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Interviews

Staying ahead

Drake and Scull Engineering, recognised as an expert in the MEP industry, has constantly evolved and managed to stay ahead of its fierce competitors. This month, Lorraine Bangera from CBNME chats with Managing Director of Drake & Scull Engineering (DSE), Ahmad Al Naser, about the pressures of working in the construction industry and what it takes to stay on top

Ahmad Al Naser is surprised at how quickly time has flown by as it has been 13 years since he first joined Drake and Scull International. “Every day has been interesting and had its own challenges and achievements. But it has been a very fulfilling and rewarding experience, and I value the friendships and relationships I’ve cultivated here,” Naser reminisces as he cherishes the many memories he has with the company.

Naser was fresh out of university before the he delved into the hard world of construction. He graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Jordan and is now a member of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration & Air conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the Jordon Engineering Association. He started his career as a project manager at DSI, which soon transitioned into the area general manager of Abu Dhabi. In the years to follow Naser led DSE’s expansion into new markets like KSA and India as the regional director, before being promoted to the MD in 2014. Currently he manages all DSE projects across the MENA, South Asia and Europe, helping him develop strong working relationships with existing and potential business partners. Some of his priorities include ensuring the growth of the business, maintaining the quality of work and reputation while meeting targets and increasing the share value for their shareholders.

When asked about his secret to success, he honestly replies, “There is no substitute for dedication and hard work. It is important to take pride in what you do and to be driven by passion to be the best in your field.”

There have been innumerable challenges in his journey, the biggest being his scope of responsibility which he takes up quite seriously. Apart from managing all the DSE markets in the region, he also maintains over 15,000 employees who need constant motivation to excel.

Challenges

The industry is vast, complex and rapidly evolving and according to Naser, “competition is improving each day.” To be the top player he says, “We have to be on our toes and ensure that we remain well ahead of our competitors and continue to be the preferred engineering partner for our clients.”

From a contracting perspective, Naser observes that one of the main challenges is the competitive pricing for job tenders as the market is currently very demanding. He says, “The only way for us to meet our targets is to improve our productivity and apply innovative solutions which would give us an edge over our competitors.”

 

DSI however, has a great advantage as they offer clients a one stop shop for complete project execution and delivery, from the pre-design stage to post-delivery operations and maintenance. DSI businesses include Drake & Scull Engineering, Drake & Scull Construction, Drake & Scull Oil and Gas, Drake & Scull Rail, Passavant Energy & Environment and Drake & Scull Development, who operate independently, yet have the flexibility to integrate their services, depending on the needs of the projects. According to Naser, the fact that they are sister companies, helps them operate and work in sync, avoiding the hassles that are usually faced when multiple teams from different companies work on projects. He says, “Our wide footprint also gives us the ability to shift our resources (material, human and financial) and scale our presence, to suit the requirements of a particular project.”

DSE is also familiar with the regions local conditions, regulations and cultural sensitivities which according to Naser allows them to deliver high cost efficiencies on projects.

Another key factor to success Naser says is “transparency and trust”. DSE have management models such as ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2005 and OHSAS 18001:2007 certified. The company is professionally run and is publicly listed, which in means its practices are transparent and rank high on corporate governance practices.

Middle East

The Middle East has been rising in the last decade and the UAE, KSA and Qatar will continue to be at the forefront of the real estate development sector. The MD is particularly thrilled about the projects in Qatar and UAE coming up in the next few years.

He says, “It is no secret that the industry underwent a very tough time in the last few years and has only recently started to recover from a lukewarm environment.

“The World Cup 2022 win for Qatar and the 2020 Expo win for Dubai was a shot in the arm for the construction industry that has reinvigorated the regional real estate market.”

Qatar has an ambitious vision, and draws a comprehensive plan to realize this vision. He says, “We feel the city has a fairly good chance of rivaling Dubai’s famed skyline over the next decade.

“With one of the world’s biggest sovereign funds acting as a buffer, Qatar is not expected to witness any slowdown on the booming infrastructure development oriented toward the 2022 World Cup preparations.”

Qatar is also expected to move ahead on crucial long term investments like the Doha Metro and the GCC rail which deliver a substantial boost to the Qatari economy.

Naser also notes gradual signs of big project announcements and infrastructure development that was put on the backburner in the last few years. He cautiously admits, “The recent oil price dip has given us enough reason to be cautious in our outlook, though regional governments have largely committed to continue their investment in core infrastructure.”

For example, Qatar, despite its perception as an “oil price sensitive market,” has made significant progress in developing the non-oil sector. He points out that according to a KAMCO Research titled ‘GCC Economic Outlook 2015′, Qatar is expected to spend around US$ 140 billion in the next five years, for the World Cup.

“Of course, inflation and the vagaries of the oil price fluctuations pose as the biggest threat to Qatar’s development programmes.”

But according to the report titled ‘International Construction Cost Report 2014′ published by ARCADIS, Qatar’s construction costs are on par with developed markets like USA, and Italy. Naser says that the government and the industry will have to figure out ways to restrict the rising costs to manageable levels.

It would be a challenge to lay the groundwork and expand to accommodate the upcoming boom in the industry, specifically as the preparations for the Expo and the World Cup get underway. Naser says there will be a lot more competition as more firms move to the region to reap the benefits of the rapid growth in projects, which will also put pressure on the overall costs, as well as demand for human capital.

In addition to Qatar and the UAE, Naser says that markets like Kuwait, Jordan, Oman, Egypt and Algeria will continue to also remain relevant and important for DSE, as they diligently ensure to retain their capacity and capability to deliver large scale in these markets.

Looking ahead

After a successful 2014, Drake & Scull International (DSI) stepped into this year on a positive note with DSE’s recent AED 198 million MEP win for a prestigious hotel development in Dubai as well as the AED 180 million Reef Real Estate contracting project for sister company Drake & Scull Construction in Dubai. Delighted about his sister company’s achievement, Naser says, “We are confident the Reef Residence Tower project will become a prominent landmark of the emirate’s skyline.”

“Our backlog is at an all-time high and we have a decent portfolio of ongoing projects and our workforce is rapidly expanding. So I remain optimistic about our prospects for the near future,” says Naser.

He says the complexity of dealing with multiple markets presents interesting and unique challenges. However, overall their aim remains the same.

He says, “We have to continue to expand our backlog and to ensure reasonable profits on our projects. This will be very crucial for DSE to continue positioning itself as the Prime Contractor in the region by delivering projects on time within budgets and to DSE quality standards.”

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