investors are

particularly interested in a construction

process that is efficient and safe. The

demands placed on formwork technology lie

in the ever increasing speed of construction,

accompanied by increased mechanisation of

the construction site, and therefore, formwork.

As a result, customers expect a product range

supplemented by a comprehensive service

portfolio. During project and construction site

planning, everyone from architect to formwork

supplier will be part of an electronic network.

Our goal is to collaborate with our customers

in thinking ahead and to contribute towards

the future of formwork.

three questions for: Peter Vogel, DoKA


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SPECIAL FEATURE formwork bigprojectMe.com

products,” he says, adding that “faster

construction schedules and better costing

as opposed to traditional formwork

methods,” are some of the additional

benefits of continued innovation in

formwork. “There’s more safety (now)

and it’s a lot less labour intensive,” Al

Chamma chimes in.

“(We’re) using more environmentally

friendly material to cut down the

consumption of natural materials as well

as improving the quality of concrete to

decrease the cycle of pouring,” he adds.

One of the major challenges formwork

manufacturers face is convincing

their client base to adopt and try out

new technologies. In a market that’s

traditionally been risk averse, there

is often resistance to change, despite

the obvious benefits on offer. As such,

manufacturers are working closely with

their clients to help develop formwork

systems that fulfil specific requirements.

“Our value proposition is that when

we develop the formwork concept, we

incorporate aspects and experience that

give our customers new insights and

create genuine added value for them”,

says Josef Kurzmann. “As a supplier we

work alongside our customers in all

stages of a construction project, from the

development stage through until close-

out. To do this, we offer a wide range of

services to ensure that the very best use is

made of the formwork systems.”

Roachford adds that he spends a lot

of time “trying to make customers more

aware of better engineered, efficient

systems, like C-Vision’s Hydraulic Core

System.”

“This is a system that we have evolved

in order to cut down on construction

time and costs and also more

sustainability with products such as

C-Visions Vinci 80 Panel System capable

of 250 – 300 pours before the plywood

needs to be changed.”

However, he asserts that there has been

significant interest in the products, and

predicts that there will be an upswing in

the adoption of the technology over the

coming years.

“We view the whole region as very

buoyant at the moment but expect there

to be much more construction growth in

the coming years in all GCC countries.” n

Big Project ME asks Peter Vogel, director

Middle East, Doka Group, three questions

about the formwork industry

Has tHe industry cHanged tHe way it views forMwork?Nowadays, the building sector expects more

from formwork suppliers than just delivery

of products and systems for a vast range

of projects. Globally, high-quality systems

are a basic requirement, but we still face

the challenge to shift away from traditional

formwork from the smaller segments in

the Middle East. These is an increased

demand for concepts that optimise the entire

construction process, so that goals are

reached quickly, efficiently and safely. Hence

our customers expect their own customised

solutions for each project.

witH construction going vertical, wHat lessons Have you learnt froM past projects?We know that formwork technology is

faced with two challenges: shortening

the construction process and establishing

construction methods aimed at improving the

quality of the structure. The tendering phase

requires planning an ingenious formwork

solution, which requires skill and judgement

derived from years of experience. In building,

climbing operations on an advancing

structure core are often a make or break

factor that decides whether the whole project

stays on-schedule and on-budget. To achieve

a smooth work flow, it is not enough to look

at the formwork solution in isolation, it is

essential to optimally integrate them into the

overall construction strategy.

wHat are your expectations for tHe forMwork industry?Building projects are becoming increasing

complex. At the same time, investors are

particularly interested in a construction

process that is efficient and safe. The

demands placed on formwork technology lie

in the ever increasing speed of construction,

accompanied by increased mechanisation of

the construction site, and therefore, formwork.

As a result, customers expect a product range

supplemented by a comprehensive service

portfolio. During project and construction site

planning, everyone from architect to formwork

supplier will be part of an electronic network.

Our goal is to collaborate with our customers

in thinking ahead and to contribute towards

the future of formwork.

three questions for: Peter Vogel, DoKA

The Formwork Experts.

Panel floor formwork Dokadek 30The beamless hand-set system for fast erection and dismantling

Speed Quicker to put up - quicker to take downSafety Productivity on safe groundSimplicity Easy to explain - easy to use

www.doka-me.com

Scan here for more information on Dokadek 30

Stand 717-1 Hall 1

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TECHNOLOGY

In the construction machinery industry

there is no sector that has gone through

greater changes in the past few years

than concrete equipment. Major

European manufacturers were acquired

by Chinese manufacturers, beginning

with Cifa in 2008, acquired by Zoomlion,

and then Putzmeister in 2012, acquired by

Sany, and later a tie-up between Schwing-

Stetter and XCMG.

And there has also been consolidation

on the European front, with Liebherr

acquiring the concrete pump manufacturer

Waitzinger, a mid-sized German company

with strong R&D pedigree, allowing

Liebherr to offer the full range.

While there was a strong incentive for

Chinese manufacturers to acquire valuable

R&D as well as distribution networks, on

a higher level the concrete equipment

industry is headed towards competition

between ‘full-liners’, with brands acquiring

new interests, so that they are able to offer

the full range, from batching plants, mixer

trucks, to truck and stationary pumps.

Putzmeister is a good example of this –

acquiring mix truck builder Intermix, and

then announcing at Bauma a strategic

deal with the Italian batching plant

manufacturer Simem. And for buyers,

more choice can only be a good thing.

The concrete truck pump market is

intensely competitive, but new products

on the market have made the choice for

customers even tougher. Putzmeister’s new

range of truck pumps were built in order

to comply with new European road weight

regulations, which in the 56 metre boom

class, saw its model, the M56-5, built over a

4-axle chassis, reduced from five.

One of the biggest contributors to the

finished product is the number of axles

the pump is built over, and savings on

the vehicle build-costs are passed to

the customer without compromising

pump performance. Putzmeister’s new

models are available in the key segments,

including 36m, 42m, and the 56m. Overall

the models have been simplified for their

serviceability. On the 42m pump the

number of types of arches or elbows has

been reduced to only three, from seven,

and the machine has been redesigned

with a preference for bolts over welds.

Furthermore the amount of hydraulic fluid

was reduced by 300 litres from the previous

generation model.

Saudi Arabia is the most important

market for concrete pumps, and market

share is hotly contested by international

manufacturers and their dealers.

Represented by distributor Saudi Diesel,

the Korean manufacturer Everdigm makes

a range of pumps, including its 43CX-5,

contesting the all-important 42m segment.

The 5-section boom has a vertical reach of

42.1m, and horizontal reach of 38.1m, with

a delivery pipe diameter of 125mm. The

model has seen usage on many residential

sites in KSA, and the service offering is key

to Everdigm’s popularity.

Cifa was the first major concrete

equipment manufacturer to be acquired

“The indusTry is headed Towards compeTiTion beTween ‘full-liners’, wiTh brands able To offer The full range”

Concrete ready-mix companies are benefiting from fierce competition amongst manufacturers to improve and expand their product offerings

PumPed-uP


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TECHNOLOGY bigprojectMe.COm

by a Chinese company, Zoomlion in

2008, but the continuation of its product

development programme showed that

the intent was very much to continue Cifa

as a strong standalone brand. Last year it

collaborated with Zoomlion on a Guinness

World Record truck pump with a 101m

boom, something of a novelty. Likely to be

of more interest to customers are its truck

pumps built with carbon fibre booms, the

Carbotech range.

Customers are increasingly price

conscious on concrete mixer trucks,

and well they can be given the available

range of vehicles from diverse suppliers.

Ready mix companies are virtually spoilt

with choice, whether buying chassis

from premium sellers such as Daimler or

MAN, mid-range truck brands, or the new

entrants in the market. And while mixer

trucks have increasingly become seen as

commodity goods in the concrete industry,

in the critical application of a pumping job

reliability remains all-important, which

gives an edge to the established players in

the market of drum manufacturing.

In the Middle East, key features of a

successful transit mixer are large size and

an ample water reservoir, since in many

markets there are no on-road weight

restrictions. Putzmeister debuted its new

Intermix truck the IMI 12.1 at Bauma

this year, which features an optimised

geometry drum built with high quality

steel from Thyssen-Krupp, including

thicker plating in crucial areas, providing

protection against wear and tear in harsh

conditions, and ensuring a longer service

life. The IMI 12.1, the largest in its range,

has a nominal filling of 12m3, a water line

of 13.55m3, and a geometric volume of

20.11m3, and its availability is a ‘concrete’

example of the benefits of industry

consolidation for buyers.

Batching plants are a serious capital

expenditure item, but smaller mobile

plants are increasingly finding favour

with buyers, as demand for concrete

rises incrementally. Cifa has recently

released a new mobile batching plant,

transportable on wheels, fitted with a 1m3

per cycle Cifa mixer, which guarantees

an hourly production rate of 50m3 of

ready-mixed concrete. Another feature

is its mixer washing system that washes

the mixer after each production cycle,

using the water already batched into the

concrete composition recipe. This leads to

considerable water savings on the site.

In Saudi Arabia, KiCE Construction

Equipment produces concrete batching

plants for sale in the domestic market and

the GCC, as well as distributing Snowkey

concrete cooling machines. KiCE produces

two types of stationary batching plants, the

first which has a dry batch capacity of 50 to

140 m3/h, and a wet batch capacity of 50 to

240 m3/h, as well as mobile batching plant.

The company has recently expanded its

factory in the Eastern Province to scale-

up production, and speaking at a recent

event, company CEO, engineer Saleh

bin Abdulrahman Al-Katheir, said that

demand for its mobile batching plants

had quadrupled in the previous years,

reflecting improved product engineering.

KiCE hopes to increase its sales of batching

plants by 15%, mobile batching plants by

25% and washing plants by 25% in 2013. n

“BATCHING PLANTS ARE A SERIOUS CAPITAL EXPENDITURE ITEMS”

Dubai reaDy-mixers to register

Dubai Municipality (DM) has announced

that all ready mix concrete suppliers in

operating in the Emirate need to register

with the Municipality, as part of an

administrative decision to monitor ready-mix

concrete companies and on site mixing

units to ensure safety and quality of work in

the construction work sector.

A joint team from Buildings Department

and Dubai Central Laboratory (DCL) has

been formed to take care of the registration,

monitoring and issuing conformity certificate

for the ready-mix concrete companies

and on site mixing units, said Eng. Yusuf

Abdullah Al Marzooqi, Acting Director of

Buildings Department at DM.

Contracting companies and engineering

consulting offices are being urged not

to use the ready-mix concrete in any

construction site unless it was supplied by

a registered firm with Dubai Municipality

along with conformity certificate or mark

for the factory or the mixing unit.

“The registered and approved companies

are listed on the DM website. A manual

that includes the instructions and regulations

is also available online,’ said Marzooqi.

‘A circular on this regard has been sent

to all relevant parties in addition to the

publication on the DM website.”

“ConCrete itself is a simple thing. But we are always making sophistiCated struCtural Changes to it. it’s not just a question of mixing sand and Cement and throwing it at a wall.”


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PILING bigprojectMe.com

Big Project ME finds out about the state of piling in the market and how the industry is facing up to super-tall construction.

In an old Beatles song there is a line:

’I heard the news today, oh boy,

four thousand holes in Blackburn

Lancashire. And though the holes were

rather small, they had to count them all.’

It’s a problem that Tony Rocca, of

Gulf Piling LLC would sympathise

with. In ground works, one of the worst

encountered problems is the presence

of cavities. But on the whole, ground

engineering is so sophisticated that you

can almost literally build anywhere. It’s

all about money and how much you are

prepared to invest.

Rocca is at pains to point out that he is

a geotechnical engineer. Piling is part of

his work but his job is to understand the

ground, and predict how it will behave

both in the short and long term. Then he

makes foundations work.

He is clear where the project skill lies:

“Projects are won by the design” The fact

is that ground can vary enormously even

in the space of a few metres and piling

projects are fixed-price and success-

based. Simply put, structural engineers

don’t want to get involved in something

that unpredictable, so they employ men

like Rocca to see it through.

He explains that it is mainly friction

oN a StroNG FouNdatIoN

that makes the world of piling go round.

You try to build friction down the sides of

the piles and also resistance at the bearing

point. So you can support the pile with

friction on the shaft and by the endpoint

socketed in hard strata. It’s a combination

of friction and bearing resistance. The

geology in the UAE mainly consists

of sand overlying a rock formation of

sandstones, conglomerates and siltstone.

Most piles are between ten and twenty

five meters deep. As a rule of thumb you

can’t put piles closer together than three

times the diameter of the pile. Obviously

the larger the load you have, the deeper

the piles are or the more piles you add.

In piling the cost of plant/labour

and the cost of materials are generally

around the same. The cost of foundations

will rarely exceed 15% of the cost of the

building.

Piles themselves are largely built of

what’s available locally. Here in the UAE

its pretty much concrete strengthened

with steel, actually 80-90% of it is bored,

and the concrete is cast in situ.

Rocca explains that it doesn’t really

matter what the materials are as long as

they are well treated and not exposed

to air. Then they won’t rot at any kind of

worrying speed. But wood?

“Sure why not, the Chinese were using

bamboo to hold their houses up two

thousand years ago.”

He explains that piles, even wood ones,

can last a very long time.

“We had an old bridge in Canada, it

was built on wooden piles and it had been

there for eighty years. But after the latest

building code with new seismic criteria,

we carried out ground densification work

using a vibro replacement technique to

densify the soil around the pier to mitigate

liquefaction just in case of earthquakes

and protect the working wood piles.”

The main soil groups are clay and

sand, these are called cohesive and

cohesionless soils. Cohesive soil have

smaller particle diameter. Cohesionless

soil is like a coarse aggregrate, sand would

fit into this group. Clay has a long term

effect. If you put a load on clay it takes a

long time for the water to dissipate and to

settle, so you are studying the long term

settlement (of the clay). If you are not a

purist, you may not know the difference

between foundations and shoring. Piling

drives into the ground to spread the

weight of a building. Shoring is more

concerned with securing the ground

during excavation so that it doesn’t move.

When it comes to concrete, Christopher

Stanley is an expert. He is technical

director of Unibeton.

He talks to Big Project ME about some

of his company’s achievements. They

are currently working with Bauer for the

piling of the Kingdom Tower in KSA.

This will become the tallest tower

in the world at 1.3km. Tall buildings

require deep foundations and the

foundations under the Kingdom Tower


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PILING

PiLiNg iN Ground engineering is so sophisticated you can build anywhere.

26 MID

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bigprojectMe.com

CONCRETE SUPPLEMENTCONCRETE SUPPLEMENT

PILING

are between 150 and 175 metres deep.

Unibeton produces concrete which is more

sustainable and kinder to the environment.

It starts with the production process.

Cement is made from a calcium carbonate,

which comes from limestone. That comes

from seashells. To make cement you heat

limestone to 1400c. It then becomes cinder

which is made into cement.

“Concrete itself is a simple thing. But

we are always making sophisticated

structural changes to it. It’s not just a

question of mixing sand and cement and

throwing it at a wall.”

In the last ten years there have been

major advances in concrete technology.

Even the way that they apply the material

to a project has changed: “We use our

ingredients more efficiently. We replace

some of the cement with pozzolanic

materials, such as volcanic ash. By using

less cement we make our projects more

sustainable,” he explains.

They are also experimenting with ways

to use less water in their cement: “Water

is actually a good thing in that it helps

cement to set. Also if you had no steel in a

pile and you kept it wet the cement would

continue to get stronger.”

“Where there is water in concrete, it

evaporates, leaving small capillaries. If

water has been in concrete it can come

back.” The UAE is actually quite advanced

when it comes to concrete production;

it has made major advances, and is

continuing to do so,” he adds.

Stanley points out that you don’t need

to develop super high buildings in the

region because there is no shortage of

land.

But it’s a case of wanting the world’s

tallest tower, rather than any real need.

He has even heard of plans to develop

a 2.3 kilometre tower: “The sky’s the limit

when it comes to tall towers.” n

IN place Sand is classified as cohesion-less soil.

“We use our INgredIeNts more effIcIeNtly. We replace some of the cemeNt WIth pozzolaNIc materIals, such as volcaNIc ash. By usINg less cemeNt We make our projects more sustaINaBle”


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bigprojectMe.com TECHINCAL FEATURETECHINCAL FEATURE bigprojectMe.com

The advancement of synthetic macro

fibre technology has moved rapidly

over the last decade and through

various levels of performance

testing has allowed this technology to be

embraced by the ready mixed concrete,

construction and engineering fraternity.

The acceptance of synthetic macro fibres,

which provide significant amounts of

post-cracking toughness or post-cracking

flexural strength to the concrete, in large

projects, on a global scale, demonstrates

and identifies technical and construction

advantages offered to provide added

performance, commercial benefits and

improvements to health and safety for

many prestigious projects.

A number of these projects (detailed

below) have utilised the growing trend

in the use of macro synthetic fibre use

in concrete around the world, and

demonstrates its flexibility in application.

The main components of this particular

polymeric fibre called STRUX 90/40 are

polypropylene and polyethylene. This

synthetic macro fibre’s mechanical and

geometric properties are significantly

different from existing synthetic macro

fibres. The length of STRUX 90/40 is 40

mm with an aspect ratio (length divided

by the equivalent diameter) of 90 and

a specific gravity of 0.92. The fibre has

a rectangular cross-section with an

average width of 1.40 mm and an average

thickness of 0.105 mm. The average

tensile strength of the fibre is 620 N/mm2

(MPa) with a modulus of elasticity (chord

modulus) of 9,500 N/mm2 (9.5 GPa).

The ‘flat’ fibre design was chosen in

part to achieve a large fibre surface area to

fibre volume ratio in order to increase the

mechanical bond between the fibre and

the cement paste. The elastic modulus of

this synthetic macro fibre nearly matches

the elastic modulus of the cement paste,

where the fibre is embedded in, which

allows the fibre to transfer stresses across

a crack immediately after crack initiation

has occurred. Consequently, good crack

control can be achieved. The toughness

performance measured using beams in

3 or 4 point bending tests correlates well

with the performance of fibre-reinforced

concrete slabs supported on ground.

Inaugurated in December 2012 the

state of the art, $390 Million, Khalifa Port

is designed to handle all of Abu Dhabi’s

container traffic and is a key part of the

Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030 mega-

project; with the neighbouring Kizad it

is the largest infrastructure project ever

undertaken in Abu Dhabi emirate.

The main concrete slab at the Container

Terminal required a 100 year design life

and to achieve this in the challenging,

high chloride conditions both a high

durability concrete and non-corroding

reinforcement were required. Speed of

construction was equally important.

Based on these needs and the design

requirements Grace’s macro-synthetic

fibre, STRUX 90/40, was specified and

Gerard Attree and Klaus Alexander Rieder of Grace look at the use of synthetic macro fibre technology

mAcRo THINKING


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TECHINCAL FEATURE

used throughout the 215,000m3 of fiber

concrete laid, the largest area of macro-

synthetic fiber reinforced concrete laid

in the region. Successful project delivery

for Grace relied on global co-ordination,

with key specification support in the USA,

project management in the UK and a

dedicated team of site support engineers

who trained contractors and ready mixed

concrete producers at site and oversaw

the critical early pours.

Designed to look like a modern Noah’s

Ark, the new Georgia Aquarium in

downtown Atlanta, USA is one of the

largest aquariums in the world, with

more than 2 million visitors visiting

the Aquarium during its first year. The

imposing facility includes more than

47,000 m2 of conditioned space housing

more than 100,000 animals in 36 million

liters of fresh and saltwater.

The tanks are among the largest in the

world – some as high as 10m tall and

requiring 1.2Mthick walls at the base.

Grace’s STRUX 90/40 was chosen and

used for secondary reinforcement in

slab on-ground concrete throughout the

structure, including concrete walkways,

areas near the tanks and other high traffic

locations. The STRUX fibres are easy to

handle and dispersed evenly throughout

the concrete matrix, and helped to

maintain the project schedule. The

tanks would contain saltwater, hence in

addition to the concrete containing macro

synthetic fibers the mix for the tank walls

also incorporated the addition of a nitrite

based corrosion inhibitor, Grace product

DCI-S. This admixture helps extend the

lifecycle of concrete exposed to a marine

environment and minimises the need for

future repairs due to any corrosion from

the primary structural reinforcement.

When complete the West Metro in the

Finnish capital of Helsinki will be 13.9

kilometres in length, comprising two

parallel tunnels travelling underground

for the entire length of the track. In

addition to the stations, excavation

work will be carried out for 15 vertical

shafts designed for emergency exit,

pressure equalisation, ventilation and

smoke extraction. As the project is a

subsea tunnel major concerns arose

over corrosion issues surrounding the

use of steel within such an aggressive

environment and synthetic macro fibres

offered an ideal solution for the sprayed

concrete linings. As part of the approvals

process it was necessary to undertake

performance tests and ensure compliance

with the required specification for sprayed

concrete linings. Grace STRUX 85/50 was

the preferred fibre of choice.

The contractors noted an improvement

in their spraying capacity with STRUX

versus steel fibers when it came to

covering water drainage areas and pipes

in the tunnel. Traditionally they are

forced to spray a thin cover with non-

reinforced concrete on all drainage areas

to reduce any risk of punctures and are

required to come back the following day

to complete the spraying application with

an additional layer of reinforced concrete.

With the synthetic macro fibres they can

fix and cover drainage pipes in one go

improving the speed of spraying concrete.

The use of synthetic fiber technology

is growing and is in use on a daily basis.

showing that they have a place in the

construction of concrete slabs, tunnelling,

and even precast elements offering major

benefits in design, handling, speed of

construction, health and safety, durability

and performance. n

“This admixTure minimises The need for fuTure repairs due To any corrosion from The primary sTrucTural reinforcemenT”

KHALIFA PORT

REQUIREMENTS

n Project cost:

$390 million

n Total fibre used:

215,000m3

n Terminal lifespan:

100 years

laying iT ouTA number of projects have successfully utilised macro-synthetic fibres.

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COMMENT bigprojectMe.com

CONCRETE SUPPLEMENT

During the Middle East’s

construction boom, the traditional

tendency towards informal

commercial arrangements and

negotiations often got the job done.

We’ve seen a lot of changes since those

days and a clearer focus on contractual

terms has emerged. The established

business culture is still respected, but

the construction industry is increasingly

adopting common global practices to

protect the interests of all parties.

Sustainability is now the buzzword

of the industry, with all aspects from

materials to structural design coming

under scrutiny. And as governments

continue to introduce increasingly

stringent legislation targeting the

sustainability; changes to the products

and construction techniques used are

guaranteed. As a major supplier, the

concrete industry is well placed to be

among the success stories as it adapts to

the new expectations, although it will face

challenges.

The expanded enforcement of Dubai

Municipality’s (DM) Green Building

Regulations is the latest move aimed at

pushing the construction sector towards

a long-term sustainable future. Already

mandatory for government buildings,

from 2014 the Green Building Regulations

will also become mandatory for private

sector projects. Every aspect of a building,

from design, planning and execution to

operation, maintenance and demolition

must be considered in order to reduce its

impact over its lifetime.

Such legislation has opened

opportunities across the construction

sector. And with materials being a major

consideration in sustainable building

design, concrete has been thrust into

the limelight, with a particular growth

in the use of precast concrete products.

As one of the primary materials used

in the region’s buildings, any moves

towards sustainability and environmental

awareness from this industry will have

an exponential impact on the overall

construction sector. The effects on the

industry itself have been numerous and

overall they are proving to be beneficial.

Achieving a sustainability rating has

become a major selling point for building

owners aiming to raise their profile, project

a certain image and reduce operational

costs. Ratings systems such as the US

Green Building Council’s LEED and Abu

Dhabi Urban Planning Council’s Estidama

are now referred to as standard on the

majority of new-build projects. Their

popularity in the region has meant that

sectors such as concrete industry are well

prepared for the enforcement of the new

Dubai legislation, which is closely based on

the LEED system.

Over the past few years the major

concrete producers and suppliers have

invested significant resources in the

A chAnging sectorfor A chAnging mArket

MEC 2013 show director Nathan Waugh looks at how the concrete sector is adapting to change

NATHAN WAUGH

“CoNCreTe prodUCers ANd sUppliers HAve iNvesTed siGNifiCANT resoUrCes”

CONCRETE MARKET IN THE GCC

n $49 billion demand for concrete forecast within the GCC over the next two years

n $30.5 billion in KSA needed through 2014 and 2015

n $4 billion UAE demand in 2014-2015 dominated by infrastructure spending


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Comment

research and development of new products

and technologies that will raise the

product’s sustainability.

In terms of materials used for the

manufacture of concrete, the general

product mix has changed: the percentage

of cement has been greatly reduced and

largely replaced by recycled fly ash. As a

byproduct of the steel industry, fly ash is

primarily a waste product; recycling this

resource to produce concrete reduces

the carbon footprint for both steel and

concrete industries, giving even greater

overall environmental benefits. Plus,

the large steel industry in the region

means that fly ash can be sourced locally

to concrete manufacturers, reducing

transport costs and fuel emissions and

helping to meet the Regulations’ demand

to use regionally available materials.

The changes to the concrete make-up

have had other mixed effects. On a positive

note, the product has gained strength.

However, it can also take longer to cure and

this time difference must be accounted for

in the project scheduling. Also, although

the cost of fly ash was initially very low it

has increased substantially in line with

demand from the concrete industry and

this trend is likely to continue.

Other time and cost penalties are being

felt in the precast concrete sector in order

to meet the tougher thermal transmittance

values that the Regulations demand for

air conditioned areas. Arguably the sector

is better placed than many to meet the

lower U-values: the naturally high heat

resistance of concrete makes it a better

choice in many cases than glass or metal

facades, despite developments in façade

technology. The relatively cheaper cost of

concrete, plus new restrictions on glazing

use are likely to impact this decision. The

challenge for design teams is to ensure

that the building aesthetics demanded

in this region are maintained. For the

precast sector, meeting stricter U-values

has meant an update of technology and

casting methods. The casting has changed

for many exterior wall products as a layer

of insulation must be added in order to

lower the overall U-value. This has meant

bigger casts, plus a three-stage process to

complete the sandwich form rather than a

single pour mould. The extra time needed

for this production process must again be

considered during scheduling.

But one final area where concrete

has significant benefits over alternative

materials is in whole-life costing. As a

primary aim of the DM Regulations is

reducing a building’s impact over its life,

the sustainable credentials of concrete

are being increasingly recognised. A

low-maintenance material, in the case of

prefabricated concrete, there is a potential

for recycling and reusing in future projects.

As regulation enforcement fast

approaches, the financial and

environmental advantages of concrete

are making a mounting case for its use

as a primary building material. With

sustainability at the top of the list of

demands, there is a wealth of opportunities

for those in the sector who are in line with

the changing needs in the market. n

$49 billion GCC ConCrete market sees demand for optimisation & sustainable praCtiCes

There is more than $49 billion of demand

for concrete forecast within the GCC over

the next two years. As such, the industry

is keen to stay ahead of the trends with a

prominent drive to ensure that concrete is

more energy and cost efficient, as well as

increase its contribution to the sustainability

of buildings and infrastructure, meeting

demand with innovative, long-term

solutions. The GCC construction sector

as a whole shows no signs of slowing

down over the coming years; demand for

concrete will follow a similar path, with

Qatar and Kuwait also representing big

business for the sector.

With this in mind, and with sustainable

construction continuing to dominate

industry debate, the concrete sector is

working to understand its role in furthering

this innovation and how concrete

technologies can contribute to more

sustainable building practices, whilst at the

same time keeping pace with demand.

This is strongly reflected in the educational

content at this year’s Middle East Concrete

(MEC), as concrete professionals come

together to share challenges and solutions

for the most effective, efficient and

sustainable applications.

The free-to-attend seminar theatre will

host a range of industry professionals,

discussing some of the latest, leading

solutions from across the market, with

companies including Grace Construction

Products, Elematic, Fosroc and FADOX

Group taking part. Seminar topics will

include Enhancing performance and

durability of concrete structures through

the use of construction chemicals; New

applications of lightweight cellular

concrete; and Glassfibre reinforced

concrete (GRC) - a green building

material. In addition, there will be a full

day workshop onsite focusing on Asset

Maintenance.

MEC 2013 runs from 25-28 November,

2013 at DICEC in Dubai, UAE.


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SPECIAL FEATURE concrete sustainability bigprojectMe.com

While concrete is a sustainable

material in terms of its lifecycle,

reducing the cement content in

concrete with other alternatives

such as fly ash is a good solution. Besides,

the production of Portland cement leads

to the release of significant amount of

carbon and this is a concern that is being

addressed globally and in the GCC.

“Concrete is a sustainable building

material, which ensures durable and

long-lasting structures that will not rust

and burn. It also ensures longevity – an

integral part of reducing cost and use of

resources in a project,” says Dr Huiqing

He, corporate sustainability manager at

Al Fara’a Group and deputy operations

director (SME) at Unibeton. “Besides,

the thermal mass of a concrete building

means reduced requirements for heating

and cooling systems, which in turn means

an energy-efficient building. In addition,

concrete is manufactured using many

post-industrial by-products and it can also

be recycled and reused to save material

resources.”

Concrete is one of the most widely used

construction materials globally due to its

sustainability properties, agreed Rabih

Fakih, managing director of Grey Matters.

“However, the production of Portland

cement leads to the release of significant

amount of carbon emissions. One ton

of Portland cement clinker production

creates approximately one ton of carbon

emissions and other greenhouse gases

(GHGs). Hence, environmental issues

will play a leading role in the sustainable

development of the cement and concrete

industry in this century.”

Still, concrete, as an end product, is

a sustainable material. “It is produced

with very little waste, made from some

of the most plentiful resources on earth

(limestone), and minimises the effects

that produce urban heat islands, among

other benefits,” Fakih said.

“At the process level, the re-use of

post-consumer waste and industrial by-

products in concrete produces a ‘greener’

form of concrete,” he explains. “The use of

coal ash, rice-husk ash, wood ash, natural

pozzolans, GGBFs, silica fume, and other

similar pozzolanic materials can reduce

the use of manufactured Portland cement

clinker and simultaneously produce a

more durable concrete.”

The building material has a high sustainability quotient already,but new technologies can enhance it, writes Sona Nambiar

a concrete plan for sustainability


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While concrete is a sustainable

material in terms of its lifecycle,

reducing the cement content in

concrete with other alternatives

such as fly ash is a good solution. Besides,

the production of Portland cement leads

to the release of significant amount of

carbon and this is a concern that is being

addressed globally and in the GCC.

“Concrete is a sustainable building

material, which ensures durable and

long-lasting structures that will not rust

and burn. It also ensures longevity – an

integral part of reducing cost and use of

resources in a project,” says Dr Huiqing

He, corporate sustainability manager at

Al Fara’a Group and deputy operations

director (SME) at Unibeton. “Besides,

the thermal mass of a concrete building

means reduced requirements for heating

and cooling systems, which in turn means

an energy-efficient building. In addition,

concrete is manufactured using many

post-industrial by-products and it can also

be recycled and reused to save material

resources.”

Concrete is one of the most widely used

construction materials globally due to its

sustainability properties, agreed Rabih

Fakih, managing director of Grey Matters.

“However, the production of Portland

cement leads to the release of significant

amount of carbon emissions. One ton

of Portland cement clinker production

creates approximately one ton of carbon

emissions and other greenhouse gases

(GHGs). Hence, environmental issues

will play a leading role in the sustainable

development of the cement and concrete

industry in this century.”

Still, concrete, as an end product, is

a sustainable material. “It is produced

with very little waste, made from some

of the most plentiful resources on earth

(limestone), and minimises the effects

that produce urban heat islands, among

other benefits,” Fakih said.

“At the process level, the re-use of

post-consumer waste and industrial by-

products in concrete produces a ‘greener’

form of concrete,” he explains. “The use of

coal ash, rice-husk ash, wood ash, natural

pozzolans, GGBFs, silica fume, and other

similar pozzolanic materials can reduce

the use of manufactured Portland cement

clinker and simultaneously produce a

more durable concrete.”

The building material has a high sustainability quotient already,but new technologies can enhance it, writes Sona Nambiar

a concrete plan for sustainability


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SPECIAL FEATURE concrete sustainability

“REgiONaLLy, TwO MajOR bOdiES MakiNg a TREMENdOUS iMPaCT iN ThiS aREa aRE ESTidaMa iN ThE UaE aNd gSaS iN QaTaR”

Local and international design and

construction are governed by codes

and certifications such as the NRMCA

Sustainable Concrete Plant Certification

(US), GreenStar, Estidama (UAE), LEED

(US), GSAS (Qatar), Breeam Gulf, ASTM

published technical standards and ASTM

sustainability committee (E60), and

ACI 318 building code requirement for

structural concrete.

Green concrete can contribute to

earning points for the certification of the

structure. “Regionally, two major bodies

making a tremendous impact in this area

are Estidama in the UAE and GSAS in

Qatar,” Fakih said.

According to Estidama’s Pearl rating

system in Abu Dhabi, concrete is covered

within credits SM-9 (regional materials)

and SM-10 (recycled materials). “In June

2010, all new development applications

for communities are mandated to satisfy

all required credits to achieve a minimum

1 Pearl level of compliance,” Fakih said.

However, Maher Tadros, managing

partner of the US-based firm,

e.construct, and a professor emeritus

at the University of Nebraska, said:

“Currently, initial costs are driving the

implementation of most standards.”

Carbon EmissionsSo, will replacing Portland cement with

fly ash (by-product of electric power

ConstruCtion Codes:

n nrmCa sustainable Concrete Plant Certification US based code

n EsTiDama Locally formed UAE code

n LEED US based code

n Gsas Qatar specific construction code

generation) or other materials solve the

carbon emissions problem in the long

run? Dr He agrees that using fly ash

reduces embedded carbon emission

in the long run and ensures a higher

resistance to chemical attack, which also

extends the life span of the product.

“Slag cement (ground granulated blast-

furnace slag or GGBS) is another common

supplementary cementitious material

(SCM) used in manufacturing concrete,”

said Dr He.

“A by-product of a controlled process

from iron production, it results in a very

uniform composition, increases concrete

durability and enables a higher volume

replacement of Portland cement (by up to

70%).”

Tadros agreed that reducing the

cement content in a concrete mix results

in significant sustainability: “Modern

mixes are using cement replacement

materials such as fly ash and rice ash in

a proportion of above 70%. New varieties

of cement are also in the development

stages. Again, when a structure runs its

lifecycle, the reinforced concrete used in

the building can be recycled as aggregates

and recycled reinforcing bars.

But since reinforced concrete is a

structural material, one has to be careful

about what is put into the concrete mix. It

has to be carefully specified and regulated

to avoid potential long-term durability

problems,” he noted.

Researchers at Missouri University of

Science and Technology said recently

that increasing the amount of fly ash

in concrete up to 70% can also prevent

millions of tons of the waste product

from ending up in landfills. Fakih added

that replacing Portland cement with fly

ash also improves the plastic behaviour

of the concrete.

“Other SCMs have been widely and

intensively used in the GCC for more

COST dRivENExperts say that initial costs are driving the implementation of standards.

than a decade. Recycled aggregates from

demolished buildings and returned

concrete can also be used to replace the

natural aggregates,” he said.

In order to ensure that concrete

production also ensures energy efficiency

and reduction of valuable water resources

in the GCC.

He suggests that companies implement

the NRMCA comprehensive programme

called “Concrete Sustainable Plant

Guidelines”, which addresses a sustainable

operation and practice through life ycle

perspectives.

It covers process control and evaluation

from material purchasing, production and

delivery, product use, to waste reduce,

recycle and reuse.

He added that currently, only Unibeton

Ready Mix has achieved this certification

in the region.

“Following our management

requirement, waste water and waste

concrete are recycled and reused through

in-house developed water treatment plant

and concrete recycling plant to enhance

sustainable development and practice,

and further reduce CO2 emission,

waste disposal and resources usage. All

recycled water is reused to reduce water

consumption,” he said.

Additionally, chemical liquids

(admixtures) are used to reduce the

water demand needed for mixing while

improving the fresh and hardened

properties of the concrete, adds Fakih.

“Also, recycling process water is a

common phenomenon in most GCC

countries, where water is recycled/treated

to be used in the concrete process,” he says.

Tadros noted a new trend emerging in

North America as an alternate to reduce

the usage of concrete – using precast

concrete insulated panels (sometimes

called sandwich panels).

“The insulation layer not only reduces

the volume of concrete used but also

adds considerable insulation value to

the building envelope. Using fiberglass

connectors across the insulation ensures

that the two outside wythes of concrete

work together in composite action,”

Tadros says. “Thus a 75-100-75mm

sandwich wall acts like a solid 250mm

wall while using only 150mm concrete. It

also provides an R rating of 20 (US units).”

In addition to these features, one

could use a concrete mix with very little

cement and a lot of fly ash, and still get the

required capacity,” he said.n


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A sustAinAble sAudi?

Despite big ticket projects worth $806

billion till 2030 in Saudi Arabia,

according to Zawya Projects, data

on projects that are in the design,

bid or construction stage, awareness

of sustainable construction and

development is still in the nascent stages,

according to sustainability professionals.

While the green building materials

sector has been developing

environmentally friendly products, the

higher costs deter clients who choose

traditional construction materials – thus

dampening the growth of sustainable

construction.

Recent information on the progress of the

new Saudi building code implementation

that would mandate the use of efficient

materials and design practices in the

near future is hard to obtain.

“RECyCLiNg PROCESS waTER iS a COMMON PhENOMENON iN MOST gCC COUNTRiES, whERE waTER iS RECyCLEd/TREaTEd TO bE USEd iN ThE CONCRETE PROCESS”

Article was written by Sona Nambiar, who

is a writer for Zawya.

BPME_15 Lines_Oct13_OL.pdf 1 9/29/13 10:55 AM

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