Bahrain Precast Concrete (BPC), one of the leading manufacturers of precast elements in Bahrain, has successfully concluded work on the Bahrain City Centre, adding another mega project to its already impressive portfolio.

“We are proud to have partnered in the construction of a prestigious project that is set to redefine retail shopping and entertainment in the kingdom,” says general manager Goran Hogberg.
For the City Centre project, the company has designed, produced and erected 500-mm and 265-mm-thick hollowcore slabs – spanning up to 16.8 m in length. This covers most of the shopping centre area of 150,000 sq m.
Hollowcore slabs of 500 mm thickness have been installed within certain areas of the first, second and third floors of East Mall and 265-mm-thick slabs have been installed on the ground, and other areas of first, second and third floors of the East Mall, as well as in the West Mall and the fourth floor of Central and West Malls, says Hogberg.
He explains: “Shopping centres normally require large, column-free halls to enable better display of merchandise and facilitate easy movement of people and material. This requires long-spanning roofing slabs with a high load-bearing capacity. When we were approached by the contractors of the City Centre project for the supply of 17-m-long hollowcore slabs with high-load bearing capacity for the shopping area, we did not have the product in our range. In fact, none of the precast manufacturers in the kingdom manufacture hollowcore slabs that fit the specification.”
He continues: “However, BPC took on the challenge of designing and manufacturing the slabs for this application and the result is the introduction of 500-mm-thick hollowcore slabs on the island. To overcome this specific challenge, the company had to import and install special equipment that would allow the manufacture of slabs of the required thickness and span. Today, we are proud to have become the first company in the kingdom to manufacture 500 mm slabs and to offer the widest range that includes 150, 200, 240, 265, 320, 400 and 500-mm-thick hollowcore slabs.”
Hogberg says that the thicker slabs find wide application in long-spanning areas requiring high-load capacity such as car-parks, shopping areas, colleges, convention centres, and hotels.
The company is also exporting these slabs to Saudi Arabia.
One of the largest precast concrete manufacturers and suppliers of hollowcore slabs in Bahrain, BPC has been involved with most of the precast buildings in the kingdom, says Hogberg. The company’s products have been used at the RCSI-Medical University of Bahrain (RCSI-MUB), Toyota showroom and Toyota car-park in Tubli, the 18-storey Park Tower in Diplomatic area, Shaikh Khalifa Sports City in Isa Town and a twin 24-storey precast building in Seef district.
At the six-storey RCSI-MUB building coming up in Busaiteen next to King Hamad Hospital, BPC has been involved with the design, production, supply and erection of pigmented, acid-washed, insulated cladding panels, external load-bearing panels, external elements, beams, column cladding and 150, 200, 265 and 400 mm hollowcore slabs.
“Currently, we are also designing, among other products, precast elements for an upcoming 35-storey building in Seef district,” says Hogberg.
BPC, which recently concluded its third decade of service in the region, is also buoyant about its performance last year, when it surpassed all previous records in terms of value and volume.
“We were able to achieve almost double production with the same equipment and manpower, thanks to a dynamic team effort, better planning and motivation of staff,” says Hogberg.
Given the increasing demand for BPC’s precast concrete products, the company has also unveiled plans to build a new factory in Maameer industrial area opposite Alba’s (Aluminium Bahrain) smelter, which will add to the company’s existing production capacity at Salmabad and help it meet the growing demand for precast elements in the kingdom.
The new state-of-the-art factory has been planned to facilitate easy movement of men, material and machinery, thus saving on time. It will not just be bigger and spacious than the existing facility, but will also include provisions for expansion, if required in the future, Hogberg adds.