Ramboll Middle East Newsletter Issue #2

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1 1 RME NEWS RAMBOLL MIDDLE EAST NEWSLETTER ISSUE#2 DECEMBER 2015 REACHING NEW HEIGHTS The 84-level Damac Heights tower in Dubai Marina has topped out to be the country’s seventh tallest residential tower in the United Arab Emirates. Read more on page 6

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December 2015

Transcript of Ramboll Middle East Newsletter Issue #2

Page 1: Ramboll Middle East Newsletter Issue #2

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RME NEWSRAMBOLL MIDDLE EAST NEWSLETTERISSUE#2 DECEMBER 2015

REACHING NEW HEIGHTSThe 84-level Damac Heights tower in Dubai Marina has topped out to be the country’s seventh tallest residential tower in the United Arab Emirates.

Read more on page 6

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MD’s Message

Dear Colleagues,

On reflecting back on 2015 we have had a very busy, eventful and challenging year from many different aspects. We have seen some notable successes with the extension of the DVE Green Line contract in Qatar, the design of the Ministry of Interior Headquarters Building in Saudi Arabia and the design of the General Cargo Terminal in Oman to name a few of the larger projects secured. We have seen our numbers and service offering increase over the year, and despite the recent regrettable redundancies of some of our friends and colleagues, we have maintained modest growth in revenue from last year.

2015 has also been a year of strengthening the project delivery and business operations and whilst we did not achieve our financial goals, I do believe that we have been investing in the areas that will make 2016 a successful year. We are a driving ahead with project excellence under the guidance of Panos and it is really pleasing to see the enthusiasm of the project teams and contribution many of you have made in the success of this to date. We have strengthened our financial affairs under the direction of Zohaib, our Environment team under the leadership of Rob Hounsome and at the start of the new year Maria Manzoor joins us to lead the regional HR team. These are all key investments made to improve efficiency and to provide a solid platform to continue to develop the business across the region.

From a project perspective it is great to see the challenging and innovative projects that our teams are in engaged in from sustainable golf courses in Qatar to facades in Dubai including Marasi Al Bahrain and Dubai Design District Waterfront D3. This demonstrates that it is not always about the large projects but also the projects that make a difference and demonstrate the values of Ramboll. What is very pleasing is to see the recognition of these achievements from the market from feedback with clients to the awards won including the MEP “Electrical Project of the Year” for our Corniche Towers Jeddah project. In 2016 we will continue to leverage the great project work you undertake in developing and building relationships with key clients across the region and in building the Ramboll brand.

I want to close with wishing you and your families all the best in this festive season and looking forward to a prosperous New Year.

Kind regards

Richard BeardManaging Director, Ramboll Middle East

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Welcome to the second issue of RME News, Ramboll Middle East’s employee newsletter.

Firstly I would like to thank all the employees who have contributed to this bumper issue. We have some great articles, interviews and personal updates – all of which we hope you will find interesting and informative.

In this issue we welcome Maria Manzoor, Ramboll Middle East’s new Head of HR who joins us in January. We have three project updates, Damac Heights, the Salalah Port project and the Golf Course in the heart of Doha. There is also a recap of some of the events that occurred during 2015 and we learn more about our colleagues in Ramboll Middle East in the “Spotlight” section.

Maria Fe Garcia, Marketing & Communications Consultant for Ramboll Middle East and I make up the editorial team for this publication. We are interested in hearing Ramboll news from across the Middle East so please feel free to bring any comments, suggestions or new stories to our attention for future editions.

We do hope you will enjoy this issue.

Best regards and easy reading,

Lisa ChristowitzHead of Communications, New Markets

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We would like to receive your feedback!

Email us at [email protected] if you have any comments regarding this issue; or if you have any suggestions on how we can improve the newsletter.

Editorial Team

Editorially Speaking

Maria Fe GarciaMarketing & Communications Consultant

Lisa ChristowitzHead of CommunicationsNew Markets

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HR Update

Meet RME’s Head of HR, Maria Manzoor

A human resources practitioner and certified professional co-active coach, Maria Manzoor joins Ramboll Middle East as Head of HR effective 3 January 2016.

Born and raised in Sweden, Maria has a broad education where she completed the Journalism Foundation Course in 1992 at Aligsas College in Sweden, received certificates in Language, HR and Business in 1993 at Ecole de Langues Et De Commerce in Switzerland. She has a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from Amsterdam University, a Master of Arts in International Relations (with honours) from Sheffield University, UK and is a certified Professional Co-Active Coach. With a flair for languages, Maria speaks seven languages that include English, Swedish, Farsi (fluent), French, Spanish, Dutch and Turkish.

Maria’s career started in 1998 in the Netherlands and over the course of 17 years she has garnered experience in HR generalist affairs including employee recruitment and retention, staff development, mediation, benefits and compensation, development of HR policies and legal compliance, as well as solid experience in UAE/GCC labour laws and regulations.

For the past 15 years Maria has led HR teams in the UAE across a number of industries including manufacturing, financial services, telecoms, retail, transport, media and technology. Currently she is the Head of HR Middle East & Africa at Atos Origin in Dubai and has been instrumental in establishing the HR processes in alignment with Atos Group for the Dubai office which was in start-up mode when she joined in 2012.

We look forward to welcoming Maria onto the team.

PDP 2016On 15 December employees received an email to the PDP tasks in Workday. The an-nual Performance & Development dialogue with employees will be held during the first quarter of the year with sign-off of PDP goals by 31 March 2016.

The purpose of this Performance & Development dialogue is to go through your 2015 performance, discuss your career aspirations, and set the PDP goals and development activities for 2016.

For further information and guidance, please visit the PDP site on the Intranet.

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MS Training for business support employees17 Ramboll Middle East’s business support employees from Dubai and Abu Dhabi sucessfully completed a two-day advanced MS Office course in November.

The customised course took an in depth focus on advance level skills of MS Word and MS Excel.

“It has provided useful and relevant techniques in increasing work efficiency and quick turnaround time of office suite related requirements. I’m looking forward to more trainings of this sort in the future.” Nosca Diama, Office Administrator said.

“I am thankful to be part of this training because it provides access to opportunity and advancement aside from widening my knowledge in Word and Excel. Surely, this knowledge I have gained will be useful on my daily responsibilities to become more effective and efficient in my team.” Jocelyn Cañete, Office Coordinator said.

A fundraiser in the form of a coffee morning was organised by the RME Dubai’s Sustainability & Environment team on 15 September 2015 in support of the Syrian Children.

The team brought snacks and cakes for the fundraiser where Ramboll employees supported this noble cause by offering their kind donations into a collection box. An envelope was also circulated within the office for those who missed the event.

A total of 7,005.00 AED (13,000DKK) was donated to UNICEF.

In October 2015, Ramboll Group ran an internal campaign to raise money for the estimated 12 million Syrians in need of humanitarian aid.

Euros 134,000 (DKK 1,000,000) was raised which comprised of donations made by Ramboll’s employees and the Ramboll Foundation, who doubled the employees’ contribution.

The money has been donated to the Red Cross International in support of their efforts to help the Syrian refugees with basic needs such as medical treatment, shelter, food and water.

Fundraiser for the Children of SyriaHeld at Dubai office

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Damac Heights – seventh tallest residential tower in the Middle East

A look across the Dubai skyline and there’s no shortage of possibilities for a place in the UAE’s top 10 tallest residential towers.

The 84-level Damac Heights tower in Dubai Marina has topped out to be the country’s seventh tallest residential tower in the United Arab Emirates. At a height of 335 metres and a cost of Dh.2.4 billion.

The facade work on Damac Heights has already reached level 69 with handover expected at the end of 2016.

Damac Heights will comprise of one, two, three and four bedroom apartments, plus duplexes and penthouses. The top 40-storey will be high-end with bespoke interior design.

RME’s Communications Department spoke to Abhijeet Kulkarni about the project.

What does it feel like to be working on the seventh tallest building in the UAE?

Great! After the hard work of design challenges and site constraints, it provides one with great self-satisfaction. Changes during design stage provided challenges in managing the client’s expectations during the design stages.

Who is in the team for this project and what services do they provide?

Ramboll Middle East acted as lead consultant with external sub-consultants for architectural services, cost consultancy services, vertical transportation services and architect of record services.

Ramboll provided in-house services such as Project Management and Lead Consultancy, Structural Engineering, MEP Engineering, Façade Engineering and Fire and Life Safety.

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What have been the challenges with working on such a tall building?

The design has gone through a series of changes post market crash. The client’s architectural team refined the internal layouts of the apartments in order to improve the saleability of the project which has resulted in challenges in the design. Ramboll, being lead consultant, was responsible to manage these changes and provide a workable design.

Site conditions provided a series of tough challenges in the basement construction. The design was altered to accommodate site constraints and at the same time alternative solutions were provided to mitigate site conditions.

What have you learnt from this project?

In order to act as Lead Consultant, Ramboll needed to beef up the PM efforts on major projects. In Damac Heights’ case, individual technical discipline leads acted as PMs was not the efficient way to manage projects as it strains the discipline team.

On such tall buildings projects invariably the “A-Grade” contractors are involved who provide their best techno-commercial teams. In order to control site claims and variations, supervision consultant requires a team that has experienced and capable individuals and roles for individuals are clearly defined without major overlap.

WHAT ARE THE SUCCESS FACTORS?

• Fantastic team that provided site specific solutions.

• Reasonable control on the client’s expectations and tap on variations.

• Innovative design solutions – use of self-compacting concrete, use of crystalline waterproof concrete for basement envelop, use of composite columns and walls, setting out of the geometry of the inclined rectangular columns to ease construction, site specific solutions for staged construction to enable basement construction etc.

• Robust coordination exercise prior to the construction. Senior member of the structural and MEP teams posted on site to iron out the coordination works with contractor.

“The project had a set of peculiar challenges that were key in the design and construction. The basement construction was carried out in two stages to avoid ground anchors below the marina. The design of the basement structure was carried out to enable the strutting to the main structure. Design of the composite walls and composite columns at the fin wall to column connections at transfer located at top of the Podium required special attention. Inclined blade columns forming the external shape of the building, required multiple set of analysis to assess the effect of the transfer of the lateral loads from the columns. Leaning steelwork at the roof required calculation for buckling under the deflected geometry and self-weight and wind loads. It has been a challenging and learning experience to the design and construction team to deliver tallest building in Ramboll.” Abhijeet Kulkarni, Associate Director - Structures said.

“Damac Heights was a challenging project for structures team mainly because of it super tall height and the overall shape of the building, This is the tallest tower designed by Ramboll and we had to ensure that all the technologies and design methods adopted are of sound practices and acceptable for the local statutory body. A

340m tall tower constructed 10m away from the water front in Dubai Marina had imposed a great challenge for the design of the basement raft and shoring system. The 88 floors are constructed largely of reinforced concrete with steel roof cap at the top of the tower to feature the shape. The high strength cast in place concrete used for the core and columns provides economical vertical load carrying ability, stiff lateral load resistance and inherent damping for occupant comfort. The building has reached the topmost floor construction (88th floor) and the structural team had visited the site recently which gave us an opportunity to mark our triumph on the topmost floor”. Renjini Nair, Associate, Structures Team said.

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Ramboll plays sustainable role in designing a Golf Course Community planned in the heart of Doha’s Education City, QatarAn 18-hole championship golf course, an innovative 6-hole championship course, a 9-hole par-3 course all designed by the two-time major winner Jose Maria Olazabal as well as a high-tech driving range and practice facilities, a centre of excellence and public park are part of a huge new development that’s being planned in “the heart of Education City,” in Doha, Qatar. The project, dubbed the Qatar International Golf Club, is “a first of its kind anywhere in the world”.

In 2011, Ramboll Middle East (RME) was awarded the Engineering Consulting Services for the Golf Course Community project to fulfil its vision “to create a place where everyone can be a golfer”. The start of the design work commenced in 2011 with cross PBU collaboration with RME, UK, Finland and Denmark involved in completing the preparation of the design documentation in early 2014.

The designs for the golf course and buildings have incorporated sustainability elements that on completion of this project it will be considered one of the most “sustainable golf courses in the world,” especially where desert golf courses in other parts of the world have come under increased scrutiny for their enormous use of water.

The sustainability elements incorporated in the design and construction meet GEO

(Golf Environmental Organisation) requirements, with the construction site under the control of a GEO representative. Water consumption is limited as much as possible with all the lakes lined to avoid leakage into ground water, and the storm water will be collected through the drainage system that will be redirected to the lakes. TSE (treated sewage effluent) water will be used for irrigation that will have satellite controlled sprinklers to avoid over-irrigation.

The construction of the golf course started on 5 January 2014 and will be completed by the end of 2016. RME’s Qatar Site Manager, Hillar Varik leading the 11-strong construction supervision team will oversee the project to ensure the design goals are achieved and specifications followed.

In addition to the Engineering Consultancy Services, Ramboll also prepared the TIS (Transport Impact Study) and EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment Study) for this project.

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Salalah GCT: Dho-far, Dho-good

This year Ramboll was awarded a contract to provide consultancy services for the redevelopment of the General Cargo Terminal (GCT) at the Port of Salalah in the Dhofar Governate of the Sultanate of Oman.

The 12 month project, secured with our Joint Venture partners, Oman based Simon Engineering and Partners (SEP), is Ramboll Middle East’s (RME) first major project in Oman and with a project value of approximately 2.56 million Omani Riyals (AED 24.5 million) represents an exciting first step into the country. The Client for the works is the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC) who is responsible for major infrastructure works across the Sultanate. A key stakeholder for this project is Salalah Port Services (SPS), a joint venture between the Omani Government and APM Terminals, a leading global operator and potentially significant Client for Ramboll internationally.

The scope of work for the project comprises the full redevelopment of the General Cargo Terminal (GCT), starting with the Master Plan and carrying through to the detailed design of works and the issuing of tender documents for the construction.

Spending a little time in Salalah can make it easy to forget that you are in the Middle East. While the rest of the Arabian Peninsula is experiencing temperatures of 45 degrees celsius Salalah is in the midst of its Khareef season, with a gentle mist and light rain encompassing the land, limiting temperatures to around 27 degrees celsius.

This unique season, running from the end of July until the beginning of September, gives the area a lush greenery which is an unexpected treat to those

used to working in the more arid parts of the Gulf. Ramboll UK (RUK) representatives travelling out for an inspection in August were less delighted by the weather than RME’s staff, but the heavy cloud cover, drizzling rain and descending fog meant that the RUK staff were operating well within their comfort zone!

The pace of life in Oman is generally less frantic than some other countries in the region and there is a major emphasis on engaging regional stakeholders to build consensus. Ramboll’s project team has been fully engaged in this process and recently achieved the major milestone of Master Plan approval. Our relationship with the Client is good and our work is being positively received, as demonstrated by the recent request from MOTC that we prepare a presentation on the Master Plan for delivery to the Minister early in the New Year.

There are major opportunities in the region and Salalah as ‘Oman’s second largest city’ has major investment planned for 2016 onwards. This includes the significant Phase III upgrade to the Port that Ramboll are currently bidding as well as other large schemes such as the Oman Rail connection.

Major design works for the Salalah GCT redevelopment will commence in early 2016 with Ramboll’s staff on this project located primarily in Abu Dhabi and Southampton offices working closely with SEP’s Muscat offices to deliver the scheme. We are well positioned to deliver this work and leverage the success to extend our reach to new projects not only in Salalah but also across Oman.

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Where are you from?

I am Lebanese/Canadian, born in Al Ain, UAE!

Career/Past Experience/Education

I graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Waterloo and started my career the manufacturing industry. My first job was in a small retirement town in northern Ontario where I worked as an intern for HOBART (they make industrial kitchen equipment). I moved on to working as a test engineer at an ATM manufacturing facility and then as a line engineer at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada.

I’ve always been passionate about preserving the environment and wanted to pursue a career in which I can express this passion. I was offered a position as a Sustainability Consultant at KEO International Consultants in Abu Dhabi, and that’s when my career as a Building Physicist kicked off.

Why did you choose to work for Ramboll?

I chose to work at Ramboll because of its worldwide reputation. I was looking for a global company which offered cutting edge services and valued sustainability – Ramboll was the right fit.

What are you hoping to gain/ achieve from your time at Ramboll?

During my time here I have achieved a lot of growth and technical knowledge in my field. My position at Ramboll allows me to have an impact on how the teams address sustainability in their design and it is great to be part of the global shift towards sustainable thinking.

My team’s recent move to the innovation design division promotes creative thinking and the development of innovative sustainable concepts. I’m really excited about this since creative thinking is something I love to do! I have already been able to work on some interesting bids and I am looking forward to exciting brain storming sessions and thinking outside the box to provide clients with unique and efficient solutions.

How does your work affect the day-to-day working environment in your office?

My work helps bring designers together with the intention of creating sustainable solutions. Integrated development is the glue that holds a sustainable design process together. Bringing together different disciplines to create a design that reduces our impact on the earth’s resources creates a fulfilling environment in the office.

What is your favourite aspect of working for Ramboll?

I highly value that Ramboll is a multidisciplinary company as it provides me with access to a diverse range of knowledge. My favourite aspect of working here is bouncing off ideas with people from different backgrounds and developing great ideas together – diversity harbours a strong platform for innovative thinking.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Rana Itani Senior Building PhycisistSustainability - Dubai

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Where are you from?

I was born in the Philippines but I migrated to New Zealand nine years ago where my family lives.

Career/Past Experience/Education

I am a Structural Engineer with 20 years international experience in civil-structural engineering, engineering management and construction. I have worked in Japan, China, Malaysia, UAE, Philippines, Qatar and New Zealand. I have been involved in key project roles including as design/engineering manager, lead design engineer, design verifier/reviewer and construction site supervisor. The projects I have been involved in include large scale industrial and commercial buildings. Before I joined Ramboll, I worked in New Zealand for eight years where I was involved extensively in seismic resistant design of new buildings and retrofit design of existing buildings and critical lifeline infrastructure.

I hold a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering.

I am registered Licenced Civil Engineer in the Philippines, a Chartered Professional Engineer (CPEng) in New Zealand and I am also professional member of several international engineering organizations in the USA, New Zealand, in the Philippines and in South East Asia region.

What does your MEP award mean to you?

I was really honoured to be highly commended at the MEP awards. It has definitely boosted my motivation and fuelled my drive to further progress in my field.

What advice would you share with other aspiring women in your profession?

Engineering is still considered a male dominated profession across the world. My advice to aspiring female engineers is to never let your status as a minority in this field intimidate you - be proud of breaking the mould and remember that you play an essential role in the positive movement towards gender diversification of the field.

Is there anything else you would like to share with the readers of this publication?

I want to thank all my colleagues at Ramboll for the support and positive energy I received with this achievement! It feels great that I am surrounded with people who value the work I do. I would like to thank all my mentors who helped me get to where I am now, and continue to help me reach my goals!

Juvenal Verano Principal Structural EngineerStructures - Doha

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Why did you choose to work for Ramboll?

My experience working in large multi-national and multi-discipline international consultancy is probably the reason why I choose Ramboll. I love to work in this type of company because of the enormous opportunity to grow and develop both professionally and personally. Furthermore, I prefer to be involved in large and iconic projects which will add value to my professional achievement which I can be proud of – projects like the one I am currently involved – the Doha Metro MRT.

What are you hoping to gain/ achieve from your time at Ramboll?

I am hoping that I will be given a chance to lead a project so that I can experience how to run a project in this part of the world (Middle East) which I think the very challenging and demanding. Also I want to utilize my experience, skills and training in engineering management and leadership I gained from my previous work and apply them here in Ramboll. I don’t like to be stuck in what I am currently doing. I have personal and career goals that I want to achieve. What were the challenges you faced during your employment here (or feel like you may face in the future)?

Being on site in Doha, I feel like we are isolated from the group. Direct personal communication and consultation with the rest of the team can be limiting and this sometimes leads to missed opportunities for developing our personal relationship with the rest of our team.

How does your work affect the day-to-day working environment in your office?

The DVE project involves very complex structures which are technically challenging to deliver. To cope with this complexity, we employed 3D structural modelling of all the major structures. I am the one leading this 3D modelling aspect of our job, and I am the only skilled user of Etabs – the software we use in DVE project for structural design. Using this sophisticated software has proven to be an effective tool in delivering complex project like DVE. Because of complexity and technically demanding nature of the project our day-to-day technical task would be difficult to carry out without Etabs. Hence my role in DVE project is very crucial in the successful delivery of this project.

Furthermore, as one of the lead engineers on this project I always make sure that my team mates will have my support whenever they need me. This involves technical consultations, providing feedback, helping the project leads in decision making, liaising and attending progress meeting with the client.

What is your favourite aspect of working for Ramboll?

In DVE project we have 13 different nationalities. Working with different nationalities and multi-culture environment is really fascinating and inspiring. I am proud to say that I am not only representing myself but I’m also representing my home country (New Zealand and the Philippines). It really adds some excitement, value and pride in what I am doing and what I’m contributing for the success of the project.

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Where are you from? I am from Lebanon. I was born in a small town called Kfar-faqoud located in Mount Lebanon, Chouf district.

Where are you from?

I am from Lebanon. I was born in a small town called Kfar-faqoud located in Mount Lebanon, Chouf district.

What university/ college did you attend and what was your major?

My higher education journey started at the Lebanese University in Beirut where I graduated in 2008 with a B.E. degree in mechanical engineering. In September 2008 I moved to France to pursue a master’s degree and PhD in fire safety engineering. My PhD work at the University of Poitiers focused on fire & smoke modelling using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) with an emphasis on the aspects of heat transfer and combustion. Beyond my research successes (including five papers published in international journals), I have been fortunate to obtain a teaching experience at the University of Poitiers in France which helped me to enhance my academic capabilities.

Any specific reason why you chose this field of study?

My choice of career was initially difficult. My interests were widely varied, covering everything from biology to physics and from art to technology. I have finally come to see engineering and particularly fire safety engineering as a discipline that can satisfy and further develop my interests. The rapid progress and achievements in fire safety engineering has motivated me to follow this major that plays a very significant role in today’s modern world.

Can you please tell us about any new project that you are working on? What are the particular complexities you are facing regarding it? Successes?

I would state two projects among others: the Specialist Clinical Centre in Doha-Qatar and the Reem Island Mall in Abu Dhabi. The former is planned to provide facilities for dental and dermatology outpatient clinics and will consist of six interconnected building components and common shared car-park levels. This project is very challenging as it includes the design of a healthcare facility which is usually the most restrictive occupancy in terms of NFPA requirements and local fire regulations. One of the complexities we have faced throughout this project, is the short deadline set by the client to

submit the input for the design development. We had to work few times on the weekend in order to produce high-quality fire & life safety input and also meet the submission deadline. But we are happy to see that our hard work finally paid off through the appreciation we received from the client on many occasions. Hopefully this will bring new opportunities for the Fire & Life Safety team to work with the same client in the near future. As for the Reem Mall project in Abu Dhabi, I was responsible for designing the smoke management systems and carrying out Computational Fluid Dynamics models (CFD models). Like any other project in Abu Dhabi, the Reem Mall project is very challenging as the Civil Defence there are usually very strict but also not easy-to-meet.

As we have proposed a natural smoke ventilation strategy to serve the car-park levels (instead of the classical mechanical smoke purging system), we had to carefully prepare all necessary documents to convince the Civil Defence about the performance of such natural ventilation strategy. Finally the Civil Defence have approved our CFD models together with the natural ventilation strategy which results in significant cost saving.

Senior Fire ConsultantFire & Life Safety - Dubai

Ayoub Nasr

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Can you briefly tell us about your career (Past work experience, regions, companies, etc.)?

Right after my graduation in 2008, I started my career as a CFD/Fire Safety engineer at the French Institute of Radioprotection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) in Cadarache (France). At the IRSN, I gained valuable experience working on the design of smoke management systems and carrying out CFD analysis of fire scenarios in buildings and tunnels. In 2012 I decided to move to Qatar which was the fastest-growing economy in the Middle East region at that time. In Qatar, I joined the mechanical & electrical division of ETA-ASCON Star Group where I worked as a senior fire protection engineer and had the opportunity to work on many different types of projects including very high valued projects such as Msheireb Development, a prestigious project located in Downtown Doha.

Why did you choose to work for Ramboll?

Working for Ramboll is the ideal way to broaden my knowledge and improve my skills. As a global engineering firm, Ramboll will offer me the opportunity to work on high-profile projects across the UAE and Middle East, that wouldn’t otherwise be available to me in a small-business firm. Furthermore, the fire safety consultant position that I applied for and currently holding, was a perfect fit for my career aspirations. It’s a growth role that will benefit me professionally because I’m going to be able to learn and develop more skills.

What are you hoping to gain/ achieve from your time at Ramboll?I want to learn a lot of new things and I want to continually grow.

What were the challenges you faced during your employment here (or feel like you may face in the future)?

During the last few months, time and workload management have been the most challenging task I have faced. This is due to the increased number of design projects that Ramboll won for which I have been responsible for fire and life safety design.

What is the social atmosphere like at Ramboll?

Working in an international environment such as Ramboll is always a plus in terms of a social life. It allows the exchange of culture and experience which adds value to the working environment. One of the best things I’ve experienced is the Thursday night dinners with colleagues. Nevertheless, I think the social life at Ramboll can be much better if more social events are organized over the weekends.

What is your favorite aspect of working for Ramboll?My very favourite aspect of working for Ramboll is the professional etiquette in the working place.

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Where are you from?

I am from Estonia. For people who do not know where that is, it is tiny country in Northern Europe – south from Finland, west from Russia, north from Latvia and east from Sweden.

Tell us a bit about you.

I received my Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Tallinn Polytechnic Institute in 1982 and have since worked as a professional Engineer/Manager with mainly three different organisations – Regional Road office in Estonia; Technical Centre of Estonian Roads and Ramboll. In parallel to this I completed my Master’s degree from Tallinn University of Technology in 1996.

In 2006 I joined the Ramboll’s Estonian office as Managing Director as Mauno Napari’s successor. In 2011, I was transferred to Ramboll’s office in Russia until the company sold this entity. I had two options – work for the new Russian company or stay with Ramboll and look for job opportunities in the other Ramboll offices. Matthew Nield had just moved to Qatar to establish an office there, and asked me if I would like to join the team there. I have been working in Qatar since early 2013.

Why did you choose to work for Ramboll?

As mentioned earlier I began working for Ramboll in Estonia right after Mauno had established the office there. The idea of working for a company that was in start-up and the challenges associated with this interested me, and the fact that Ramboll is a well-known Scandinavian company in Estonia it was a good opportunity to work for an international organisation.

What are you hoping to gain/ achieve from your time at Ramboll?

I have been with Ramboll for almost 10 years and I have gained some excellent experience during this time working in an international and multilingual company. The three years that I have spent in the Middle East has given me the opportunity to work together with people from different cultural backgrounds. I have learnt that it really does not matter where the person comes from if he or she has the relevant education and good experience. It is really a pleasure to work with different nationalities and I have found it is easy to be on the same page with projects. Being with Ramboll for almost a decade has given me a better understanding how a global company like Ramboll operates and what is important to move projects ahead.

Qatar Site ManagerDoha

Hillar Varik

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What were the challenges you faced during your employment here (or feel like you may face in the future)?

Having worked in three different Ramboll offices, I can see differences between them but at the same time it is really wonderful to experience that all of them have the overall Ramboll identity. As it is probably the same for everybody else, one of the biggest challenges when moving to a different work place is getting used to the new working routine. Changing work locations within Ramboll has been easier in the sense that they all have something in common and I have noticed that people are really aware of Ramboll values and they do keep this in mind during the daily work routine.

Moving to the Middle East has been the most challenging as it has a completely different cultural and climate environment. I cannot say it was really big shock for me to come here but it still took some time to start to feel comfortable. And of course, one of the challenges is to be far from my family and friends.

How does your work affect the day-to-day working environment in your office?

My permanent office at the moment is on the QF Golf Course construction site, where our Ramboll team shares the office with our project partners from other companies/entities – TIME Qatar; Amlak and QF.

Working with the partners ensure that we have a good and cooperative working environment, and also helps to ensure that all the project targets are met and the design intent followed. As the team lead for Ramboll on the QF Golf Course site I do my best to ensure we maintain Ramboll’s reputation and contribute to the project in the best possible way.

What is your favourite aspect of working for Ramboll?

My favourite aspect of working for Ramboll is that I am working with a great team. Our team on site comprises of 11 well prepared and experienced engineers. It is really a pleasure to work together with them on a daily basis and how everyone supports each other. There is also the wider team at the Doha office (both RME and ROG) as well as our colleagues in the Dubai and Abu Dhabi offices.

I have worked with many different individuals and cultures over the years, but one aspect stands out for me – the positive professional approach and desire by my colleagues to get things done. This is what I consider to be very important and why I enjoy working with people.

My professional life aside, I have wonderful wife who I have been married to for 33 years. She has been great support to all my activities. I have three adult sons, each have a university degree and are very independent from me. Even if we do not see each other often, we enjoy the times when we all together – the next such occasion will be over Christmas. To top all, I have a wonderful grandson who brightens up the day when we are together.

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In August 2015, Ramboll New Markets held a two-day finance conference at Ramboll Middle East’s (RME) Dubai office to discuss synergies, collaboration and best practices.

The agenda also included commercial awareness, cash and working capital, compliance and code of conduct, local finance strategies among other business support topics. Presenters also included Yaver Abidi – Managing Director New Markets, Henrik Meldgaard - Senior Manager Group Tax, Bo Pedersen - Group Director Finance and Shared Support, and Panos Haralampous - Project Excellence Director RME.

It all adds up nicelyRamboll New Markets Finance Conference

The event was hosted by Gareth Evans – Finance Director New Markets with Peter Brand - HR Director New Markets as the facilitator, and attended by Zohaib Ahmad – Finance Director RME, Akrosh Saxena – Finance Director Ramboll India, Alfred Reyes – Finance Manager KSA, Rasmy Sudev – Head of Finance Ramboll Oil & Gas ME, Sumit Gupta – GM Finance India, Praveen Pydah – Principal Consultant Finance India, Noor Abdulrazzaq – Business Controller RME and Priya Janarthanan – Senior Finance Consultant Ramboll Studio Dreiseitl Singapore.

A team building event was held in the evening after the conference to encourage collaboration and interaction among the finance peers in New Markets.

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“Winning this award gives me a fantastic feeling especially as it was such a large project. The recognition credits the hardwoork of all those involved. We feel we have a strong client base and are getting repeat work” M Imram Siddiqui, Senior Electrical Engineer quoted at MEP ME Awards 2015

“It’s great to see a reputable professional body like ACE Progress Network extending its presence in the Middle East. We have a very diverse industry and it is important that we have the same access to the latest industry innovations, market insights and networking opportunities locally as well as globally. Mehdi Langroudi, Chair of ACE Progress Network in the Middle East said.

The MEED Quality Awards for Projects is an awards programme run throughout the GCC to recognise completed projects. Distinct from other awards programmes the Quality Awards evaluates the outcome of the construction process, rather than the process itself. Richard Beard, Managing Director for RME handed over the Sustainability Award to the 2015 winner, Bahraini company, Muharraq STP Company.

2015 Highlights

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Left: MEED Advert published on MEED Magazine Bottom: ICE & Lighthouse Club Dubai Gala Dinner

Professional Women’s Network (PWN) launched.

Ramboll celebrates 70 years!

SUSTAINABILITY IS THE MAIN AGENDA TODAY(WHEN DELIVERING THE CITIES OF TOMORROW)www.ramboll-mea.com I +971 4 334 3616 I [email protected]

WITH 12,300 ENGINEERS, DESIGNERS AND CONSULTANTS, WE CREATE SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS WITHIN BUILDINGS, TRANSPORT, ENVIRONMENT, WATER, ENERGY, OIL & GAS AND MANAGEMENT CONSULTING.

PROJECT EXCELLENCE

The UAE Minister of Finance, His Excellency Obaid Humaid Al Tayer visited Ramboll Headquarters.

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Newborns

Life events

Ragini Kalapatapu and Ravi Kiran Polepeddi had a traditional telugu hindu marriage 9 May 2015. Their picture depicts the custom to place a paste made of cumin seeds and jaggery on each other’s heads at the specific wedding time which is set using vedic astrological rules. This ceremony is observed to communicate that the relationship of the married couple is inseparable just like the amalgam of jaggery and cumin seeds. Best wishes Ragini!

Abdulmajid Karanouh and Rayanne got married on the 2 August 2015 – the day when he met his wife a year earlier! Congratulations Abdulmajid!

Naung Hann tied the wedding knot with Cecilia in Manila Philippines on 29 July 2015!“Married life is a journey and it definitely brings joys in life!” Naung quoted. Congratulations Naung!

Martí Duch Altet and his wife, Aurora united in marriage on 18 December 2015 in a small village close to Barcelona (Spain) called Teià. Congratulations Martí!

Weddings

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Newborns

Rasha Saffarini and fiance Amer Zakaria got engaged on 2 October 2015. Congratulations on your engagement and may you always experience the joy and happiness that life offers!

Engagement

Wishing you well on your maternity leave in January 2016! Our very best wishes for a healthy and happy babies!

Ala Adwan’s successfully completed his MBA with focus on Project Management from Manchester Business School, the University of Manchester, Manchester, UK. Well done and congratulations Ala!

Flavia Marques Jeena Basheer

MBA completedMaternity well wishes

Sweet and gorgeous twin girls - Jude and Ayla

were born on 7 August 2015! Congratulations

Yassmin Al-Khatib!

Angelic baby Aile Francine was born on 10 August 2015! Congratulations Al

Francis Villaras!

Cutie baby James was born on 24 August 2015! “He loves the

beach and he’s getting bigger and cuter everyday!” proud

daddy Conor Moore said. Congrats!

Adorable little Geremy Henry was

born on 29 November 2015, Congratulations

Chris Sytangco!

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Fun and engaging social activities

RAM-BEAT consists of 12 enthutiastic guitar players led by the amazing ‘instructor’, Peter Brandt! The guitar sessions have been active since September and are held every Thursday from 18:15 to 19:15 at Peter’s home.

“I started as a novice guitar player, with initial hitch. The guitar sessions are truly exciting and fun filled target based learning. Indeed, a great stressbuster with an awesome, cool, and very patient mentor, Peter Brandt! Looking forward to strike the right chords! Vidya Venkatesh, Principal Engineer in Structures said.

‘It has been great fun learning the guitar and interacting with my fellow ‘students’. We are of varying degrees in level and we all enjoy the jamming sessions and extremely grateful for Peter to spare us his personal time to teach us. He is a patient teacher and makes learning enjoyable.’ Michelle Norman, Executive Assistant said

“What I love the most about our guitar session is that I’m learning it in a fun way with cool and passionate colleagues - and it’s free! Thank you Peter for your time and patience.” Jessica Torres, Public Health Engineer said.

Jamming with colleagues

“Music is a source of joy that unites us. When we play together, we become one unit. Playing music is kind of a journey; whatever your level of competence, you’re always on the road to learn something more. The fellowship is the main driver to me, but I truly love it when we play a song successfully with the right chords, breaks and rhythm! As we all know: practice makes perfect!” Peter Brandt qouted.

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16 people participated in the Go-Karting and Shooting that was organised by Muhammad Osama. The event was held at Al Forsan International Resort in Abu Dhabi on 17 December. Everyone had a great time and enjoyed socialising with colleagues.

Karting and shooting sports

Paintball Challenge On 13 November, a Paintball Challenge was held at Sharjah Golf and Shooting Center oranised by Naung Hann. There were more than 10 people who took part in the challenge and indeed, everyone had great fun!

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Christmas gathering Structures Team Thursday Tea Morning

Santa is coming to Duba Office!

On 17 December, Structures Team have had their weekly tea morning followed by ‘Secret Santa’ gift giving organised by Christian Smallwood.

On 23 December, Secret Santa visited the Dubai office.

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Introducing Autodesk 360 Design ToolWhile most of our engineering and drafting is done with standard tools like AutoCAD, there are a variety of advanced and rapidly developing technology available in the market that can make work fun and far more efficient. As Ramboll has Global Licensing Agreements in place with Autodesk and Bentley we should take the advantage of having access to a full range of authoring, analysis, coordination, visualisation and data management tools. But we should be asking ourselves “how can I do better? Is there a different (smarter!) way to deliver the expectations?” In most cases the answer is Yes.

Ramboll’s Infrastructure team did ask these questions, and found Autodesk Infraworks 360 which they tested on a trial license for some of the proposals they were writing. They soon found that the software is an effective tool in master planning and conceptual design stage.

The software allows easy and cost efficient 3D modelling for conceptual design and rendering of infrastructure including roads, retaining walls, ramps, bridges, utility networks, watersheds, etc. and soon the team started using it for on a permanent basis.

“By using Infraworks 360 we have again confirmed that communication is the key to a good design service whereas visual interactive communication works the best.” Raul Vibo, Associate in Highways Engineering said.

The projects that currently use using this design tool are Lu’luat Al Raha Infrastructure Masterplan Salalah GCT Redevelopment and Conceptual design of Central Service Corridor.

The new address is:Building No. 6 342 Al Jazeera Street Area 22 and Zone 22,Doha Qatar

Office move in Doha

Ramboll in Qatar has moved to a new premises on 6 December. The new office is located within walking distance from the previous office, that is more modern and offers better facilities for forming project teams.

On 6 January 2016, Ramboll’s Qatar office will be officially inaugurated with the Danish Foreign Minister Minister and the Minister of Finance and Commerce in Qatar as guests at the event.

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Ramboll Middle East wishes you and your families

a happy new year!

Season’s Greetings