H.E. Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer urges construction industry to invest in renewable resources

Industry leaders from across the Middle East convened at The Big 5, were today urged to invest in renewable resources in a keynote speech delivered at the Design Summit by H.E. Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of DEWA.

During his speech His Excellency spoke about the importance in investing in renewable and clean resources to provide energy, and that Dubai has launched three new smart initiatives to transform the Emirate into one of the smartest in the world.

In September, the UN adopted a plan for the Sustainable Development Goals including 17 goals to be accomplished in the next 15 years, and H.E. said that simplicity will play a key role in addressing the modern-day challenge of sustainability. 

In a lively encounter the Summit began with some opening remarks from Chris Seymour Head of Markets at ARCADIS ME. His remarks were followed by those of Eng. Abdulla Rafia, Assistant Director General of Planning and Engineering, Dubai Municipality, who spoke about shaping Dubai’s green building revolution.

Meanwhile, in addressing an audience comprised of leading architects, urban planners, engineers, consultants, and contractors, Lorenzo Pallotta, Project Director for the Expo Milano 2015 also emphasised the importance of flexibility in the Expo planning process.

“From start to finish, flexibility will be the key to a successful expo in Dubai. Planners will need to consider how to bring a abstract theme to life for a wide public audience, as well as planning for the post-expo transition that must take into account now, the changing expectations and markets of the future,” Pallotta said.

“If we had planned and developed expo buildings as permanent fixtures we would be in a very different situation to the one we’re in now, especially after the economic changes and evolving nature of the city that have taken place.”

Italy has invested a reported US$1.4 billion in Expo Milano 2015 with 20 million visitors during the course of the event. 

Pallotta was one of several high-profile speakers at the Design Summit, which remains the only free conference to provide in-depth insights into the latest architectural, design, technology, and other trends in the Middle East.

The one-day Design Summit concluded with a roundtable on future innovation and technologies and materials that are revolutionising the market, where reducing the carbon footprint in the GCC was a central theme for moderator John Smith, Professor of Architecture at the American University in Dubai.

Meanwhile another country with a big presence at The Big 5 is Turkey, and Cagatay Ersahin, Event Director at Expotim, the company responsible for the Turkish pavilion, said that as the Platinum Sponsor for The Big 5 2015, Expotim we organised a 4,843 square metre pavilion for more 250 exhibitors from Turkey.

In addition to reflecting new trends and opportunities in booming construction markets in the GCC, the topics discussed at The Design Summit acted as a precursor to the GAIA Awards, which will be presented at a prestigious award ceremony today.

The GAIA Awards has grown into the industry’s most respected awards honoring those construction equipment and products that have truly integrated the concept of moving towards a more sustainable built environment. 

Finalists are selected by an independent and impartial judging panel, with 2015 GAIA Awards winners eligible to receive more than US$50,000 worth of marketing support, in order to showcase the winning product to the market.

The 2015 awards accepted nearly 300 entries across 6 categories and the winners will be announced at the GAIA Awards ceremony on Tuesday 24th November at 14.00pm in the Technology in Construction Theatre at The Big 5.