Features

Top Marks

By MECN Adminstrator

Posted on February 2, 2011

Sammon Group construction director Austin Duffy reveals how the family-run Irish company is meeting Abu Dhabi Education Council’s vision to deliver schools rated three on the Pearl-rating system, in record time

Securing the budget and client buy-in can be one of the biggest challenges in delivering a sustainable project, according to Sammon Group.

However, sustainable objectives on the firm’s latest Middle East project to construct five schools under the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) Future Schools programme have been driven by the client.

“Sometimes it’s difficult to convince a client to integrate sustainable systems with the view that they will see a payback over 20 years, but the more intelligent clients are already thinking that way. They just need to understand the benefits, even if they don’t understand the technology,” says Sammon Group’s Middle East construction director Austin Duffy. As part of ADEC’s 10-year strategic plan to transform the education system, phase one of the Abu Dhabi Future Schools Programme involves the construction of 15 new institutions across the emirate.

The business, which was established in Ireland in 1886 and has been operating in the UAE for three years, was awarded one third of the tendered design-and-build contracts, last year.

If you want sustainable schools delivered quickly, in a limited timeframe and there is a lot of repeat design involved, pre-engineered solutions are the way to go”

The projects are located at Al Towaya, Al Jahly, Al Khazna in Al Ain, Al Khatem and Abu Dhabi West.

But perhaps what is most significant, each school scheduled to be delivered in August and covering a combined total of one million square feet, has been designed to achieve an Estidama three Pearl rating – the first of their kind.

Pearl diving

Working closely with ADEC, the design team and delivery partner Musanada, Sammon Group will implement features such as energy-efficient air-conditioning systems, water conservation devices, PV panels for solar energy, solar panels for water heating, intelligent lighting controls, and landscaping featuring ‘ecotrees’ and ‘vertical gardens’.

The design and lifecycle of these buildings has to be at least 40 years, preferably heading towards 60 years; that is part of the design criteria brief”

“The design and lifecycle of these buildings has to be at least 40 years, preferably heading towards 60 years; that is part of the design criteria brief.

“These schools are also designed to be flexible and can be easily expanded for second and third phases. They are located in expanding communities and so must be built for the future,” asserts Duffy.

The schools will also feature the latest technologies, such as interactive teaching boards, and a “dynamic layout”, he reveals.

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Back to School

5200

The number of new school places provided by the five projects led by Sammon Group

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With competition among contractors at an all-time high, one may wonder how a family-run company, relatively new to the region, won these government-funded, high-profile projects.

“We have expertise in design and build having completed a lot of work for the Irish Government’s Department of Education, this included delivering a number of schools on a fast-track construction basis within a 20-week timeframe,” Duffy recalls.

During its short time in the region, Sammon Group also partnered with Gems Education, dubbed the world’s largest private kindergarten to grade 12 education company, to deliver several large and reputable projects, including Gems Modern High School Dubai and Gems Millennium School, Sharjah. While it “wasn’t in the client’s requirements to achieve green credentials” on the latter project, according to Duffy, the firm implemented some of its in-house, best-practice principles during the construction process.

“We fully comply with our own environmental plan, even if it isn’t in the client brief. We implement waste-management plans, occupational health and safety practices and other elements of best practice commonly encountered in Europe.”

These processes include using material excavated during large earth-movement exercises for non-structure fill material on other projects, as well as segregating materials within 40km of the construction site, where possible.

The challenge any international company expanding into the Middle East will experience is training the labour force”

On the Modern High School Dubai, it was necessary for the firm to work with the head teachers at the school, which has a capacity of more than 2500 pupils, to ensure a smooth relocation from the previous site. The firm was also working to a short, seven-month timeline.

“We must create better environments to work in. On all of our projects, a huge amount of thought has gone into the acoustics, optimum lighting levels, solar shading, external elevations and indoor air quality.

“In some of the Dubai schools we introduced a simple-but-innovative system incorporating tiers of air-ventilation fans, allowing more recycling and movement of air. This means that for a couple of months of the year, during winter, the air conditioning can be switched off.

“It’s a very simple idea that works well and that is why we asked for feedback from head teachers, this was one of the things suggested.”

But Duffy says it’s even more essential for all parties to fully embrace the task of creating a sustainable building.

“Don’t have a back-up plan. Often, clients invest massive amounts of money implementing sustainable features and still install the big chillers and boilers — just in case. That is not truly embracing the concept.”

If done properly, however, Duffy suggests 10-20% savings can be made on the lifecycle cost of a building.

Overcoming obstacles

But, while the firm has had a positive response to its methods in this region, as with all new markets, entering the Middle East has posed challenges for the firm.

“There are things that we have to worry about here that we don’t have to consider in Ireland. The UAE schools are larger and of a very high quality.

“The challenge any international company expanding into the Middle East will experience is training the labour force,” explains Duffy.

We fully comply with our own environmental plan, even if it isn’t in the client brief. We implement waste-management plans, occupational health and safety practices and other elements of best practice commonly encountered in Europe”

“We bring our formwork systems from Europe and they are quite advanced products. If I bought over four Irish carpenters, they would erect the system like clockwork, but the local workforce — which comprises several nationalities — may take a while to understand new formwork systems.”

The firm uses the reusable aluminium formwork solutions — “that don’t require huge cranes” — as an environmentally-friendly alternative to traditional timber frames, which tend to be used and then disposed of.

“To overcome training challenges, we have bought over teams from the UK and Ireland to train staff and the progress has been remarkable. It’s been a learning curve and we now consider the introduction of new western practices to be working well. No matter what culture workers are from, once they have found a better way to do things and witnessed the benefits in terms of productivity, it becomes second nature to them.”

Another challenge has been finding suppliers with a “likeminded” attitude to environmental considerations, says Duffy: “Any contractor that works for Sammon must adhere to our quality-management systems, including environmental-management plans.

“We issue questionnaires and if they can’t answer the questions they don’t make it onto our supplier list — we’re seeking likeminded people, not just lip service and have dedicated people to manage this side of the business.”

However, Duffy also highlights one particular benefit of working in the region; the weather: “The dry climate means we can get the structure and interior finishes completed early without worrying about waterproofing the roof and windows. This allows us to start the fit-out earlier in the construction process.”

It seems timely delivery is as important as environmental considerations for Abu Dhabi, as demand for educational institutes increases in the emirate.

One method that has helped the firm stick to strict construction schedules has been pre-engineered buildings, which Duffy dubs “the future of schools construction”.

“It’s cheaper to build pre-engineered schools; thought has gone into every aspect and they’re delivered very quickly onsite.

“If you want schools delivered quickly, in a limited timeframe and there is a lot of repeat design involved, pre-engineered solutions are the way to go. It’s something we’ve done a lot of work on, which we’ve carried into the GCC market and it’s been welcomed.

“We can do a 32-classroom school in 20 weeks having taken possession of the site,” asserts Duffy.

Whether it’s speedy construction, environmental awareness or another example of best practice that gives a contractor an edge in today’s competitive industry, every firm must have one — and it seems Sammon Group has got it sussed.

PROFILE

Sammon Group’s regional construction director Austin Duffy is responsible for the management of operations in the MENA region, including the Abu Dhabi Government’s Future School Building Programme, part of Vision 2030.

With more than 17 years’ experience in the construction industry in the Middle East, Ireland, UK and the US, and a former director of a leading international project management company, Austin has particular expertise in the delivery

of complex construction projects across commercial, residential, industrial, leisure, civil engineering and educational sectors. He was the project director for the Irish Department of Education & Science School Building Programme in 2008, delivering 25 schools on a design-and-build basis within a demanding 10-month programme.