DUBAI-based Mac Al Gurg is upbeat about prospects for business this year, given the valuable medium and long-term projects rolling over from last year, new principals added to the company’s extensive portfolio and a general feeling of optimism in the UAE’s construction sector.

“I think this year can only get better (than 2012),” says Rajkumar Paryani, general manager. “There have been a lot of projects announced in Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the last few months.”

“Abu Dhabi will be spending around Dh330 billion ($89.8 billion) over the next five years and Dubai has announced a few projects like the Mohammed Bin Rashid City. Also many of the infrastructure projects that have been on hold for the past two years are being relaunched,” he notes.

He does sound a note of caution, though. “The only thing is that we got used to 2007 and 2008 (boom); we have to adapt ourselves to a different scenario now because I don’t think those levels of construction will ever come back, but I do think it is going to get busy.”

Mac Al Gurg has been working closely with its partners and principals to serve the building and construction industry for more than 34 years, offering drainage solutions, municipal castings, sanitary ware, bathroom accessories and high-end kitchen solutions for residential, commercial and healthcare projects.

In many cases, the company has been able to combine synergies and products of multiple principals to strengthen its bids on project contracts and offer a more comprehensive solution to contractors and customers.

An example is the Sowwah Square retail development project in Abu Dhabi where Mac Al Gurg supplied sanitary ware from Armitage Shanks of the UK as well as manhole covers from Howe Green also of the UK.

Another instance of the company’s ability to combine the strengths of two separate partners on a single project is the Sharjah domestic gas supply scheme that it has secured for its principals Yorkshire Copper Tube and Wask. The project to deliver piped domestic natural gas to every household in Sharjah city has been ongoing since 1996/7 and is now about 80 per cent complete. Paryani estimates that, over that period, it has supplied 99 per cent of the requirement for high-quality copper tubing, sourced from Yorkshire Copper Tube and a similar proportion of the pipe fittings from Wask.

One of the larger projects Mac Al Gurg has on hand is the supply of Viking Johnson dismantling joints for a multi-billion-dirham strategic water storage initiative being constructed by ACC-Posco in the Liwa area of Abu Dhabi near the Saudi border.

Meanwhile, the latest principal to join the Mac Al Gurg family is Delta Faucet, which selected the company as its partner for the UAE following extensive due diligence. Founded by Masco Corporation in 1954 with the introduction of the single-handle faucet, Delta offers an extensive line of commercial products, incorporating style and innovation into faucets and flush valves, both manual and electronic. The company manufactures Delta, Brizo and Peerless branded products. Its product offering also caters to the urban-loft, high-rise, hospitality and long-term care sectors, providing faucets and related products to suit both residential and commercial buildings.

The flagship Delta brand offers excellent designs that incorporate smart thinking that anticipates people’s needs, such as the Touch2O technology that turns faucets on and off with just a touch, and the Diamond valve that extends the lifespan of the faucet to last up to five million uses.

The premium Brizo brand aims to meet the demand for aesthetics and performance with a collection of distinctively designed faucets and related products that create a fashion statement in the home; while the Peerless brand offers affordable faucets with proven design in a range of styles and finishes for both consumers and trade professionals alike.
Another world-class brand that the firm is supporting strongly in the UAE is SieMatic, which has always had a strong presence in high-end villas and residences in the region. Mac Al Gurg is now pushing hard to secure both major project work and retail sales opportunities for the iconic German kitchen manufacturer.

As Paryani explains: “At present, SieMatic is catering more to individual villas than projects but we are looking at a villa project on The Palm Jumeirah called the Kingdom of Sheba. We have done a mock-up and the client appears to like it so we are awaiting contract confirmation.

“Since we took them on last year, we have done more than 20 individual villas. The standout is the kitchen for the palace of a member of the Abu Dhabi ruling family.”

Mac Al Gurg has opened a flagship showroom for SieMatic in Bur Dubai to display it premium and luxury kitchens and also has SieMatic displays in the Mall of the Emirates, he continues.

The SieMatic displays are part of the larger Better Life store in the mall and this arrangement shows the strength that Mac Al Gurg and its parent, the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group (ESAG), offers its principals.

The Mall of the Emirates is close to the prosperous residential areas of new Dubai and so its customers are seen as prime potential clients for SieMatic products, Paryani explains.

Mac Al Gurg operates from various locations in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain in the UAE and also in the neighbouring Oman and Qatar serving the needs of its diverse customer base.