Qanbar Dywidag Precast Concrete Company Limited (QDC), a premier precast concrete manufacturer in Saudi Arabia, this year marks two decades of service to the Kingdom's construction sector.

Over the years, the company has supplied to diverse projects including hospitals, schools, factories, warehouses, showrooms, multi-storey offices, apartment buildings, single and multi-storey car-parks, villas, shopping centres, mosques, supermarkets, boundary walls and interlocking and paving tiles.

The Jubail-based company currently has a total production capacity of 140,000 cu m per year of precast and prestressed components. These include elements in sandblasted, washed and various formliner finishes and all types of PCC production.

QDC was formed in 1981 as a partnership between one of the leading businessmen in the Eastern Province, Shaikh Abdul Razaq Mohammed Qanbar Al Ansari, and one of the largest German precast concrete manufacturers, Dyckerhoff & Widmann AG (Dywidag).

Marketing manager Ahmed Sameh attributes the firm's success to its high-quality products and its capability to produce a diverse range - which it continues to add to.

QDC products meet the international and Saso (Saudi Arabian Standards Organisation) standards, says Sameh.

"Qanbar Dywidag provides a comprehensive range of products, offering basically a one-stop shop for all precast and prestressed concrete requirements, right from planters to staircases and prestressed long spans," he says.

Early this year, the company introduced a light fencing system.

"This fencing system has been designed primarily with industrial facilities in mind," says Sameh.

Highlighting the advantages of the system, he says: "This system is light in weight and be installed very easily. It can be carried manually and therefore requires very little equipment for erection. It is also very competitively-priced."

Sameh reports good demand for the product with a number of enquiries.

The system has already been installed at an industrial facility in Aziziyah, Al Khobar.

According to Sameh, the precast concrete market is growing as people become increasingly aware of the benefits offered by precast.

"The quality of precast components can be assured as they are produced under strict factory-controlled. They are easy to maintain and are offered in a wide range of finishes.

"In addition, they speed up construction and therefore allow early occupation of projects," he adds.

To ensure a high standard of quality of precast concrete produced in the Kingdom, Sameh believes that compliance to international and Saso standards with strict quality control for the production of these components should be made mandatory.

Commenting on business this year, he says: "Our output is up on last year in response to increased demand in the private sector. People have come to realise the quality offered by precast concrete especially in the construction of showrooms, housing and apartments.

"While competition is tough in the market, people who are well aware of our quality have stayed with us over the years.

"Qanbar Dywidag also offers a high level of service to clients. The company's sales network includes offices in Dammam and Riyadh."

While its main market remains the Eastern Province, Qanbar Dwyidag has also supplied to projects in Abha and Yanbu and Riyadh.

In the Saudi capital city, the company is poised to complete work on the prestigious Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) headquarters. The project comprises a 17-storey tower and a four-storey car-park. QDC's scope of works covered cladding panels and prestressed TT slabs.

Work is also nearing completion on a project for Saudi Arabian National Guard (SANG) in Hofuf. For the Prince Abdullah Military City, the company is supplying its full frame building system, including walls, columns, beams and hollowcore slabs. Qanbar Dywidag started work on the project in July 1999.

Last month, the company completed work on the Ghazlan Power Plant project in the Eastern Province. Qanbar Dywidag supplied 50,000 sq m of cladding panels for the project. These sandwich panels are of unusually high specifications requiring 70-mm-thick insulation.

Qanbar Dywidag has just started erection work on a luxury bachelors camp in Haradh in the Eastern Province for Saudi Aramco. Here, the company is supplying its full frame building system for seven expansive three-level apartment complexes and ancillary facilities.

"The project, which incorporates attractive architectural features such as arches, should be completed by August 2002," he adds.

The precast concrete manufacturer has started production of elements for a Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) housing complex in the Eastern Province. It is supplying its full frame building system for 16 three-storey apartment blocks which are expected to be completed by October 2002.

Qanbar Dywidag is also working on various school projects for the private sector as well as for Saudi Aramco, involving a variety of systems including its full-frame, cladding panels and hollow-core slabs.

QDC is also supplying the precast cladding for the College of Agriculture for the King Faisal University in Hofuf. Using pigmented concrete, the company is creating unusual architectural features at the complex.

The company supplied its full frame system for the race-day stables and mosque at the Janadriyah Equestrian Club near Riyadh last year. It also supplied columns and cladding for the grandstand.