Leading Saudi Arabia-based manufacturer of precast concrete Qanbar Dywidag Precast Concrete Company Limited (QDC) remains optimistic of a great year ahead despite the problems of increases in prices of concrete raw materials faced by the industry.

To keep pace with the growing demand, the company is planning the expansion of its precast factory and the production of glass reinforced concrete (GRC) products in the near future.
“The future is bright for precast concrete construction industry in Saudi Arabia,” says Mohammed A Al Ansari, the director/CEO of QDC. “Though the industry is facing problems due to the continuous increase in the prices of construction raw materials, the fact remains that precast concrete is the way forward and demand will continue to rise. More and more clients are beginning to realise the quality offered by the material and also the benefits and advantages of using precast concrete components in projects – be it in the construction of showrooms, housing, apartments, hospitals, schools or shopping malls.
“Precast technology facilitates the production of a diverse range of products that often exceed the expectation of clients,” he adds.
“The Gulf region is a vast and booming market,” says Adel Gad, the general manager of the company. “There will always be a need to build, rebuild, and expand infrastructure, housing, and oil and gas sector projects, which together should keep the precast concrete sector at the forefront.”
Turning to QDC’s performance, Gad says: “Compared to last year, our production has increased by 30 per cent this year and we have secured a considerable volume of orders in addition to completing all spillover works from last year.
“Qanbar Dywidag has a 22 per cent share of the Saudi domestic precast market and we cater for demand throughout the kingdom. Although our main market remains the Eastern Province and central region, we have also supplied to projects in Abha and Yanbu.”
“The kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which is one of the largest construction markets in the region, continues to hold promise and high growth is fuelled by the high national income based on oil and gas revenues. The demand for precast in the region is currently quite high but has not reached its peak yet, and there are several important projects that are either lined up or under implementation.
“A few of the Middle East’s largest petrochemical companies based in Saudi Arabia have initiated several infrastructure and construction projects, apart from the expansion of the oil and gas sectors.
“With the government placing a great deal of importance for infrastructure and industrial development, the demand for precast concrete is expected to increase even further. In addition, the kingdom’s public sector is looking to expanding the number of schools, hospitals, industrial cities as well as electrical generation and water treatment plants. The private sector has also became a dominant force in this free market spending billions of riyals a year on offices, hotels, shopping malls and housing units,” Al Ansari comments.
Precast concrete has been used to construct many impressive buildings in Saudi Arabia including hospitals, schools, mosques, shopping malls, multi-storey car-parks, residential and commercial buildings, showrooms and villas, demonstrating how precast elements can be used to enhance traditional Arab or Islamic architectural styles.
Established in 1981 as a partnership between Saudi businessman Shaikh Abdul Razzak Mohammed Qanbar Al Ansari and one of the largest West German general contractors and precast concrete manufacturer Dycherhoff and Widmann (Dywidag), QDC was bought over by Al Ansari Group in 2002. Since then, Dywidag has continued to provide technical support to the firm.
The company has also opened up new markets, says Al Ansari.
Located in the industrial city of Jubail, QDC has an annual production capacity of 180,000 cu m of various precast products and a 1,500-member workforce.
QDC provides a comprehensive range of products, serving as a one stop-shop for all precast and prestressed concrete requirement, right from standard precast concrete elements and products such as paving and interlocking tiles, manholes, seating, to external claddings panels, hollowcore slabs, double-tee slabs, and precast domes, prestressed long spans girders, wall frame, beams and columns frame and boundary walls.
Some of the company’s prominent customers include: Saudi Aramco, Saudi Electric Company (SEC), Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic), Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, Saudi Arabian National Guard, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Defence.
“One of our latest high-quality finish projects, the Al Ansari Compound in Al Khobar is close to completion, where we did the full building frame system including columns, beams and hollowcore for 50 villas and four apartment blocks,” says Gad.
“Apart from this we have several other projects in hand that include: King Faisal University Campus in Al Hasa and Dammam; the 274-villa Sabic Housing Compound in Jubail; Al Dabbal Commercial Tower in Dammam and its housing compound; Arabian Drilling Company Complex, comprising offices and residential units in Al Khobar; industrial facilities for Sabic affiliates; large private housing projects; and various shopping malls such as the Al Habib Mall-Dammam,” he concludes.