MEINHARDT FACADE TECHNOLOGY

ASIA MEINHARDT FAÇADE TECHNOLOGY

The world’s leading façade consultancy

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Innovation on a

Growing Scale Meinhardt Façade Technology’s portfolio, market reach and internal acumen speaks for itself, but the Company refuses to rest on its laurels as it targets even more concerted growth in the years to come Writer: Matthew Staff | Project Manager: Tom Cullum

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0 years is a long time in the industrial world, with the need to keep up with, and stay ahead of, ever-changing trends and requirements an attribute that few can maintain. Meinhardt Façade Technology (MFT) is a prime example of an enterprise to have achieved just that though, and as one of the Meinhardt Group’s most significant subsidiaries, its project portfolio is testament to this ability to remain relevant and thriving in such a challenging sector.

“We have a formidable track record of more than 1,500 iconic projects around the world covering more than 25 million square metres of façade surfaces (equivalent to 3,300 football fields) and 50,000 floors (equivalent to 580 Eiffel Towers),” elaborates the Company’s Managing Director, Paul Grove.

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Meinhardt Façade Technology is a multinational façade consultancy comprised of 11 offices strategically located to reach an international client base across Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Grove accounts for London to Melbourne while his accompanying MD, Sunny Fok covers Hong Kong, China and the Philippines from his office in the former. Additional offices in Dubai, Singapore, India, Indonesia, and soon Germany complete the structure, and the 198 full-time employees that grace this compliment help to extend one of the most concerted service offerings in the industry.

Grove explains: “Our core service revolves around façade engineering and consultancy, and façade access consultancy. We tend to focus on our core business, while other disciplines such as ESD are controlled under our Group company. This allows us to really concentrate on what we do best.

DONG E BLUE SKY SEVEN

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ong E Blue Sky Seven Color Building Material Co. Ltd is a leading manufacturer of aluminium panels in China.

Founded in 1966, the Company produces a range of aluminium cladding panels, namely its SEVEN aluminium composite panel (ACP) and prefabricated solid aluminium panel (SAP).

With lightweight, durable and workable properties, Dong E Blue Sky Seven Color Building Material utilises the ACP and SAP in a range of ways, from attractive exterior façade’s to interior design features.

For those seeking a unique and iconic identity with distinguished design, Dong E Blue Sky Seven Color Building Material offers a diverse and flexible range of tailored solutions.

The firm offers the best in decorative products by matching any colour in metallic or matte finishes, creating inspiring interiors, elegant ceilings, stylish arches and distinctive walls and columns.

This combined with its bespoke manufacturing processes that utilises methods such as cutting, roll bending and punching, allows companies to create a distinctive look for their brand through the creative power of interior and exterior design.

Created using the, state of art facilities including high-quality lacquering Xxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx processes, the Company’s products offer excellent resistance to weathering, chalking and air pollution.

Examples of its work can be found at the MITEC Exhibition and Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, the Menara MRCB building in Putrajaya, Sandakan Airport in Sabah, and the Celcom Tower in Selangor, Malaysia.

AIA capital centre, Bangkok, Thailand

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T 0086-635-3584833 E sevenpanel@sevenpanel.com www.sevenpanel.com

Designed for Excellence

SEVEN International Sdn Bhd No. 33, Jalan Gangsa SD5/3C Sri Damansara Industrial Park 52200 Kuala Lumpur T +603 6272 2877 | F +603 6272 3977 E info@sevenbond.com

sevenbond.com

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“Although we are part of a larger group we have licence to operate and win projects independently, so apart from supporting our Group by offering the specialist in-house façade support, approximately 80 per cent of our projects worldwide are secured independently. This makes MFT different from many other large façade consultancies around the world and we believe it allows us to have closer relationships with our clients.”

GNT GLASS GnT, Vision for Better Glass Positioning itself as a complex fabricated glass product provider with a mission of offering quality glass to customers, GnT Glass Co. Ltd has always strived to make a difference in the industry via pioneering improvements across product creativity and technological innovation.

Located in Dongguan City Guangdong Province, China, the Company’s development over the past decade has cemented its status as a leading deep processing glass company; and as such has endeared itself to a host of international manufacturers including Vitro-PPG, Guardian, Saint-Gobain, Glas Trosch, Pilkington, AGC, Sefar, and many more.

Exciting projects

By having such a multitude of strategically located offices around operating continents, the Company is able to mobilise more quickly and efficiently for each prospective project encapsulated within that given footprint.

Vietcom Bank Tower, Vietnam. Meinhardt has been commissioned to undertake the civil and structural design, as well as the façade design, for this 60,000 square metre landmark retail banking complex and office development to be constructed in Ho Chi Minh City. Located next to the Saigon River, the 35 storey office development will provide grade-A office space to be used by Vietnam’s largest bank, Vietcom Bank, as well as office space for private tenants. The building also features a four level basement and five level podium

AIA Sathorn Tower, Thailand. Meinhardt provided 29 storeys Grade-A office building with 70,000 square metre, total GFA, column free design. Full scope of service from intital concept design through to project realisation. With a typical floor plan of 2,000 square metres, standing 130 metre above the ground with a single basement level housing main mechanical, electrical and plumbing. The project includes a multilevel car park with two basements

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A recent example in recent times has been Vietnam which benefits from collaborative influences from MFT’s Thailand and Singapore offices.

“We need to ensure that the relevant offices are sharing business leads to avoid duplication of clients, but we mitigate this challenge with successful, ongoing communication.

And once demand has reached a certain level in a new region or market, we will make a strategic move to set up a local office there,” Grove says.

“This then allows us to have somebody local to control and directly serve the clients.

“Clients want to have a local person there full-time as the requirements for meetings at short notice can be very

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Through each partnership GnT has successfully completed various landmark projects in North America, Europe, Australia, Middle East and Asia; expanding continuously from its strategically advantageous base in the Pearl Delta area. This positioning facilitates connections to shipping ports, airports, express trains and high-speed road networks, ensuring a faster and more efficient service to customers.

And ultimately, the Company’s vision for better glass is realized more effectively and consistently as a consequence.

GNT says: “We carry the mission of providing better glass to our customers, and always make improvements in Xxxxxxxx xxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx our creativity, innovative technologies and products as a top priority in the industry.”

An example of such expertise, GnT GLASS CO., LTD has been delivering complex architectural glass products to high profile projects such as Jewel @ Changi Airport in Singapore, 609 Main Street in the US, FASS Sydney University in Australia, Etihad Museum in UAE and so on from its 100,000 square meter industrial park.

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Hong Kong Xiqu Center

Hyundai Motor Studio, Korea

Etihad Museum, UAE

Jewel @ Changi Airport, Singapore

GnT Glass, Complex Fabricated Glass Provider

GnT Glass Co., Ltd | T: +86 769 8109 2128 | F: +86 769 8109 2118 | www.gntglass.com

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demanding, and we need to ensure we can meet those demands for our clients.”

Despite the exponential growth that has been achieved over the years, a close-knit collaborative culture has been retained, each office leveraging the local knowledge-base and cultural awareness of its counterparts to make the process for any repeat clients as seamless as possible. Of course, this has taken on an extra dimension through MFT’s broader expansion into the Middle East, but once again flexibility and communication have offset any potential pitfalls during the transition.

Inevitably, such an approach has manifested into numerous attained high-profile projects that continue to cement the Company’s standing in the global sector.

Grove details: “Most of the design work in which we are involved is at a

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very early concept stage, but we are working on some exciting projects including on a major airport expansion where we are working on the overall façade envelope to the airport concourses. We are also working on a complex statue project in India, which is quite unique and probably the most unusual façade project we have undertaken.”

Moving to even grander heights, and MFT’s experience with supertall and mega-tall towers is even more impressive, as Grove continues: “Over the years, Meinhardt Façade Technology has been working on the façade design, façade fabrication and façade installation works on both supertall (>300 metres) and mega-tall towers (>600 metres).

“Just recently, Meinhardt Façade Technology had a complete façade quality control team based on-site at the Jeddah Tower, previously known

ZAK WORLD OF FACADES

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ak World of Façades (www. zakworldoffacades.com) is an International conference series on façade design and engineering, having attracted more than 12,000 delegates across its 39 completed editions.

The conference is currently being organised in 20 countries in the Middle East (UAE, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia), South Asia (India and Sri Lanka), South East Asia (Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia), Africa (Kenya, Morocco and South Africa), Greater China (Hong Kong), Europe (United Kingdom and France) and Australasia (Australia and New Zealand) and the United States of America. The event attracts senior architects, developers, façade consultants, PMCs, façade contractors along with key consultants and decision makers.

The event comprises keynote presentations and Pecha-Kucha sessions from premier speakers from the façade industry, engaging panel discussions and power networking, which offers opportunities to the delegates attending this conference to share and learn the latest trends and advancements in the façade industry, as we extensively believe in enhancing the power of knowledge for every attending delegate and organisation at our conference.

The forum also pushes the creativity and challenges the solution providers to innovate and bring out the best services and products in line with the expectation of the designers.

Our experience in organising events for the façade and fenestration industry for more than two decades makes us strongly believe that customer satisfaction is key to our success of our conferences, as we strive to deliver high quality, engaging and well attended events for the future.

Ilham Baru Tower, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

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T +91 44 42959595 E info@zakgroup.com www.zakworldoffacades.com

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as Kingdom Tower and Mile-High Tower. Once finished, this tower will be the world’s first building up in the clouds of one-kilometre high. This unique expertise enables Meinhardt Façade Technology to consult any client or façade contractor on the challenges associated with the design, fabrication, logistics and installation of these challenging buildings.”

Façade technology evolves quickly

Internally, a host of continuous improvement initiatives are employed to facilitate such operations on site; largely led by a research and development team that ensures the Company is living up to its technological expectations and remaining ahead of all industry curves.

Grove expands: “Façade technology evolves quickly, driven by architectural demands for more and more complex façade geometries. Meinhardt Façade Technology is among the world’s

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leading consultants for these complex facades, having refined existing technical options as well as having developed new geometry approaches and technologies.

“The options, ‘Shifted Louvre’, ‘Fish Scale’ and ‘Cold Bending – Warped’ were implemented by Meinhardt Façade Technology on various highrise buildings worldwide. In addition, Meinhardt presented various new developments including the single corner cold bending and the novel freeform shape cold bending technology at internationally-renowned façade conferences in Europe, Middle East and the US.” One big recent investment to compound this adherence to modern trends is in the area of software upgrades, making sure that all engineering software is up-todate. The number of projects being completed using BIM has also risen in accordance with industry expectations

Rosewood Hotel, Bangkok, Thailand

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as Grove adds: “We have had to significantly update our BIM software and hardware to be able to handle and manipulate large models. The models are quite heavy and require the correct hardware to be able to access them. This has really come into effect in the past 24 months, so the façade operation had to catch up with this requirement.”

From then on, the majority of MFT’s internal investments revolve around one critical component of the overall structure: The Company’s people.

With the success of each office now affirmed and development plans in place for each, it is down to the employees housed in each respective location to fulfil these objectives.

Addressing technological facets, administrative responsibilities, and general business operations, human resource (HR) continues to serve as one of MFT’s greatest strengths.

“This is vitally important as this is

Central Embassy, Bangkok, Thailand

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Shenyang Yuanda Aluminium Industry Engineering Company Limited No. 20, No. 13 street, Zhangshi Economic development zone, Shenyang, China Phone No.: +84 12 8237 8874 (S.E. Asia Group) E-mail: Jobs@yuandacn.com

Jasa Kita Group (JKG), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

something that really stands out with our clients,” Grove notes. “For general hiring we utilise the company website and list on local recruitment sites.

For key positions, we identify a key candidate profile and subsequently engage a recruitment consultancy to reach out to this talent for us.

“We do however like to promote our staff internally if the relevant candidates and positions become available. This is more practical, then we hire from the bottom which allows us to bring in less senior staff and train them internally.”

www.yuandacn.com

“However, that does not mean we will rest on our laurels,” Grove is quick to add. “I personally think we are different from other multinational façade consultants, as we are given autonomy to operate individually while aligning to our Group’s vision and mission.

“I also believe we have some of the most talented façade engineers and consultants in our field. We are therefore able to be innovators in what we do, and this really makes a big difference,” the MD continues in outlining MFT’s core differentiators.

He goes on to emphasise that the Innovators in what we do façade team is also very diverse, By adopting a promotive and enriching made up of people from different HR philosophy, the Company is directly geographic, technical and industry serving as a social enabler across each backgrounds to help present the of its presence points. And from there best overall outlook possible for on, its core specialties come to the fore prospective clients. to further affirm its position as one of, This solid understanding and if not, the leading façade consultancy practical approach to the entire in the world. project, from conception to

completion, is what will usher in the next 20 years of success for MFT as it looks to build upon the reputation and market standing already achieved.

“In terms of expansion, without giving too much away, we are looking at other countries where we would like to establish a façade team with a local presence,” Grove alludes to what’s to come. “Our current regional offices do carry out work in other regions, and our Group has many more regional offices than the façade team, so it is key that we work with them and identify areas where there is sufficient need to establish a local façade team.

“I would also hope that we will add three to four local offices and increase the overall façade team by 15 to 20 percent over the next couple of years.

“But key to all of this is our clients, whom we need to build close relationships with, as without them there is no need for us to expand.”

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DUBAI PO Box 38349 Gold & Diamond Park Building 4 Unit 130 Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, UAE T +971 4 341 6686 E info.ae@meinhardtgroup.com www.meinhardtgroup.com

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SINGAPORE (Head Office) 168 Jalan Bukit Merah #09-01 Surbana One Singapore 150168 T + 65 6273 5255 E info@meinhardt.com.sg www.meinhardtgroup.com