Exclusive: NEB eyes opportunities in sports sector
Jamil Jadallah reckons the construction sector still offers plenty of potential for growth
The National Engineering Bureau (NEB) is keen on expanding into the sports sector, CEO Jamil Jadallah told Middle East Consultant in an exclusive interview.
NEB was established in 2002 and during the mid-2000s construction boom, the firm delivered numerous projects within the UAE. Jadallah notes that his firm also has overseas clients and moved to carve out a niche for itself in the education and healthcare sectors. Going forward, Jadallah is keen to specialise in the sports sector.
“The UAE is planning to host more sporting events and competitions, so there will be a need for projects that enable these aspirations. In the past, a lot of these projects were handled by international companies because they are specialised and are familiar with the requirements of various sporting bodies, such as FIFA (for example). We’ve entered this sector and to be honest, we are collaborating with specialised consultants from overseas through a joint venture,” Jadallah confirmed.
He adds, “This is the right way to start, as it enables us to build up our own experience, while also learning about the rules and regulations that events and sporting bodies have. From here, we’ll then look at doing these projects completely in-house. Right now, we’re working on a stadium for the Dubai Municipality. It has a capacity of 20,000 people and this will give us a solid base to go after other projects on our own, since we’ll then have the experience and expertise.”
Despite current market conditions and challenges, Jadallah is also quick to point out that the construction sector still offers plenty of potential.
“Clients will continue to build residential buildings, malls, schools etc. Life will continue and so construction will continue. There’s still a lot of potential in the UAE, you have to remember that everything operates in cycles – the market will never be high all the time, and it will never be low all the time. This is something that happens around the world,” he concluded.
Read the full interview in the April issue of Middle East Consultant.
