Cybarco Bahrain, a wholly-owned Bahraini contracting company, has seen itself grow from strength to strength over recent years, bagging some of the major projects awarded in Bahrain over the past year. These include the prestigious Formula One race track, the Shaikh Isa bin Sulman Al Khalifa library and the Seef flyovers.

Over the past two years, Cybarco Bahrain has undergone a great deal of restructuring to transform it into a modern, well-focused firm. The company is now in the process of implementing a name change to 'Cebarco Bahrain', to keep the English spelling in line with the Arabic pronunciation of the name. Also on the cards is a change in the corporate logo to depict the growth and forward-focused image of the company.

Khalid M A Rahim, who is chairman and chief executive officer of Cybarco Bahrain, is now the sole proprietor of the company and has implemented an ambitious growth strategy for Cybarco Bahrain that not only includes engineering and construction but also seeks partnerships both globally and within the GCC in terms of project management and trading.

Cybarco adopts a multi- tasked team approach which is underpinned by a client-focused policy following total quality assurance and applying the best construction practices to ensure customer satisfaction, according to Rahim.

Commenting about business over the past year, Rahim says: "The year started off on a quiet note but towards the end of 2002, we massively increased our turnover mainly with the two projects - the Shaikh Isa library and the Formula One race track.'

'The Shaikh Isa library is an exceptional and complex project with a two-year duration. In keeping with the prestige of the development, which is named after the late Amir Shaikh Isa bin Sulman Al Khalifa, the project has been meticulously designed with intricate ornate features and will be built to last. The scale of the project is massive in terms of construction material that will be used on it to ensure that its durability. The BD12.5 million ($33.15 million) project is for the Shaikh Isa Library Committee under the chairmanship of Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalid Al Khalifa," he explains.

The two main buildings of the complex - the library and the conference centre - with be built of reinforced concrete. Steel trusses will support the roof of the conference centre and extensive use will be made of GRP (glass-reinforced plastics) for the vaults over the roof of the conference centre and the domes on the complex. The project covers a site area of 51,000 sq m. At the peak of construction, Cybarco expects to have more than 600 workers on site.

Alkomed has been appointed to undertake the mechanical and electrical services while Cybarco intends to implement the hi-tech conference elements by itself.

On the Formula One racing circuit, Cybarco employed a strategy which has paid off very well. It sought and found a suitable joint venture partner in WCT of Malaysia, which had built the

Sepang Circuit in its home country. Incidentially, Germany's Tilke - the consultant on the Bahrain Racing Circuit project - was also the consultant on the Sepang circuit.

"It was the only winning choice we could go with and we have established an excellent working relationship with our Malaysian partners and indeed with the whole project team," Rahim adds.

"The Formula One project has a very tight schedule, involving a monthly production of BD2.5 million, peaking at BD6 million per month. Work is ahead of schedule on the project and we are now looking at working around the clock. We are also seeking local resources to help speed up work on the project.

"The project is proceeding extremely well with Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalifa (chairman of the

Bahrain Racing Circuit development and president of the Crown Prince's court) personally monitoring the progress on the facility," he says.

Cybarco is currently working on the tunnels crossing on the racing circult as well as the superstructure of the Grandstand, VIP tower, multipurpose building, media centre and medical centre. Simultaneously, grading works are under way to level the land for the circuits and the bypasses with blasting of the rock outcrops expected to continue for the next five months. At the peak of construction, some 1,600 workers are expected to be on site to complete the fast-track project.

"Time is a major challenge on this project but we are confident of meeting our target date as long as we receive the required support from the government agencies," he says.

"In fact, the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of works have been very supportive towards our efforts," he adds.

Cybarco launched work on the project in November and is expected to complete it in time for the handover in March 2004.

A third major project that Cybarco won late last year was the Seef flyovers contract worth BD9.7 million. Parsons Global Services is the consultant on the project. Cybarco expects to start work on site in the first quarter of this year for completion in two years. The project involves construction of 200-m-long flyovers with four bridges over the Pearl and the Seef roundabouts, providing a junctionless, freeflowing route over the busy Seef area.

Cybarco has started work on the Fort tower, an extension to the Ministry of Justice Complex. The 10-storey building in the Diplomatic Area is due for completion in 16 months.

Meanwhile, Cybarco has just handed over the law courts for the Ministry of Justice. Other projects in its portfolio include the Al Safa Commercial building in the Seef district, the Philippines School in Isa Town, a police station in Khamis and the Ayn Adhari development which involves the refurbishment of the Adhari pool, formerly fed by a natural spring. The project is due for completion in March.

Rahim is upbeat about the prospects of the company and sees it furthering its horizons very shortly.

"2003 will be an extremely good year for Cybarco," he enthuses. "Our strategy is to continue our expansion and we are already looking at business opportunities outside Bahrain - both in the GCC and further afield. In fact, we have been approached by several Turkish companies to bid for the Formula One race track planned to be built in Istanbul.'

Rahim believes the company is well-placed to clinch the deal considering the experience it will have gained in constructing Bahrain's world-class racing circuit.

Cybarco's outstanding success has also meant that it needs to expand its business premises to cope with the volume of work on its desks, according to general manager Peter Sellers.

"Cybarco has an excellent portfolio of work and we believe in ensuring that all our customers are treated correctly, no matter the size or value of the project. Cybarco currently has a workforce of 500 and it is anticipating that this will rise to 2,000 over the course of this year, with the staff of its joint venture partners," says Sellers

The contractor, which enjoys grade AA classification, attributes its success to its committed human resources, efficient management, its business strategy and competitive pricing policy.

"We are very supportive of the changes introduced by the King, Shaikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa," says Rahim. "We also actively support the government and its Bahrainisation efforts. In fact, we have recently recruited Bahraini engineers and site safety and security personnel. Currently all our drivers, security personnel and human resources department are Bahraini.'

Cybarco holds credit for having built landmark projects in Bahrain such as the Citibank headquarters, the Dilmun Towers, BMMI headquarters, and the National Guard headquarters.