WITH its goal set on becoming the regional leader in construction and commissioning industrial and commercial projects, Building Establishment for Specialised Construction (BESC) has recently seen the completion of yet another prominent project – the first-of-its-kind abrasives factory in Saudi Arabia.

BESC provided total turnkey services for the construction of Abrasive Technology Industries’ (ATI) factory in Dammam under a contract worth SR8 million ($2.1 million). The contracting firm was responsible for the civil and complete electromechanical works for the facility which was completed within one year, according to the company’s president, Hadi bin Mohammad D’bouk.

The scope of works has involved erection of a Kirby pre-engineered steel building (PEB) in addition to concrete works including the foundations for the machinery, electrical works, installation of lighting fixtures, aluminium doors, ceiling panels and furnishing the offices. This apart, the company carried out asphalting works over a total area of 6,000 sq m.
The shop-drawings for the PEB were provided by Kirby’s head office in Kuwait, he adds.

One of the special requirements of the project was that the production facility should be a controlled environment in terms of humidity (60 per cent) and temperature (not above 20 deg C) levels, D’bouk points out. The air-conditioning works were subcontracted to Al Bin Ali Air-Conditioning Systems.

BESC has a longstanding reputation for servicing the industrial and commercial sectors, which has involved supply of pre-engineered buildings by Kirby as well as erection of steel structures. This is typically done for large industrial projects such as power plants and oilfield applications.

D’bouk ... leadership vision.

In addition to PEBs, the company constructs commercial, residential and industrial buildings and camps with complete services and furnishings, and undertakes earth and road works, building maintenance and repairs, vehicle maintenance and repair, erection of power equipment/power lines, landscaping works, and trading and manufacture of furniture and building materials.

“Our vision is to become the regional construction leader in the industrial and commercial sectors,” says D’bouk. “And we aim to provide our client with the highest quality and cost-effective services, and on-time delivery.”

BESC places high priority on planning, which it considers to the foundation for a quality project. It helps identify risks and develop strategies to cope with the uncertainties. Its planning processes include mobilising for the execution of the project with bar charts, manpower and equipment histograms, and utilisation of industry standard scheduling, graphic and spreadsheet software, such as Primavera Project Planner for Windows, Microsoft Excel and Harvard Graphics. These tools are extensively used by BESC to facilitate data processing and graphic presentations for its project monitoring and updating, he says.

Another area on which the company focuses is quality.

“Our policy and overall business objective is to provide services of the highest quality and in compliance with the clients specified requirements,” says D’bouk. “We recognise that understanding the present and future needs of our clients is essential to achieving these objectives.”

By maintaining a documented quality system in compliance with ISO 9001:2000, the company ensures that effective processes are used to identify and provide the required level of quality. Internal meetings are held every month to review the results to ensure continual improvement of the system and processes.

BESC is also committed to loss prevention in order to minimise the risk of injury to its employees and damage to its physical assets. Hence, the company takes every possible measure to maintain a safe and healthy work environment and ensures that all equipment is “fit for the purpose” and well maintained. Its loss prevention department trains company personnel in safe work practices, and investigates all work-related incidents.

The company has a fleet of well over 100 equipment for various works. It also has a well-skilled team comprising electrical, mechanical and quality control engineers, and other administrative and non-administrative staff.

Some of the company’s recently completed projects include two car showrooms for Universal Motor Agencies in Al Khobar and Al Ahsa, a resident complex for Faisal S Al Naimi in Jubail, two car showrooms for KIA Motors Saudi Arabia in Riyadh and Dammam, civil and complete electromechanical works for Al Rashid Petroleum Centre in Jubail, a factory for Aliyah Group in Dammam, a precast concrete factory and concrete blocks factory for Eastern Trading Establishment in Dammam, and Inma Steel Factory in Jubail, among others.

Other projects that have been newly completed or are currently under way are Maaden Ras Al Zawer where Kirby PEBs were erected, Lion Steel Factory in the Second Industrial City for Al Assa’ad Factory for Steel, Al Manaratain Precast Concrete Factory in Dammam for the Bahrain-based Al Manaratain group, and a factory in Dammam for Al Rammal Group.