Mohamed Salahuddin Consulting Engineering Bureau (MSCEB) is working on a string of projects in Bahrain, ranging from commercial headquarter buildings, through residential apartment buildings, to prototype filling stations. 

The Bahrain-based architectural and engineering consulting firm anticipates that the boom in construction activity, which the country is currently witnessing, will continue well into 2004 and beyond.
Some of the prestigious projects that MSCEB has in hand include the new extension to Investcorp House, the serviced apartments adjacent to the Diplomat Radisson SAS Hotel, Bahrain National Holding headquarters, the Tareq Almoayyed Tower and four new service stations for Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco).

Investcorp House extension
G P Zachariades is set to start work this month on an extension to Investcorp House, in Bahrain’s Diplomatic area, which is expected to be completed by February 2005.

Bahrain Foundations Construction Company (BFCC) has just completed the piling works on the project.
The client’s brief was to ensure that the new building is visually identical to the existing one, so that the entire development renders the impression of one cohesive complex. In fact, to ensure that the two buildings are alike in every respect, the glazing of the older building will later be replaced to match that of the new structure being constructed diagonally adjacent to it.
The two buildings will be interlinked at the ground floor level via a landscaped plaza and an interconnecting double-height entrance lobby.
The new extension will comprise a basement level, a ground floor and seven upper levels and offer a total built-up area of 5,700 sq m.  It is being built on a site earlier used as a car-park. Investcorp, however, leases car-parking spaces in the immediate vicinity.
The building will be clad with curtain-walling comprising blue reflective high-performance double-glazed panels.  The ground floor and the top of the building are clad with travertine marble, to match the existing building.
“The new plaza and entrance lobby thus created will provide a more prestigious entrance lobby for the Investcorp House,” says Cyrus Vesuvala, manager-project management at MSCEB.  The work will be carried out with minimal disruption to the operations of Investcorp.
“Even when the new entrance lobby punches through into the existing building, every effort will be exerted to ensure the smooth running of activities within Investcorp House,” says Vesuvala.
The building will have high-quality finishes. The offices will be generally open plan and feature raised access flooring and central air-conditioning supplied by energy-efficient chilled-water VAV (variable air volume) systems. The extension building will be served by one goods lift and two passenger elevators.
On completion of works to the new extension building in February 2005, re-glazing works will commence on the existing structure, with early June 2005 set as the target date for final completion.
DLAG is the quantity surveyor on the project.

Serviced apartments at Diplomat
Tenders are currently being evaluated for a luxury serviced apartments building, which will rise majestically next to the Diplomat Radisson SAS Hotel in Bahrain. A contract is expected to be announced this month and will have a duration of 18 months.
The 15-storey structure will boast 121 deluxe apartments of one to three bedrooms and luxury penthouse suites, within a total built-up area of 22,000 sq m.  As the site enjoys a prominent location overlooking the Muharraq bay, striking gold-coloured high-performance double-glazed curtain walling has been selected for use on the building. Aluminium composite cladding panels, which complement the glazing, will also be used for the facades. The facade will be further accentuated by four turrets which surmount the corners of the building.
“These turrets, when back-lit at night, will visually bring to mind the traditional lanterns, and will stand out as beacons, enhancing the visibility of the complex,” says Vesuvala.
The building will have a semi-circular feature facade on the north side away from the hotel, which will contain the living areas of the larger suites and offer scenic views overlooking the sea and the causeways to Muharraq.
The building will be linked at each level to the existing hotel and residents of the apartment building will have access to the health club and other facilities offered by the hotel.
BWS is the quantity surveyor on the project.

Bapco service stations
MSCEB has developed the prototypes for the next generation of service stations planned by Bapco.
“These advanced facilities will be more than mere fuel filling stations. They will be environmentally-friendly units which boast vapour recovery systems and which are designed to tackle fuel spillage,” Vesuvala points out. “Besides filling facilities, the new stations will include car care centres, and 24-hour mini-marts. One of the stations will also feature a pharmacy.”
Three of the new prototype service stations will be new, and will be built at Seef, Hamad Town and at the Manama Central Market, while the fourth facility, at Muharraq, is an existing fuel station to be refurbished as per Bapco’s programme.
An old filling station currently exists at the site at the Central Market, but it will be demolished to make way for the new state-of-the-art filling station. To minimise the period during which there is no service available at Central Market and Muharraq, construction of the new complexes there will be carried out in a phased manner.
All the new stations will have a common, congruous theme.  The canopy is constructed of composite aluminium and has a sleek aerofoil design, a motif which is reflected in the design of the canopy columns and roof forms of some of the ancillary buildings.
“The emphasis has been on modernity, ease of maintenance, and environmental-friendliness,” Vesuvala points out.  The designs for the pilot project have been approved by Bapco, and tenders are expected to be issued shortly.

Tareq Almoayyed Tower
Construction work has started on a new ground-plus-nine-level serviced apartments block adjacent to the Sanrock Hotel in Manama. The building will feature an “old world look” with traditional Lebanese-style architecture. The external facades will feature a traditional combination of plaster, paint and stonework.
The building will accommodate a restaurant, shops and services next to the main entrance lobby at the ground floor.  The first to the eighth levels will offer a combination of studio, one and two-bedroom apartments.  The ninth floor will have a health club, gymnasium, children’s play areas, a cafeteria and an outdoor swimming pool, partially covered with a pergola.
The contractor on the project is Almoayyed Contracting.
 
BNH headquarters
Fit-out works are currently under way at the Bahrain National Holding (BNH) headquarters, which boasts highly distinctive architectural features.
The building in Seef features a lower ground and upper ground level, plus nine floors, encompassing a total built-up area of about 13,000 sq m.
The typical floor plate is oval in shape, giving way at the ends to semi-circular glass features, one of which encloses a staircase and the other a panoramic lift. The exterior curved facade of the building comprises green reflective two-sided structural glazing, bordered on the sides and the top by pinkish beige precast concrete panels.  The side panels give way to the semi-circular ends, comprising four-sided structural glazing.
Large terraces punctuate the glazed facade of the building on the eighth level. This level will serve as the executive floor of the BNH headquarters. The fit-out works for the eighth and ninth levels are to be awarded soon.
The approach to the building is via a ramp that takes one up to the upper ground level where MSCEB has created a deck offering car-parking spaces. With the additional covered car-parking spaces available on the lower ground level , the complex will offer parking facilities for a total of more than 120 vehicles. BNH’s archives and computer room are also located at the lower ground floor.
Levels four to seven are to be leased out as office space, while the client will use all other levels as its corporate headquarters. Being open plan, each floor level can be sub-divided into upto four offices. All offices have raised access flooring, and VAV-type central chilled-water air-conditioning.
MSCEB, the design and supervision consultant on the project, also undertook the designs for the interiors of the building. DLAG is the quantity surveyors on the project, while Al Handasa Center is the client representative.
GPZ is expected to handover the project in May 2004.