EME Outlook - Issue 36

EME w w w. e m e o u t l o o k m a g . c o m

Issue 36

OVHCLOUD

Opening up the power of data, for everyone

NEPI ROCKCASTLE The premier owner and operator of shopping centres in Central and Eastern Europe

The Architectural INNOVATOR

Albaker Architects constantly thinks outside the box with the aim of delivering truly inspiring twists to urban landmarks, both in Qatar and internationally An interview with Capgemini looking at the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic on global supply chains

travel magazine Your Guide to the World THE UNRELENTING

demand to travel, both for business and leisure purposes, is showing no signs of slowing up, and for Outlook Publishing, the growing extent to which we are covering this industry across our existing titles has led to the launch of Outlook Travel magazine.

The major component of the publication takes the form of our Outlook Travel Guides, providing executives, avid travellers and our existing 575,000 international subscribers with the ultimate rundown of all the major economic drivers and thriving

hubs across the world, with exclusive input from tourism industry associations and stakeholders – the people who know these places the best.

ISSUE 03

OMAN

You can join the vast numbers of tourism sector players enjoying the exposure we provide across our digital platforms with a range of options, from advertising through to free-of-charge editorials, extensive social media saturation, enhanced B2B networking opportunities, and a readymade forum to attract new investment and increase exposure.

SIMPLE WAYS TO TRAVEL MORE SUSTAINABLY

Desert views and Bedouin culture

MALAWI

Africa’s warm heart

Five easy tips

YOUR TRAVEL GUIDE TO

ROMANIA

Interview with Stu McKenzie, award-winning photographer, army veteran and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society

NAMIBIA TRAVEL GUIDE

SEYCHELLES TRAVEL GUIDE

MALAYSIA TRAVEL GUIDE

M A L AY S I A pot Malaysia is a melting a with a unique culture, world-renowned food

scene and a spectacular landscape of islands, ancient rainforest and

mountains

Writer: Dani Redd Palliser

Project Manager: Joe

Indian, is a melting point of Malay, why groups here are many reasons Chinese and aboriginal a packed Malaysia is a tourist favourite.

(Orang Asli). There’s landFor a start, there’s the festivals, calendar of religious ringed scape. Imagine 878 islands, including Wesak, or Buddha’s leading with processions with white sand beaches birthday, celebrated waters. Vibrant down to translucent of flowers and candles. home and coral reefs lie just offshore, Cities such as Melaka life. Inland to a profusion of marine Georgetown boast fascinating the shaded you can are ancient rainforests, heritage districts where fusion canopy seemingly impenetrable. experience this fascinating learn about you take Take a guided walk to for yourself. Make sure biodiversity. this habitat’s astonishing out to try Malaysia’s delicious time tapir, a of sight its multicultural You might even catch cuisine, which reflects swimming or a silver-leafed monkey population. a modern through the jungle canopy.

Of course, Malaysia has will also relish in the Outdoor enthusiasts side too. It can be found towering fine dining tackling some of region’s malls, skyscrapers and exploring the such as the granite mountains or restaurants in larger cities, limestone caves. intricate networks of capital Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia Then, there’s the culture.

T

THAILAND TRAVEL GUIDE

THAILAND

favourite, country is a perennial This Southeast Asian beaches, combination of beautiful thanks to an intoxicating complexes and incredible temple world-renowned cuisine Jordan Levey Project Manager: Writer: Dani Redd |

of by the fragrant taste world, characterised Smiles’, Thailand is leaves and tulsi. Every nown as the ‘Land of lemongrass, kaffir lime welcomed 38.27 seams with floating a friendly country that town is bursting at the shores last year. stalls and high-end restaumillion tourists to its markets, street food why this Southeast try delicious local dishes.

There are plenty of reasons rants where you can popular. heritage also attracts Asian destination is so Thailand’s rich spiritual beaches. In the south, and larger-than-life For a start, there’s the tourists. Golden temples stretch for miles, found across the Thailand’s two coastlines Buddha statues can be reliof icing-sugar soft sand, experience colourful populated by swathes country. Visitors can dramatic limestone northeast of the country the bays speckled with gious festivals in the cave shrines in is also home to 1,430 formations. Thailand or explore the underground like full moon party spots islands, ranging from Kanchanaburi and Phetchaburi. it’s easy to more off the beaten track Thailand’s popularity, Koh Pha Ngan to the Despite marine park popular relax, be it on a deserted Similan Islands, a national find a quiet corner to in the craggy mounwith scuba divers. island or an eco-retreat Thailand’s noodles, Mai. Then, there’s the food. tains north of Chiang beloved around the stir fries and curries are

K

S E YC H E L L E S Ocean for archipelago in the Indian Most people visit this than that much more to offer the beaches, but it has Project Manager: Jordan Writer: Dani Redd |

D

it’s escribing the Seychelles, These easy to veer into cliché. are picture-perfect islands beaches blessed with white sand water, fringed lapped by translucent rock with palm trees and interesting sunsets, formations. The dramatic and a wide laidback atmosphere range of luxury accommodation spot for make them a popular honeymooners. of 115 The Seychelles consists islets, located islands and some small

Levey

a crossroads in the Indian Ocean at Most of the between Asia and Africa. around the action is concentrated La Digue three major islands: Mahé, largest and and Praslin. Mahé is the to the capital, most populous; home hub to the rest Victoria, and transport is renowned of the islands. La Digue best beaches for having some of the meanin the archipelago. Praslin, idyllic Vallée de while, is home to the Mai nature reserve.

Seychelles But there’s more to the

Trek through than just the beaches. and lush the granite mountains Seychellois rainforests of the Morne of the National Park. Try some dishes at a island’s traditional Creole you’re a nature local restaurant. Or if to observe lover, head to Bird Island terns and its population of fairy well as the giant common noddies, as to the Aldabra tortoises endemic bowled over by archipelago. You’ll be to offer. what the Seychelles has

NAMIBIA

of rugged, otherworldly Namibia is a country history realm with a complex landscapes; a desert inhabitants and culturally diverse Project Manager: Joe Writer: Dani Redd |

www.outlooktravelmag.com/who-we-are

Palliser

N

sparse, otherworldly amibia is known for its name from the landscapes. It gets its desert; a sparse, Namib, the world’s oldest 1,900 kilometres down windswept region extending The desert is characterised Africa’s Atlantic coast. the plunge down towards by its red dunes, which and Skeleton Coast. It’s ocean at Sandwich Harbour as clay and salt pans, such also known for its white trees. are hundreds of ossified Deadvlei, where there Landscape, in the desert is Moon Another scenic spot pockmarked topography. named after its eerie, isn’t just about deserts.

But sightseeing in Namibia of green-gold grasslands Inland you’ll find the mountains such as the the Kalahari, and rugged and Damaraland.

Brandberg, Spitzkoppe

to experience its remote Tourists flock to Namibia sand boarding and offcorners. Hot air ballooning, are all popular activities. road quad bike excursions Namibia offers some When it comes to safaris, Park – head to Etosha National unrivalled experiences and black rhinos. to see big cats, elephants history. It was inhabited Namibia has a fascinating with tribes such as Ovambo as early as 25,000 BC, In migrating into the country. and Herero gradually Namibia became a German the “Scramble for Africa” South West Africa, in colony, known as German of bloody battles, Namibia 1884. After over a century in 1990. These days it’s finally gained independence attractions and cultural a country rich in historical plenty of stories to tell. diversity; a country with

WELCOME

Beyond the peak?

EDITORIAL Editorial Director: Tom Wadlow tom.wadlow@outlookpublishing.com Editor: Dani Redd dani.redd@outlookpublishing.com PRODUCTION Art Director: Stephen Giles steve.giles@outlookpublishing.com

Almost two months on from our last issue, the

Senior Designer: Devon Collins

cancellation of Mobile World Congress still a raw

devon.collins@outlookpublishing.com Junior Designer: Matt Loudwell

disappointment, and it appears that many countries

matt.loudwell@outlookpublishing.com

across the Europe and Middle East region have

BUSINESS Managing Director: Ben Weaver

ridden out the worst of the coronavirus peak.

ben.weaver@outlookpublishing.com Sales Director: Nick Norris nick.norris@outlookpublishing.com Operations Director: James Mitchell

At the time of writing, well over three million cases around the world have been confirmed, with the number of deaths passing the 210,000 mark.

james.mitchell@outlookpublishing.com PROJECT DIRECTOR Joshua Mann joshua.mann@outlookpublishing.com HEADS OF PROJECTS Callam Waller callam.waller@outlookpublishing.com Thomas Arnold thomas.arnold@outlookpublishing.com Vivek Valmiki vivek.valmiki@outlookpublishing.com TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Eddie Clinton eddie.clinton@outlookpublishing.com SALES MANAGERS Donovan Smith donovan.smith@outlookpublishing.com Josh Hyland josh.hyland@outlookpublishing.com

The full economic impact is yet to be felt, but what is certain is that businesses and their supply chains will not be operating ‘as normal’ once the dust has settled. This topic is explored in our interview with Lindsey Mazza, Global Retail Supply Chain Domain Leader at Capgemini, who explains the measures organisations can take now to adapt to an everchanging picture, as well as pointing to a future which could see last mile supply chains fundamentally transformed.

Another vital component of our lives that is being transformed as we speak is education, with home learning becoming a necessity as many schools across the region remain suspended. We explore the role EdTech has to play.

This issue’s cover story comes from Qatar and Yausif Albaker, Founder of Albaker Architects.

Ryan Gray ryan.gray@outlookpublishing.com PROJECT MANAGER David Knott david.knott@outlookpublishing.com

ADMINISTRATION Finance Director: Suzanne Welsh suzanne.welsh@outlookpublishing.com Administrative Assistant: Sophia Curran sophia.curran@outlookpublishing.com Office Manager: Daniel George daniel.george@outlookpublishing.com CONTACT EME Outlook East Wing, Ground Floor, 69-75 Thorpe Road, Norwich, Norfolk, NR1 1UA, United Kingdom.

Sales: +44 (0) 1603 959 652 Editorial: +44 (0) 1603 959 657 SUBSCRIPTIONS Tel: +44 (0) 1603 959 657 Email: tom.wadlow@outlookpublishing.com www.emeoutlookmag.com Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/emeoutlook

“To be different in architecture is becoming increasingly difficult – similar but different in the details and specific to the problems they are tackling,” he tell us. “For us we strive to represent Qatar’s local developing expertise and ability in the design and engineering field, which is on par with those of international leaders in the design and engineering community.

“I wanted to create a Qatari-based, design-focussed building consultancy, and at the beginning I was interested in topics mainly related to Qatari problems. Now, however, I feel that this office is able to design a project anywhere in the world and discuss and resolve any topic or issue.”

Albaker is one of many experts from the construction sphere that we speak with in this issue, with leading lights in Romania and Dubai also showcased, as well as companies operating in aviation, healthcare, technology and manufacturing, industries which are all facing their own unique challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Enjoy the issue!

Follow us on Twitter: @eme_outlook

Tom Wadlow Editorial Director, Outlook Publishing EME Outlook issue 36 | 3

CONTENTS

10

18 REGULARS

8

6 NEWS

TOPICAL FOCUS

Around Europe and the Middle East in seven stories

24 Education

8 EXPERT EYE

How EdTech is changing learning

An industry in crisis – why we need more women in engineering

122 THE FINAL WORD

BUSINESS INSIGHT

10 Coronavirus

COVID-19 and the Supply Chain: What we have Learned An interview with Lindsey Mazza, Global Retail Supply Chain Domain Leader at Capgemini

14 Food & Drink Brewing Good

Exploring BrewDog’s sustainable ethos

18 Risk Management Answering the Call

The responsive, adaptive approach to building QHSE resilience

14 24

4 | EME Outlook issue 36

Learning goes Virtual

What or who has been a source of inspiration for you during your career?

EME OUTLOOK MAGAZINE

104

F E AT U R E S

28 SHOWCASING LEADING COMPANIES Tell us your story and we’ll tell the world

CONSTRUCTION

30 Albaker Architects

The Architectural Innovator Catalysing Qatar’s urban excellence

42 NEPI Rockcastle

TECHNOLOGY

84 OVHcloud

The Inclusive Data Revolution Opening up the power of data, for everyone

94 Relined Fiber Network

Seeing the Light with Dark Fibre Maximising the potential of existing fibre network infrastructure

Innovation. Experience.

Excellence.

AEROSPACE

The premier owner and operator of shopping centres in Central and Eastern Europe

Responding to a Crisis

52 Priedemann Facade Experts Challenging the Norms

Embracing complexity in façade designs

58 CUMULUS

At the Forefront of the Romanian Design Industry

100 Blue Air

Countering COVID-19, preserving the future

HEALTHCARE

104 Abdali Hospital​

Reinvigorating Medical Tourism in Jordan Raising the bar in regional healthcare

Raising building standards in the Romanian market

MANUFACTURING

64 ADNBA

The King of Bearings

Adapting to Deliver Romania’s responsive, responsible architect

72 UNStudio

Breaking Ground in the Middle East

116

110 URB Group

Looking to the future, investing in innovation

116 Domel

A Driving Force for Good Slovenia’s sustainable, responsible motor manufacturer

Elevating architecture to new heights

78 dwp|design worldwide partnership The Digital Design Era

Leveraging technology to deliver sustainable, innovative and beautiful designs

52

58

84

64 EME Outlook issue 36 | 5

NEWS Around Europe & the Middle East in seven stories…

FOOD & DRINK

UAE’s NFPC reassures customers of consistent food supply

COV I D -1 9

ITFC SETS UP $850 MILLION COVID-19 FUND T H E INTERNATION A L Islamic Trade Finance Cooperation (ITFC) is helping mitigate socioeconomic risks in member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) with an $850 million COVID-19 emergency fund.

It has put in place a ‘Rapid Response Initiative’ (RRI) – with $300 million immediately available.

It is also responding to member countries’ requests to provide crisis-related technical assistance programmes, including capacity

enhancing in laboratories. It is in continuous dialogue with member countries to assess where need is greatest.

An additional fund, the ‘Recovery Response Programme’ (RRP), consists of another $550 million, which will be allocated over the next two years. ITFC has launched an additional fund. Named the ‘Recovery Response Programme’ (RRP), it consists of another $550 million, which will be allocated to those that need it over the next two years.

TH E UA E - B AS E D food and drink organisation, National Food Products Company (NFPC), recently released a statement which reassured customers that it was endeavouring to ensure consistent food production and supply to markets.

NFPC supplies more than half of UAE’s population with drinking water, dairy, bakery products and more.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of NFPC, Iqbal Hamzah, said: “We are very aware of the public’s concerns about the existing situation and the potential impact on the availability of food and beverage products.

“We are committed to working closely and diligently with our partners, retailers, and suppliers to ensure smooth and timely deliveries and continued availability of all of our products.”

COV I D -1 9

AstraZeneca launches trial for COVID-19 immune response drug BR I T I SH P HA R MAC E U TI C A L company AstraZeneca recently confirmed plans to launch a global trial of one of its drugs in treating extreme immune response triggered by COVID-19 in severely ill patients.

The company is prioritising the testing for Calquence, a drug used to treat blood cancers, after encouraging 6 | EME Outlook issue 36

early results indicated it could reduce inflammation caused by the immune response, thereby reducing respiratory harm.

“With this trial we are responding to the novel insights of the scientific community and hope to demonstrate that adding Calquence to best supportive care reduces the need to place patients on ventilators and improves their chances of survival,” said Jose Baselga, Executive Vice-President of Oncology Research and Development, in a company statement.

TELECOMS

R E TA I L

ABU DHABI ROYAL INVESTS $1 BILLION-PLUS IN RETAIL GIANT LULU

Greek mobile firm COSMOTE selects Ericsson as 5G RAN vendor COS MOTE, GREECE’S largest mobile communications provider, has selected Ericsson as its sole 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) vendor in a major network modernisation deal.

Ericsson will deploy 5G RAN products and solutions in the COSMOTE network, facilitating a seamless and cost-effective transition to 5G, while contributing to energy savings. COSMOTE is aiming for 2021 to commercially launch its 5G services.

“5G will create opportunities for COSMOTE in industry and digital AUTOMOTIVE

Ford hires former head of Israel’s military intelligence F O R D MOTOR Co. has hired Colonel Gil Gur Aurie, former head of the Israeli military intelligence corps, as chief of its global data insight and analytics.

He will oversee big data analytics as the automaker works towards connecting all of its cars to the internet.

partnerships that will allow Greece to compete in technology innovation,” said Arun Bansal, President of Europe and Latin America, Ericsson.

“We’re leading the way in 5G in Europe and the world and we will work closely with COSMOTE to ensure that they, and their customers, benefit from this network modernisation.”

Ford equipped all the vehicles it made last year with cellular connectivity. The American automaker has further announced that this year it will fit-out new models with high speed 4G LTE modems.

These connections will allow the automaker to gather a vast cache of data on how its vehicles are operating, as well as acquire valuable customer data on their driving habits, information which will help it to enhance its offerings further.

A N I N V E STME N T firm led

by Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan recently acquired a stake valued at just over a billion dollars in LuLu Group International, one of the Middle East’s largest supermarket chains.

This equates to close to a 20 percent stake in the company, and it is as of yet unclear whether Sheikh Tahnoon has purchased the stake in a professional or personal capacity.

“An official statement will be issued if at all there are any updates,” said V. Nandakumar, Chief Communications Officer for LuLu, the company headquartered in Abu Dhabi having been established in 2000.

BIOTECH

BILLIONAIRE PETER THIEL INVESTS IN GERMAN BIOTECH STARTUP ATAI LIFE SCIENCES I N V E STO R P E TE R Thiel was one of several participants in a $24 million convertible-note sale that closed in March, according to a statement recently released by ATAI Life Sciences.

Future Ventures, Galaxy Investment Partners’ Michael Novogratz and ATAI co-founder Christian Angermayer also participated.

ATAI life sciences is looking into ways of using magic mushrooms and other psychadelics to treat mental health disorders such as addiction, depression and anxiety.

It plans to start a trial of ibogaine, a naturally-occurring psychoactive compound, to treat opioid addiction.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 7

EXPERT EYE

An industry in crisis – why we need more women in engineering

I

n 2016, Engineering UK announced a severe crisis in recruitment. More people are leaving the engineering sector than entering. Even with the best case scenario in mind (that is, given the lowest estimate of the numbers leaving), engineering’s future looks bleak: there are 69,000 people abandoning the sector every year, compared to around 46,000 apprentices and undergrads seeking to replace them.

It is thought that a combination of uncertainty around Brexit, along with rising wages in Eastern Europe, is playing a significant part in the crisis.

After all, Britain has leaned heavily on its EU labour force in the recent past.

Now that the world is changing, it is going to have to look elsewhere to fill the shortfall.

It just so happens that the UK is abundant with a powerful natural resource — its population of women, who outnumber men by a slender margin.

We like to think of the UK as a hugely successful and progressive country, but remarkably it lags behind a lot of countries when it comes to the STEM fields. For example, the UK has the lowest number of women in the engineering sector out of any European country — with a figure of 11 percent.

It even lags behind many North African countries, such as Tunisia and Algeria, and much of the Far East, including Malaysia and India.

No-one is entirely sure how such a predicament has come about. Critics have argued that it is due to the UK’s arm’s length “live and let live” approach to business. Meanwhile, others have claimed that greater gender parity overseas is actually a symptom of fewer liberties for women 8 | EME Outlook issue 36

Why only 11 percent of the engineering sector in the UK are women, and how this number might be increased in future Written by: Ben Fielding

women from participating. Peers says there is a “motherhood penalty” for women who have recently given birth, as they are unable to commit to being available 24-seven, something that makes it difficult to compete with male colleagues. She refers to the atmosphere as an “Old Boys Club” — a lack of female representation which makes it seem like there is no sense of belonging for women.

Throwing a spanner in the works

ABOUT THE EXPERT Ben Fielding is a thermal insulation engineer and copywriter for Weldwide, an architectural steel and structural engineering company based in London.

— at least in the non-European cases.

They reckon that, with more personal freedom, women naturally avoid STEM professions.

Sarah Peers of the International Network of Women Engineers and Scientists places the blame on western attitudes to women, including negative stereotyping and the encouragement of a pro-masculine, pro-male culture that discourages

If these are all obstacles, then what can we do as a society to get round them? Peers believe more needs to be done to educate well-meaning and intentioned PR and HR departments in many of Britain’s engineering sectors.

Peers also propose that we should realign our culture so that childcare doesn’t always automatically fall to women. Men should be encouraged to look after children, thereby helping to reduce the motherhood “penalty”.

How we teach engineering to the different sexes is also something that should come under scrutiny. There is the old notion that women prefer people over things, and vice versa for men. Whether this is true or not is irrelevant, because engineering is about both. The key in this regard, then, would be to reach out to women in a way that resonates with them.

One success story is how the Ashesi University in Ghana managed to foster a computer science programme with almost exactly 50/50 representation of both men and women. The university’s President claims this remarkable turnaround occurred after they shifted the focus of the course from problem -solving to about how engineering can improve the lives of others.

More efforts also need to be targeted towards children at a much younger age. As it currently stands, engineering recruitment usually begins around the A-level age, but most organisations now agree that this encouragement should start much earlier, perhaps even at eight years old.

One group, Early Years Engineer, even tries to spark an interest in primary school pupils as young as three. This new early years approach should also be spearheaded with visible, charismatic female engineer role models.

And — perhaps most importantly of all — the number of hours that science is taught in schools should be drastically increased. As of 2016, it was only around two hours a week. This figure needs to rise substantially, for girls and boys.

If not just for engineering, then what about the UK economy?

“STUDIES HAVE REVEALED THAT THE PRESENCE OF A WOMAN IN THE BOARDROOM CAN BOOST OVERALL PERFORMANCE BY 54 PERCENT. THIS ALONE SUGGESTS THAT THERE REALLY IS SOME BENEFIT TO GENDER-DIVERSE THINKING” There is still a long way to go before the UK achieves true gender parity, from issues such as the pay gap (which is a different matter altogether), to increasing female visibility and more.

But there are some people who are hesitant to implement the changes

proposed here. Resistance to change is natural, but clearly something needs to be done to address the massive shortfall in engineers.

Even if the promise of filling the shortfall isn’t enough to win over the doubters, then perhaps the economic perspective is. Studies have revealed that the presence of a woman in the boardroom can boost overall performance by 54 percent. This alone suggests that there really is some benefit to gender-diverse thinking.

In 2018 the World Bank published its estimations that global gender parity across all the major sectors could augment the world economy by £120 trillion, and increase the global economy by 14 percent.

But whatever the opinions are that divide us, we must all agree that something must be done to address the current crisis in British engineering.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 9

CORONAVIRUS

COVID-19 AND THE SUPPLY CHAIN: WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED Moving past this pandemic will not simply be about recuperation, but about innovation. There is a need for global coordination to help organisations redefine their supply chain capabilities, so that they can have the flexibility to initiate a rapid response when needed, and create intelligent supply ecosystems. This will enable them to mitigate future risks, protect the functioning of global supply chains and minimise disruption.”

“More than simply recovering, the current pandemic has been a near mandate for organisations to digitise their supply chains.”

If one thing is certain in these extraordinary times, it is that the COVID-19 crisis will fundamentally change the way organisations of all shapes and sizes approach their day to day business.

Be it embracing remote working, encouraging more flexible working 10 | EME Outlook issue 36

Lindsey Mazza, Global Retail Supply Chain Domain Leader at Capgemini, assesses the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the lessons to be taken from the crisis Writer: Tom Wadlow

patterns, or simply re-evaluating the value different roles bring to a company and wider society, the past few weeks and months have been a time of reflection for many entrepreneurs and business leaders.

The opening statement is made by Lindsey Mazza, Global Retail Supply Chain Domain Leader at Capgemini, and better placed than most to discuss the impacts and ramifications of the coronavirus pandemic for a critical cog in the commercial machine – supply chains.

“COVID-19 has highlighted the weak links in supply chains across the globe,” she says. “It’s indiscriminate – companies from the Fortune 1000 to small enterprises are experiencing supply chain disruption caused by the fallout.

“Retailers are realising that they lack the agility needed to cope with sharp rises and falls in demand brought about by these unprecedented circumstances, and there is a real call to action for companies to invest in digitising their supply chains.”

Capgemini’s latest statistics reveal the scale at which this needs to happen.

SUPPLY CHAIN Last year the company found that just 15 percent of firms have digitised supply chains, with 60 percent stating that they intend to do so.

And doing so is a wise move – according to Capgemini figures, companies that invest in digitising their supply chain and procurement on average generate an 18 percent return on their investment within 12 months.

As services resume, supply chain digitalisation should be top of the agenda for business decision-makers.

But what about the shorter term?

How can companies act now get their supply chains back on track?

For Mazza, the key is to establish what Capgemini calls human control towers in the absence of digital supply ecosystems. Such people can help in a range of areas, from balancing demand-supply to prioritising orders, and are given the mandate to take short-term decisions quickly, allowing organisations to react to this fast-moving situation.

Firms which have invested in improving demand forecasting, transparency and efficiency will also experience benefits during this transition from COVID crisis to the new normal, not least because such tools help to mitigate the impact of unforeseen disruption.

“For example, supply chains that use a hands-free picking process in warehouses – enabled by automation and robotics – can move goods more safely and quickly than organisations that rely on manual, human-based sorting,” Mazza explains.

“Another example is companies that use AI and machine learning enablement for forecasting. They will be able to quickly shift what product goes where and the timing of when products are shipped to them, and thus have an immediate insight into where their inventory is at any given moment, enabling them to better weather the current storm through demand sensing.”

“SUPPLY CHAINS THAT USE A HANDS-FREE PICKING PROCESS IN WAREHOUSES – ENABLED

BY AUTOMATION AND ROBOTICS – CAN MOVE GOODS MORE SAFELY AND QUICKLY THAN ORGANISATIONS THAT RELY ON MANUAL, HUMAN-BASED SORTING”

THE LAST MILE How has COVID-19 impacted last mile delivery services, and were organisations prepared?

LINDSEY MAZZA: “It’s no surprise that demand for home deliveries has surged as a result of the current crisis – they’re a critical way of reducing human-to-human contact and improving safety.

“However, many retailers are struggling to cope with the increase in demand. Before COVID-19 appeared, our research showed that 97 percent of retailers felt their delivery models were not sustainable; the pandemic has exacerbated this strain. Delivery models are now under more pressure than ever, and a lack of transparency in the supply chain, as well as an overreliance on traditional delivery methods, is causing many retailers to fall short on the current level of demand.

“There is a huge learning curve here for retailers, particularly in the grocery segment, to understand and implement digitalisation to both the upstream supply chain and the last mile of the delivery process.

Our research tells us that optimising fulfilment locations – for example, increasing the use of dark stores for delivery – and warehouse automation are essential to better and faster last-mile delivery services, while at the same time mitigating associated profitability risk.”

EME Outlook issue 36 | 11

CORONAVIRUS

“FOR THE MOMENT, DRONES ARE A NOVEL AND SAFE WAY TO MEET CUSTOMER NEEDS IN REMOTE AREAS, WHERE IT IS DIFFICULT FOR TRADITIONAL VEHICLES TO GET TO WITH REDUCED MANPOWER”

Mazza also believes that the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the need for companies, especially delivery-based retailers, to think outside of the box.

While automated, smart warehousing operations are a must for long-term, reliable and efficient supply chain operations, innovation is also required at the last mile, and drone technology represents one 12 | EME Outlook issue 36

potential answer despite their current imperfections.

“Drones have long been on the radar as a possible delivery device – one with which Walmart and Amazon have experimented,” Mazza continues.

“However, they’ve never really taken off due to restrictions and concerns relating to flight paths and airspace regulations. We’ve now seen the first drone used for delivery in Ireland,

where airspace is unrestricted.

“For the moment, drones are a novel and safe way to meet customer needs in remote areas, where it is difficult for traditional vehicles to get to with reduced manpower. Drones also help to reduce the impact of shift changes caused, for instance, by the sickness of a large number of workers. While it is unlikely that they will become the go-to means for delivery, if these

SUPPLY CHAIN initiatives are successful we may soon see a rise in drone deliveries in unrestricted airspace.”

In years to come drones could conceivably become part of the new normal which Mazza earlier alluded to.

Once the coronavirus crisis has passed, consumer patterns may not return to exactly the same balance as they were before – the shift towards online shopping and home deliveries may accelerate further as people become more reliant on it during the lockdowns.

For Mazza, it is critical that lessons are learned in order to adapt to whatever environment is left postpandemic.

She concludes: “The current disruption from COVID-19 has the potential to have long-lasting implications on supply chain function and workforces.

“There is a need to organise a proactive and holistic response, looking into end-to-end exposure, associated risk, and operations management capabilities for all critical functions. For the moment, the focus is rightly on crisis response and recovery, but we can learn from this experience and that will build resilience for future disruptions.”

EME Outlook issue 36 | 13

BREWDOG

B

BREWING GOOD

ritish people love their beer.

In 2018, a staggering 8.5 billion pints were sold in the country.

According to one article in The Conversation, Britain has more breweries per person than anywhere else in the world besides New Zealand; a figure which stood at one per 2,274 people at the end of 2018. Many new entries into the market are craft breweries – small, independently-owned micro-breweries that place emphasis on high quality ingredients and processes.

However, in 2019 growth began to plateau. Experts worried that many small outfits were beginning to flounder in an increasingly competitive market, especially since larger multinationals were beginning to muscle in on the craze. But one craft beer company has detached itself from the pack, and is enjoying unprecedented growth in the craft beer age.

In 2019, Brand Finance named BrewDog, an Aberdeenshire-based craft brewing company, the UK’s fast14 | EME Outlook issue 36

Not only is BrewDog the UK’s fastest-growing brand food and beverage brand, it also stands out for its charitable activities and environmental ethos Writer: Dani Redd

est-growing company in its 2019 Brand Finance UK 150 Report.

“With its brand value up 89 percent since last year, BrewDog is valued at £1.2 billion in this year’s Brand Finance UK150 2019 and shows no signs of slowing down,” the report states confidently.

“Known for its flavoursome ales and creative packaging, the brand now owns 80 global locations and is expanding rapidly, both here in the UK and abroad, as it seeks new sites in Exeter, and notably announced plans recently for its craft beer hotel concept,” it adds.

Considering that the brand started its life in an Aberdeenshire garage, the brainchild of James Watt and Mark Dickie, it’s come a long way since then.

A RECIPE FOR SUCCESS But what explains the company’s success? For a start, there’s its passion for its product.

“Everything is about the beer.

Everything. We want to make people

FOOD & DRINK as passionate about great beer as we are. Change perceptions, challenge conventions, but do it on our terms,” Watt said in an interview with The Guardian newspaper.

Indeed, BrewDog has scooped multiple prizes at the World Beer Awards, including several in 2015, for brews such as its flagship brew Punk IPA (which won the ‘United Kingdom’s Best IPA’) and Cocoa Psycho (which was recognised as the ‘World’s Best Flavoured Stout/Porter’).

Then, there’s the company’s unconventional and innovative marketing campaigns, which appeal to its millennial clientele. Some of Brewdog’s most unusual publicity stunts include chartering a helicopter to drop stuffed cats on London, projecting naked photos of Watt and Dickie on the Houses of Parliament, and brewing a limited 11-bottle edition of The End of History – a 55 percent proof beer served in bottles which are stuffed inside taxidermied animals.

Needless to say, it wasn’t long before the world sat up and started taking notice.

Unicorn Fund, an initiative where it shares 10 percent of its profits equally amongst its staff, whatever level of seniority they are. This enables all employees to feel greater ownership of the company, and to be even more invested in its growth.

BREWING GOOD But one of the most notable things about BrewDog isn’t its marketing stunts, independent mindedness or even it award-winning brews – it’s the company’s social and environmental conscience attached to its work.

BrewDog makes it a mission to help both small local charities and larger non-profits, including Guide Dogs Scotland (for whom it is aiming to fundraise £50,000). It also supports BrewGooder – a craft beer organisation donating 100 percent of its profits to providing clean water in developing countries – by brewing, packing and

exporting its beer onsite at no profit.

In 2017, the company introduced Unicorn Fund 2.0. Here, not only does it divide 10 percent of its profits among staff – it also donates 10 percent of its profits to carefully selected charitable organisations.

The company is also taking steps to reduce its environmental footprint and become more sustainable.

In February 2020, it announced ‘BrewDog Tomorrow’ – six major new sustainability initiatives.

“We want to make sure that we’re working to inspire a new kind of business, with sustainability at its core. Real change takes time. But just because change doesn’t happen overnight, doesn’t mean it can’t – if not now when? BrewDog Tomorrow is our commitment to continuously raising the bar and setting a new standard for beer and business,” explains cofounder Watt.

INDEPENDENT MINDED Despite rapid growth, BrewDog maintains its independent ownership, and has not joined forces with a larger, multi-national conglomerate.

What’s more, it is part-owned by more than 130,000 people. It runs a popular scheme, ‘Equity for Punks’, that has enabled members of the public to purchase shares in its company, thereby becoming investors. Shares come with a number of benefits, including free merchandise, drink vouchers and discounts, alongside a ROI. The most recent funding round of Equity for Punks enabled the company to raise over £8.7 million from over 47,000 people.

And it’s not just stakeholders – BrewDog’s staff are also heavily involved in the business, both on a decision-making and financial level. In 2016, BrewDog started the

BrewDog has expanded its network of bars both at home and abroad, recently launching the world’s first dedicated alcohol-free bar in London (pictured next page). It serves up to 15 alcohol free beers on draught EME Outlook issue 36 | 15

BREWDOG One of these is initiatives is the unique Cans for Equity – an incentivised recycling programme.

Customers are invited to bring 50 empty BrewDog cans to its nearest BrewDog bar. In exchange they will receive a voucher entitling them to a share in the brewery.

Meanwhile, the cans will be recycled through a partnership with First Mile Recycling and returned to the industry.

Not only does this conserve energy and reduce CO2, it also means the cans don’t go into landfill, where they could take as long as 500 years to break down.

GENEROSITY IN HARD TIMES However, BrewDog’s meteoric rise has been halted by COVID-19. In a letter to shareholders last month, Watt explained that the business had seen a 70 percent drop in revenue practically overnight when the UK’s lockdown measures were imposed. According to The Drinks Business, both Watt and Dickie will be forgoing their salaries this year, in order to protect as many jobs as they can. The company has quickly rolled out a home delivery programme of different beers, which can be purchased on its website.

But even in such difficult times, BrewDog has not forgone its generous spirit. It is using its distillery in Aberdeen to produce hand sanitiser, in response to the national shortage, which it is delivering to the NHS and other key workers for free.

According to a blog post on the BrewDog site, getting up to speed on NHS regulations and UK HSE guidelines has been a challenging experience. So, too, has been the shortage of suitable packaging.

“So far we have filled 50ml glass bottles, 100ml glass bottles, 100ml plastic bottles, 200ml plastic bottles and larger containers too,” Watt’s blog post reads.

However, despite these challenges, BrewDog worked with NHS Grampian to produce hand sanitiser that met the 16 | EME Outlook issue 36

BREWDOG TOMORROW’S SIX INITIATIVES 1) CANS FOR EQUITY – anyone who trades in 50 empty BrewDog cans will be able to become a BrewDog Equity Punk, owning a share in the company.

2) INDIE TRASH CANS – aluminium is 100 percent recyclable, and BrewDog will be ambitiously recycling used beer cans for its own products.

3) ONCE BEER VODKA – beer that fails to meet industry-leading standards will be distilled into vodka, reducing waste.

4) DIY DOG – to help reduce transport miles, BrewDog will encourage people to make their own beer at home with DIY kits.

5) BREWDOG FREEHOUSE – BrewDog will ensure its beer brewing knowledge and recipes are publicly available, ensuring the company is transparent and its expertise disseminated.

6) TOMORROW FUND – a fund of one million pounds a year to support research and initiatives that will enable the brewing community to make a positive impact, alongside charities nominated by staff and stakeholders.

FOOD & DRINK

UK medical standard of 80 percent proof. On April 8, BrewDog delivered the first 5,000 units of its medically-approved hand sanitiser to NHS Grampian in Aberdeen.

“In the unprecedented times we face today, we all need to step up and do what we can to help,” said Steven Glass, NHS Grampian’s Head of Procurement.

“It’s heartening that firms like BrewDog are choosing to play their part, and helping protect our NHS workers on the frontline across Grampian.”

BrewDog has now donated over

50,000 units of hand sanitiser to NHS Grampian and charities including The Archie Foundation (supporting parents being accommodated at Aberdeen Children’s Hospital) and Aberlour, which looks after vulnerable families in Scotland.

In times of hardship, BrewDog’s generosity must be praised. There seems little doubt that this innovative, resilient company will bounce back once lockdown lifts. We, for one, will be heading down to our local BrewDog for a pint.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 17

GLOBAL RESPONDERS GROUP

ANSWERING THE CALL Global Responders Group has emerged as a leading provider of integrated risk management solutions, its responsive, adaptive network of expertise able to satisfy any client’s Crisis Management and QHSE needs Writer: Tom Wadlow

O

n April 20, 2010, the world was rocked by a catastrophic oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Deepwater Horizon accident, recognised as the largest marine oil spill in history, spread over 150,000 square kilometres of water and left a devastating trail of environmental and economic damage in its wake.

Although an extreme example, the incident highlights the value of robust, uncompromising standards in quality, health, safety and environment (QHSE) management. The spill cost BP billions overnight, with the damage still being counted to this day.

John Coates was an Emergency Manager with BP in Azerbaijan at the time, and saw the monumental impact 18 | EME Outlook issue 36

John Coates, Chief Officer, Global Responders Group the disaster had on the company’s fiscal and reputational standing.

Today, Coates heads up his own firm dealing exclusively in risk management, serving as Chief Officer of Global Responders Group (GRG), having founded the organisation in 2014.

“Why did I set this up?” he asks. “It was down to my experience with crisis management and QHSE contractors while I was working in oil and gas – I knew it could be done better. I knew my experience was perfectly suited to starting a consultancy that was based solely on experienced operators. This is what makes GRG different – our specialists are all required to have in-depth, hands-on experience, this is the only way to offer a client sound advice and service - that experience base which we founded the company on.

“Taking short-cuts, failing to adhere to regulations (if they exist) and being blasé about safety and security standards, not only places people at risk, it can kill them. QHSE standards are written for a reason – they set the

RISK MANAGEMENT

AN INTRODUCTION TO GRG Global Responders Group is a leading provider of integrated risk management solutions, its specialists armed with decades of hands-on experience in delivering preventative and responsive QHSE. From planning and preventing risk to emergency response and postincident support, GRG is able to operate as an end-to-end solutions provider. Its services include: • Emergency response services, planning and readiness: This covers 24-seven support to assist in emergency mitigation, developing a holistic approach to emergency response planning across multiple departments and stakeholders, and reviewing/actioning on emergency response assets and resources.

• Emergency management: Provisioned through manpower, management or complete response bases, this can cover areas such as fire engineering, crisis management and auditing/assessments/reviews • Design and specifications: Assisting facilities in the design of new systems or equipment and writing proper specifications based on thorough reviews. This can include fire and water systems, and incident command systems, a vital component of an effective approach to emergency.

• Health and safety: Provision of health and safety consulting, manpower or services to a business or facility.

• HSE technical services: GRG’s Technical Safety Division is a consultancybased service, primarily dealing with preventative measures.

baseline standard that industry and/ or governments expect operations to adhere to. In addition to that baseline standard, we are helping proactive companies to incorporate human factors from a safety point into their safety management systems.

“What Deepwater Horizon showed is that you cannot afford to take safety for granted. Accidents hit reputations and brands, and reputations and brands hit the bottom line. Our job is to make our clients benefit from and appreciate this relationship.”

• Fire systems and brigade management: Estimates state that 80 percent or more of installed fire systems will fail to operate correctly on demand due to failures in design. GRG knows what to look for and where to look, and can also assist with fire brigade personnel and equipment.

• Contract services: If required, GRG can provide outsourcing for emergency response teams, which are vetted for experience, education, physical conditioning and work aptitude.

MISSION: “To enable you, our clients, to manage the risks within your business. Global Responders Group will help your organisation to understand the risks, effectively plan mitigations for those risks and enhance the ability of your response personnel and allied professionals to deal more effectively with incidents and emergencies.”

VISION: “To be known, by our clients, for providing exemplary services in their time of need.”

RESILIENT, RESPONSIVE And this is where GRG comes in.

Now firmly established in the crisis management and QHSE field, Coates admits he has had to ride on what he describes as a rocky road to this

For a comprehensive overview of GRG’s capabilities and services, visit www.globalrespondersgroup.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 19

GLOBAL RESPONDERS GROUP

“I RECENTLY JOINED GRG BECAUSE OF THE DIVERSITY OF THE WORK IT UNDERTAKES, THE EXPERTISE THAT IS WITHIN THE COMPANY AND THE AREAS FOR WHICH IT OPERATES, GLOBALLY” point, the oil price crash of late 2015 providing an acute challenge which forced GRG to diversify into new markets and activities.

Though painful, the company has emerged stronger as a result.

GRG now stands as an expert risk management partner for organisations engaged in a wide variety of commercial endeavours worldwide, from oil and gas operators and transport and logistics companies to industrial firms and office-based enterprises.

Headquartered in Texas and with bases in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific, GRG’s solutions are risk-based and specific to each client’s individual needs, a onestop shop for all crisis management and QHSE consultancy.

20 | EME Outlook issue 36

New to the GRG Team, Brad Coulter has been brought in to expand the one-stop shop further still. Now serving as Security and Southeast Asia Manager, the opportunity to join forces with Coates was too good to refuse.

“I recently joined GRG because of the diversity of the work it undertakes, the expertise that is within the company and the areas for which it operates, globally,” he says. “It is one of the few organisations in the world where the diversity of my skills aligned perfectly.

“We can do everything from crisis and incident management, emergency response, technical services, detailed security services and training in all of the aforementioned. No two workdays are the same; the variety of skills our experts bring to each client is

unsurpassed in the industry.”

Indeed, GRG’s services are categorised into five key areas: emergency response; crisis and incident management; manpower and resources; technical HSE support; and corporate services, with Coulter’s security division being the latest addition to the portfolio and the sixth service line. A key component across all six service lines is training clients’ staff on how to implement the plans and risk mitigations, closing the loop on the end to end service.

“The new service ranges from a bespoke kidnap and ransom support for a client’s employee in a remote part of the region, to providing a turnkey security department, fully equipped and manned, in another part of the region,” Coulter explains.

“In the form of a single contractor, GRG’s core focus is on providing end to end holistic and fit for purpose solutions,” adds Coates. “This solutionbased approach shows our clients how to manage and reduce their risk.

RISK MANAGEMENT

Global Responders Group is a one-stop shop for all QHSE needs of organisations operating in a range of industries

EME Outlook issue 36 | 21

GLOBAL RESPONDERS GROUP

SECURITY SERVICES – A NEW VENTURE GRG has launched a new line of services in the field of security, an operation being spearheaded by Coulter. Here he explains the remit and purpose of this new division, its importance highlighted by the coronavirus pandemic.

“In many industries and locations, the focus moved away from the traditional aspects of physical security and safety, to cybersecurity and safety. Cyber experts were highly sought after and paid extremely well for their area of expertise and knowledge they brought to organisations, companies and global entities.

“But this often leads to a period of neglect for the more traditional safety and security tasks. COVID-19 was the undoing of many organisations in this regard – business continuity plans, resilience planning, evacuation plans, risk management assessments and security plans and procedures were often found to be out of date, or indeed did not exist.

“Yes, you need cyber experts, but planning and protecting your staff and physical assets must always be the number one priority, and that’s where GRG comes in. That is our ‘bread and butter’. It’s not something that cybersecurity people have knowledge of, nor the experience to handle, which has been so profoundly illustrated during the COVID-19 crisis.”

“Whether for a project or an established operation, our clients can benefit substantially from access to the entire width and breadth of our staff and experience. Access to a large and versatile set of resources adds not only value to the services provided, but also fosters a continuing relationship that develops into a longterm partnership between parties.”

Beyond this, GRG is on-hand 24 hours a day to provide emergency response assistance as accidents and incidents unfold, providing peace of mind that help will always be on hand no matter when a problem arises.

Central to this capability? Its strategically placed offices – these are staffed by a formidable roster of deeply knowledgeable personnel and contractors who have real-life experience of working in hazardous operating environments.

“Within GRG resides an unparalleled 22 | EME Outlook issue 36

depth of skill-sets that include significant experience in the management of highly specific hazard categories, which mainstream crisis management, emergency response and fire-fighting systems do not specifically address,” Coates adds.

“And critically, there is no cookie cutter approach, or one size fits all template that we adopt. We understand the nuances and requirements of different markets and countries and are able to adapt and even rewrite the rulebook in some cases.”

The result is that GRG’s approach to crisis and emergency response planning for a facility or business is holistic, the company able to incorporate all elements of an organisation into a QHSE strategy no matter where they are.

For example, GRG has been highly successful in Papua New Guinea building longstanding partnerships with PNG operators, while in Oman the firm

is about to open a new office to be closer to the client base in the Sultanate and better service them – as opportunities and demand for services arise, GRG will respond with a bespoke, appropriate offering.

A VERSATILE FUTURE The company is also reacting to the societal needs of the communities that surround it.

Coates cites a number of ongoing corporate social responsibility initiatives, including the provision of fire training for crews in impoverished countries, which are almost exclusively volunteer-based, as well as supporting schools in Thailand where he is based.

This sort of activity is important for GRG, the company recognising a responsibility to give back to the community and society as it grows and develops.

RISK MANAGEMENT

Building partnerships, supporting client resilience GRG’s philosophy, indeed its whole basis of work and work ethic, is predicated on serving the customer’s needs, not only today but through a relationship whereby the customer can depend on GRG always being there for them… answering the call.

And this is very much the ambition of Coates moving forwards – to grow in a way that allows the firm to remain agile and responsive to everchanging environments, its versatility central to its viability as a business and ability to serve clients.

The coronavirus pandemic has only served to highlight the importance of being adaptive, the outbreak reaching almost all corners of the earth and disrupting every facet of economic and social life.

Business continuity planning will need to be updated following the COVID-19 outbreak with lessons learnt and a greater focus on business resilience, all the while prioritising staff welfare as well as customer well-being, possibly in remote delivery environs. GRG resilience includes being a largely virtual company with team members located remotely throughout the world can be adapted to any customer’s needs.

“If you had inadequate business continuity plans, resilience planning, risk management assessments and security plans and procedures, then COVID-19 made your organisation suffer,” says Coulter.

“Even organisations that had pandemic plans, often the plans typically are designed to protect an

Supporting schools, like this one in Thailand, is a core part of GRG’s CSR activity organisation only for seven or a maximum of 30 days – proper holistic risk management and planning, which GRG provides, must have the resilience and flexibility to adapt to the crisis no matter how long it lasts.

“Coronavirus is like a war. It cannot be won or planned for, to deal with a crisis like this in a few days and move on. Being ready, planning your response and recovery are all essential in this time of crisis and these are things that GRG excels at, providing unrivalled broad-spectrum support to our clients.

“GRG offers that full spectrum end-to-end service. Our experts are able to plan, train and prepare your organisation for any eventuality, whether it is a fire, a terrorist attack, natural disaster or any other event – our knowhow is there to better prepare our clients and reduce the impact.”

As Coulter explains, while the challenges facing organisations may be sizeable, GRG is ready to help.

The lessons learned along the rocky road that Coates described at the beginning stand it in good stead to adapt and deal with the COVID-19 fallout. GRG is more ready than ever to respond to the crisis management and QHSE needs of organisations the world over.

Here are three examples of such partnerships.

Puma Energy PNG Limited: “Puma Energy Downstream used GRG’s services delivered by Gordon Diack to undertake practical, hands-on training at each of our bulk and packed fuel terminals around the country. Gordon worked with us to tailor the training to our needs and developed a series of scenarios to test and train the team. With a focus on practical training and “learning by doing”, the work teams picked up new skills and the ratings from staff following the training showed the training was well received.”

- Paul Benjamin, PNG Operations Manager

Swire Emergency Response: “Having worked with GRG since its formation in 2014, I have always found them professional, conscientious and adaptable, and a pleasure to work with.”

- Simon Valentine, Manager, SERS

Gulf Human Resources Development Est.: “GHRDC is fortunate having GRG as a business partner. Alone GHRDC can do much, together with GRG we have achieved so much more! GRG knows their field of expertise and as a partner have enriched my experience. A sincere thank you very much to John and GRG.” - Hussein Al Baidany, CEO

EME Outlook issue 36 | 23

TOPICAL FOCUS

LEARNING GOES VIRTUAL

In the wake of COVID-19, we explore the EdTech sector and its potential to both extend and disrupt traditional learning environments Writer: Dani Redd

O

ver the past couple of months, the news has been full of stories about coronavirus. As the death toll mounts, an increasing number of countries are closing their borders and businesses. At the time of writing, a third of the world’s population have been placed into “lockdown”. In the UK, for example, people are only allowed to leave the house to buy essentials, care for others, undertake one form of exercise a day and go to work (if their employment is essential).

With schools, colleges and universities shut, millions are having to learn from home. This creates a necessity for innovative forms of virtual learning, which is where EdTech comes in.

Even before coronavirus, EdTech 24 | EME Outlook issue 36

– or education technology – was one of the UK’s fastest growing sectors. According to the Education Foundation, it accounts for four percent of all digital companies, and is growing at a rate of 22 percent year on year. Around a quarter of all EdTech companies in Europe are based in the UK (around 1,200) and the industry is projected to be worth $159 billion by the end of 2020.

So, what exactly does the sector consist of, and what explains its popularity? In short, EdTech is the idea of integrating technology with educational insights in order to improve both the learning and the teaching experience, deepen engagement and provide interactive learning experiences beyond the classroom. It aims towards greater

inclusivity by improving access to educational opportunities for people who might not normally benefit, such as those with disabilities or full-time caring responsibilities.

While the sector’s early days saw the rise of computer-based learning (CBL), virtual whiteboards and online courses, it has become increasingly sophisticated.

EDTECH TRENDS FOR 2020 Artificial intelligence – ranging from chatbots to voice recognition software – has long been a feature in the EdTech industry. However, in 2020, AI will continue to help personalise education, enabling students to learn at their own speed by adapting content to their abilities.

AI software can also benefit

EDUCATION teachers by streamlining administrative procedures. A focus on improving teachers’ wellbeing is a key focus for EdTech in 2020 – a 2019 Oftsted report showed that while teachers enjoyed their job, a poor work-life balance was affecting their mental health. Throughout 2020, many EdTech companies will be looking at ways to help mitigate this stress. Examples include ZipGrade Cloud – an optical scanner app that can grade multiple choice exams automatically – and Edmodo, a virtual classroom where teachers can upload resources and message students quickly with reminders, thereby reducing time spent on administration.

Meanwhile, extended reality – which encompasses virtual, augmented and mixed reality – will help bring experiences and ideas to life for students. For example, Google Expeditions allows the teacher to guide the students on a virtual tour, where students can explore the world using cardboard headsets with phones inside. One benefit of this is that students can immerse themselves in foreign cultures and landmarks without the prohibitive expense of school trip fees.

Another area of interest is crosscurricular learning – combining ideas from different disciplines to allow students to think more creatively and approach a subject from a new perspective. Robotics, for example, educates students in engineering, technology, design, coding and AI. British-based company Cool Components sells a variety of easyto-build robotics kits, including motor controllers, smart cars and articulated arms. It is hoped that this immersive, hands-on approach will encourage more women to enter into STEM careers, thereby addressing an imbalance in the field.

EdTech doesn’t just focus on learning itself – it can also help streamline the learning environment.

Over the next few years, schools and

universities will continue to be altered by smart tools such as automated heating and cooling, facial recognition technology to take attendance and security systems. Needless to say, many of these smart decisions will be based on the analysis of large amounts of collected data.

Learning will increasingly be driven by the insights an institution gathers though the programmes it uses. This will help teachers to see what students need extra help, and individual departments can assess where extra support is needed.

CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED IN MOVING TOWARDS VIRTUAL LEARNING But the EdTech sector is not without its challenges. According to a report by electronics service distributor RS, teachers still show a lack of understanding of EdTech – 13.6 percent of those surveyed had never heard of EdTech, while 35.6 percent had heard of it but don’t know what it is. Many teachers (60 percent in academy schools) believed that there was a lack of training in these new technologies, which meant they were struggling to adapt to them.

For EdTech to be successful, then, it will be necessary to address this

gap. DfE (the UK’s Department for Education) recently partnered with Nesta to unveil a $5.72 million fund supporting more effective use of technology in the classroom, to stimulate industry innovation and ensure the technology meets the needs of its users.

Introducing new technology to both classrooms and behind the scenes necessitates a network with capabilities to handle traffic demands.

The rise of 5G technology will help ensure these capabilities are met, but not all schools will have funding to install it – indeed, any extra technology might prove prohibitively expensive.

Furthermore, when it comes to home learning, it’s necessary to remember that not all homes are equipped with Wi-Fi or computers. However, some schools are attempting to combat this by providing students with tablets for home use.

A further challenge for EdTech startups is that the field is evolving so quickly it can be hard to keep up and maintain a competitive edge. In order to stay ahead, producing an effective learning product is vital. But judging the efficacy of a product can be difficult, requiring critical insight from both educational psychologists, teachers and users themselves.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 25

TOPICAL FOCUS HOW EFFECTIVE IS EDTECH IN FACILITATING LEARNING? There has been a great deal of academic research devoted to the effectiveness of EdTech and various e-learning product as well.

Effectiveness, according to scholars Signe Schack Noesgaard and Rikke Ørngreen, can be measured in several ways: empirically (through observing teachers and students and listening to feedback); quantitively (through assessing test scores); or through follow-up questionnaires, where students could evaluate their learning according to different results, such as improved confidence.

Many EdTech products have been designed according to various theories surrounding pedagogy and cognition. For example, UK-based Developing Experts – a platform providing interactive science lessons – has partnered with the well-known educator Dr. E. D. Hirsch Jr., whose advice helped it design a platform.

It elected to use multiple choice questions, based upon the idea that breadth of understanding across a wide range of material can be tested quickly and efficiently.

‘[IN] A SURVEY OF OVER 1,200 TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS... ...94 PERCENT STATED THE MOST IMPORTANT QUALITY DETERMINING A POSITIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT IS THE CONNECTION BETWEEN STUDENT AND TEACHER’

26 | EME Outlook issue 36

Meanwhile, a popular learning app, Memrise, came about as a collaboration between one of the top competitors in the World Memory Championships – Ed Cooke, who can memorise 2,265 binary digits in half an hour – and a Princeton neuroscientist. One technique the app uses is “elaborative learning”, which gives extra emphasis to facts so they stick in your mind, such as a humorous association. Memrise currently has over 42 million users.

However, some educators believe that with EdTech it can be easy to lose track of what really matters – a strong emotional connection between student and teacher. In Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s fourth annual Educator Confidence Report – a survey of over 1,200 teachers and administrators – created in collaboration with YouGov, 94 percent of educators stated the most important quality determining a positive learning environment is the connection between student and teacher.

EDUCATION Such a connection is unlikely to be replicated by an e-learning app or a chatbot. However, what EdTech can do is make the lives of educators easier by streamlining their marking process, entering grades and gathering information about students’ individual abilities. This leaves educators free to focus on the part of teaching that matters most to them – connecting with their students.

IS COVID-19 A WAKEUP CALL? As previously mentioned, COVID-19 has bought EdTech to the forefront of millions of minds, as parents adapt to home schooling their children and employers turn to virtual platforms to facilitate training and meetings.

Shai Reshef, President and Founder of University of the People, believes that COVID-19 is a wakeup call for people to see that education and training can be moved beyond the physical institution.

“Viable alternatives should be held up as examples of how the future of education could develop. This, in turn, could go a long way to help address the inequalities that currently exist in the higher education system as

‘...COVID-19 HAS BOUGHT EDTECH TO THE FOREFRONT OF MILLIONS OF MINDS, AS PARENTS ADAPT TO HOME SCHOOLING THEIR CHILDREN AND EMPLOYERS TURN TO VIRTUAL PLATFORMS TO FACILITATE TRAINING AND MEETINGS’ access becomes more easily scaleable and is democratised as a result,” he explains. It is undeniable that EdTech does contain the potential to make huge changes to the education system

by improving access and increasing the opportunities for immersive, experiential learning.

We, for one, are excited to see how the field develops.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 27

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NEPI ROCKCASTLE The premier owner and operator of shopping centres in Central and Eastern Europe

The Architectural INNOVATOR

Albaker Architects constantly thinks outside the box with the aim of delivering truly inspiring twists to urban landmarks, both in Qatar and internationally

The Architectural

INNOVATOR Albaker Architects is not your usual architecture design practice. It is a company constantly thinking outside the box in the aim of delivering truly inspiring twists to urban landmarks, both in Qatar and internationally Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Ryan Gray 2 | EME Outlook issue 36

I fell in love with architecture in my early teens when my father took me to visit a local architect. I remember he had a big library and I picked up a book by Frank Lloyd Wright, the famous American architect. Everything I knew about the subject before that was related to conventional buildings and blueprints.

I had no idea buildings could be so beautiful.”

For Yausif Albaker, the turn of a few pages quickly led to a lightbulb moment in his professional career.

From here on out he was switched on and wide eyed to the world of architectural design, eventually enrolling in the prestigious Southern California Institute of Architecture.

“Studying here was very intense but it prepares you for many things in the field of architecture,” Albaker muses,

“and after I left, I worked on construction sites and as a client representative then as a project manager, always in the field of architecture but not necessarily in design.”

When Qatar’s 2022 World Cup bid came around, however, that changed as Albaker got the chance to work on the bidding committee as an in-house architect. Needless to say, it was an opportunity that he duly grasped.

CATALYSING QATAR’S URBAN EXCELLENCE

EME Outlook issue 36 | 3

An interview with Capgemini looking at the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic on global supply chains

www.emeoutlookmag.com/get-involved

ALBAKER ARCHITECTS

The Architectural

INNOVATOR Albaker Architects is not your usual architecture design practice. It is a company constantly thinking outside the box in the aim of delivering truly inspiring twists to urban landmarks, both in Qatar and internationally Writer: Jonathan Dyble | Project Manager: Ryan Gray 30 | EME Outlook issue 36

CONSTRUCTION

I fell in love with architecture in my early teens when my father took me to visit a local architect. I remember he had a big library and I picked up a book by Frank Lloyd Wright, the famous American architect. Everything I knew about the subject before that was related to conventional buildings and blueprints.

I had no idea buildings could be so beautiful.”

For Yausif Albaker, the turn of a few pages quickly led to a lightbulb moment in his professional career.

From here on out he was switched on and wide eyed to the world of architectural design, eventually enrolling in the prestigious Southern California Institute of Architecture.

“Studying here was very intense but it prepares you for many things in the field of architecture,” Albaker muses,

“and after I left, I worked on construction sites and as a client representative then as a project manager, always in the field of architecture but not necessarily in design.”

When Qatar’s 2022 World Cup bid came around, however, that changed as Albaker got the chance to work on the bidding committee as an in-house architect. Needless to say, it was an opportunity that he duly grasped.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 31

ALBAKER ARCHITECTS During this period he worked with leading global architectural design firms including Zaha Hadid, Rem Koolhaas and Norman Foster, eventually branching out on his own to work with OMA and UNStudio on six projects in Qatar following the success of the bid.

“We’re still trying to get these built!”

Albaker laughs. “And here I am, managing my own design firm that’s now nine years in the making.”

WHAT DOES ARCHITECTURE MEAN TO YOU? YAUSIF ALBAKER: “I think architecture is unique in the sense that it’s mainly about bringing things to life and it’s also about how you go about completing that process, either through the imagination, the narrative or the drawings.

“We place a big emphasis on what we are bringing to life – often buildings – but there is also value in the things we produce that represents what is real, for example drawings. In that way, what we have here at Albaker Architects is a creative process from the inception of the project all the way to realising it at site.”

32 | EME Outlook issue 36

The name of the firm? Albaker Architects – a Qatari entrepreneurial success story turned international practice providing a full range of design solutions ranging from masterplanning to architecture to interior design services.

Indeed, getting to this point hasn’t been without its challenges.

Varying estimates suggest that somewhere between 80 and 90 percent of all new businesses fail. So how has Albaker Architects managed to defy those highly unfavourable odds and stand out from the crowd in what is, by the Founder and Principal’s own admission, becoming an increasingly saturated market?

“To be different in architecture is becoming increasingly difficult – similar but different in the details and specific to the problems they are tackling,” he explains. “For us we strive to represent Qatar’s local developing expertise and ability in the design and engineering field, which is on par with those of international leaders in the design and engineering community.

“I wanted to create a Qatari-based, design-focussed building consultancy, and at the beginning I was interested in topics mainly related to Qatari problems. Now, however, I feel that this office is able to design a project anywhere in the world and discuss and resolve any topic or issue.”

PROJECTS EMPOWERED The company’s mission is to not only meet the needs of society, but to exceed those needs by inventing techniques and exploring methods which create new possibilities. It is an enterprise obsessed with the relationships between cities, buildings and their users, something which has led it to naturally innovate all the time.

To understand the business’s esteemed capabilities, we need look no further than its sizeable and growing project portfolio, the Qatar Foundation Visitors Centre standing as the first of numerous examples.

CCL CCL uses specialised construction techniques for the design and execution of new projects and the repair and refurbishment of existing structures. With companies located on five continents and projects executed throughout the world, CCL has the experience and expertise to tailor solutions to meet clients’ exact requirements.

When Albaker Architects needed to convert two office towers located in Doha’s West Bay, into five-star hotels, they contacted CCL to design and execute a strengthening solution to facilitate the change of use.

Working closely with the architect, consultant and main contractor, CCL carried out site surveys, before recommending appropriate strengthening solutions to accommodate the changes to area and façade loadings. After undertaking the necessary design checks on all vertical and horizontal elements, CCL performed physical trials to ensure the integrity of the proposed solutions.

CCL’s scope of work included the creation of openings in posttensioned slabs to incorporate new MEP layouts, new staircase and lift openings and the closing of redundant voids. New load key plans for all slabs in both towers and new façade reactions based on the new cladding were implemented in CCL’s strengthening solutions.

A variety of strengthening techniques were used including active tensioned cables and concrete section enlargement to achieve the necessary deflection, along with jacketing and carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) plates to provide additional reinforcement. The installation of steel plates was used to counter punching shear issues.

CCL Qatar is proud to have worked with Albaker Architects and Redco Construction-Al Mana on this stunning new development.

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STRUCTURAL STRENGTHENING

CCL’s specialised strengthening expertise helped transform Al Baker office towers into luxury 5-star hotels.

• • • • •

CFRP Plates and Wraps Active Tensioned Cables Jacketing Section Enlargement Steel Plate Reinforcement

T: +974 (4) 458 39 98 E: cclqatar@cclint.com E: jhabib@cclint.com

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ALBAKER ARCHITECTS

Qatar Foundation With Qatar Foundation setting the international standard for non-profit organisations, the centre had to narrate a story, something which Albaker Architects has achieved through the creation of a time loop superimposing the past, present and future.

“We were working with a unique site because, unlike other projects, this was located in a park,” the Founder and Principal explains. “To make things more interesting, the site boundary was a circle, and within that circle there were some structures with historical significance that we were asked to preserve and integrate somehow within the design.

“We integrated everything the Foundation stands for by preserving this history while looking to the future to foster social and cultural development for Qatar. We looked at drawings and painting techniques to find ways to create an object whereby the background and the foreground are one 34 | EME Outlook issue 36

and the same. In other words, the new becomes the old, the old becomes the new, it is all intertwined.”

This dedication to thinking outside the box and going above and beyond to meet the bespoke needs of each client is also reflected in the company’s work on a major retail centre in Al Rayyan, Doha.

Here, it focussed on local trends in retail – both the challenges and the opportunities that the industry was facing – and resultantly delivered a scheme representing a unique and sustainable approach to the dependency of motor vehicles in Qatar.

“The form of the building follows a strict narrative that we choreographed for different retail and community programmes,” Albaker comments, then pointing to a third project in the form of DohAlive.

The first development that the company was ever commissioned, it was a major 80,000-square-metre

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ALBAKER ARCHITECTS

ASPA International ASPA International has been designing superior quality spas and wellness centres for the luxury and travel markets for over 30 years.

Based in the Algarve, Portugal, the company monitors global wellness trends closely, as well as innovations in design, interiors, and materials. It allows ASPA to advise its clients on current and emerging trends.

“I THINK ANY SUCCESSFUL COMPANY IS ONLY AS GOOD AS THE PEOPLE WORKING IN IT, AND ALBAKER ARCHITECTS IS NO DIFFERENT” – YAUSIF ALBAKER, FOUNDER AND PRINCIPAL undertaking and one that is still considered to be the epitome of everything that Albaker Architects stands for in design methodology, construction standards and quality control.

A mixed-use development that delivers both a lifestyle hotel and boutique retail experience, it has helped to address the functional and organisational concerns of the usage of public space in the city of Doha.

The hotel comprises six basements, a ground floor, two mezzanines and eight additional levels across 63,000 square metres, while the retail building is formed of three basement floors, a ground floor and four upper floors that total 17,000 square metres.

36 | EME Outlook issue 36

A RESPONSIBLE CORPORATE CITIZEN Albaker Architects partakes in numerous additional activities related to corporate social responsibility, ensuring it gives back to the communities in which it operates.

The company is heavily involved with local universities, organising field trips to its offices and running internship programmes for graduates. Albaker himself is the Head of the Advisory Board at Virginia Commonwealth University Qatar campus, deemed to be one of the top research universities globally, where he helps to provide assistance for the architectural design courses when needed.

“We have also organised free seminars about design,” the Founder and Principal adds. “The last one, for example, was about specific design programs such as Rhino, Revit 3D modelling and other software for the general public, in an effort to create awareness about the creative design process.”

“When we discuss projects with architects and hotel operators, we think in terms of the quality of spa experience, client expectancy and how we can create a new profit centre for hotel managers, offering on trend wellness experiences,” says Martin Goldmann, Founder and CEO of ASPA International. “As a company, we have always believed in helping people to live healthier, longer lives. It’s what really drives us.”

ASPA International’s client list is extensive and includes some of the best spas and resorts in the world, from Belmond Reid’s Palace in Funchal, Madeira, to the award winning Gulf Hotel Spa in Bahrain, to the Mövenpick Resort and Marine Spa in Sousse, Tunisia. The company is also a consultant for the Marriott hotel chain and Accor Hotels.

Staying ahead of trends is another ASPA trait. Here, the company is already incorporating cryotherapy treatment rooms into its projects, such as DohaAlive in Qatar. It is not only wellness trends that ASPA International incorporates into its spa concepts, ASPA also uses cutting-edge technology to improve operational efficiency, sustainability and minimise maintenance costs.

In short, ASPA International can take care of entire spa projects, from initial consultancy to design, construction, engineering, and installation.

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ALBAKER ARCHITECTS

Muntazah From the 237-room, five-star hotel to speciality restaurants, a lap pool, health club and spa, business centre, conferencing facilities, shisha bar and rooftop bar, it is an urban landmark that embodies the region’s modernity.

Albaker explains: “I started the office when we began working on DohAlive but by the time it got built, we had recruited structural, mechanical, electrical engineers, interior designers and BIM modellers and engineers. We’re proud of it because we designed and engineered everything in this project, from the biggest details to the ceramic tiles and door handles.”

THE POTENTIAL FOR PROSPERITY What’s truly exciting for Albaker Architects is the fact that these three projects form just a fraction of its overall portfolio.

The 150,000-square-metre New Gulf Cinema in Doha and Business Hotel in 38 | EME Outlook issue 36

Ras Bu Abboud are further examples of its diverse capabilities. Further, the practice has begun to expand its horizons having delivered the major Marsa Alam greenfield resorts in Egypt – projects that included a major focus on sustainable systems for power generation, sewage treatment and food cultivation systems.

However, the outbreak of COVID-19 may cause a degree of concern, and even delay any ongoing growth plans to a certain extent. Yet, aside from the coronavirus, the climate in which the company will be able to further both its local and international agendas is relatively buoyant, Albaker pointing to the role of the firm’s suppliers and partners in supporting those ambitions.

“Sometimes we’re faced with very specific issues, for example relating to acoustics or audio-visual, which our consultancy partners are particularly helpful in overcoming,” he says.

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CONSTRUCTION

EME Outlook issue 36 | 39

ALBAKER ARCHITECTS

Equestrian Garden Mall

“Likewise, in terms of construction material supplies, it is very important for us to have relationships with the manufacturers.

“A live example is when we wanted to have bespoke porcelain tiles for the DohAlive lobby, which wouldn’t have been possible if we didn’t have such relationships with different suppliers.”

Indeed, Albaker Architects remains firmly open for business.

2020 is not only expected to see the conclusion of many of Albaker’s ongoing developments that are currently 80 percent complete, but three new projects are also set to get underway. And for this reason, the Founder and Principal is able to end our conversation and look to the future with a degree of confidence.

“As an architect and someone who’s 40 | EME Outlook issue 36

DohALIVE

CONSTRUCTION

Towers project - The conversion of two preexisting high-rise office buildings into five star hotel towers, with extended podium levels to create leisure facilities, such as a luxury spa.

working with developers, I always have to be optimistic, so I do feel positive about what’s happening regionally in the construction industry,” he affirms.

“I can specifically talk about Qatar, where there are a number of policies, procedures and decisions that the government has taken to ensure prosperity for the country as a whole. I think globally this will be recognised and people will soon begin to see how it is prosperous and safe to invest in Qatar.”

ALBAKER ARCHITECTS Tel: +974 4442 3963 info@albakerarchitects.com www.albakerarchitects.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 41

NEPI ROCKCASTLE

T

he past 30 years have often been described as the golden age of growth for Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), the region having flourished with the emergence of traditional market economies following the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Between 1996 and 2017, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia between them recorded an average 114 percent growth in GDP per capita. By contrast, Europe’s ‘big five’ economies – France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK – managed just 27 percent growth in this same metric during that period.

It is no surprise, therefore, that CEE has become one of the most attractive regions for investment globally, its industries and economies continuing to thrive.

Enter NEPI Rockcastle. The largest and dominant retail real estate group in Central and Eastern Europe, it is a company that has come to epitomise the aforementioned prosperity, having grown 15-fold in the past eight years.

42 | EME Outlook issue 36

CONSTRUCTION

Innovation.

Experience.

Excellence.

NEPI Rockcastle has established itself as the leading owner and operator of retail assets in the CEE region, helping to uphold communities and economies in nine countries Writer: Jonathan Dyble | Project Manager: Ryan Gray

EME Outlook issue 36 | 43

NEPI Rockcastle is the leading real estate investment and development group present in nine markets across Central and Eastern Europe, the fastest growing economy in Europe. With a large portfolio of assets valued at â‚Ź6.3 billion, located in dominant areas across the region, NEPI Rockcastle is in the unique position to take advantage of the consistent growth opportunities of the markets.

The Group has an exceptional property portfolio with dominant position in Poland, Romania and Slovakia and strong presence in Croatia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czech Republic, Serbia and Lithuania, progressing with a retail expansion programme in other Central and Eastern Europe markets.

NEPI Rockcastle embraces a strong corporate culture focused on planning, quality of execution, sustainability, ethics and early risk assessment.

The Group is investment-grade rated by Standard & Poor’s (BBB, negative outlook) and Fitch (BBB, stable outlook) and its shares are traded on Johannesburg Stock Exchange and Euronext Amsterdam.

NEPI Rockcastle Tel +40 21 232 1398 Email office@nepirockcastle.com www.nepirockcastle.com

NEPI ROCKCASTLE “The evolution of the business in recent years has been very exciting,” explains Mirela Covasa, the firm’s Chief Financial Officer and an individual that is able to recall its impressive rise having originally joined the enterprise back in 2012.

“Real estate accounts for approximately 50 percent of global assets and the industry is constantly evolving in terms of policy, technology, investment complexity and risk. It is a highly dynamic and engaging setting – especially in rapidly growing markets such as those in Eastern Europe where we operate – which challenges everyone working in this field.

“NEPI Rockastle has achieved a lot in the past decade. Our coverage has expanded from being solely Romanian to CEE-wide, and we are now present in nine countries.”

MAPPING A MONUMENTAL ASCENT The organisation initially started out in 2007 when New Europe Property Investments (NEPI) invested South African capital in Romanian real estate, doing so with the mandate of creating a portfolio of individually selected assets that offered long-term sustainable rental growth.

“This comprised investments in offices, and then in shopping centres as we realised the potential that retail real estate had in converting Romania’s impressive GDP growth into shareholder wealth,” Covasa adds.

“With more experience came a better understanding of the market, and we started making significant improvements to our assets, first through management initiatives such as enhancing the tenant mix and offering more entertainment options like cinemas and skating rings, and then through more complex projects like extensions and the redevelopment of properties.”

This emphasis on diversification and upgrades led NEPI to its first landmark greenfield project – Bucharest’s Mega Mall.

46 | EME Outlook issue 36

KEY FIGURES*

325 2.1

MILLION VISITS

MILLION SQUARE METRES OF INCOME PRODUCING PROPERTIES

280

THOUSAND SQUARE METRES OF ONGOING DEVELOPMENTS AND EXTENSIONS

440 99.9 EMPLOYEES

PERCENT COLLECTION RATE

99.7 PERCENT OCCUPANCY RATE

*FIGURES RELATE TO 2019

Promenada Mall, Bucharest, Romania

With a gross leasable area of 75,800 square metres and built area of more than 200,000 square metres, it quickly became one of the capital’s and indeed country’s largest constructions aside from infrastructure developments, acknowledged as a commercial and social hub for the highly populated surrounding neighbourhoods.

“We also started expanding into other CEE countries, initially Serbia and Slovakia, and then the Czech Republic, Croatia and Bulgaria,” Covasa continues. “By 2015, we had obtained

our investment-grade rating, which allowed a significant shift in our funding policy from secured, assetbased debt to unsecured, group-level funding.”

Such distinct headway in turn opened a number of new doors for the company, particularly in the way of investment opportunities.

It began to further expand its portfolio with flagship malls in capital cities, acquiring Arena Centar, the largest shopping mall in Zagreb, Croatia, and the Serdika Center

CONSTRUCTION

IDENTIFYING DYNAMIC ECONOMIES Currently present in Romania, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Serbia and Lithuania, NEPI Rockcastle capitalises on dynamic economies that offer prosperous GDP and therefore business growth rates. Mirela Covasa explains how this benefit is derived.

“CEE economies have a high potential for strong future growth, as private consumption starts from a much lower base,” she states. “CEE markets are underdeveloped in comparison to Western Europe or the US, and physical retail’s full potential is yet to be reached.

“Shopping centres per capita is lower in CEE than in Western Europe and represents just one tenth of mall supply compared to the US. CEE shopping centres are also more modern. Furthermore, online penetration in our top five markets is low at 5.5 percent, compared to Western Europe’s 10 percent and North America’s 13.8 percent.

MIRELA COVASA Chief Financial Officer Mirela Covasa’s experience in accounting and finance spans over 18 years. During her time at university she worked for an accounting firm, interacting with companies in several industries including the construction market. In 2004 she joined PwC’s audit department, working with many businesses in diverse geographies during this period. Today she stands as the Chief Financial Officer of NEPI – a role she has held since 2015.

“CEE retail real estate also has additional growth opportunities arising from the conversion of traditional retail to modern retail.

Approximately 40 percent of the grocery trade in Romania and Poland is still traditional, compared to three percent in Germany. At the same time, retail stock is more modern in the CEE, with an average of 60 percent of total stock having been developed between 2007 and 2017 compared to the overall 40 percent European average.

“Most of our markets are undersupplied compared to the European average. Countries such as Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania are heavily undersupplied, with a density almost three times lower than continental averages. This gives us a solid basis for further expansion and operational growth.”

EME Outlook issue 36 | 47

NEPI ROCKCASTLE and Paradise Center – the top two shopping locations in Sofia, Bulgaria.

“The most significant milestone in our history to date, however, was the successful merger between NEPI and Rockcastle in 2017,” Covasa claims.

Here, the South African entity joined forces with a Poland-focussed group, Rockcastle, that had a similar investment strategy and shareholding base. The assets, expertise and knowledge of the two were combined, creating the market leader in CEE’s retail real estate.

The CFO continues: “Our Polish portfolio now includes the Bonarka City Center, Krakow, Galeria Warminska, Olsztyn and Karolinka Shopping Centre, Opole, and the merger also resulted in a credit rating upgrade to BBB, which bolstered our access to capital markets and decreased the cost of funding.”

EXPANSION UNDERPINNED

BY EXPERTISE Indeed, the pace of progress has not slowed in the near three years since the successful completion of this merger either.

In the past three years it has proceeded to delve across borders once again into Hungary and Lithuania as well as reinforce its position in Romania and Poland, investing into existing centres and new assets such as Promenada Sibiu – a flagship development and major tourist attraction in one of Romania’s most affluent cities.

“In 2018 we also finalised our first greenfield development in Serbia, Promenada Novi Sad, after only 16 months of work,” Covasa states. “This is the largest mall in Serbia, located in the country’s second largest city which will be a 2021 European capital of culture. The mall serves a catchment area of more than 600,000 people.”

Indeed, the sheer size and breadth of NEPI Rockcastle’s portfolio is a key differentiator of the company, providing the platform for sound, consistent long-term growth prospects and a 48 | EME Outlook issue 36

Promenada Sibiu, Sibiu, Romania leading investment rating. Many of its assets are dominant in their individual catchment areas with limited or no competition, and are located in geographically diverse areas that are generally densely populated.

In fact, 97 percent of its assets can be found in cities with catchment areas of more than 150,000 people, with 45 percent based in capital cities and Krakow, which is of a similar size.

Its investment strategy has been crucial in facilitating this climb. Yet it is not the only way in which the company continues to stand out from the crowd, it also bringing unrivalled expertise and industry knowledge to the table.

With more than 12 years’ experience in retail real estate, NEPI Rockcastle has mastered the intricate and

Mega Mall, Bucharest, Romania

CONSTRUCTION KEY FIGURES* PROPERTY PORTFOLIO BY COUNTRY AND MARKET VALUE ROMANIA

38

PERCENT POLAND

23

PERCENT HUNGARY

10

PERCENT SLOVAKIA

9

PERCENT BULGARIA

8

PERCENT CROATIA specialist nuances of successful asset management, leasing and development, underpinned by a bestin-industry workforce and exceptional track record.

“We have a holistically integrated platform, a team with expertise covering all areas of real estate finance, development and investment, and understand the CEE retail markets inside out, as is illustrated by our first-class indicators,” Covasa states confidently.

“Our dynamic leasing strategy, managed by our in-house team, delivers constant and seamless crossborder dialogue with anchor tenants, and these strong relationships bring notable market entries throughout our portfolio.”

To say that this vast experience

4

PERCENT SERBIA

3

PERCENT CZECH REPUBLIC

3

PERCENT LITHUANIA

2

PERCENT *FIGURES RELATE TO 2019

makes the company conservative or static, however, would be false.

Its consistent reinvestment strategy into refurbishments and expansions reflect its proactive mindset, the firm also always on the lookout to bring successful brands on board and implement progressive retail real estate concepts.

Further, the company consistently adapts its business model in line with changing consumer preferences, currently focussed on improving its portfolio in the way of food outlets, entertainment options and general user wellness in the aim of positioning its assets as pillars of communities.

Likewise, the emergence of ecommerce is undoubtedly a challenge to retail real estate, yet it is one that NEPI Rockcastle is embracing and overcoming proactively.

“Our response to ecommerce is omnichannel-focussed,” Covasa affirms.

“Lower ecommerce penetration, highly popular shopping centres and less high street outlets in Central and Eastern Europe create the perfect opportunity to successfully combine offline and online retail, providing customers with the best of both worlds. Monitoring tenants’ sales and effort ratios, replacing low-performing tenants with exciting new stores, and integrating online and offline by implementing online shopping pickup points and concept stores are all examples of our efforts.

“The assimilation of online delivery into the physical retail environment, through click-and-collect, delivery points and the integration of retailers’ operations with customers’ habits, also results in higher footfall and increased sales due to upselling. And we host events like light shows, TED talks, stand-up comedy, fashions shows, rooftop parties, food truck events, culinary performances, exhibitions and science fairs to back this up and increase community integration.”

EME Outlook issue 36 | 49

NEPI ROCKCASTLE CONTRIBUTING TO COMMUNITIES Ongoing asset development and operational changes are not the only ways in which NEPI Rockcastle provides benefit to the populations that it serves.

2019 IN REVIEW NEPI Rockcastle’s 2019 financial results showcase the strong continued performance that the company continues to enjoy. Some key highlights from the report can be found as follows: • Net rental income of €401 million, up from €346 million in 2018.

• Total rent increase of 4.9 percent, driven by successful lease revisions and vacancy reduction.

• 325 million visits, 5.9 percent increase compared to 2018.

While Covasa is happy to admit that it is highly rewarding for the company to see how these efforts contribute to growing local economies and truly impact people’s lives in a positive way, corporate governance is an alternative way in which the company delivers this in a socially responsible manner.

Indeed, it has been a major focus for the company in recent times. The firm has vastly improved its corporate governance, recognised by Sustainalytics – a leading independent provider of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) research and ratings – which appraised its ESG risk as low.

Likewise, FTSE4GOOD Index, which measures the performance of companies demonstrating strong ESG activities, included the company in its latest listing.

• Collection rate remained at 99.9 percent.

• Portfolio enlarged by 83,700 square metres.

• Nine projects are ongoing, totalling more than 280,000 square metres across four CEE countries.

• 94 percent of properties are less than 15 years old.

The company’s CEO Alex Morar commented: “We are delighted to report that the group has achieved the targeted results in a competitive market. Twelve years since inception and three since the successful merger, our assets continue to outperform.

“Solidly growing footfall and retail sales are driven by our continued asset management efforts, focussed on delivering locally-optimal tenant mixes and customer experience. The retail portfolio has further increased with the opening of high-quality developments and remains the largest and most dominant in CEE. As we maintain a sound business profile with strong liquidity, we are delivering on our growing development pipeline and are confident of our ability to take advantage of all attractive opportunities in our markets.”

50 | EME Outlook issue 36

Promenada Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia “We are committed to being a responsible corporate citizen, focussed on long-term sustainable growth,” Covasa comments. “We consistently invest in improving our buildings’ energy efficiency. All properties have good access to public transport, and we encourage green transportation alternatives such as bicycles by providing adequate facilities.

“Communities are a key stakeholder, and we focus on three main pillars in order to contribute to healthier and

more responsible ecosystems, thus improving people’s lives. These are social and health, the environment and educating communities. We organise hundreds of activities for our customers, and we also partner with local and international NGOs by donating or designing and implementing community programmes.”

The company’s HR strategy also makes a difference, this time to the benefit of the its own employees.

“This includes targeted training

CONSTRUCTION

“ARE WE OPTIMISTIC? ABSOLUTELY. WE HAVE A STRONG BUSINESS PROFILE, STRONG LIQUIDITY AND A HIGHLY EXPERIENCED TEAM OF PROFESSIONALS WHO ARE CONSTANTLY SEEKING NEW OPPORTUNITIES” programmes which empower people to add value in their current roles and help the organisation to adapt more quickly to changing business environments,” the CFO adds.

ABSOLUTE OPTIMISM Indeed, owing to continual results in its operational endeavours, the company looks set to be able to further make inroads in the way of CSR and employee empowerment moving forward.

The company’s highly impressive 2019 financial results, published February 20, 2020, are reflective of this.

12 years on since its inception and three years since the completed merger, its assets continue to prosper and bolster the company’s already sound business profile, helping it to maintain strong liquidity, a growing pipeline and the opportunity to further capitalise on attractive opportunities in the markets in which it operates.

“We have achieved our targeted results in a competitive market,” Covasa says proudly.

“Net operating income grew 16

percent by comparison to the previous year, and this translated into a growth of 6.6 percent in dividends per share.

Tenants turnovers and footfalls increased, and the value of our assets was over €6.2 billion at the end of the year 2019.

“We also maintained our investment grade rating, issued €1 billion unsecured Eurobonds and extended debt maturities, while our loan-tovalue ratio remained prudent at 32 percent, and liquidity improved.”

With such impressive performance in mind, the future looks incredibly bright for NEPI Rockcastle.

Moving forward, the company will continue to improve its portfolio in an attempt to maximise returns for its shareholders and other stakeholders, as well as focus on honing its investment and development strategy in line with changes in the market.

Indeed, the global outbreak of COVID-19 may have some adverse effects, many of which have already come to fruition across industries of all kinds. Yet Covasa is still able to end our conversation on a confident note, iterating that the core assets of this

company are strong and stable.

She concludes: “We expect to open several new projects, including finalising a new mall in Targu Mures, Romania, and are considering investments in other real estate sectors, including mixed-use projects.

We are also developing a green framework, aimed at improving asset efficiency and attracting environmentally friendly financing.

“Are we optimistic? Absolutely. We have a strong business profile, strong liquidity and a highly experienced team of professionals who are constantly seeking new opportunities.

We are confident that our skills and expertise will contribute to consolidating our position within the CEE – the region which registered the highest growth rate in Europe.”

NEPI ROCKCASTLE Tel: +40 21 232 1398 office@nepirockcastle.com www.nepirockcastle.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 51

PRIEDEMANN FACADE EXPERTS

Challenging the

Norms

Thanks to its specialised knowledge and commitment to research and development, Priedemann Facade Experts ensures that it lives up to its name Writer: Dani Redd | Project Manager: Ryan Gray

A

twisting glass skyscraper rises from the shimmering heat haze. The minarets of a gleaming white mosque pierce the skies.

Curved concrete walls protect against the desert heat.

The Middle East is renowned for its contemporary architecture, which despite its futuristic appearance still incorporates elements of classic Islamic design – intricate geometric 52 | EME Outlook issue 36

patterns, fortress-like walls and the architectural “iqtisad” or balance of its mosques. The façades are a fundamental aspect of these designs, for not only do they communicate style, they are integral in how much light, air and heat enters the building.

“We love challenging façade designs, parametric shapes, curved or just complicated forms and our clients are great in doing such designs,” says

Micha Pawelka, Managing Director of Priedemann Facade Experts.

Priedemann is a façade consultancy firm that has been working in the Middle East for more than 14 years, led by Micha Pawelka and his partner Anees Backer.

“Our clients in the Middle East are primarily architects and multidisciplinary consultants, however, we also work for main contractors during the

PHOTO ©ERIKA BORBÉLY HANSEN

CONSTRUCTION

construction phase,” the Managing Director explains.

Despite a proliferation of design knowledge in the Middle Eastern markets, execution experience is in shorter supply.

“We partner with façade fabricators to provide them with a comprehensive execution engineering,” Micha continues. “This means we provide structural design, shop drawings and entire production and installation documents, including cast-in channel layout and machine files for their manufacturing.

Our clients prefer us to do this, particularly when we already are on board from the design phase.”

MAKING WAVES IN THE MIDDLE EAST Over the years, Priedemann has worked on a variety of landmark projects in the Middle East. It provided façade designs and consultancy for QP district in Doha in association with KEO International Consultants, façade of approximately 149,000 square metres for Etihad Towers (with ACC Arabian Construction Co as the main contractor).

The company is currently busy on multiple projects across Dubai, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. It is working on the New Palace of Justice – which is intended to replace Kuwait’s central

courthouse – for its client PACE. “The project has a very high design quality and the façade is challenging because the entire superstructure has an intricate expansion joint, which also drives the façade system,” Micha explains. “Additionally, PACE designed some quite challenging features within the façade.”

Priedemann is also in the final stage of construction of ICD Brookfield Place Tower in Dubai International Financial Centre.

“We were on board since the very beginning of the façade engineering with Foster + Partners,” the Managing Director adds. “The quality approach of the client, ICD, and all the stakeholders make this project one with the best overall standards, not only in Dubai but the entire Middle East.”

It is apparent that Priedemann has a fantastic roster of clients, but when asked to choose one standout project, Micha brings up the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority’s new HQ, named Al Shera’a.

“It is designed to be the world’s largest zero energy building,” he tells us. “This means the building will generate its entire required power onsite with no grid connection, thanks to more than 20,000 square metres of photovoltaic solar panels, which are placed on the roof and integrated into the façade.

“It is geared to achieve a platinum rating from LEED, as it also intends to have a state-of-the-art building management and control system that will shut down unnecessary usage of lighting, cooling and water supply automatically.

“Priedemann’s engagement on this project is very special, in the sense that it epitomises our company’s full dedication towards innovation and sustainability.”

Indeed, Priedemann’s stellar portfolio corroborates this, as it’s full of projects where smart technology leads to savings in cost, materials and energy.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 53

PRIEDEMANN FACADE EXPERTS EXPERTISE AND UNDERSTANDING In short, Priedemann has a lot to be proud about. But how does it manage to consistently pick up so many ground-breaking projects? In order to understand what makes the company stand out from the pack, Micha believes it’s necessary to go right back to the start.

“We are a German façade consultancy,” he states, “and it might be interesting to learn that the façade consultancy business originated in Germany in 1996, when this scope was extracted from the architectural discipline and brought into a separate discipline of its own.

“Priedemann Germany was founded in 1993 so we therefore have the façade consultancy roots deeply embedded into our DNA. The background of creating the façade consultancy business was the fact that facades started to get more and more complicated, and the construction industry realised the expertise of a specialised consultancy was required.”

In a world where businesses are becoming increasingly

multi-specialised, expanding their reach into more and more fields, Priedemann stands out for doing the opposite.

“We do only façades, no superstructure, no MEP, and that is probably one of the biggest differences to other members of the market,” Micha affirms. “Many of them are multidisciplinary consultancies, where the façade became just an add-on later into their scope.

“We consider ourselves one of the biggest façade consultancy firms globally (probably even the biggest) focussing only on façades. We have a vast amount of expertise and knowledge, collected over 26 years working in Europe, more than 14 years in the Middle East and several years in other global regions such as China, Turkey, Africa, Russia, the UK, and the US.” It’s no wonder that the company is in such high demand.

Priedemann’s practical, on-theground knowledge of both building techniques and local markets means it is ideally placed to provide consultancy services on, and deliver, façade projects across the globe.

LEADERSHIP FOCUS: Micha Pawelka What inspired you to get into this industry and why did you decide to join Priedemann Façade Experts in 2014?

MP: “My educational background is predominantly in sales and international trading. I worked in the European glass industry for more than 20 years, on glass for building projects. In 2009 I came to the UAE to establish the Middle East office for Interpane Glass, a German glass processing group, at the time belonging to AGC (Asahi Glass Company).

“I have had a relationship with Priedemann for decades and watched their activities in the Middle East from the moment I entered the UAE. Priedemann, from my point of view, is not just a company; it’s a family with a great spirit and tremendous opportunities.

“After pursuing me for two years, our CEO Lars Anders convinced me to join the Priedemann family as a partner and I am very glad he did.”

54 | EME Outlook issue 36

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EME Outlook issue 36 | 55

PRIEDEMANN FACADE EXPERTS

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

THE FACADE SHOWROOM This exhibition space presents over 50 façade models and gives an overview of brand-new materials and technologies of façade construction to visitors.

The materials are presented on 1.35 square metre elements in constructive coherence with connections, joints, and solutions for corners. Priedemann aims to have all these models available in BIM and virtual reality, as part of its digitisation drive.

THE FACADE FORUM Priedemann uses this area to conduct workshops, presentations, conferences and special events by independent institutions, all related to areas of façade design. A forum for exchange of ideas helps support the implementation of new technologies in façade construction.

56 | EME Outlook issue 36

PHOTO ©REINER FREESE

R&D collaborations at Priedemann are managed by the Facade-Lab, which consists of several core areas, including:

For instance, more than 60 percent of its project managers are from execution backgrounds, having worked with multiple fabricators of all kinds. This means they know how to execute and how to build, adding a practical edge to the company’s approach.

“We know and can navigate our way within the local and international fabricators’ markets,” Micha adds.

“We understand pricing, capabilities, strengths, and weaknesses. Looking into the competition on the market, we see significant gaps in knowledge, experience, and quality – something we will never and cannot entertain with the ingrained quality of Priedemann.”

The MD is aware, however, that high quality cannot be maintained in isolation.

“We acknowledge that the strong

cooperation and relationships we have with our multitude of vendors, suppliers and other business partners is also part of the key to our ongoing success,” he continues.

Indeed, Priedemann’s interpretation of “partners” goes even further, since it does not only cooperate with the direct supplier, but also with the majority of the façade system players and even with universities and other R&D institutions.

CONSTRUCTION And the company’s own staff is another key to its success. It places high importance on attracting, retaining and developing talent from across the globe, aware that the contribution of its workforce is integral to its collective expertise.

“We support and put great emphasis on education and continued professional development, growing leaders within our firm so that we can ensure a sustainable talent pipeline for the years ahead,” Micha says. “Through our participation in façade events, workshops, university programmes and related exhibitions in the industry, we strengthen and widen our reach to a much wider network of engineers, architects, designers and other seasoned professionals.

“While technical background is important and façade background is preferred, it is equally if not more important that a candidate fits the values, the spirit and the ethics of the family as we want everybody to be with us until retirement.”

GETTING TECHNICAL Another reason for Priedemann’s success is its embrace of technology, digitisation and parametric design; something which it has been working with for over a decade.

“Our research focus is on intelligent façade engineering, or IFE,” explains Micha. “This is a virtual, integrated procedure for optimised designing, accomplishing and management of façade constructions in accordance with the method of BIM.

R&D collaborations at Priedemann are managed by the Facade-Lab

“In order to do this, all relevant information is put into a digital database and linked up as a virtual component-orientated 3D-façade model.

The primary function of the parametric volume model is to generate data for detailed design and construction documentation, and to order lists of material integrating with controlling CNC-manufacturing automates.”

Priedemann is committed to collaborating with partners and investing in software and human capital in order to continue innovating within the industry.

Thanks to its commitment to innovation and knowledge, Micha is optimistic about Priedemann’s future, despite the recent COVID-19 outbreak. He concludes the interview

by outlining the company’s plans for 2020 and beyond.

“Since the refurbishment of façades will be an important requirement in the future, we are currently working in this field,” he says. “Also on our task list are further collaborations in the US, Australasia as well as in Russia, where we already have increased our footprint.”

PRIEDEMANN FACADE EXPERTS Tel: +971 4 609 15-10 dubai@priedemann.net www.priedemann.de

EME Outlook issue 36 | 57

CUMULUS

58 | EME Outlook issue 36

CONSTRUCTION

AT THE FOREFRONT

of the Romanian Design Industry

Y

ou wheel your suitcase down a smooth path towards a high-rise hotel, its windows gleaming in the light of the setting sun. You step through the revolving doors into a spacious lobby. On your left is a scandi-style open plan office area, and to your right are the reception desks, where smartly dressed men and women are waiting to check you in.

This is the Courtyard Marriott in Bucharest, and it was designed by

Romanian architecture and design office CUMULUS outlines ambitious plans to make waves in the construction industry with fully integrated products across several segments Writer: Dani Redd | Project Manager: Ryan Gray

CUMULUS, a dynamic Romanian architecture and design firm making waves in the market.

“CUMULUS was founded in 2017 by the fusion of three well-established architectural and design offices: SYAA, ARXTUDIO and PZP,” explains Razvan Puchici, one of the firm’s three Senior Managing Partners. “Our main objective was to create a bigger, stronger and more competitive entity, raise the bar and move things to the next level.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 59

CUMULUS

The Marriott Courtyard project is a flagship example in the CUMULUS portfolio

“This has happened as today CUMULUS is one of the biggest and most successful offices in Bucharest, with over 60 specialists ready to take on the most challenging projects in all areas.”

CUMULUS is a progressive architecture firm that aims to raise building standards and create the infrastructure for prosperity in the Romanian market.

“CUMULUS is among the very few 60 | EME Outlook issue 36

offices offering full-service design, including architecture, urbanism, engineering, MEP and project management,” says Puchici’s fellow Senior Managing Partner Adrian Soare. “It is a pioneering matrix of work and we believe it will open a new decade in the Romanian real estate market.”

In previous years, the Romanian real estate market has seen robust growth. According to global property firm Colliers International, in 2019

construction and real estate transaction contributed almost one percentage point to Romania’s four percent economic growth between Q1 and Q3.

“As an emergent market, Romania represents one of the top European investment spots at the moment.

There’s a real effervescence with many projects in all areas that gives us the feeling that everything is changing for the better, a feeling of novelty and freshness,” says Liviu Zagan, the third

CONSTRUCTION of the Senior Managing Partners joining the conversation.

“Objectively, Romania needs a lot of investment in infrastructure, mainly in civil construction,” adds Soare. “I am not referring to the ‘speculative areas’ such as residential, office, industrial, but public interest objectives where authorities are expected to invest, like museums, theatres, multi-purpose indoor arenas or other iconic buildings of major interest.”

CUMULUS is perfectly poised to produce the creatively designed yet functional buildings that the Romanian market so clearly needs. The firm has made particularly strong inroads into the hospitality sector, building hotels for international brands. In 2019 it designed all phases of the Hilton Garden Inn airport hotel and the Marriott Courtyard, including site supervision.

External view of the Paloma Office project

Senior Managing Partners, from left to right: Razvan Puchici, Adrian Soare and Liviu Zagan

“We are currently working on a five star hotel with 216 rooms in an iconic historic building of Bucharest – Marriott Autograph – which will open in 2021, and Marriott Moxy, a millennial-oriented hotel with a very playful attitude and design, set to open in August 2020,” says Puchici. “We have also started the concept design of a five-star hotel in Prahova Valley, our most famous mountain area.

Zagan adds: “We have now established an internal division specialising in hospitality projects that brings us a competitive advantage versus the other players in the market. And we hope that after the COVID-19 crisis Romania will, once again, be an attractive investment country in the hospitality area.”

However, despite its specialism in hospitality, CUMULUS is advancing into other areas, including office building and the industrial sector. What’s more, last year it won the architectural and curatorial contest to design the Romanian Pavilion for Dubai Expo 2020, proposing a ‘new nature’ concept that highlights the need to find a new harmony between humans, nature and technology.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 61

CUMULUS “Our main idea was that in such a fragile point of our existence we need to look around, to learn and reset things,” Soare explains. “The pavilion was designed as a platform for putting right questions and showing the path to finding a new sustainable balance, which is very important for our world today.”

Alongside this fantastic win, CUMULUS also took on its first military project, Mihail Kogalniceanu Base, which involved working with both the US and Romanian armies.

“The biggest challenge was to deliver a project to comply with Romanian, European and US standards, which in some cases are quite different,” Puchici says. “Also, most of the complexity came from putting together in a functional and pragmatic way an airport passenger and cargo terminal, fuel capacities, railway and road design – with all the flows, the standards and limitations.

“We managed to finish it in the

Inside the Bucharest Cinemax complex

62 | EME Outlook issue 36

contractual terms due to our dedicated design team and our experienced architects and engineers, but I can say it was tough.”

This year, CUMULUS will be using its new-found expertise to help extend the civil airport in Craiova, one of Romania’s largest cities.

When asked for one of the reasons for the company’s meteoric success, Zagan cites CUMULUS’s healthy relationship with its partners and suppliers.

“We decided as a strategy that all our major subcontractors should be part of a group of companies alongside us. All our entities are designed on our post-fusion model for complete compatibility and efficiency of processes,” he explains.

This working model enables CUMULUS to deliver high-quality products to the agreed timescale, another reason ensuring the company continues to successfully complete projects.

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Office designs are another important part of the CUMULUS portfolio All in all, the future looks bright for CUMULUS. All three Senior Managing Partners feel optimistic about 2020, and the company’s three-year plan to consolidate its position as a multidisciplinary full-service design office, one which continually strives to improve its integrated product.

“We are perhaps the most experienced office in the hospitality area, but even intend to strengthen this expertise to become the best and most

well-known,” says Puchici. “We’ll also further pay attention to the projects in the office, residential and industrial areas of the market, where we gained a lot of experience in the past.”

Having spoken to the trio, there’s every reason to believe that CUMULUS will succeed in realising its ambitious goals for the future.

CUMULUS Tel: +40 213 111 151 office@cumulus.one www.cumulus.one

EME Outlook issue 36 | 63

ADNBA

64 | EME Outlook issue 36

CONSTRUCTION Despite the ongoing disruption to business caused by the coronavirus outbreak, Romania’s ADNBA continues to deliver leading architecture and design services for its clients in Bucharest and beyond Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Ryan Gray

Adapting to

Deliver I

Pictured above from left to right: Andrei Serbescu and Adrian Untaru Pictured left: ISHO A, Timisoara

n a time of crisis, creativity and adaptability are paramount in order to emerge stronger from the other side.

The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has impacted almost all corners of the earth and continues to disrupt home and working life, the virus taking the lives of many and forcing societies to alter the way they go about day to day social and economic interaction.

In Romania, the outbreak arrived at a time when its economy and construction sector were on the up.

Building activity has been increasing steadily in recent years, providing plenty of opportunities for architecture firms such as Bucharestbased ADNBA to make their mark on the built environment.

But recent times have tested the company’s resolve, the challenge being embraced by its Founding Partners Andrei Serbescu and Adrian Untaru, who set up the practice in 2003 after graduating from architectural college. Little could they anticipate the scenario they would face 17 years later.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 65

ADNBA

LEADERSHIP FOCUS

HOW DID YOU BECOME INTERESTED IN ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN? ANDREI SERBESCU: “Like most young people, I didn’t know much about architecture when I started college. I had just seen my father drawing; he was an engineer who worked most of his life surrounded by architects, whom he admired.

My real interest was ignited by a design teacher I had the chance to meet at university, an extremely talented teacher and architect (which is quite a rare combination), and a very special person. Therefore, I became interested in architecture and design by seeing and feeling someone else’s interest and passion for the field, someone who had the gift to make this interest contagious.”

ADRIAN UNTARU: “My grandfather used to be a mason. He was one of those skilled craftsmen who could build intricate masonries and also draw them.

He was also very proud of his buildings and used to speak to me very passionately about them, while showing me his sketches. It was probably him who first infused this interest in me, and I remember more his enthusiasm while speaking, rather than the buildings themselves.”

66 | EME Outlook issue 36

“The coronavirus crisis has slowed down economies all over the world, and Romania has not been immune,” says Serbescu. “We are adapting to the situation. At this moment, all our architects and employees work from home and we think these lockdowns will have a profound impact on how creative businesses in general will work in future.

“We are learning new styles of management regarding the ability to disperse assignments efficiently across team leaders and rely on their deliverables without as much supervision or guidance as we normally would.

“Even though we are used to working remotely because of the Timisoara office we opened in 2018, which we manage from Bucharest, we still find it a challenge to manage the whole organisation from afar. Construction site supervision is particularly difficult to handle at this moment. However, our studio is holding up well and we continue with our ongoing projects and their delivery.”

Serbescu and Untaru have built up some formidable experience in the Bucharest market. ADNBA is especially well-known for its prowess in the apartment design space, and is gradually taking on more complex, larger projects after gaining a foothold with small buildings and individual houses.

A turning point arrived in 2014, which Untaru believes has laid the foundation for where the company stands today.

“The apartment block we designed for Urban Spaces on Dogarilor Street caused an explosive reaction,” he recalls. “It brought a continuous flow of awards and nominations, international publications and a consensual appreciation for our practice.

“For us, Urban Spaces Dogarilor was a challenge. We tried to control everything, including the detailed design not only for all common spaces, but also several apartments’ interiors, from furniture to light fixtures. It was a very diverse project without any repetitions and a high level of intricate details – almost everything was custom-made.

“But the result has paid off. Since then, our office has achieved critical recognition for its built projects and competition entries, which represent to our clients a guarantee of a theoretical and practical architectural partner dedicated to housing and much more.”

And partner is the key word.

Serbescu and Untaru firmly believe in the power of communication and collaborative working relationships, not only between client and architect, but also architect and suppliers.

“It’s a collective work and we all have a determining part in the design process,” Untaru explains. “We also think that there are some key factors that can lead to a good collaboration.

“First is the confidence the client puts in the architect, and sometimes also one’s courage to endorse experiments. Second is the

CONSTRUCTION

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“The apartment block we designed for Urban Spaces on Dogarilor Street caused an explosive reaction. It brought a continuous flow of awards and nominations, interna­tional publications and a consensual appreciation for our practice”

EME Outlook issue 36 | 67

ADNBA

Millo Offices - lobby/reception

developer’s acknowledgement of the architectural design’s importance for any successful project. Third is the developer’s vision of the place and what that place could bring to the people it is being made for.”

A PROGRESSIVE PROJECT PIPELINE Despite the challenges faced by the ongoing COVID-19 disruption, as Serbescu has already alluded to, ADNBA continues to develop relationships and make solid progress on projects.

Many of the company’s developments are in central Bucharest, which has seen a densification of buildings in recent years that has tested the relationship between old and new parts of the city. This creates an even greater responsibility for the likes of ADNBA to produce sustainable, 68 | EME Outlook issue 36

responsible designs that will allow new constructs and renovations to fit seamlessly into their existing environments.

Serbescu adds: “A respect for a place does not simply mean the nostalgic takeover of some stylistic elements as this does not solve anything.

We ensure our design approach can be sustainable far beyond the short term of 10 to 15 years.

“For each project that we design, we try to infuse an air of modernity and international metropolis, but also carry on a culture of living – fragmentation rather than brutal monoliths, narrow courtyards, beautiful gardens and hidden places, a wealth of filters and intermediate spaces, a civilised opening to the street. Large scale projects

The Dragos Voda Project is a series of bespoke oneand two-floor apartments

CONSTRUCTION “FOR ALL OF THESE PROJECTS, FINDING A COMMON GROUND BETWEEN NEW MATERIALS AND DIFFERENT TYPES OF TRADITIONALINSPIRED PRACTICES WAS A PARTICULAR AIM”

Avalon Estate Project – a large-scale residential project covering eight hectares

come, of course, with different sites and challenges.”

The Founding Partners go on to describe several projects either recently built, currently under construction or waiting in the pipeline.

Among ADNBA’s recently completed works is Mumuleanu 14, another collaboration with Urban Spaces.

It is a housing development covering 3,450 square metres with two courtyards acting as the focal point, another feature being the fact that

each apartment is designed more like a private house than an apartment.

Other notable completions from 2019 include the Dragos Voda residential project for Pop Properties, a series of customised one- and two-floor apartments spanning 2,534 square metres, and Calderon Housing for Forte Partners, an exclusive five-floor, five-apartment building featuring a highly detailed stone cladding façade and modern engineering systems throughout.

Meanwhile, Sfinții Voievozi 22-24 (Urban Spaces 5) is a 9,645 square metre housing project close to Calea Victoriei and currently under construction.

“For all of these projects, finding a common ground between new materials and different types of traditional-inspired practices was a particular aim,” explains Serbescu.

“We played a lot with traditional materials such as plaster. It is a material that was used heavily in the 1920s to 50s that is so simple and beautiful, especially nowadays, in a period when much of Bucharest is being rebuilt with polystyrene cladding on top of the old plaster facades. Another focus was on the individualisation of the accesses, the double orientation and the common spaces.”

EME Outlook issue 36 | 69

ADNBA In terms of projects currently in progress, Untaru highlights the Avalon Estate as a particularly prominent example.

Spread over eight hectares in Bucharest’s Pipera neighbourhood, the site is being developed by Prime Kapital and will include 800 to 900 homes of all sizes and specifications – a much greater scale of work for ADNBA which involved more than 30 months of meticulous designing.

Once complete the Avalon Estate will comprise detached houses, semi-detached houses, apartments in small buildings and private villas, as well as common facilities such as a clubhouse, gym, kindergarten and large park directly accessible to inhabitants.

“The best part of this project was that we had the opportunity to create a community,” Untaru says. “This type of integrated large-scale, complex

Mumuleanu Project – known as Urban Space 2, it is a complex of 20 modern, completely distinct houses

70 | EME Outlook issue 36

project is new in the Romanian market, also because most investors do not want to spend so much time on the design process; they don’t have the financial security to do so.”

Prime Kapital is a different proposition, however, and has already started construction of a residential community in partnership with ADNBA – a five-building development containing 466 urban apartments and common spaces near the capital city’s Jiului metro station.

In Timisoara, near the Bega River, construction has almost completed

on ISHO A, a 20-storey tower being developed by Mulberry Developments.

The building is part of a wider assembly that will redefine the entire Take Ionescu-Baader area – part of a new neighbourhood that will provide not only residences, but also offices, hotels, sports facilities, restaurants and playgrounds.

FROM BUCHAREST TO BERLIN The ability for ADNBA to take on larger, multifaceted projects is evident in what Serbescu and Untaru have just described.

CONSTRUCTION Indeed, central to this added capability has been an evolution over the past few years of how the firm is managed internally, making the most of the different specialisations within the office by improving coordination and collaboration.

“Our goal was to obtain a unique team with integrated services – architecture, interior design, landscape design, permits, construction management, rendering, marketing and branding working together efficiently,” explains Untaru.

“In 2018 we started our own MEP in-house team in the form of ADNBPI, and we implemented building information modelling (BIM) for our projects. It allows us to have immediate access to any data related to the build model, providing fully coordinated information.

“For our clients and us it’s a huge advantage because, in the longer term, this translates into time and resource savings which allow a greater optimisation of each project and also of the design process. One of the biggest advantages of working BIM is that, within a project, all designers can work in real time on the same model.”

Further still, the Founding Partners decided to hire a dedicated BIM manager to ensure the technology is leveraged in the best possible way to suit ADNBA and its clients’ needs.

This has been a useful addition to the team, one which has also ventured into the office design market and is seeking to broaden its horizons geographically.

At the beginning of 2020 the company delivered its first boutique office building for client Primavera Development on Mihail Kogalniceanu and Independence Splay, just across from the Law University Building in Bucharest.

Another landmark office project for the coming year is situated in the heart of Bucharest on Victory Avenue, a development known as Sector 0. It will comprise two office

Tandem Project – a contemporary office complex with green credentials, thanks to its low energy consumption

buildings designed specifically for creative communities, including both companies and individuals.

“Historically speaking, this area has always hosted the most important buildings in Bucharest,” Untaru says. “Our site is next to the iconic Bucharest Telephone Palace and our proposals follow the line of a rigorous, yet beautifully crafted architecture specific to the area, on which they superimpose the layer of their own logic, in order to fulfil the offices programme’s specific necessities and achieve a well integrated, still contemporary architecture.”

The addition of office designs to the ADNBA will only serve to secure its long-term future as a leading architect practice in Romania, especially in Bucharest which remains the company’s core market and major centre of activity.

However, it is not Bucharest where Serbescu chooses to end the conversation. Rather, the Founding Partner has his eyes set further afield, in Berlin.

Looking ahead to an exciting chapter of growth, he says: “Our plan is to open an ADNBA DE division in Germany. It’s been on our minds for quite some time and we are very

excited about it.

“We look at Germany as a market with a lot of future potential for us. It is a stable and solid market, open to UE design companies through quite a lot of design competitions (which are not common on the local market) and through a mentality directed to absorbing foreign talent and knowhow – at least this is how we see it now.

“Berlin has proved throughout the last 15 to 20 years to be ‘the place’ in Europe when talking about local opening towards global diversity in design. We know the competition is strong, but we also know that our team is very talented and highly skilled and that we have developed a set of diverse, powerful design and management tools which can help us compete with almost any other local or international company, especially on the residential market.”

ADNBA Tel: +40 722 220 248 office@adnba.ro www.adnba.ro

EME Outlook issue 36 | 71

UNSTUDIO

BREAKING GROUND IN THE MIDDLE EAST Global architecture firm UNStudio is bringing its innovative, out-of-the-box design approach to the Middle East, the firm will soon open a permanent office in Dubai Writer: Dani Redd | Project Manager: Ryan Gray

Air traffic control tower proposal, Dubai 72 | EME Outlook issue 36

CONSTRUCTION

O

ver the past decade, contemporary architecture has transformed the built environment of Middle Eastern cities.

Dubai, for example, not only boasts the world’s tallest building – the spindle-like Burj Khalifa – but also the only man-made archipelago modelled on all seven continents.

“We are currently noticing a change of direction in the region; a shift away from standardisation, towards new concepts and projects that require more unique and bespoke solutions, particularly in the cultural sector,” says Ben van Berkel, Founder and Principal Architect at UNStudio, when asked what excites him about the sector.

UNStudio is an innovative international architectural design network with over three decades of experience delivering projects in countries across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Americas. It has offices in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Shanghai and Hong Kong, and will soon be opening a fifth office in Dubai.

“Our aim is to attract regional clients that want to develop the special projects they see being built in all corners of the world, but are not yet doing at home,” Van Berkel explains. “The biggest challenge lies in finding clients that understand what is required to succeed from the start of a project all the way through to delivery.

This is essential if you want to ensure the level of quality and craftsmanship from the original design in the finished buildings.”

And when it comes to high-quality craftsmanship paired with design, UNStudio knows how to deliver.

Drawing upon its 30 plus years of global experience, it is able to approach each project with a wealth of knowledge to hand, knowledge which it combines with an innovative and site-specific approach.

Van Berkel believes that it is this way of working that will allow UNStudio to make inroads into the Middle Eastern architecture sector.

EME Outlook issue 36 | 73

UNSTUDIO

How important are partner and supplier relationships to the success of your business?

BEN VAN BERKEL: “The quality of the end result depends on many different factors. An important one of those is the relationships and collaborations that we have with our partners.

By understanding and sharing the goals of the project, and having the capabilities to achieve what are often complex tasks, the project as a whole will always be better. This also counts for our specialist consultant partners, as well as clients.

“While the result of our projects is widely published globally, it is the quality of the end result that is our strongest asset for the acquisition of new projects.”

74 | EME Outlook issue 36

feasible but also innovative and outof-the box. It has embarked upon numerous flagship projects within Qatar and the Middle East, including the Dubai Financial Market new headquarters and the wasl Tower, both based in Dubai and currently under construction.

“The wasl Tower is a benchmark 302-metre super-high-rise structure in a pivotal Dubai location and will have one of the world’s tallest ceramic facades,” Van Berkel explains.

“It will be a regional touchstone for adaptability and sustainability. The capacity of the building to acclimatise to local temperatures through shading and cooling techniques sets it apart from other buildings within the hot desert climate.”

The Tower epitomises the firm’s vision to produce designs that are adaptive, resilient and ‘futureproof’– that remain innovative despite the design process taking place over several years, and don’t contribute to

INNOVATIVE PROJECTS IN THE MIDDLE EAST Van Berkel himself is an innovative architect, drawing inspiration from a variety of different sources.

“I am influenced by many personal fascinations; interests that would perhaps not commonly be perceived as being directly related to architecture,” he explains. “This can range from science – the first moon landing, for instance – to philosophy, literature, photography, fashion, art or music.

“For me inspiration can come from many different sources, but it is how these external references are eventually applied to design, to the organisation and the context, which is of particular interest to me.”

It should come as no surprise, then, that UNStudio has a reputation for unique, visually arresting designs.

However, it is also aware that such innovation should be combined with “buildability”.

Since it first entered the GCC region in 2008, UNStudio has been working closely with its clients from the Middle East to find solutions that are both

PHOTO © EVABLOEM

PHOTO © ELS ZWEERINK

“There are only a handful of renowned architectural design studios currently active in the Middle East. Most of these are corporate architectural firms with clear global business plans, who provide good, but not unique, innovative or special projects,” he explains.

“UNStudio approaches each project with specific attention to their particular location or programme, and from there, develops a holistic design that is innovative but very much rooted in the local circumstances and possibilities.”

In other words, the studio allows the landmarks it designs to be shaped by the environment in which they are situated – by the climate, the materials available locally and by referencing and conceptually integrating cultural aesthetics and traditions.

CONSTRUCTION

BRIDGING SCIENCE AND HUMANITY DeSimone Consulting Engineers provides high-quality structural engineering, façade consulting, and forensic services for all types of buildings. Known for the highest quality of service, the firm provides each client with personal, dedicated, and inspiring engineering solutions.

Dedicated to the successful execution of program design concepts and the optimization of building systems, DeSimone has designed some of the world’s tallest and most recognizable structures.

DeSimone is the structural engineering designer for Al Wasl Tower, and they were able to save significant construction materials quantities for the owner on the project.

PHOTO © EVABLOEM

OUR SERVICES INCLUDE: • Structural Engineering • Facade Consulting • Forensics • Risk Management Services

www.de-simone.com a waste of materials and resources. It does all this without compromising on aesthetics. The Tower has a striking, contrapposto structure – a term derived from the visual arts, where it refers to a counterpoised figure – and a gleaming façade that will distinguish it from any buildings surrounding it.

Another project in Dubai is The Island, a hospitality and leisure project built on a 10.5-hectare island off the coast of Umm Suqeim. Alongside 1,400 hotel rooms and apartments, an accessible 800-metre waterfront, the construction will also offer entertainment, retail and restaurant options. Its design was developed as a unique pedestrianised new neighbourhood of the city.

“We are very proud that UNStudio has three major projects being executed in the city,” Van Berkel proclaims. “They are evidence of our investment in the region over the past decade, which required the hands on dedication of our site teams, in EME Outlook issue 36 | 75

UNSTUDIO

Doah Metro Network, QIRP, Qatar, 2012 to present

Dubai Cloud, Expo pavilion proposal, 2015 Dutch/Dubai 2020 Expo pavilion proposal, 2018

The Island, Dubai, 2015 to present

CONSTRUCTION

Wafra Tower, Lusail, Qatar, 2015 to present

collaboration with the development managers, the local consultants and the client.”

Then there’s the Qatar Integrated Railway Project – one of the fastest and most advanced driverless metro systems in the world.

Phase one of the project involved the construction of three metro lines and relevant stations – 37 of which have been completed. UNStudio created a vision for the stations of this all-new network. It also collaborated with the Qatar Rail Architecture Department to produce an architectural branding manual, setting out guidelines on design, material usage and architectural details to ensure a consistent appearance across different sites.

UNStudios’ innovative, holistic approach has been well-received in the Middle East. It is currently working on other key projects in Qatar, as well as in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. This growing portfolio of experience is, according to Van Berkel, giving the company confidence and the knowledge to know which opportunities to target. Furthermore, the company’s growing network of consultants and clients is enabling it to further its goal of a locally adapted approach.

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE COVID-19 may be systemically affecting local economies, but Van Berkel is feeling positive about his company’s future. He is looking forward to the official opening of its Dubai branch, headed by Director & Senior Architect Frans van Vuure and Senior Project & Design Coordinator Nick Marks, and increasing the number of clients from the GCC. “Often they don’t believe that local consultants and contractors can achieve this level of work, but our experience – and projects like the wasl Tower and the Qatar Integrated Railway Project – show that we can deliver very high quality work in the region,” he explains.

Something else that van Berkel is excited about is the possibilities opening up in the GCC region for UNStudio’s sister company, UNSense.

It is an architectural technology company that combines design-based thinking with insights derived from data technology.

“At UNSense we don’t believe in technology for the sake of technology,” van Berkel comments.

“We think the combination of data and design creates a powerful force to improve living conditions for people, and to ultimately create buildings and cities that are more humane, healthy, clean, safe, sustainable, and beneficial

to the environment.”

“Data technology, sensorial technology and artificial intelligence enable us as architects and designers to create buildings that sense, understand and respond to the needs and behaviours of the people that work and live in them.”

UNSense is currently operating in Europe, developing designs and strategies for smart homes and cities, including the “100 Homes” project in Helmond – a ‘living lab’ where voluntary data exchange systems and technology are tested to create a positive impact on the inhabitants. It’s easy to see why Van Berkel is excited about what UNSense can do when it applies such insights to projects in the Middle East.

And it’s easy to see, too, why the company has experienced such a level of success over the decades. Its sustainable ethos, innovative artistic designs and data-driven insights look set to define the next chapter of its ever-evolving story.

Tel: +31 (0)20 570 20 40 info@unstudio.com www.unstudio.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 77

DWP|DESIGN WORLDWIDE PARTNERSHIP

The Digital

DESIGN ERA dwp|design worldwide partnership is better placed than ever before to deliver sustainable, innovative and beautiful designs thanks to sustained investment in people and technology Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Ryan Gray

Thonburi Hospital Entrance

CONSTRUCTION We will need to fundamentally rethink the core of everything we do from our teams, studios and the types of work we do. Themes around travel, the workplace and healthcare will change as the year rolls out. It’s one of those inflection points where what seemed a time of stability and incremental change has suddenly become something that will produce a vastly different industry over the next 12 months.”

There is no denying that the coronavirus pandemic will create a new normal in the way many businesses are run around the world.

From further embracement of home working to uncompromising office hygiene standards, the COVID-19 outbreak has stretched societal resolve and tested the resilience of companies across every industry, from travel and hospitality to retail and sport.

The opening words were spoken by Scott Whittaker, Founder and Group Creative Director at Bangkok-head quartered architecture and interior design firm dwp|design worldwide partnership.

When last speaking with us at the end of 2018, Whittaker outlined plans to move towards a truly global practice renowned for design excellence, a goal that is being well and truly advanced towards as we catch up again. While the Founder admits that 2019 was challenging as well as rewarding, the company’s focus on quality projects in hospitality, health and workplaces has paid off and the dwp team is more capable now than ever before.

And the impact of coronavirus cannot be ignored either. In fact, the pandemic has highlighted the levels of resilience built up in the organisation, the company’s smart investment into technology already paying dividends.

“We made some critical changes to our core technologies in 2018 and 2019 to be a 100 percent cloud-based digital design business,” Whittaker explains.

Thonburi Hospital lobby “Our platform facilitates real-time co-working across multiple locations in shared BIM models using Autodesk’s cloud-based Revit and BIM360. We fully utilise Google Cloud and Amazon Cloud and that similarly allows for real-time co-working in documents, spreadsheets, specifications and related industry requirements.

“With the challenges that the pandemic will bring, we believe we are well-placed to be able to work anywhere with our team of 350 staff, be it remotely or at home. Moving our core design delivery and communication platforms to the cloud is truly transformational in our ability to have business continuity for our clients, suppliers and partners.”

Savvy investment in technology has also enabled dwp to enhance its offering through a bespoke new service called dwp|signature.

The platform offers collaboration with specially selected international ‘design masters’, including American

“With the challenges the pandemic will bring, we believe we are wellplaced to be able to work anywhere with our team of 350 staff”

EME Outlook issue 36 | 79

DWP|DESIGN WORLDWIDE PARTNERSHIP interior designer Anne Carson, multi-hyphenate London-based Chinese architect Jordy Fu, Bangkok-based culinary concept specialist Gary Szillich and American artist and sculptor Matthew Campbell Laurenza.

“We think it’s very reflective of the times,” Whittaker adds. “Digital connectivity, free flow of information, sharing of ideas for the benefit of all – it’s time not to fight it but embrace it, as collaborations open design horizons.”

SUSTAINABLE, INNOVATIVE AND BEAUTIFUL DESIGNS Beyond signature, the worldwide reach of dwp has been expanded through studio openings in Manila, Singapore and soon to be London (Q4 2020), as well as several new leadership appointments such as Charlie Kelly as Regional Managing Director in North Asia and Philip Gillard as RMD for the Middle East.

Across the board, Whittaker reveals that 2020 will see dwp projects centre

PROJECT FOCUS

KBANK, THAILAND In a big move for the corporate banking sector, KBank asked dwp to design a high-end, by invitation only, banking experience for its high net worth clients, with customer service at the heart of the programme.

Based in Bangkok, the development contains separate private meeting rooms which are each designed with a specific, unique character and named after locations which resonate with KBank history.

Whittaker comments: “Although the design story for each room is expressed differently, each is a tale about wealth with custom carpets, colours, patterns, textures and finishes.

“The office is located on a very high floor in a prime location, so the layout was planned to maximise natural light throughout and allow the stunning views inside. Beyond design, dwp encouraged KBank to move towards a modern office concept with a bar, a long countertop with power outlets for hot-desking and a café with a view. The result is an extremely functional and flexible office design.”

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around three key pillars – sustainability, innovation and beauty – citing several developments across Asia and the Middle East which demonstrate adherence to these values.

Just north of Bangkok, the company is in the concept stage of what will become Thailand’s largest private hospital, this is after having completed the conversion of a multi-storey shopping mall into a state-of-the-art hospital in a new area of the city.

The Thonburi-Bamrungmuang Hospital is now in operation; the project scooped the Bronze Award in the Healthcare and Wellbeing category at the World Interiors News Awards 2019.

“Light and clean interiors welcome patients to these healthcare facilities with a luxurious double volume lobby,” describes Whittaker. “Sculptured lighting shines through perspex leaves above the reception, while the refreshed building exterior creates a timeless elegance in the company’s corporate blue.”

In the hospitality space, dwp has been busy designing two W brand hotels for Marriott in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

“For W Dubai - The Palm, we looked to the iconic features of the Middle East for inspiration,” says Whittaker. “We took unique attributes of Arabic culture, as well as the location at The Palm, and melded them into a W experience.

The exciting challenge and opportunity with this project was to create that quintessential W hotel feeling of rebellious, distinctive luxury while drawing from Middle Eastern culture.

“W hotels are labs of creation and the design is all about taking risks and breaking boundaries. Wherever you are in the hotel, it should be ‘wow’.

Young, friendly, dynamic, 24 hours – it doesn’t feel like you are in a normal hotel. The interaction is different. The whole experience of being in a W should be enjoyable.”

The same blend of Arabian tradition and wow factor is also on display at W Abu Dhabi - Yas Island.

CONSTRUCTION

Here, dwp completed the refurbishment of the lobby and public areas, food and drink spaces and WET Deck to bring to life what is now the second W Hotel in the Middle East and the largest W Hotel in the world.

“This is a dynamic property built around Arabian tradition, from pearl diving to kufic calligraphy and a desert in full bloom,” adds Whittaker. “This distinctive luxury hotel is high on visual impact – a destination for those who dream big and live loud.”

The company has also masterminded the interior design of the Four Points by Sheraton Kuala Lumpur Chinatown, another Marriott hotel based in the Chinatown area of the Malaysian capital.

INTO AUSTRALIA Away from dwp’s Asian heartland, the firm has made tremendous strides in developing its presence in the Australian market.

Part of the aforementioned

How important are partner and supplier relationships to dwp’s continued success?

Scott Whittaker: “We simply couldn’t operate without them.

Suppliers are a growing group that we collaborate with as the complexity of designing and specifying materials both to achieve design goals, sustainability and regulatory requirements is increasingly more complex.

“For our consultant partners such as engineers, cost consultants and project managers, the ability to work in a single cloud-based BIM model is a game changer.

Collaboration in real time is changing the way we work and design.”

leadership transition process also saw the appointment of Michael Hegarty as Regional Managing Director for Australia. The well-known industry leader brings with him a wealth of experience that includes advisory roles within the UK, Irish and Australian governments.

His division has been behind the interior design of another iconic hotel development, this time for Accor, in what is the only five-star hotel located outside of Melbourne’s central business district.

Hotel Chadstone Melbourne, operating under the MGallery by Sofitel brand, is a $130 million construction containing 250 rooms, suites and penthouses, two restaurants, a conservatory bar and rooftop pool overlooking Port Phillip Bay and the city’s skyline.

“The design concept is built upon the luxurious residential styling of 20th century iconic fashion designers – an ode to the bold, and stylish craft of Italian fashion artisans,” Whittaker EME Outlook issue 36 | 81

DWP|DESIGN WORLDWIDE PARTNERSHIP explains. “We have encompassed this in the lobby with an integrated concierge service, pre-function space, sophisticated rooftop event spaces, guest rooms inspired by backstage beauty, and food and drink areas that are laced with luxury.”

Once certified by the Green Building Council of Australia, Hotel Chadstone will also be the first five-star Australian hotel to receive a 5 Star Green Star Design & As Built rating.

In Melbourne’s CBD, dwp has transformed part of the gateway building for the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University.

“The $7 million project is a showcase for RMIT to engage with the public and industry partners and located within the first two floors of the 1912 Singer sewing factory building,” Whittaker adds. “The existing fabric of the building was largely disguised and dwp architects and interior designers sought to peel back the layers of subsequent renovations to expose the beauty of the original building.

W hotels are labs of creation and the design is all about taking risks and breaking boundaries

“Our team worked with RMIT to develop the right strategy to unlock the embedded value of the project to the degree to which the planning and design solution is able to create a highly engaging, iconic, accessible and digital experience for students and visitors.”

In another education-based project, dwp led the design of the Australian National University (ANU) Hanna Neumann building in conjunction with Clarke Keller. The hybrid workplace, teaching and student hub for the College of Engineering & Computer Science and the Mathematical Sciences Institute faculty was awarded multiple AIA architecture awards in 2019.

The company’s Australia portfolio also includes major refurbishments of sporting venues.

For instance, at the Blundstone Arena in Hobart, dwp’s design for the grandstand will enable it to cater for 4,500 spectators with improved access, congregation areas and links to public transport.

“Much more than a world class facility for elite athletes, the redevelopment redefines the arena’s identity for sports fans, elevating its street presence and bringing fans closer to the action from the moment they step inside,” Whittaker says, also pointing to ongoing work in Parkville as another sports-related dwp project.

Here, the company has designed the redevelopment of the State Netball and Hockey Centre, a $64.6 million scheme to transform the building into an elite facility and cement Parkville as the home of netball and hockey in Australia.

Expected to be completed in 2021, the upgrade will include six new indoor netball courts, a new indoor hockey facility, a high-performance strength and conditioning gym, a women in sport leadership centre, and an improved entrance and access to public transport.

CONSTRUCTION

W Hotel in the Middle East is the largest W Hotel in the world

A 5G-ENABLED FUTURE This is one of a steady pipeline of projects that Whittaker and dwp will be focussing on delivering over the course of the next year, a period which the Founder believes will be increasingly defined by 5G. While the organisation has wholeheartedly embraced flexible and home working to help mitigate the impacts of COVID-19, of equal importance is making dwp workspaces as futureproofed as possible.

Whittaker explains: “The implications of these changes extend beyond simply higher speeds. A 5G network-enabled office is the next evolutionary step in a truly wireless workplace. Our digital transformation, above all, is enabling a more transparent office structure, allowing an uninterrupted flow of people and ideas facilitated by flexible spaces.

“The move towards full digitalisation is an opportunity to help clients see a vision of a workplace beyond its current constraints and focus on

effective ways of working using digital and wireless tools enabled by 5G. “Fluidity of movement and data sharing will allow for faster and more organic knowledge and resource sharing among employees. Libraries, printers and even Wi-Fi enabled laptops, all requiring space within an office, will be replaced by 5G-enabled smartphones and tablets.”

In Brisbane, dwp’s studio is already running on Telstra’s 5G network, with more offices set to come online in the months ahead. Meanwhile, all premises in the Middle East, Asia and Australia are already working in fully agile, wireless environments using digital design tools and cloud-based applications.

Such developments leave Whittaker more confident than ever about his company’s ability to serve clients.

Despite the enormous challenges surrounding the coronavirus pandemic, dwp is firmly open for business, the Founder signing off by revealing plans to grow into yet more markets.

He concludes: “dwp stands for

design worldwide partnership. We chose that name for its inclusiveness, and we’re ambitious!

“We are a diverse firm with capabilities across disciplines and believe that tapping some of the more established markets for very specific design capabilities will enable us to leverage this knowledge into our growing markets.

“But it also works in reverse. We think our skills in creating lifestyle spaces, whether hospitality, residential or retail, is unrivalled and we want to take that to London and New York. We want to bring a little bit of the excitement of Asian design to these markets.”

DWP|DESIGN WORLDWIDE PARTNERSHIP Tel: +66 2267 3939 thailand@dwp.com www.dwp.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 83

OVHCLOUD

Owing to a value-based approach to providing cutting-edge data solutions at affordable prices, OVHcloud has become a trusted partner to organisations all over the world Writer: Tom Wadlow Project Manager: Vivek Valmiki

THE INCLUSIVE DATA REVOLUTION Hiren Parekh, VP Northern Europe

W

hen philosopher and scientist Sir Francis Bacon coined the phrase ‘knowledge is power’ in 1597, little did he know how time would prove him so emphatically right.

Data, it is widely accepted, has become the new oil. Indeed, there is so much information in the world, we now talk about volumes that very few can comprehend – in 2016, the global amount of data in circulation passed

84 | EME Outlook issue 36

the zettabyte threshold, or a billion terabytes.

And the growth curve is only heading in one direction.

“We see many reports talking about the ever-increasing datasphere, which is anticipated to be 10 times larger over the next five years than what we have experienced to date,” says Hiren Parekh, VP Northern Europe at OVHcloud, the only European cloud computing firm within the world’s top 10 cloud providers.

“There are also stats that claim 80 percent of enterprises will migrate to the cloud and away from on-premise.

Those two facts alone are enough to say the cloud space is an interesting one, and we are excited to be at the forefront of offering solutions to support this transformation phase that the majority of businesses will go though over the next few years.”

Parekh is a self-proclaimed cloud enthusiast, his childhood passion for all things technology – from Walkman to Sega Megadrive – following him

TECHNOLOGY

FASTER

INSIGHTS When breakthrough storage meets revolutionary memory, performance takes off.

Intel® Optane™ SSD DC P4800X.

Š Intel Corporation. Intel, the Intel logo, and other Intel marks are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.

OVHCLOUD through his education and career paths, a journey which saw him join OVHcloud in 2015.

“The cloud industry in particular is an exciting one due to the speed at which technology moves and the agility required for businesses to thrive,” he continues. “I made the decision to join the company because

SNAPSHOT

OVHCLOUD STARTUP PROGRAM The OVHcloud Startup Program is a key part of the company’s ecosystem, helping it to nurture and support local entrepreneurs as they develop.

It provides educational and technical support to help ensure the brightest technology ideas are given the opportunity to shine, chiefly through the creation of new connections in an ever-expanding network, all within a single ecosystem.

Startups are able to test cloud solutions free of charge and enjoy the expertise and support provided by OVHcloud, so they can focus on launching their products and services onto the market.

There are no constraining lock-in agreements, with OVHcloud benefitting from startups’ contributions to research and development, along with early access to new products as they are released.

To keep pace with increasing demand, the Startup Program has expanded internationally in Europe, Canada and Asia.

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I was genuinely amazed by the fully integrated value chain model and the disruptive vison. No two days are the same and there is always a challenge which keeps you engaged.”

BUILT ON VALUES Today OVHcloud manages 30 data centres across 12 sites on four continents, its services helping clients to better manage, secure, and scale data through the likes of web hosting, emails, bare metal servers, hosted private cloud, hybrid and public cloud solutions.

Armed with 20 years of experience and 2,200 employees, the company has emerged as a European leader in the field, building its own data centres, manufacturing its own servers and deploying its own 20 tbps fibre optic global network to achieve maximum efficiency and retain total control.

Central to this advancement has been a value-based approach to business, built around trust, working together, passion, disruption and responsibility. For Parekh, this is what sets OVHcloud apart.

“This has led to our proven ability to provide our customers with secure cutting-edge solutions at a competitive market price,” he says.

“Our culture has been shaped to help us to go further, faster. The data revolution is a means of progress for all, allowing everyone to manage their data, to innovate, and to work with complete freedom. We are offering a genuine European alternative for cloud users around the world.”

Such values and culture are only meaningful with the right people in place. Parekh is all too aware of the importance of not only finding the best industry talent and culturally aligned candidates, but keeping them at OVHcloud for the long term.

“When you first join OVHcloud you are really aware of the team’s passion,” he continues. “We love to share our enthusiasm and are constantly innovating, creating, discovering and learning.

“By sticking to our European values and rules, our ambition is to open a path in the digital industry and broaden possibilities for technologists and entrepreneurs. Being an industrial provider means creating a solid company culture that drives innovation – this is what attracts the highest-skilled and best talent.”

Parekh goes on to describe several initiatives which help to attract and retain the people required to drive the firm forwards.

OVHcloud and Intel: Accelerating innovation, data analytics and security in the cloud

A

s a company determined to bring the latest server technology and data centre innovation to market, OVHcloud developed a strong partnership with Intel which began many years ago.

In 2009 OVHcloud introduced offerings with Intel’s first data centre SSDs and 10 Gbe network interfaces, around six or seven years before these technologies became mainstream in the cloud. Fast forward to 2020, and we see that the attention of both partners has shifted to other areas, such as security and data acceleration for demanding applications such as databases, analytics and AI. As data has grown exponentially in the last 10 years, so too has the need for high-performance databases and analytics. OVHcloud closely follows Intel® Xeon® processor roadmaps so customers can make the right choice and gain the best performance and total cost of ownership.

But bottlenecks remain. Even if SSDs have embraced NVM Express, a native PCIe interface enabling up to six times IOPS performance versus SATA SSDs*, this has been insufficient to keep up with customers’ needs. There is still a storage-memory gap which prevents processors from being fully utilised.

In 2017, Intel launched Optane™ SSD DC P4800X, based on the revolutionary 3D XPoint™ media – a technology bringing latencies closer to DRAM and endurance up to 18 times that of data centre NANDbased SSDs**. It can accelerate storage performance by use as cache (e.g. for storage using ZFS, or HCI solutions like vSAN).

OVHcloud is among the first CSPs to offer Intel® Optane™ SSDs in its line of customisable HG Bare Metal servers. Intel® Optane™ SSDs can also costeffectively be used as RAM by using Intel Memory Drive Technology or a recent Linux kernel. There are also targeted efforts, such as accelerating analytics for PostgreSQL customers, in close collaboration with Intel ecosystem partners such as Swarm64. This particular solution allows for up to 20 times faster queries by leveraging Intel® Arria® 10 PAC, an FPGA card.

Another focus area is security, given the growth of enterprise systems running in the cloud today and the increased media exposure for processor vulnerabilities.

OVHcloud and Intel exchange details about potential exploits early on to keep infrastructure security stateof-the-art. In 2019, OVHcloud started offering Bare Metal instances supporting Intel® Software Guard Extensions (SGX), a technology providing hardwaresecured memory enclaves, giving additional levels of protection and integrity for sensitive data – it is functionality greatly appreciated by customers in finance and healthcare. To the delight of Intel ecosystem partners such as Fortanix, Cosmian and Secretarium, who commercialise applications leveraging SGX, OVHcloud offers these instances at a fraction of the cost of Tier 1 offerings.

So, what’s next? OVHcloud plans to expand its offering of HCI solutions and second-generation Intel® Xeon™ Scalable processors, which support Intel® Deep Learning Boost (DL Boost), a feature accelerating AI inference workloads.

Innovation never stops in Roubaix Valley. * https://www.enterprisestorageforum.com/storage-hardware/nvme-speed.html Intel does not control or audit third-party data. You should consult other sources to evaluate accuracy. ** https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/architecture-and-technology/optanetechnology/delivering-new-levels-of-endurance-article-brief.html

raphael.monten@intel.com | www.intel.com

OVHCLOUD

‘Once hired, employees go through an intensive onboarding programme which provides insight into the company’s end-to-end manufacturing process’ Internships and dual study programmes are an essential part of this, with opportunities available in every department from HR, finance and sales through to tech, industry and marketing. Students will be challenged with projects tailored to their preferences and expertise – what OVHcloud refers to as missions – in conjunction with a number of universities in order to identify the right talent.

Once hired, employees are put through an intensive onboarding programme which provides a detailed insight into the company’s end-to-end manufacturing process as well as site visits. This is supplemented with virtual and face to face training to deepen understanding of the ever-evolving solutions and services offered.

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POWERED BY TRUST As such a people-oriented technology firm, trust and transparency has become something of an organisational hallmark, no better demonstrated than by the OVHcloud Partner Program.

“This is designed to better support the digital transformation of organisations,” explains Parekh. “It facilitates partner training, sales support and technical support around OVHcloud solutions.

“Aimed at system integrators, value-added resellers and managed service providers, the Partner Program supports end-customers in their migration to our solutions in fields such as integration, facility management and consulting. It enables partners to bring their own value add to cloud infrastructure solutions designed and marketed by OVHcloud, and so to strengthen the ecosystem.”

The scheme works in two tiers – standard and advanced – with partners gaining access to the full suite of OVHcloud services. Advanced partners also have a dedicated account manager as part of an advisory board to share roadmaps and review feedback.

Indeed, whether it is dedicated startup support teams and account managers or technical advisors and solutions architects, the firm is able to handle customer relations at every level, a layer of trust which is bolstered by an uncompromising approach to security.

“The trust placed in us by our customers and partners is significant,” Parekh adds. “Security provides support against an increasingly sophisticated and dangerous global threat. For that reason, it is an OVHcloud priority in all of its 30 data centres, and for all of our customers across 132 countries.”

TECHNOLOGY

This leads Parekh to highlight the vital role played by the partners and suppliers of OVHcloud, not just in the realm of security, but an entire network which is also built on mutual trust and recognition of each other’s abilities.

“Our close affiliations with the OpenStack Foundation, Cloud Native Computing Foundation and technology partners VMware, Intel, AMD, Veeam and Zerto allow us to help shape developments within the industry,” he continues.

“One of the keys to the success of OVHcloud lies in the company’s ability to develop and promote innovation, both in IT itself and in industrial practices. This is part of our DNA. We are constantly researching and developing technologies to optimise the performance of the services we offer our users.”

Parekh points specifically to the enterprise market as a key demonstration of the power of partnership.

He cites 2020 predictions made by Forrester Research, which forecast the

combined platform and infrastructure markets will grow another 30 percent from 2019 to $132.8 billion.

“In the enterprise market our success is really dependent on providing integrated cloud solutions to clients,” Parekh continues. “With our partners we play to each other’s strengths, allowing our customers to move to a PaaS model.

“Enterprises are just now starting to use cloud to modernise core business apps and processes – to date, they’ve been using cloud primarily to build new apps and rehost infrastructure.

As customer needs continue to evolve and the technology stacks become more complex, the strength of our alliances will be the key driver to achieve our business goals.”

“Security provides support against an increasingly sophisticated and dangerous global threat. For that reason, it is an OVHcloud priority in all of its 30 data centres, and for all of our customers across 132 countries”

OVHCLOUD A SUSTAINABLE, SMART FUTURE Such goals are taking on an increasingly responsible, sustainable purpose.

As consumers all around the world are consciously choosing brands which are transparent, ethical and sustainable, OVHcloud realises that a commitment to social and environmental responsibility is now a key part of its trust messaging to clients.

Data centres, for instance, are heavy consumers of energy, a reality which the company has been continually addressing for many years.

“Since 2003 we have developed our own water-cooling system for our servers, and we have also developed cooling hubs behind our servers to create autonomous racks, which OVHcloud can deploy anywhere and keep fully-isolated from external temperature conditions,” Parekh explains.

“We are thus able to achieve a power usage effectiveness of up to 1.09 in a number of our data centres.

“Through designing our data centres to run without air conditioning, recycling our components, improving their energy efficiency and prolonging

THE S.M.A.R.T. CLOUD [S] SIMPLE: Easy and quick to set up, saving a lot of time and resources.

[M] MULTI-LOCAL: Worldwide data centres and local teams.

[A] ACCESSIBLE: Competitive and predictable pricing, with no surprises.

[R] REVERSIBLE: Robust and reliable. It is a cloud that does not lock people in.

[T] TRANSPARENT: A cloud that says what it does, and does what it says.

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“We know that a truly ‘S.M.A.R.T.’ cloud is possible. We are confident in our ability to continue our growth and to succeed in building alternative cloud solutions, turning the data revolution into an opportunity for everyone” their life cycles, we maintain an environmentally friendly approach in all of our design, manufacturing and operational processes.”

The company also adopts a smart heat trapping solution, used to trap data centre heat and warm other buildings such as the nursery at its headquarters in the French city of Roubaix.

Renewable energy is another focus.

In France and Canada, the company has established specific energy procurement policies with renewable power quotas.

These policies will no doubt help to reduce the carbon footprint of OVHcloud and secure its longevity moving forwards, and Parekh closes the conversation by outlining the firm’s vision to create a truly

‘S.M.A.R.T.’ cloud, defined by simplicity, multilocality, accessibility, reversibility and transparency.

This will enable it to spearhead the inclusive data revolution, empowering organisations across the world.

“We know that a truly ‘S.M.A.R.T.’ cloud is possible,” Parekh says. “We are confident in our ability to continue our growth and to succeed in building alternative cloud solutions, turning the data revolution into an opportunity for everyone.

“At OVHcloud, we want to allow everyone to manage their data, innovate and work in complete freedom – a different kind of cloud that allows us to grow and succeed together.”

OVHCLOUD Tel: +44 (0)333 370 0425 sales@ovhcloud.com www.ovhcloud.com

TECHNOLOGY

RELINED FIBER NETWORK

Seeing the Light with Dark Fibre By making the most of existing fibre network infrastructure, Relined Fiber Network is delivering cost-effective, scalable and secure connectivity with near unlimited bandwidth to organisations across Northwestern Europe Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Vivek Valmiki

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TECHNOLOGY

T

he Netherlands and Germany are waking up to the potential of fibre optic connectivity.

Last year the number of Dutch fibre connections passed the three million mark, while the German government announced €12 billion in funding to turbocharge its nationwide rollout of fibre to homes and businesses.

But while investment in laying down new infrastructure and building new networks is welcomed, a looming question remains about how to make the most of such infrastructure once it has been laid – in other words, utilising as much of the installed capacity as possible.

Back in 2003, Jan Willem Tom was asking himself the exact same question. The answer? Dark fibre.

“Dark fibre is the basic platform for a private, future-oriented network,” he explains. “Because fibre optic networks are widespread in the Netherlands and Germany, you do not have to construct your own network from scratch.

“In many cases, an existing network can be used and only the last mile to the location needs to be excavated.

Based on the equipment you have chosen, you can construct a private network that meets all your requirements using existing fibre optic infrastructure.”

This is the basic premise from which Tom formed what is now known as Relined Fiber Network.

Some 17 years on, he still serves as the organisation’s Managing Director and is determined to continue its mission of putting unused fibre optic capacity onto the market, especially his home market in the Netherlands and now Germany.

Indeed, today Relined stands as an internationally renowned player in the dark fibre realm for two key reasons.

First, because the company leverages the capacity of already-laid networks without having to make large investments, it can offer cost-effective, reliable solutions across a wide territory.

“This leads into the second reason why we are uniquely positioned,” adds Tom. “We are the only company to have a nationwide network at our disposal in both the Netherlands and Germany, and we are increasingly able to access the international market.

“We can reach pretty much any location. The biggest internet nodes in Europe – Amsterdam and Frankfurt – are connected to our network, including the major data centres.

“Relined Fiber Network delivers your fibre optic connection from A to B in the form of stable, reliable dark fibres belonging to public and/or private networks. Together with our preferred suppliers, we have more than 30,000 kilometres of high-grade fibre optic infrastructure. This means nationwide, fine-meshed dark fibre networks.”

EXPANDING ACCESS The major beneficiaries of this are large enterprises that require stable, reliable and secure connections which are easily scalable.

Typical Relined customers include data centres, network suppliers, ISPs, hosting companies and system integrators, as well as organisations in

Jan Willem Tom, Managing Director

EME Outlook issue 36 | 95

RELINED FIBER NETWORK

the wholesale, healthcare and public sectors, all of which are served with transparency and professionalism – two key pillars of the firm’s approach to business.

The last few years in particular have seen more clients use Relined’s expertise in Germany. In 2017, a dedicated division (Relined GmbH) was formed to focus on service delivery in what Tom believes is a market full of potential.

“The required fibre optics are in place, but the networks were built by different and often unrelated regional and local operators,” he adds.

“Consequently, the fibre optic landscape in Germany is fragmented and the networks are not optimally used.

“Relined sees opportunities here and aims to link these networks together and make them available to the market, supplying a one-stop shop connection from A to B.” In 2018, the company signed a milestone partnership agreement with 96 | EME Outlook issue 36

large fibre network operator NGN. Tom goes on to explain how the relationship is very much a symbiotic one, with Relined able to use its expertise to market NGN’s network to new customers and manage new contracts, while also helping the parties to connect with smaller regional networks at the same time.

Beyond Germany, the firm is also delivering dark fibre connections to Denmark via a subsea cable from the Netherlands, a move which opens up access to the rest of Northern Europe and the UK.

POWERED BY PARTNERSHIP The breakthrough with NGN in particular highlights the critical nature of collaboration to Relined’s ongoing success story.

From the contractors who perform the last-mile groundwork to install connections to customers’ premises to the network providers whose infrastructure is leveraged, the ultimate

“...RELINED SEES OPPORTUNITIES HERE AND AIMS TO LINK THESE NETWORKS TOGETHER AND MAKE THEM AVAILABLE TO THE MARKET, SUPPLYING A ONE-STOP SHOP CONNECTION FROM A TO B”

TECHNOLOGY

TOTAL SUPPLIER OF SYSTEMS FOR FIBER OPTIC INFRASTRUCTURES MODULAR NETWORK SYSTEM FTTX CABLE PROTECTION HANDHOLES ENCLOSURES RAILWAY PRODUCTS ASSEMBLIES

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EME Outlook issue 36 | 97

RELINED FIBER NETWORK potential of dark fibre can only be realised by several parties working closely together.

“Relined has the core competences it needs in house and contracts everything else out to partners,” says Tom. “For example, in the Netherlands we work with contractors such as Van de Beek Kabels & Leidingen, Strukton, AV-Fiber and E&R. “Adinf provides us with invaluable services in relation to relocations, including support of the civil works.

In addition, they handle the permits in Amsterdam, allowing us to guarantee to our customers a short delivery time of between one and three weeks

between data centres.”

Another highly successful collaboration began in 2017 when Relined expanded its reach by 4,000 kilometres of fibre network thanks to a partnership with BT, activity which has also seen the number of connected Dutch data centres grow from 70 to more than 100, granting access to many business locations.

And for the MD, expansion through partnership lies at the heart of his growth plans moving forwards.

“We constantly look for other partnerships to improve our network,” Tom continues. “We’re looking to identify any gaps in our network coverage and

DARK FIBRE – THE BASICS Dark fibre is a literal definition of what it is – a lightless fibre optic connection. Without the activating equipment that is needed to send and receive data, the fibre optic cable remains dark.

This innovative cable offers attractive opportunities for companies and organisations, the advantages of dark fibre grouped into four major categories: NEAR UNLIMITED BANDWIDTH: This results in fast transmission of data and optimal connectivity for the user, while they only pay for the fibre optic connection and the equipment.

SCALABILITY: If customers want to assign extra bandwidth to a service or add extra services to the network, they can do so in a very short space of time, without the need to buy any additional bandwidth.

FULL CONTROL: Scalability is possible because of the level of control held by the customer over their network, and as an organisation they are not dependent on a third party’s partners in any way. Not only do they retain full control over management and maintenance the network, they also control project costs.

ENCRYPTION/SECURITY: Organisations – particularly institutions in the healthcare, public and financial sectors – are increasingly required to demonstrate that they are in control and that they handle personal data and other confidential information responsibly. Dark fibre has its own light-generation equipment, meaning customers have greater control over a connection’s security and can add layers of encryption.

Dark fibre also offers enhanced cloud and backup capabilities.

Relined operates with ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certification, meaning it fulfils the highest standards in the areas of quality and information security.

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see which networks are located in the areas where market demand is high – then we’ll see whether there’s scope for collaboration with the parties involved.

“This could be done by marketing the network as a proprietary network or by leasing network capacity to meet customer demand. The choice depends greatly on demand for a particular region. The advantage of viewing it as a proprietary network is that as a company we invest in its promotion, pursue optimal leasing arrangements and manage the customer relationships.”

But such growth will not arrive without challenges.

The Managing Director names several trends which Relined will have to negotiate, including a squeezed labour market and shortage of skills available to contractor partners, a fibre penetration rate of just four percent in Germany (versus 50 FTTH in the Netherlands), and the general acceleration of a digital society which is increasingly characterised by giant organisations which struggle to remain agile.

However, these challenges can be addressed and are outweighed by opportunities.

For instance, Germany’s low fibre penetration rate opens up a massive opportunity to grow fibre uptake in the country, a shift which Relined could play a significant role in driving.

Likewise, the fact we are living in an increasingly digital society is in itself creating openings for new business, even in the area of 5G. “Although our network is more suited to backbone connections to the data centres, 5G still requires a fine-meshed fibre optic network providing national cover,” Tom explains. “Fibre optic networks are essential for the processing of the data flows coming from 5G. Every bit and byte sent, anywhere in the world, eventually ends up in physical, underground fibre optic cables.

“Alongside the laying of fibre optic cables for households, the creation

TECHNOLOGY

Esbjerg

Kiel Rostock Lübeck Hamburg Eemshaven Leeuwarden

Schwerin

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München

International network

of core and backbone networks is at least as critical. These core networks promote mutual connectivity between the networks, internet exchanges and facilitate data centres.

“It is therefore important that all fibre optics providers cooperate – after all, the networks have to be linked up together to allow a complete 5G network to be created. If we want to get the most out of 5G, we will have to

make sure that fibre optics reach into every last corner.”

And as the MD has already highlighted, partnerships will be critical to this being realised, his ambition for 2020 and beyond being to build on existing and establish new cooperative relationships with network providers.

Consolidating and growing customer bases in the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark should follow,

with Tom also focussing on positioning Relined as a single organisation operating across borders, a process which will require close collaboration between employees in different countries.

“Every provider who lays a network has unused capacity,” he says, drawing the conversation to a close.

“Our aim is to make this capacity available. Why go digging in the ground when there’s already so much great capacity down there? And why are networks being laid for just one purpose when – through good cooperation – these can also be made available to third parties?”

RELINED FIBER NETWORK info@relined.eu www. relined.eu

EME Outlook issue 36 | 99

BLUE AIR

A

s 2019 was drawing to a close, almost nobody would have foreseen that international and domestic air travel would grind to a halt in the space of a few months.

Originating from a market in Wuhan, China, COVID-19 has engulfed much of the globe and will go down in history as the single defining element of 2020.

Its impact both in health and economic terms has already been enormous. With governments all around the world introducing restrictions on travel as part of lockdown measures to help contain the spread of the coronavirus,

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the aviation sphere has been hit especially hard.

The figures, even at this relatively early stage, are striking. During the week of April 20, 2020, the number of scheduled flights worldwide decreased by 66 percent in comparison with the week of April 22, 2019 – in Italy, year-on-year flights have dropped by 98 percent.

On March 22, 2020, airline capacity in Europe was down by almost 88 percent compared to the same day in 2019.

Before the start of the outbreak, this year was forecasted to see 4.72

billion air passengers take to the skies, activity worth $514 billion. According to some estimates, that figure is set to be slashed by $314 billion due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In Romania, carrier Blue Air has been forced to ground almost all flights during this extraordinary period.

“As well as in other parts of the world, the impact is strong and devastating,” comments Bogdan Menciu, the company’s Logistics Director.

“We were reducing flights every single day until one day, because of all the restrictions imposed by

AEROSPACE

Responding to a

CRISIS Romania’s Blue Air is doing everything in its power to futureproof its business and help the country tackle the ongoing challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Ben Weaver

governments in Europe, we had to close all our regular flights and conserve our fleet.

“This is the biggest crisis in the aviation industry that I have ever seen, and I think that small airlines will be lost in the economic recovery process if they don’t receive financial support. The market will also be flooded by a wave of aviation professionals, from pilots and engineers to office personnel, which will have a great impact on the workforce.”

EME Outlook issue 36 | 101

BLUE AIR ANSWERING THE CALL Blue Air’s response has been one of pragmatism and altruism.

First and foremost, the company’s leadership must ensure the viability of the firm moving forwards, which starts with conservation of its fleet, a process which began in March.

Maintenance and office operations have been temporarily scaled back, with those still working doing all they can to prepare for the next development in what is a unique situation that many will not have encountered before in their lifetime.

But Blue Air still has a vital part to play in Romania’s collective fight against COVID-19, and its ongoing efforts could well define the character of the company which emerges from the other side.

“We are committed to keep flying no matter what,” says CEO Oana Petrescu defiantly. “We have managed to convert some of our aircraft into

COVID-19’S IMPACT ON AVIATION The following estimates from Statista show the potential impact of the coronavirus on aviation in 2020. $314 BILLION: revenue loss of airlines worldwide $24.6 BILLION: revenue loss of airports in Europe 90%: drop in daily airport passenger traffic in Eastern Europe on March 22, 2020, versus the same day in 2019 5.6 MILLION: industry job losses in Europe

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cargo planes and we are flying special flights for humanitarian aid, as well as repatriation flights for Romanian citizens who are stuck abroad.”

“A person is not defined by the way he or she acts in a normal situation, but by the way they react under abnormal conditions. Times like this will define our character and make us stronger as individuals, as a team and as a company.”

Bogdan himself has lived and breathed the aviation industry for more than 20 years.

Brought up in a family already working in the sector, he has experience in numerous roles, from baggage handler to CEO in another Romanian Airline, initially joining Blue Air in 2010 before moving out of Romania to an Australian company for five years.

“In 2016 I have returned back to the Romanian airline industry, and my choice was obvious as Blue Air was the biggest airline in Romania in terms of fleet and passengers transported, and I know the team of dedicated professionals,” Bogdan says, going on to explain that the company’s people and passenger-centric approach to business is what sets it apart.

“We have a saying in Romania, that people are the ones that sanctify a place,” he continues. “Besides the beautiful team here made up of dedicated professionals, the direction of the company and its approach to the passenger, in terms of service and dedication to the passenger needs, is a Blue Air hallmark.”

And this will be critical when the country starts to travel again.

Having built up a reputation for customer care and service excellence over many years, Blue Air will be ready and waiting to serve passengers once restrictions are lifted.

But this will not result in an end to Bogdan Menciu, Logistics Director financial hardship says Bogdan,

Aermeccanica

Aermeccanica is proud to be certified distributor of Michelin aircraft tyres.

A FEW INCHES OF PIONEERING HERITAGE Thanks to its global reputation, Michelin is internationally recognised as the number one tyre manufacturer in the world. For over 100 years, Michelin has repeatedly stepped up to confront the challenges faced by the aeronautical industry. It has pioneered beyond the frontiers of technology, seeking out new developments and offering its clients greater mobility solutions.

Michelin will continue to rise to the occasion, offering the very best in aircraft tyre innovation.

www.aermeccanica.it

AEROSPACE

Aermeccanica founded in 1972, is a leader in repair of aircraft components. We provide high quality overhaul & repair service of components to airlines and aircraft / helicopter manufacturers. Aermeccanica is MRO approved by EASA, FAA and TCCA plus held TUV EN9110, ISO9001 and EN9120 certifications.

Aermeccanica is also an Authorized Distributor of Michelin Aircraft Tires Aermeccanica supporting the maintenance of Safran Landing System wheels and carbon brakes. We have increased our capability for B787 Safran LS wheels and brakes with also in house availability of electrical brakes bench test.

Aermeccanica is Approved Repair Station of Saft Aviation Batteries.

Aermeccanica is a privately held independent company located in Lonate Pozzolo (VA) - Italy, conveniently close to the International Airport of Milan Malpensa, in a 3.500 sq.m facility.

We offer a wide range of components repair capabilities on Wheels and Brakes, Cabin’s and Galley Equipment and Batteries.

of the belief that the economic consequences could be as threatening than the virus itself, with poverty increases likely to occur as economies fight to get back on their feet.

“However, the working class will do their best to restart the economy and to provide for their families. Of course, the lockdown measures will be relaxed step by step and dependent on a continuously evolving situation.

“Tourism may not recover quickly, and my guess is that normal airline passenger traffic may take two or three years to return, I am hopeful

for a bounce in people travelling with work and business. Finding a cure and developing a vaccine for the virus will greatly help economies to kickstart again, and with that our industry will recover faster.”

BLUE AIR Tel: +4021.208.86.55 secretariat@blueair.aero www.blueairweb.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 103

ABDALI HOSPITAL

Reinvigorating

MEDICAL TOURISM in Jordan

Abdali Hospital is pioneering higher standards in the region’s healthcare industry, the multi-specialty hospital in Amman delivering quality care to local patients and medical tourists alike Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Callam Waller

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HEALTHCARE Jordan’s healthcare system has a track record of providing a high standard of quality. Many hospitals are accredited by the Joint Commission International, the leading international healthcare quality accreditation organisation, as well as by the Health Care Accreditation Council, which is Jordan’s national equivalent.

“At a time when infection control protocols and broader quality standards are more important than ever before, we are very well positioned to stand out on this front.”

For Ahmad Abu Ghazaleh, the Jordanian medical sector has never been more relevant.

Not only is the country (and the world) coming to grips with the coronavirus pandemic, once the crisis has passed the nation’s medical profession will return to safeguarding the general health of its people, as well as delivering sizeable economic contributions from medical tourism.

“The sector is fuelled by a solid medical and nursing education system, a supportive public policy and the availability of a strong private network of hospitals, laboratories and pharmaceutical companies that include global players,” Abu Ghazaleh continues.

“Not only this, the country is also strong in telehealth to the general public in Jordan and the region.

Regarding regional medical tourism, language, distance and cultural affinity are major advantages.”

In short, Jordan’s medical sector has a lot to be optimistic about when it returns to normality post-COVID-19.

Abu Ghazaleh is the Vice Chairman of Amman-based Abdali Hospital, a state-of-the-art private medical centre delivering a multitude of treatments and services across a vast range of specialties.

Opening its doors in 2019, Abdali Hospital was founded by the Abu Ghazaleh family, who were also founders of the Clemenceau Medical

Center (CMC) based in Beirut, the leading private hospital in Lebanon, with further openings slated for Dubai and Riyadh.

With a capacity of 200 beds, Abdali Hospital has leading edge medical equipment in all of its specialty centres, which include more than 100 onsite clinics, 10 operating theatres, three catherization labs, four endoscopy units, dialysis unit, lithotripsy, ICUs and CCUs with full isolation capability.

“We also have comprehensive diagnostic services including all modalities of radiology from the latest MRI to CT scans to nuclear medicine, as well as a very advanced pathology and laboratory department,” adds Iciar Vaquero, Abdali Hospital’s Chief Strategy Officer.

“Our multidisciplinary teams include a wide range of preventative and complementary services such as dietetics, rehabilitation and physical medicine, and smoke cessation programmes, as well as a range of health assessments for early screening and detection of issues, and advice on a healthier lifestyle.

“Meanwhile, Abdali Hospital’s emergency department is staffed by physicians specifically trained in emergency medicine, together with specialist doctors. We make sure that specialist doctors across all disciplines are always on-call.”

STANDING APART Currently the hospital employs around 400 people, a figure which is expected to treble once it reaches full capacity following expansion works.

And for both Abu Ghazaleh and Vaquero, human capital is without doubt the organisation’s most vital asset, the nurturing of skills being fundamental to its long-term success.

“We encourage continued professional education for staff of all backgrounds,” Abu Ghazaleh says.

“For example, we have a programme of internal training and clinical

Family inspiration Asked who has inspired his career the most, Ahmad Abu Ghazaleh pays tribute to the influence of his father, Mohammed Abu Ghazaleh, Founder and Chairman of Abdali Hospital and serial entrepreneur.

“His drive, like mine, is a fierce determination to create value for the communities we serve, to create opportunity for people, and to do this by encouraging a culture of equality,” Ahmad says.

“And what better sector to do this than healthcare? He embraces innovation to find ways to drive efficiency and effectiveness, in a fact-based and systematic way, with a goal to increase access and offer a wider choice of services and goods to more people.

“I learnt very early from him the importance of integrity and conducting ourselves and our businesses ethically – all our business run under very robust governance and compliance. This was a very important component to allow him to take another of his companies, Fresh Del Monte, public on the New York Stock Exchange.

“On a personal level, I am inspired by my father’s humility, empathy and intellectual curiosity, all essential attributes in an innovative healthcare environment.”

Ahmad Abu Ghazaleh and his father, Mohammed Abu Ghazaleh

EME Outlook issue 36 | 105

ABDALI HOSPITAL lectures held by internal and external professionals for doctors, nurses and allied health professionals.”

On top of this, Abdali Hospital provisions its own education centre for basic life skills and advanced life skill training for all staff, and is also preparing to become a teaching hospital in partnership with a leading local university, a move which will provide residential, fellowship and research opportunities to the next generation of budding medical professionals.

Such a focus on employee wellbeing and training contributes directly to one of three key differentiating factors that Vaquero believes stands Abdali Hospital apart – patient experience.

Staff are trained to respond to all patients’ needs, from the moment the patient books an appointment to the time they get diagnosed, treated and KEY SERVICES

Abdali Hospital Abdali Hospital delivers high quality care to local patients and medical tourists across a range of specialties.

THESE INCLUDE: orthopaedics and rheumatology; cardiovascular care such as cardiology, as well as cardiac, vascular and thoracic surgeries; gastrointestinal care; colorectal surgery; general and bariatric surgey; obstetrics and gynecology; a breast and women’s health centre; urogynaecology; plastic surgery; a dermatology and aesthetics centre; an ear, nose and throat centre; urology, diabetes and endocrinology; neurology and neurosurgery; nephrology and dialysis; pulmonology and intensive care; internal medicine; infectious diseases, anaesthesiology and pain management; and emergency medicine

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after discharge, with standards aligned with those seen in the high-end hospitality sector.

The way human capital and departments are structured forms the second point of difference.

Abu Ghazaleh explains: “We are raising the standards of healthcare in Jordan and the region through our model of care. The hospital is organised in structured departments that follow the best evidence-based protocols, and are made up of highly sub-specialised professionals working together as a team.

“All consultants working at Abdali Hospital are dual boarded and have significant international experience within their fields.”

FUTUREPROOFED THROUGH TECHNOLOGY The third factor centres around the technology professionals are equipped with in order to deliver the best possible care.

ATCCO Arab Towers Contracting Company (ATCCO) is a first grade contracting company engaged across numerous disciplines. The company was originally established in 1988 to serve the Jordanian market and the surrounding region.

In 2015 ATCCO was assigned as EPC Contractor for Abdali Hospital.

We used a wide range of techniques, methodologies and latest modern technologies during all construction phases of the project, such as BIM technology during design and construction phase, and different techniques for strengthening works and rehabilitation for existing structural elements.

This enabled us to overcome major challenges and sophisticated phases to deliver a unique medical centre with c. 200 beds to the client. Now it is recognised as a landmark healthcare project in the region.

HEALTHCARE

ATCCO, The Practical knowledge.

Amman –Jordan | T (962 6) 5530381, 5537064 | Info@atcco.com.jo | www.atcco.com.jo

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ABDALI HOSPITAL

Abdali Hospital boasts state of the art medical equipment, such as a 3T Vida MRI and three catheterisation laboratories

How does Abdali Hospital approach procurement and relationships with suppliers?

ICIAR VAQUERO: “Abdali Hospital has a strong governance-driven procurement approach, with a standard procurement committee that receives and assesses proposals from departments based on technical specifications and the business case, following a rigorous competitive tender process.

“Many of the suppliers have been and are key to our success, all the way from medical equipment, IT systems, medical supplies and medications, and service providers. We adopt a collaborative approach to develop solutions to problems together, to meet our patients’ needs.”

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Being such a new entity and building on the experience of CMC, Abdali Hospital was able to invest in the latest medical equipment and IT systems, making it the only hospital in Jordan operating with a fully paperless system. This means that information on all diagnoses and treatments are accessible in one place, resulting in more efficient and safer practices and an enhanced patient experience.

The advanced electronic medical record system is integrated with enterprise resource planning programmes and medical equipment applications.

“Some other examples of our

state-of-the-art medical equipment include our 3T Vida MRI, as well as three catheterisation laboratories and one of the most specialised nurse call and integrated communications system available,” Vaquero adds.

“Our operating theatres are fitted with the latest modular walls and integrated communication systems for better workflow, infection control, video-image routing and documentation, and we also have an automated lab to support volumes and become a reference lab in the region.”

Indeed, Abdali Hospital is already building up a reputation for medical

HEALTHCARE

excellence, a standing which will only increase as it expands throughout 2020 and beyond.

Abu Ghazaleh outlines plans to grow across three main areas, the first being to open new departments such as sub-specialised paediatrics (scheduled for summer 2020), with the likes of IVF potentially following in the future.

Growing existing departments is also on the Vice Chairman’s priority list. Additional sub-specialties such as electrophysiology, advanced heart failure, kidney transplant and voice clinics are all being explored, while growth through new primary care

clinics and international expansion could well feature in the months and years ahead.

“In short, our objectives this year are to continue serving our patients with a high standard of quality, while growing our offering,” Abu Ghazaleh says in his concluding remarks.

“We are opening new services in obstetrics and subspecialised paediatrics, and expanding the cardiac, orthopaedic and rheumatology department including trauma, nephrology, neurology, ENT and plastic surgery services.

“We are also launching homecare and telehealth on the back of the

COVID-19 crisis, which are all being very well received. We aim to continue serving our patients at the high standard level of quality and satisfaction we are achieving so far.

Almost 100 percent of patients declare that they would recommend us.”

ABDALI HOSPITAL info@abdalimedical.com www.abdalihospital.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 109

URB GROUP

110 | EME Outlook issue 36

MANUFACTURING

THE KING OF BEARINGS Having built up a formidable reputation since beginning operations in Romania in 1953, bearings manufacturer URB Group continues to innovate and explore new ideas Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Thomas Arnold

Years ago, when I was in high school, I had already chosen to be an engineer. This was not an easy choice, and it was not an easy target to reach, because the university exam was very difficult with 500,000 people competing for 30,000 places.

“But I chose engineering as a way of life, which I saw as discovering and bringing alive new ideas, and I made it a passion.”

Little was going to stop Dogan Gures from pursuing a career in engineering.

He passed the exam with flying colours, finishing in the top 100 and securing a place at the best engineering school in his home country – the Boğaziçi University in Istanbul, Turkey.

Having backed his degree up with a master’s in engineering management, Gures’s career has seen him gain valuable industry experience in managing investments, setting up new factories, developing technological products, and overseeing production processes.

This included setting up six factories in Romania, the key moment coming in 2017 when he decided to join bearings manufacturer Rulmenti S.A. Barlad, commonly known as URB Group, as CEO.

“When the company I was working for at the time decided to make new investments in Russia, it wanted me to move over there to manage it,” Gures recalls.

“I resisted it and left because I wanted to stay in Romania and continue my career in a management position in the field URB Group is a major of engineering. And the opportunity sup­plier to the global to serve Rulmenti and its affiliated automotive industry, companies as CEO, which produce operating a distributor URB bearings in Romania, was the network in more than perfect career choice for me.”

40 countries. It employs The company began operations in 1,400 people and was 1953 in the Romanian city of Bârlad, set up in 1953. today employing around 1,400 people with additional production facilities in Turkey (home of the firm’s major shareholder BERA Holding) and India.

It is renowned for the design, production, sales and service of different types of bearings and is a major supplier to the global automotive industry, operating a distributor network in more than 40 countries including Germany, the UK, Italy, Benelux, France, Spain, Ireland, Greece, Poland, Bulgaria, Serbia, Ukraine, Turkey, USA, South Africa, Brazil, Egypt, India, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, and the UAE. Major products include radial ball EME Outlook issue 36 | 111

URB GROUP

Rösler Rösler is the only surface finishing supplier in the world that offers the two most essential finishing technologies, mass finishing and shot blasting, as well as industrial washing systems and in-house production and development.

Rösler’s mass finishing systems are the best-selling systems in the world, thanks to their high level of innovation, cost-effectiveness and ability to significantly reduce cycle times.

Rösler blasting technology is characterised by intelligent design, innovative features and durable, long-lasting components. The Rösler Group bundles all activities related to additive manufacturing under the AM Solutions brand.

bearings, cylindrical roller bearings, spherical roller bearings, thrust ball bearings, thrust cylindrical roller bearings and tapered roller bearings, all well-known for their precision and reliability and produced in accordance with ISO and DIN standards.

Critical to URB Group’s ongoing standing in the sector? For Gures, it is all about human capital.

“Our human resource base has tremendous experience and engineering knowledge gained over many years,” he says. “Many of our city’s people are associated with our factory and working here is a proud legacy that passes from one generation to the next – it is a natural result to thrive in such an environment.

“We are continuing to increase the value of our brand in our sector by maintaining this advantageous situation, which is provided to us by our valuable human presence.

This is our most important asset. We therefore believe in lifelong education and will continue offering institutional training and university-supported training collaborations for the younger generations.”

112 | EME Outlook issue 36

AHEAD OF THE CURVE These bright sparks are responsible for driving URB Group’s busy research and development programme, activities which ensure the company remains one step ahead in the bearings industry.

Here, the team has been busy on a number of new and existing product enhancements, Gures pointing to a project being carried out in partnership with customers focussing on ceramic coating for insulating bearings.

The Group CEO also highlights work on a new spherical roller bearing.

These contain steel cages within the outer diameter and provide several improvements and benefits.

Among the main features are high performance materials, low residual austenitic content, heat treatment process for dimensional stability in operation up to 150 degrees Celsius, improved cinematics, optimised rolling surfaces made on performance machines, increased thermal reference speed, higher load capacity than standard bearings and longer service life.

www.rosler.com

“In order to keep our customers loyal and open new bearing markets, our research and development department is extremely active in seeking out now solutions and testing new ideas,” Gures adds. “R&D is the first step for any process ending in technological innovation, and innovation is the key for beating the competition.

“Being stable in the top ranked places in the industry is only possible with continuous R&D investments and will ultimately make us more reputable as a company. If our company image is superior to our competitors’, then this will lead to our products being preferred, even if they are priced higher in many cases.”

R&D activity also concentrates on internal processes with a view to enhancing the production process.

Gures cites ongoing research into machine tools which can produce bearings up to a metre in diameter, as well as collaborations with the Gheorghe Asachi Technical University

MANUFACTURING

Mass Finishing Efficient systems engineering and innovative technologies – powerful and economical

AM Solutions The full solution provider for 3D post processing equipment and 3D printing services

Surface Finishing is our DNA

Shot Blasting Individual systems engineering and intelligent process solutions – reliable and energy efficient

Rösler Romania SRL | Str. Avram Iancu nr. 39-43 | 075100, Otopeni, Jud. Ilfov Tel.: +40/ 21/ 352 4416 | rosler-ro@rosler.com | www.rosler.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 113

URB GROUP

of Iaşi on the development of more durable bearings.

“The aim here is to implement these new technologies for the processing of bearing rings and rollers,” Gures continues. “For example, we are investing the replacement of classical grinding operations with hard turning and deep rolling operations.

“Experimental research has shown that by applying these new process techniques, the life of the bearing against fatigue can be improved by a factor of two or more. Once tests are complete, implementation may require investments in equipment and machinery.”

POWERED BY TECHNOLOGY Indeed, URB Group is not afraid to invest in the latest equipment to give itself an extra competitive advantage.

The company has a dedicated testing laboratory to qualify products internally and test their credentials before 114 | EME Outlook issue 36

How critical are your suppliers to your success, and how do you ensure you work with the right partner companies?

DOGAN GURES: “Most companies often choose suppliers based predominantly on cost. However, rarely will this be the most efficient way of doing things, since searching for and arranging contracts with new suppliers introduces further costs. Instead, URB looks at service in order to generate relations based on reliability, quality, and long-term value for money.

“We monitor suppliers’ performance through several quality and delivery performance indicators, and our evaluation and classification criteria, performance indicators and the achieved results are communicated to suppliers on a regular basis.

“Communication should be based on honesty in order to share future business plans, and our aim is to continue to be open and have further direct communication to improve standings with our suppliers.

It is important to appreciate that our business together will provide mutual rewards for each side. The right supplier relationship has many benefits, and taking the time to get to know your suppliers will create a more reliable supply chain.”

MANUFACTURING presenting them to the market, the lab equipped with Ansys software in order to simulate the potential behaviour of the products in different situations.

Testing occurs at every stage of the process using various technologies from leading suppliers, equipment which is staffed by certified operators who are routinely trained in order to keep up to speed.

“Our laboratories inspect the quality of raw materials with Quantodesk equipment, which checks the chemical composition of the material in question,” Gures says, explaining the various levels of testing a bearing will go through.

“After heat treatment, a new diffractometer X-ray assesses the structure.

For the final inspection of the bearing rings and rollers, new equipment was acquired for non-destructive ultrasonic checking – the TTPS Echograph manufactured by KARL DEUTSCH and what we called eddy tests.

“The ultrasonic testing equipment is automatic, ensures a high productivity, and provides high accuracy non-destructive measurements of the product, and eddy tests have capability to identify internal micro-fractures.”

The bearings themselves are produced using laser marking methods which are adapted to suit

exact client specifications, while new grinding machines from Japan and South Korea have also graced the production line.

Importantly, such investments in product and process development are determined by an integrated management approach and integrated management system certified to ISO 9001, IATF 16949, ISO/TS 22163, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 standards.

“We continuously act to perfect processes and invest in modernising our machinery and equipment in order to keep our focus on protection of employees, improved speed, productivity, efficiency, sustainability and product quality,” Gures states.

“Investing in new technologies of course involves a certain amount of expense, but it provides greater savings in the long term.”

And it is the longer term which concerns the Group CEO as he brings the conversation to a close.

Decades of reputation building and savvy investment in employees, new locations and state-of-the-art technology have placed URB Group in a position of relative strength during what is an extremely challenging business environment created by the outbreak of COVID-19.

It leaves Gures upbeat despite

the uncertainty which lies ahead. He concludes: “In a quirk of history, we do this interview with you at a time when the world is going through both a health crisis and an economic depression due to coronavirus.

Many companies are experiencing difficulties in this difficult situation.

“We had predicted that this year would be a troubled year and we have also developed measures to counter it. As we continue our service this year, we will overcome adversity with these measures and enter the new era even stronger.

“Thanks to the technological tradition established by our company for almost 70 years, URB will always be known as one of the main characters of this sector, serving customers all over the world.”

URB GROUP Tel: +40 23 5412120 info@urb.ro www.urbgroup.com

EME Outlook issue 36 | 115

DOMEL

A Driving Force for

Good Slovenia’s Domel has been manufacturing electric motors for use in a variety of home, automotive and industrial applications for seven decades, the cooperative defined by its sustainable, responsible approach to business Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Callam Waller 116 | EME Outlook issue 36

MANUFACTURING

Looking at the current economic situation in Slovenia, as well as the domestic and foreign forecasts of economic trends for 2020, the situation before the coronavirus was exciting due to the technological advances in front of us.

“These are, first and foremost, aimed at the digital transformation of companies, internationalisation, and encouraging domestic and foreign investments. The most encouraging trend for us is electrification and e-mobility, where we see our core competencies as crucial for further development and growth of our business.”

Matjaz Cemazar is certainly optimistic when it comes to Domel’s future prospects.

Despite the uncertainties created

by COVID-19, which has swept across

the world, the CEO is at the helm of a company entering a progressive chapter of its development.

It is Slovenia’s leading manufacturer of motors, operational since 1946 and based in the small municipality of Železniki, a region just northwest of the capital city Ljubljana which the company has been a key community pillar of for more than 70 years.

“Domel grew out of the Niko metalworking cooperative, which was established by 16 local people and named after its driver and founder, Niko Žumer,” Cemazar says, recalling Domel’s heritage.

“Using machines acquired and converted from a craft workshop, the cooperative started the production of recording device mechanisms. The volume of work rapidly increased, and the number of employees grew – by the end of the first year there were already 59 cooperative members.”

Domel is still employee-owned, with more than 1,400 staff members and a revenue of €153 million recorded for 2018, the year Cemazar became CEO. Indeed, he has been engrossed in the company’s innovative activities ever since he joined the firm’s renowned scholarship scheme in 1996, moving to the group full time as an electric motor designer after completing his master’s degree in Ljubljana.

MOTORING PROGRESS Fast-forward to the present day, and Domel stands as a global manufacturer of electric motors and innovative partner for research and development of cuttingedge technology in the field, with production sites also in Serbia and China on top of its four in Slovenia.

And its product portfolio is vast.

From cleaning technology, heat and ventilation systems, and industrial and laboratory applications to medicine, automotive, and e-mobility solutions, Domel’s motors serve a variety of use cases which can be divided into four EME Outlook issue 36 | 117

DOMEL

Domel has a vast motor portfolio, ranging from medicine to e-mobility use cases key categories – consumer, industrial, automotive and medical.

With manufacturing units certified according to ISO 9001, ISO 13485, ISO 14001 and IATF 16949 standards, the company’s solutions are oriented towards special applications where advanced technologies are needed.

Cemazar begins by outlining the consumer market. “Many Domel products are used in household appliances,” he says. “The household industry places high demands on quality and cost of products, and we are fulfilling these demands successfully.

“The cornerstone of our consumer product portfolio is the vacuum cleaner motor (VCM), and in this field we are the biggest independent European manufacturer. Our VCMs cover a large spectrum of powers and air performances, and these products fulfil all the customer requirements for different end products.

“We are able to manufacture most compact and lightweight VCMs with high durability on the one hand, and on the other we concentrate on energy label motors, where low power and high efficiency come to the fore.”

118 | EME Outlook issue 36

VCMs also form an important part of Domel’s industrial portfolio – more rugged versions designed to withstand challenging conditions, wet and dry, with some models carrying a lifespan of up to 20,000 hours.

The company also produces a range of EC (electronically commutated) motors for gardening equipment and power tools, while its industrial portfolio of EC motors serve a wide range of applications in pumps and air compressors, able to provide energy savings thanks to their very durable qualities.

The same group of motors are also influential in heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems, used for plug-in fans, axial fans and single inlet centrifugal forward or backward curved fans, their energy-efficient qualities again being a defining characteristic.

“The main purposes of HVAC systems are to help maintain good indoor air quality through adequate filtered ventilation, and to provide thermal comfort, at the highest energy efficiency possible,” Cemazar explains.

“A comfortable indoor climate, whether in private or commercial

buildings, is by no means a luxury.

Rather, it has lasting positive effects on the entire human organism. In offices and at home, Domel motors in HVAC systems work very quietly and around the clock if necessary.

“HVAC systems are also among the largest energy consumers in buildings.

If the operating costs can be reduced, profitability can be increased and HVAC becomes more environmentally friendly. Domel’s new EC motors guarantee high energy savings, reduce payback time and fulfil IE5 efficiency standards. Energy saving is our mission and responsibility to the environment.”

Cemazar goes on to describe how such energy saving principles are applied in the company’s activities geared towards the mobility and automotive segments.

Not only is Domel the cofounder of the Slovenian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology Platform (SIHFC) and Research Centre for Hydrogen Technologies (RCVT), it also has products present in the growing e-mobility market.

For example, it has developed and industrialised a central drive for e-mountain bikes which is powerful enough to overcome the steepest mountain trails, reliable enough to survive extreme downhill conditions and efficient enough to ensure a long charge life.

Beyond electronic bicycles, Domel’s automotive division specialises in the development, design and construction of special drives aimed at the industry, its organisational structure allowing it to respond flexibly to individual customer requirements.

Domel can produce electric motors from customer specification to the final product inside one company. All core motor elements are produced in house: lamination, insulation, shafts, windings and assembly.

Besides electric motors, Domel also offers motor components and BMC components.

MANUFACTURING

HOW IS DOMEL UTILISING BATTERY TECHNOLOGY?

You have the ideas we have the soluuons

MATJAZ CEMAZAR: “In recent years the increased

capability of lithium-ion battery packs has made the development of battery powered products possible. This means products that were not considered before, such as chainsaws and lawnmowers, are now being powered by battery motors.

“Domel has developed two families of motors for such applications, and these motors, such as our brushless DC motor, excel in terms of minimum mass and very high efficiency.

“But more specifically, high quality materials are used, such as special electrical steel and high energy rear earth magnets. The efficient cooling of active motor parts also helps considerably by lowering the motor mass, which is highly important in hand-held products.

“The two motor families differ in design and also in integration in the application – one motor is completely closed, whereas the other is an open motor with outer rotor and integrated fan. We plan to further expand the family of motors for garden equipment and power tools, especially for battery-powered applications, where special care will be taken to further optimise the efficiency, mass and cost.”

AUTOMOTIVE AND E-MOBILITY And we should not forget about tradition in automotive either, which dates back to 2003. Indeed, Domel has for more than 10 years been in strategic partnership with leading Tier 1 automotive customers.

The automotive division is aimed at the markets of electric water pumps, electric oil pumps and electric air conditioning compressors. With integration of overmoulding with

advanced materials into production processes, Domel is developing applications that can withstand different environmental conditions and, with this integration, the firm has become a trendsetter in the field of electric motors used for water pump and oil pump applications.

Its future strategy in the automotive segment is to upgrade product levels to electric drives and mechatronic systems.

“With the help of various simulation techniques, we can design the right drive for any application,” Cemazar says. “Domel’s DC and EC motors, as well as stepper motors, have a number of concepts built in that open the door to innovation in the automotive industry.

“Our motors are developed using state-of-the-art tools, offer a high utilisation rate and are adapted to each specific application. Given the high utilisation rate, they are an excellent solution for hybrid and electric vehicles.”

A COMMUNITY CUSTODIAN Underpinning all of Domel’s activities are a set of values which have helped it to excel over seven decades. These are: creativity and ambitiousness; responsibility and economy; respect and cooperation; care for customers and employees; and belonging.

They feed in to what Cemazar believes stands Domel apart as EME Outlook issue 36 | 119

DOMEL

IN FOCUS

DOMEL LABS Domel’s history in the medical sector stretches back to 1959 and the founding of Tehtnica, a unit formed on the initiative of some members of the original Niko cooperative. The division soon expanded its product range to focus on laboratory equipment, and today operates as Domel LABS. It provides solutions for medical laboratories, clinical testing equipment, and instruments for tissue and bone homogenisation, supplying equipment such as centrifuges, homogenisers, shakers, incubators and water baths to customers in more than 70 countries.

Following the ISO 13485 medical standards, they enable customers to integrate their centrifuges into their partner companies’ medical devices. Centrifuges are currently sold under the Domel brand name and also as OEM products for some worldwide brands.

“Our health division, while currently our smallest of the four main product lines, could in the long term become the most important unit of the company,” Cemazar adds. “It has come a very long way since it started centrifuge production more than 60 years ago.

“Since LABS is our only business unit that produces final products for individual customers, we think their products are the right ones to carry the Domel brand and represent Domel values.”

120 | EME Outlook issue 36

an organisation – its unwavering commitment to environmental and social responsibility in its operations, not least in the way it has served as a community stalwart in Železniki.

Following the closure of mining activities in the early 20th century, the establishment of the cooperative provided a lifeline to the local area when it set up in the 1940s, the company now its largest employer and key contributor to social security.

Indeed, the CEO himself is a typical example of the long and rewarding careers Domel can offer.

“Employees are motivated towards the successful performance and development of the company, and are loyal to it,” Cemazar says. “We have well-trained and competent workers who benefit from further training and acquisition of skills, and despite our relatively remote geographical location, we do not struggle to find talented people.

“The innovations that the company gains through the constant process of motivating employees generates new opportunities in the global market, and keeps us competitive and attractive

for capital investment.”

Health and safety, harmonisation of family and work life, and equal opportunities regardless of gender and religion are all vital focusses for Domel, which also collaborates with education institutions and helps to fund technical education of local children.

LOOKING AHEAD TO A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE This commitment to social responsibility is equally apparent in the firm’s approach to environmental stewardship.

“Consumers desire high-quality products and services that match their purpose and are appropriately priced, high quality and manufactured responsibly,” Cemazar continues. “We develop products that are innovative and highly energy efficient, and such products ease the burden on the environment through their low energy consumption.

“Further, our products are not hazardous either in use or after they are no longer in use, and our technological processes do not involve hazardous substances, materials or

MANUFACTURING

Domel has been manufacturing electrical motors in Slovenia since 1946 radiation that may threaten human health in the local and wider area.”

Crucial to the environmental credentials of Domel products are leading-edge components, especially when it comes to durability, efficiency and weight – key factors in a product’s level of sustainability.

This prompts the CEO to highlight the indispensable role played by the company’s supply chain network and group of dedicated suppliers, both local and international.

“Our products generally perform better and are lighter in mass than those of our competitors,” Cemazar says. “To achieve this, we rely on first rate suppliers who we have the greatest confidence in. Innovation through the supply chain is therefore very important, and our relationships are strategic in that we work together with partners from an early stage in terms of new ideas.

“We share in each other’s success, and some of our partnerships date

back 30 or 40 years, just as we are a long-term, reliable partner to our own customers. In athletics terms, we are a long-distance runner, not a sprinter.”

This is not to suggest that Domel does not encourage a competitive procurement process. Indeed, the firm utilises multiple suppliers for most components and adopts stringent quality audits in its selection and quality control processes, often helping smaller suppliers to uplift their operations to certified levels.

In China, for instance, the group has managed a purchasing office since 2005, a setup which continually assesses, assists and develops supplier companies to the required level.

And it is the raising of standards which Cemazar points to as a key component of Domel’s mid-term strategy.

The CEO plans to heighten the value-added offering of the company and wider Slovenian market, as well as enhance internal processes,

drive digitisation, grow technical competencies and further evolve the product portfolio.

This will lay the foundations of another successful chapter in Domel’s development, helping it to continue serving as a vital community partner for a great many more years to come.

Cemazar concludes: “Železniki benefitted from the cooperative when Niko Žumer and 15 other locals set the organisation up in 1946, and ever since it has provided livelihoods to people in the area.

“Domel has become synonymous with Železniki, and long may this relationship continue.”

DOMEL Tel: + 386 (0)4 5117 100 info@domel.com ww.domel.com/en

EME Outlook issue 36 | 121

THE FINAL WORD

What or who has been a source of inspiration for you during your career?

To round off each issue, we ask our contributing business leaders for their views on the same question

Ahmad Abu Ghazaleh Founder and Vice Chairman, Abdali Hospital “The person who most inspired my career is Mr Mohammed Abu Ghazaleh, Founder and Chairman of Abdali Hospital, Fresh Del Monte and other businesses. He is also my father. His drive, like mine, is a fierce determination to create value for the communities we serve, to create opportunity for people, and to do this by encouraging a culture of equality. What better sector to do this than healthcare!

“He embraces innovation to find ways to drive efficiency and effectiveness, in a fact based and systematic way, with a goal to increase access and choices of services and goods to more people. I learnt very early from him the importance of integrity and conducting ourselves and our businesses ethically, always. All our businesses run under very robust governance and compliance. This was a very important component to allow him to take Fresh Del Monte public on the NYSE. On a personal level, I am inspired by my father’s humility, empathy and intellectual curiosity, all essential attributes in an innovative healthcare environment.”

Andrei Serbescu Founding Partner, ADNBA “Like most young people, I didn’t know much about architecture when I started college. I had just seen my father drawing; he was an engineer who worked most of his life surrounded by architects, whom he admired. My real interest was ignited by a design teacher I had the 122 | EME Outlook issue 36

chance to meet at university, an extremely talented teacher and architect (which is quite a rare combination), and a very special person. Therefore, I became interested in architecture and design by seeing and feeling someone else’s interest and passion for the field, someone who had the gift to make this interest contagious.”

Hiren Parekh VP Northern Europe, OVHcloud “There are several people that have inspired me through life and my career, but it all started with my parents. They emigrated from India to the UK with very little and without English as their first language. It took a lot of self-motivation, learning and persistence which enabled them to adapt and grow a business.

“This has provided a foundation for me and my siblings to fully integrate into society and prove that anything is possible. Seeing each day as a new learning experience, motivating one’s

self to achieve more with persistence and tenacity will allow anyone to progress their career and get you where you want to be.”

Micha Pawelka Managing Director (ME), Priedemann Façade Experts “There have been a few through the years. From my previous job, it has been Gregor Ranner, the General Manager of Interpane, for his client-oriented approach in sales and management. He taught me to always remember that a well-served client will always come back. At Priedemann, my inspirations are my partners on the board. Lars Anders, Wolfgang Feuerlein and Anees Backer. While they all combine trust and empathy to the individual, each of them has unique skills to teach me; humanity, vision and humbleness – a combination that I feel is important.”

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