Having established Installux as a recognised aluminium system since it was launched in the market around eight years ago, Installux Gulf is looking at pushing for greater awareness for the need to establish standards and ensure higher quality products and workmanship.

France-based Installux Group entered the Middle East market as the first aluminium systems company in May 1997 through a local representative office with a clear focus and has remained steadfast with its objectives, says Bassim Al Saie, general manager of Bahrain-based Installux Gulf.
A lot more aluminium systems manufacturers have now established themselves in the market but despite this, Al Saie is not concerned about the increasing competition.
“Growing competition and the trend towards quality construction augurs well for the industry,” he says. “Competition keeps you on your toes and ensures that you maintain quality, service and delivery. Also, international systems tend to affect and grab market share mostly from the low and medium range of products.”

Trends
“Given the type and the large number of major projects coming up all over the Gulf, the focus of developers is now towards having improved standards.  This clearly means that the region is moving slowly towards higher quality,” he points out. “Leading aluminium systems suppliers in the region are focusing on quality and investing in the right people to execute these landmark projects.”
Another important development in the sector is the growing interest in thermal-break systems, especially in the UAE where the Dubai Municipality is leading the drive towards more energy-efficient buildings, he says.  “Bahrain is reported to be thinking of introducing tougher thermal insulation standards for building, including glazing and related aluminium systems,” says Al Saie.
He continues: “With the growing tendency to develop 30-storey-plus structures, the industry is faced with new challenges where standard products used on lower rise buildings are unsuitable for such towers. These projects require specialised engineering and know-how and the development of a custom-designed system to cope with the requirements such as wind loading, structural movement, and defections, among others.  Developers and architects must realise that proper design and structural engineering works should be done ahead of time for such facades.  The projects can no longer be designed architecturally and be left to aluminium subcontractors for implementation. They require a special and systematic approach in studying the different forces include wind-tunnel testing, mock-up tests to validate performance and data.  It costs substantially more to rectify poor or badly designed systems than getting it right in the first place.”
The market is pushing for the establishment of a body that will monitor and govern standards in the aluminium industry, he says. “It is no longer possible to develop such projects without proper unified codes and standards to govern safety, quality, and reliability.  At the last Annual Aluminium and Glass Conference, held as part of the Gulf Construction Conference Week, many of the leading participants saw the need for unified quality standards and building codes in the region,” he says.
Al Saie hopes to see the launch of a strong independent aluminium association in the near future, where people involved in the industry can work together to lay its foundations.  “The setting up of such an association is vital,” he says, “as there are a lot of companies who are not qualified – in terms of quality, capability and products – to undertake certain projects.  It will help create a level playing field and eliminate unfair competition, while enforcing minimum quality standards.”

Markets
Commenting about the various markets in the region, Al Saie believes that Bahrain’s construction market will accelerate over the year with projects such as the Amwaj Islands, Durrat Al Bahrain, Bahrain Golf course redevelopment project, Bahrain World Trade Centre and Bahrain Financial Harbour taking shape.
In Bahrain, Installux’s four-sided structural glazing systems are currently being supplied for the 12-storey Ali Reza Tower in the Diplomatic Area and the contract is due for completion by the end of May 2005.  It is also supplying systems for a number of residential towers in Juffair.
Besides Bahrain, Installux Gulf has seen strong growth in most markets, with the UAE emerging as its largest market in the Gulf. In the UAE, it was involved in highly-prestigious projects such as the Burj Dubai Residences and Al Murooj complex, both in Dubai.
“In projects such as the Burj Dubai Residences in the UAE where the schedules are so tight, every aspect has to be properly planned and coordinated.  Installux – which won the aluminium systems contract for the project with its UAE-based partner Alumco, had to synchronise the delivery of various components – including those coming from France – ensuring that everything was delivered in a phased manner.”
Among the more recent orders it has secured in the emirates is the Dubai Marina Tower and the three new towers at the Burj Dubai development.
In Qatar, Installux is supplying its systems for the 22-storey Doha Tower project.
Al Saie is pleased that Installux has become a well-recognised brand in the area and the company has numerous references in the region, which bear testimony to its systems. 
“As a result, a number of companies are now interested to work with our systems,” he adds.
During the year, Installux made a major investment in IT solutions, which is expected to help make the firm more efficient, and improve its productivity and service to its clients.  To cope with the strong growth it is also investing in the recruitment of additional staff.

New products
Last year, the firm launched a new four-sided structural glazing system based on the same principles as conventional curtain-walling but offering the advantages of greater cost-effectiveness, and a slimmer profile.  The system, developed in conjunction with Alumco, has already been successfully installed at the Dubai Police headquarters and subsequently at projects in Kuwait and will be used in further developments around the Gulf this year.  “This is further proof that to have a successful product you need to work as a team with your partners, and that local needs need to be taken into consideration,” says Al Saie.
Over this year, Installux will be revamping some of its products range.  The first is a new heavy-duty door series, then followed by a new casement window series – the former is set to be launched in France shortly while the latter will be introduced by mid-2005 and should be available in the Gulf by the end of the year.
Besides aluminium systems, Installux will be placing a greater marketing focus and effort on office partition systems, which are offered under the Installux umbrella – namely Tiaso office partitions.  Installux has tied up with Dubai-based Bafco to market the systems in the UAE and is looking at appointing local distributors in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar.
“With the increasing number of offices being set up and refurbished in the region, we anticipate greater demand for quality demountable office partitions and want to position ourselves to secure a significant market share,” he adds.