IN ADDITION to launching a raft of new products at this year’s gulfBID, Saudi-based Alwatania Gypsum Company will be using its debut entry at the event to promote its portfolio and enhance its client base in the Bahrain and Qatar.

The company, which registered an excellent year for business in 2009 with sales increasing by 20 per cent, produces nine types of gypsum powder – Yamama Gypsum, Riyadh Gypsum, Alwatani Gypsum, Algharbiya Gypsum, Alwasta Gypsum, Watania Ceramic Plaster, Watania beaded wall plaster, Watania Agriculture Gypsum, and Watania Resistant Plaster. It also manufactures three types of gypsum boards – regular, moisture-resistant and fire-resistant, under two brand names Alyamam and Algharbiya plasterboard. Other special products from the firm include ceramic gypsum and beaded wall gypsum.
“Many of these products will be new launches at this year’s event,” says Fahad bin Abdullah Al Abbad, general manager of Alwatania. These include Algharbiya and Alwasta Gypsum Powder, used in manufacturing decorative features and gypsum cornices; Watania Ceramic Plaster, used to the manufacture of ceramic moulds; Watania beaded wall plaster, developed as an alternative to cement; Watania Agriculture Gypsum, used as an alternative to chemicals to enhance soil productivity; Watania Resistant Plaster, a special water-resistant gypsum powder, designed for building facades and areas prone to moisture; and Alyamam and Algharbia plasterboard, used as office partitions and ceiling decoration.
Alwatania Gypsum Company was established in 1997 as a joint venture with Mohamed Abdulaziz Alrajhi Industrial Holding. The Riyadh-headquartered company has offices in Jeddah and Yanbu and two factories – Yamama Gypsum Factory in Riyadh and Al Watania gypsum factory in Yanbu. Both are specialised in powder gypsum production with a capacity of 300,000 tonnes per year. In addition, ceramic adhesive is also manufactured at the Yamama gypsum factory.
Equipped with a 1-million-sq-m quarry, Alwatania is said to be the first of its kind in the Middle East to produce various kinds of gypsum including standard gypsum, as well as adhesive gypsum and special gypsum used in the manufacture of sanitary ware. More than 250 people are employed by the company, which generates an annual turnover of more than $15 million. Using state-of-the-art technology, the company can produce a range of products, including 840 tonnes per day (tpd) of gypsum powder, 18 million sq m of gypsum board per year; and 5,000 tonnes of ceramic adhesive per year.
Alwatania has major plans for expanding business in the future. “We will acquire a new agency for gypsum board metal accessories and produce new special products at the facility in Yanbu,” says Al Abbad.
The company will also open new plants in Alkharj for the production of gypsum boards with an annual capacity of 10 million sq m, besides expanding its gypsum powder production capacity to 1,340 tpd. It also intends to launch operations in July at a new gypsum board production factory in Riyadh, which will have a total capacity of 10 million sq m. Other plans include opening additional sales offices in Riyadh and Jeddah.
Alwatania is currently supplying many prestigious projects in the region – being the main supplier to Princess Noura bint Abdulaziz University in Riyadh; Alkharj University Project – as well as clients such as Saudi Oger, Alfairoz Global Trading Company, Qatar; Abunabil Trading, Yemen; and Saudi Binladin Group.
The company maintains a strict quality-control policy, says the general manager. “We adhere to various international standards, such as Saudi Arabian Standards Organisation (Saso), American (ASTM), German (DIN), French (NE) and Gulf (GS) standards. Our company has also been awarded ISO 9001:2000 from ASR Company. All this is done to ensure that our products are of the highest quality,” Al Abbad emphasises.
As for construction industry in the GCC, Al Abbad says it will be one of the most important economic sectors in the next 10 years. The main market in the GCC, according to him, is Saudi Arabia, which accounts for some 60 per cent of the total market.
The company will be exhibiting at Stand 1C74 at gulfBID.