HAVING celebrated a landmark 15 years of operations in Abu Dhabi late last year, global formwork specialist Doka is now looking to scale even greater heights in the emirate, while continuing to offer its latest products to the UAE market.

Dubai-based Doka Gulf established its Abu Dhabi branch back in 1994 and the office soon emerged as one of the most reliable suppliers of the formwork materials in the emirate, says area sales and branch manager Obaida El Rayes.
He continues: “Within a very short time after it was set up, the branch established itself as a competent and capable formwork partner for the construction industry in Abu Dhabi. The office’s service quality and technical expertise contributed to the excellent reputation gained by Doka in the emirate.”
The crucial factors towards Doka’s success were and remain close cooperation with its customers, its high level of capability displayed in professional handling of technologically and logistically challenging large-scale projects, and comprehensive services maintained through all phases of each construction project, he adds.

Despite the ongoing economic downturn worldwide, 2009 was a landmark year for Doka Abu Dhabi, says El Rayes. “Relying on its core values that are guided by the vision for market leadership, the branch is now poised to scale even greater services, and we look forward to the demands and challenges of this constantly changing market.”
Doka Abu Dhabi is proud to have worked on prestigious projects such as the Capital Gate tower, Sowwah Square, the Landmark Tower, Shams Gate Abu Dhabi and Capital Plaza, among its extensive list of projects.
“For each project, we worked out the right solution and the ideal equipment for the job,” says El Rayes, adding that the target was to help customers achieve the most-effective implementation of formwork across every phase of the project.
“It’s all to do with progress and cost-effectiveness,” emphasises El Rayes. “For a supplier like Doka, which continuously aims to help construction firms meet the even-higher requirements, optimising both the product and accompanying services is of crucial importance.”
“For 15 years, Doka Abu Dhabi has been giving its customers tangible and measurable benefits,” he continues. “The company has been focused on delivering solutions that would ensure extra-high workflow productivity so as to boost construction firms’ efficiency.”

This year, Doka has brought in path-breaking solutions that beat all expectations.
Its lightweight load-bearing Staxo 40 towers use a radical new frame geometry and in terms of load-bearing capability (up to 45 kN per leg) and short assembly times they optimise the cost/benefit ratio, according to El Rayes, who adds that Staxo 40 towers are easy and quick to handle and make for a “perfect solution for all shoring tasks in the building construction segment”.
Meanwhile, for tougher requirements and extra-high load capacity, Doka has introduced its extremely sturdy Staxo 100 load-bearing system.
Like all other Doka products, both systems are combined with maximum safety features and are currently being offered to the UAE market.
Doka’s load-bearing solutions are already in use in a number of projects in Abu Dhabi such as Rosewood Abu Dhabi Hotel, St Regis Hotel & Residence on Saadiyat Island, a sewage treatment booth in Al Ain, and the Tameer Tower on Al Reem Island.
Doka is now planning to introduce to the market some of the its recent pioneering product achievements that have been presented for the first time earlier this year at bauma 2010 exhibition in Germany. These include the FF 100 tec site-ready high-load timber-beam formwork and DoKart, the extremely flexible new shifting device for the tableforms, which are both destined to become well known names in the formwork industry, according to El Rayes.
“Our aim is to keep alive the values that Doka group stands for. First and foremost, this means reliability and high capability – and filling our customers with enthusiasm for the Doka brand. We work alongside our clients, supporting them with the full Doka service and product range wherever they happen to be. We want our customers to profit from new technologies that make it easier for them to form cast-in-place concrete,” El Rayes concludes.