TIGER Profiles and Insulation (TPI) will be introducing modified and advanced concealed fix panels, as well as a range of ‘green’ products at this year’s Big 5 show, following its star performance at the event last year, where it clinched the gold and two silver Gaia awards for its environment-friendly products.

Besides new launches, the roofing and cladding specialist will showcase its entire product line, including its T-Seam standing seam roofing and cladding systems; sandwich panels; concealed fix wall panels; various dimensions of single-skin sinusoidal and trapezoidal metal construction panels; a range of profiles panels and accessories; and the award-winning Solacoat heat-reflecting coating range and Solasteel pre-coating heat-reflecting products.
It will be the company’s fourth participation in The Big 5 in as many years. “The response has been good enough to keep us coming back,” says Rosy Salameh, assistant executive director of the UAE-based TPI. “The quality and prestige of the show, as well as the response and attendance rates has been enormous.”
Through its participation, TPI expands its reach into its markets in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, GCC, and Europe.
Established in 1993 as the cladding arm of the 40-plus-years-old Tiger Steel Group of Companies, TPI is a one-stop-shop that caters to its diverse markets through its three plants, efficiently serve the GCC, Middle East, Asia and Africa’s need for its specialised products and systems. The product line presented by TPI encompasses roof panels, wall panels, floor decking panels, steel and aluminium profiled sheeting, partitioning, composite sandwich panels, concealed fix wall panels, pre-insulated partitions and cold store panels, standing seam systems (known as T-Seam), and cold formed sections, both standard and customer specific, and all the required accessories.
In addition, TPI is the sole distributor – Middle East, Asia and Africa for SolaCoat and SolaSteel Gold and double silver award winning heat reflecting coatings.
TPI extends design, engineering, manufacturing, supply and installation services to its clients, thus placing it in a position to serve its clients as a one stop-shop catering to all its product related needs.

Award-winning Solasteel
The gold Gaia Big 5 2008 award-winning Solasteel is a revolutionary, environmentally friendly pre-coat; it is a water-based acrylic coating for metal sheeting for roofs/walls and other applications. Solasteel, which was developed in the UAE through TPI’s partnership with CoolShield International of Australia, offers significant advantages over current existing pre-coated material, says Salameh.
“This high heat reduction coating provides much lower heat build-up in buildings. University tests show a solar reflectivity of upto 74.1 per cent. By using Solasteel, less or no insulation is required, and it has a longer gloss retention than existing pre-coated solvent-based polyester material. Solasteel is significantly competitive in that being a water-based acrylic, it is more resilient to breakdown by ultraviolet (UV) rays and thus lowers energy costs, while being a non-hazardous coating (low VOCs),” she says.

Double award-winning Solacoat
TPI clinched two silver awards for the environmentally-friendly Solacoat glossy acrylic coating and the Solacoat pavement coating. Solacoat, an Australian product by CoolShield International, is a revolutionary, water-based paint that provides a radiant barrier insulation coating that reduces temperature, Salameh continues.
“Solacoat is the most efficient and most cost-effective form of heat insulation commercially available today. It is a waterborne acrylic emulsion-based product, which has a special membrane additive that aids in rejecting of the infrared rays from the sun, thus preventing heat from penetrating residential or commercial buildings,” she says.
The Solacoat line includes a comprehensive range of products that cater to a variety of needs and includes pavement coatings, concrete coatings and railway coatings.
Through the use of Solacoat, TPI offers clients the option of applying paint to a single skin panel when they are in need of keeping the heat out of areas that are not air-conditioned. It can be applied, in a number of forms, to a sandwich panel to provide maximum heat insulation from external heat, and the highest levels of solar reflectivity while providing maximum efficiency in keeping the cool air inside the insulated area.
Certified by EcoSpecifier International, the Solacoat product line is proven to radiate up to 80 per cent of the infrared (heat) rays back into the environment while increasing points towards Leed and Green Star certification and rating, she says.
Visitors to TPI’s stand at The Big 5 will witness a Solacoat “lab” that will house a live demo area for Solacoat. “This opportunity to test for oneself the ability and impact of the Solacoat coatings to reduce the surface temperature of the coated surface will allow a first-hand approach for people to see the quality and performance of the coatings within a few minutes,” says Salameh.

Growth strategy
The year has been a busy one for TPI and while business has taken a hit due to the global recession, TPI has managed to withstand the effects. The company, in fact, has been pressing ahead with its growth strategy and taken a number of steps to boost its capacity and presence in the market. “A new mega production plant was launched in Abu Dhabi, greatly expanding our production capacity. We have also appointed Solacoat distributors in India and Iran and applicators in the UAE. In addition, we have introduced an updated version of concealed fix panels and T-Seam products, which will be showcased at The Big 5,” she says.
TPI is currently involved in several projects, one of the largest being the fast-track Dubai World Trade Centre extension project. This project, just recently completed, consisted of a multipurpose hall with three larger expo halls, located in the old car-park in front of the existing expo halls. The roof area is approximately 31,000 sq m and wall area is 12,000 sq m. The roof consists of insulated T-Seam standing seam and the wall cladding is composed of concealed fix micro-ribbed PU-injected panels.
“The major challenge faced in this project was the extremely fast pace of the job which encompassed the work of an excess of 250 of TPI’s labourers, all working in close coordination with various subcontractors in a very confined space. The project will add substantial space for future expos in Dubai,” she says.
Other projects include the Al Ain University, where TPI is expected to complete its part of the works next month, and the upcoming Al Barsha Mall in Dubai, work on which is expected to start this month.
These are in addition to the T-Seam roofing projects in hand for Masdar’s Institute of Science and Technology and Meydan’s “Receiving Barns Complex” projects in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, respectively.

Quality control
“Tiger Profiles has raised the bar with standards that surpass those of other competitors and our adherence to ISO 9001, ISO 1400 and OHSAS 18001 is indicative of our commitment to excellence,” Salameh says.
TPI is a member of the US Green Building Council (USGBC), and the Emirates Environmental Group.