It’s an old cliché but the year is flying by at a rapid pace – where does the time go? It seems only yesterday when Expo 2020 opened its doors to the world in October 2021 and already the closing ceremony on 31 March 2022 is looming up fast. The Expo has been a huge success and the legacy projects will be starting straight after the event finishes.
The recommencement of the ‘in-person’ Intersec Exhibition and Conference held on 16–18 January 2022 was a huge success. Unfortunately, many international and local exhibitors were unable to attend in person due to uncertainty around Covid-19, but notwithstanding the ‘covid factor’ the event was a great success.
The branch was delighted to arrange for Neil Gibbins FIFireE to present in-person at Intersec as part of the Agile First Responders conference, which formed part of the Emergency response excellence & innovation: Strategy, tactics and deployment conference held over the three days. Many will know Neil has been both President and CEO of the IFE and remains active in supporting IFE activities. He is currently the Lead Fire Safety Consultant at Collaborative Reporting for Safer Structures UK (CROSS UK). Neil gave a very informative insight into his role and the importance of the work being undertaken by CROSS which was well received by the event delegates and attendees.
The IFE Examinations took place on Thursday, 31 March 2022 and Friday, 1 April 2022. There were 16 candidates registered sitting a total of 21 examination papers in Dubai, which was again hosted at the Tyco Training Centre in Media City. Many thanks go out to Johnson Controls and in particular Jason Mather for their ongoing support and use of their training facilities. It is encouraging to see the uptake for the Level 2 and 3 Certificate for Passive Fire Protection with a total of nine candidates taking these examinations.
Ministry of Interior Award
In this update I wanted to pay a special tribute and shout out to Terry Johnson FIFireE who has recently received a Certificate and Medal of Excellence in recognition of his outstanding job performance in the field of safety and security of the UAE. As many will know, Terry served at Dubai Civil Defense (DCD) for 12 years before moving to ENOC as their Crisis and Response Manager. The Ministry of Interior award is given by HH Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and this is the second occasion Terry has been recognized for his outstanding contribution to the fire and emergency response sector here in the UAE. The first Ministry of Interior Medal for Distinguished and Excellent Services award was given to Terry in November 2012 – congratulations and well done Terry!
Market update
The market conditions in the UAE remain challenging, but as highlighted above the legacy works will commence following the end of Expo 2020 bringing a well-needed boost to the market. Saudi Arabia remains a very strong market following Vision 2030, which was unveiled in April 2016 by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman al-Saud, for economic and social reform in the kingdom. The Saudi Vision 2030 still supports large-scale investment that is accelerating diversification including providing new housing, developing and opening up tourism, and expanding the kingdom’s manufacturing base. The ‘gigaprojects’ remain the focus of the market interest, including the $500bn Neom future city, The Red Sea Project, Amaala, Diriyah, Qiddiya and Al-Ula. I have personally visited The Red Sea Project base camp and Coastal Village on two occasions and the speed and quality of the development is inspirational. Other notable projects, such as King Salman Park, Riyadh Sports Boulevard and Jeddah Downtown have also been active, largely in the planning and design stages, but as 2030 looms ever closer on the horizon the ‘gigaprojects’ are entering their main construction and delivery phases with many project packages in the pipeline that will support project spending and business opportunities for many years. There is a move to deliver projects through partnerships between government sponsors and contractors, which will no doubt encourage international companies back into the local market if they are not already active in the region. The kingdom has shown that it is ready to innovate with legislative changes. For example, limiting government contracts to Saudi-headquartered companies and the newly launched public-private partnership law are significant changes in the market.
Fire Conference 2022
Following another successful UK conference held during November 2021, which saw over 400 delegates in attendance, FIRE 2022 is set to return later this year. Traditionally organised collaboratively between the Fire Protection Association (FPA), Institution of Fire Engineers (IFE), and the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC), the Fire 2022 team have now welcomed the Fire Sector Federation (FSF) as a key contributor and supporter of this event. The four parties will work closely together on the event programme to discuss and debate major challenges affecting the fire-safety landscape. The one-day conference will boast presentations and workshops by expert speakers from the UK and around the world. This year’s themes include competency and a focus on legislation changes, as well as a look ahead to the future challenges faced by our sector considering climate change, sustainability and the introduction of new fuels. Taking place on 18 October 2022, the conference will be held at Aviva’s Headquarters in London. Building on the success of last year, the event will be held in a hybrid format enabling delegates to attend in person or online.
Look forward
While the UAE construction market remains challenging, we look ahead to the opportunities presented by the Expo 2020 legacy programme, and there will no doubt be a wider focus on opportunities across the GCC, particularly in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We look forward to future events such as Intersec 2023 along with the innovation and competence within the fire sector, which will be a key focus globally to keep high standards of fire safety across the region.
For more information, go to www.ife.org.uk/GCC-UAE
About the Author
Branch President, GCC Branch – The Institution of Fire Engineers.
