Author: Jochebed Menon

Maria Beatriz Pisuenaas has taken home the grand prize of the interior design competition, ‘Design with Love’ by Prescott Real Estate Development for its project Prime Views, a residential development in the heart of Meydan Avenue. In addition to winning Dhs10,000, the talented interior designer will see her concept brought to life in one of Prime Views’ signature one-bedroom showroom apartments. She will also be listed as a preferred supplier and can sell her interior design services to Prescott’s exclusive clientele in the Prime Views development. Maria’s ‘Beyond the Open Space’ design concept was created with careful consideration of both…

Integrated facilities management firm, EFS, hosted the seventh edition of its employee carnival virtually on 5 February. The EFS Carnival is an annual event hosted by the management and staff honouring its blue-collar workforce comprising technicians, housekeeping and security personnel from diverse nationalities. Amidst the pandemic and its COVID-19 precautionary commitment, the people event was telecasted virtually connecting more than 4,500 staff online with senior management on the ground and fun zones set up in staff accommodations. This year’s carnival is celebrated in collaboration with its mindfulness and wellbeing programme, Saada. EFS sets a spectrum of initiatives that recognizes these…

Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC), an independent forum aimed at strengthening and promoting green building practices, has announced a major milestone to strengthen the contribution and leadership of women in the field of sustainability in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with the launch of the EmiratesGBC Women’s Network (EWN). Launched virtually, EWN will serve as a platform for networking, mentoring, and knowledge-sharing for women across the MENA region, who are working in the field of green buildings and sustainable development, and are keen to participate in the sector. It aims to increase engagement and support female sustainability…

Manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, Caterpillar (Cat), has introduced a next generation earthmover, the Cat 395 Excavator. According to the company, it offers contractors up to 10% more production, two times more structural durability, and up to 20% less maintenance costs than its predecessor it replaces, the 390F. “We increased swing torque and stick force by 10%,” said Brian Abbott, worldwide product manager for Caterpillar large excavators. “These increases enable contractors to use larger buckets for much greater productivity.” A key driver to the 395’s production is a new dedicated hydrostatic swing circuit — a feature found only on…

The Government of Turkmenistan and the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) have signed three memoranda of understanding aimed at strengthening economic and development cooperation through investment in vital sectors that would benefit economies of both countries. The first memorandum of understanding (MoU) involved the establishment of an investment company in Turkmenistan with a target capital of Dhs370 million, whereby investment opportunities and development projects are to be presented for ADFD’s considerations. In the initial stage, ADFD and Turkmenistan will contribute Dhs58.7 million for investment in vital sectors such as energy, agriculture, tourism, and industry. This amount will be shared…

ENGIE has merged its Africa portfolio with the Middle East, South and Central Asia, Turkey (MESCAT) business unit under the leadership of Sébastien Arbola from 1 January 2021 onwards. Sébastien Arbola is now the CEO of ENGIE MESCATA, and he has also been appointed Executive Vice President in charge of thermal generation and energy supply activities at ENGIE Group level, effective 1 February 2021. The enlarged Business Unit MESCATA, with headquarters in Dubai and regional offices throughout the region, will draw on ENGIE’s long term presence and experience in the region to keep accelerating the transition towards carbon neutral economies.…

The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC) has awarded contracts to Saudi company Al Bawani and Blumer Lehmann to support the development plans and structural work of its luxury hotels and resorts. The two companies will play key roles in the construction of hotels across The Red Sea Project, with Al Bawani responsible for civil and structural works across 40 hotel villas on the Southern Dunes site, and Blumer Lehmann responsible for timber construction planning and fabrication as well as supply works for a hotel situated on Ummahat Al Shaykh Island. “The Red Sea Development Company has made significant progress in…

Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), Mubadala and Dubal Holding achieved a key milestone with the first firing of the Siemens Energy H-class gas turbine at the new Dhs1 billion state-of-the-art power plant under development at EGA’s Jebel Ali site. The Siemens Energy H-class gas turbine, a leading technology in efficient power generation, is the heart of the new power plant. Over the coming months, other facilities of the plant will be completed and integrated to achieve a generation capacity of over 600 megawatts of electricity. Full completion of the project is expected in the summer. The new power block at EGA…

Hloov, a data, technology, and services specialist, has become the first regional member of the Digital Twin Consortium. Through its cooperation with the Digital Twin authority and its international members, Hloov will enable regional construction stakeholders to leverage cutting-edge technology and processes to design, build and manage carbon-neutral projects for greater resilience today and a better tomorrow. The construction industry has long struggled with numerous challenges across geographies, including excessive waste, poor project performance and profitability, a lack of alignment, and several other major and minor obstacles. The generation of vast amounts of construction and demolition (C&D) waste is the…

Golf course designer and champion in the game’s history with a record 18 professional major championships to his name, Jack Nicklaus, is designing his first ever course in Saudi Arabia, a championship golf course for Qiddiya. The course, located 40 minutes from the Saudi capital, is under design and is awaiting commencement of construction. Jack and Nicklaus Design are creating the championship course for a private golf and country club, set within an exclusive residential community in the heart of the Qiddiya development, just outside Riyadh, with ground expected to be broken later this year. The golf course will be…