Focus on quality raising standards for projects excellence in the region

The GCC has one of the biggest construction pipelines in the world with $3.1 trillion worth of projects planned or under way in the region, according to MEED Projects.

The high value of projects planned and underway is a clear indication of how the projects industry has become a key driver for the economic success of the GCC, laying the foundations for the long-term, sustainable development of the region that will support future generations. MEED supports this development by recognising and celebrating the best achievements of the region’s projects industry through its annual MEED Projects Awards, in association with Mashreq. The awards programme has a two-stage judging process that recognises the best projects at the national level and then selects an overall GCC winner for each category.

Since launching the projects awards programme in 2011, MEED has recognised 92 of the highest quality projects across the GCC that were completed between 2009 and 2017. Regionally, the UAE has enjoyed the most success with 28 GCC winners, followed by Saudi Arabia with 17 and Qatar 16. Bahrain and Oman have 12 and 11 regional winners, respectively, while Kuwait has 8. At the country level, the UAE has had 154 national winners, followed by Saudi Arabia with 46 and Qatar 43. Oman is next with 38, followed by Bahrain with 26 and Kuwait with 25 national winners. A total of 332 national winners have been recognised since 2011.

“This is not just about having the tallest building or the largest infrastructure project, although these are impressive accomplishments, it is more about how the projects contribute to the economic and social success and sustainability of the community where they are based. Other critical factors reviewed by the judges are innovations and achievements in design, engineering and construction. These are the benchmarks that invariably have an impact on the successful completion of any project,” said Becky Crayman, Programme Director, Awards & Managed Events, MEED.

The awards programme’s most coveted prize, the MEED Quality Project of the Year, in association with Mashreq, has so far been given to just four countries. The UAE has won twice with the Burj Khalifa Project in 2011 and the Dubai International Airport – Concourse A Project in 2013. Qatar is another two-time winner, with Qatar Petroleum and Qatar Shell’s Pearl GTL Project in 2012, and the Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies Building Project in 2015.

Saudi Arabia is another double winner, receiving the top award two years in a row with the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies & Research Centre Project in 2016 and the Sadara Project last year. Bahrain has won once, with Bahrain Petroleum Company’s (BAPCO) Install Refinery Wastewater Treatment Plant Project in 2014. For the past seven years, the MEED Projects Awards has been recognising completed schemes in a broad range of categories, including Oil & Gas Project of the Year, Industrial Project of the Year, Power & Water Project of the Year, Leisure & Tourism Project of the Year, Transport Project of the Year, Social Infrastructure Project of the Year, Building Project of the Year, Sustainable Project of the Year, Award for Innovation, and Small Project of the Year.

New categories have also been added, opening the door for a broader range of projects to be recognised, reflecting the growing diversity of projects being completed throughout the region. These include Airport Project of the Year, Retail Project of the Year, Mixed-Use Project of the Year, Residential Project of the Year, Rail Project of the Year; Road & Bridge Project of the Year and Mega Project of the Year. The UAE has been a dominant force in three regional categories – Transport Project of the Year, Industrial Project of the Year and Building Project of the Year – which reflect some of the most prominent projects the country has recently completed. The Dubai Metro Red and Green Line Projects won the GCC Transport Project of the Year award in 2011 and 2012, respectively; while the Dubai International Airport – Concourse A Project won the following year in 2013.

The UAE has produced a total of four winners in the GCC Industrial Project of the Year category, with the Emirates Aluminium Smelter Complex Project in 2012, the Ducab HV and EHV Facility Project in 2013, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s (ADNOC) Industrial Gas Development Project in 2014, and the Taweelah Aluminum Extrusion Plant for TALEX last year. The country also figured prominently in the GCC Building Project of the Year category, winning four times with the Burj Khalifa Project in 2011, the Damac Ocean Heights Project in 2012, the Cayan Project in 2014 and the Etihad Museum Project in 2017.

Projects completed in Saudi Arabia have dominated the GCC Social Infrastructure Project of the Year, with the Development of King Abdul Aziz Endowment Project - Makkah and the King Fahad National Library Project winning in 2013 and 2014, respectively. The kingdom has also won the GCC Oil & Gas Project of the Year two years in a row with the Yanbu Aramco Sinopec Refining Company Ltd. (YASREF) Refinery Project in 2016 and the Sadara Project in 2017.

Bahrain has made its mark in the GCC Sustainable Project of the Year category, where three of its projects have emerged triumphant: the Carbon Dioxide Recovery Project in 2011, the BAPCO Install Refinery Wastewater Treatment Plant Project in 2014 and the Ministry of Works’ Muharraq STP and Sewage Conveyance Project in 2015.

Oman, meanwhile, has had multiple winners in the GCC Leisure & Tourism Project of the Year category, with the Salalah Gardens Mall and Residences Project winning in 2014, followed by the Alila Jabal Akhdar Resort Project in 2015. The sultanate has also won two of the new award categories with the Design & Construction of Underpasses & Flyovers Darsait – Al Wadi Al Kabir Road taking the GCC Road & Bridge Project of the Year trophy, and Oman Avenues Mall (Extension to Lulu Hypermarket in Bausher- Stage 2) winning GCC Retail Project of the Year in 2016.

Kuwait is the only country that has produced winners in the GCC Residential Project of the Year category, winning with the Wall House project in 2016 and the Three Gardens Project in 2017. Project owners, developers, contractors and suppliers can now join this elite group of winners with the 2018 edition of the MEED Projects Awards, in association with Mashreq.

Submissions may be made online via www.projects-awards.meed.com. The deadline for entries is 11 January 2018.

Quality projects in the GCC, by the numbers:

The GCC has one of the largest construction pipelines in the world on many levels – size complexity and cost. Below are some statistics on quality projects across the region.

US$3.1tr  – Value of projects planned or underway in the GCC (Source: MEED Projects)

7 – Projects which have won the MEED Quality Project of the Year award, out of the thousands of projects completed between 2010 and 2017.

154X – Number of times UAE projects won national honours in various categories, the most by any country; followed by Saudi Arabia

2X – Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have won back to back awards in 2016 and 2017 for GCC Residential Project of the Year and GCC Oil & Gas Project of the Year, respectively

332 – Total number of projects recognised as national winners across the GCC member countries

92 – Projects recognised as regional winners by the MEED Projects Awards

3X – Bahrain has won the GCC Sustainable Project of the Year award, showcasing its excellence and leadership in this category

1X – An Omani hotel project is the first to win the GCC Hotel Project of the Year award introduced last year

Interested in submitting an entry?

The MEED Projects Awards has been the leading stamp of quality and achievement for anyone operating in the GCC projects sector. The 2017 edition of the awards programme garnered a 45% increase in number of entries compared to its predecessor. The 2018 edition anticipates a similar response as new projects and teams demonstrate their contribution to the GCC economy, sustainability and success in architecture, engineering and construction. View the categories and submit your project today at http://projectsawards.meed.com.

Entry Deadline: 18 JANUARY 2018

Awards Ceremony: 2 MAY 2018

For more information or to register: Tel: +971 4 818 0224; Email: projectsawards@meed.com; #MPA2018; www.projects-awards.meed.com