With three decades of experience in the thriving UAE market, an estimated annual turnover of  $250 million, and contracts for prestigious developments such as the Old Town Phase I, Golf Towers and Green Lake Towers in hand, Al Basti & Muktha (ABM) marches on towards realising its goal of being among the leading construction groups in UAE having achieved a  “preferred contractor” status.

ABM now ranks among the top engineering and construction companies in the region with an established track record of having delivered numerous projects of varied sizes. These projects have been delivered to clients’ and consultants’ satisfaction; within a stipulated time period and with a high degree of professionalism, leading to the firm being the recipient of multiple repeat orders.
“The outlook for the future can be gauged by the fact that ABM’s current portfolio of ongoing projects are valued in excess of Dh1.6 billion (approximately $500 million) and consist of eight high-rise towers, including Green Lakes, Jewel Tower and Golf Towers and the prestigious Old Town Phase I,” says Rakesh Talwar, executive director of the ABM Group.
In previous years, ABM has been consistently achieving a double-digit growth. With demand for construction soaring in recent times a 50 per cent growth is expected in 2005. The growth potential for the company is far more than what it is achieving at the moment,” he stresses. “We could secure a lot more business but only accept jobs that we can execute efficiently and deliver on schedule. Client satisfaction has always been the focus of ABM and meeting the deadline - even for most complex of tasks - has been our hallmark over three decades of operation.”
Talwar expects the construction boom that the UAE is currently experiencing to continue for at least the next five years or so, as there are a lot of projects in the planning stage and many more set for the drawing boards which the company is closely following up.

ABM's landmark project ... Arabian Ranches.

Early years
Established by founding chairman S K Pathak in partnership with the late Lahej Al Basti with a goal to construct quality and affordable buildings, ABM has since grown from strength to strength and continues to be led by Pathak with Malih Al Basti having taken over from his late father as the local partner.
“Their vision and guidance is available to the management team on a regular basis for setting the goals for the company and plotting the future course of action,” Talwar adds.
ABM has seen Dubai transform from a desert oasis to a bustling metropolis, and is proud to have made its contribution to the rapidly changing face of the emirate.
ABM was initially involved in a number of residential development projects for the Rulers Office in Al Karama, Al Quasais and Al Shaab to help meet the requirements of the growing expatriate population in the city. All of these projects were completed on time, which became the basis of more work being awarded.
The company got its first major break in the late 70s with several contracts for the construction of infrastructure facilities at the Jebel Ali container terminal with Halcrow International acting as the consultant for the project. The works comprised the control tower, cool storage, marine operation centre, quay facilities, maintenance centre and container inspection building.
“We were working at Jebel Ali port for four years continuously,” Talwar says.
In the early 80s, the company handled large UAE defence jobs. The 80s was a period of steady growth for the company and towards the end of the decade it secured some major commercial and residential projects, both in the private and public sectors.
 “Dubai witnessed another construction boom in the 1990s when the private sector poured sizeable investment into large modern commercial and residential buildings. ABM had a fair share of the market, executing a number of projects in association with the major developers such as the Al Ghandi Group, Sharaf Group, Al Rostamani Group, Ahmed bin Al Sheikh Mujrin, Eisa Saleh Al Gurg, Al Tayer Group, Union Properties, Al Hashemi and reputed consultants such as Arif & Bintoak, Al Hashemi, Arenco, SPP, WS Atkins, Al Gurg Khatib and Alami, National Engineering Bureau (NEB), Archon, Norr and Arkiteknik,” he points out. Following the boom of the 90s and into the new millennium, ABM continued to improve its standing and was involved in prestigious large-scale developments such as the Gold and Diamond Park, Emirates Lakes, Emaar Towers, Knowledge Village and Al Warqa Development.
Today, ABM stands among the most reputed construction companies in Dubai and has to its credit the five-star Al Maha Desert Resort extensions, large townships such as Arabian Ranches, high-rise residential buildings such as Emaar Twin Tower. Amongst the prominent commercial buildings are Al Tayer Motors, Ministry of Interior building, Al Khaimah Building, MBAL Plaza, Sharaf Shipping head office as well as purpose-built structures for governmental organisations such as the container terminal at Jebel Ali, the control tower at the Jebel Ali Port and leisure facilities including public parks.
“ABM is grateful to clients including Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Emaar Properties, Tecom, Sharaf Group, Al Ghandi Group, Esag and others for reposing their confidence in ABM and honouring the group with many repeat orders,” Talwar adds.
“We believe no job is too small for us. We give equal importance to all jobs – be they large or small – and evaluate the project from every possible aspect and give it our utmost. With meeting deadlines being a trademark for the company, ABM has even delivered projects before the scheduled completion period when required,” he points out.
The company has faced many challenging situations during its operational history. One such example has been the Knowledge Village project, which was originally scheduled for 12 months. However, the client Tecom wanted it completed within nine months to give them sufficient time to carry out fit-out works and be ready before commencement of the academic year in September 2003.
“This made it a real fast-track job with nine buildings totalling to almost 1 million sq ft of built-up area to be completed in nine months, but we are proud to say that with the support of the consultant Dar Consult and Tecom and the team effort of numerous subcontractors, we finished it before the stipulated date which was a major achievement by any standards,” Talwar says. “Our exceptional performance on this challenging job won us a satisfied client and we were awarded the two additional phases of Knowledge Village. All this was only possible due to the sincere effort of the company’s engineering and supervisory staff and workforce, all of whom worked with great dedication.”
To date, the biggest and most challenging job ABM has handled is the 1,050 villas at Arabian Ranches, a development worth $175 million. ABM’s upcoming projects include the prestigious two-tower Golf Towers near Emirates Golf Club valued at approximately Dh275 million, which will be ready for occupation in March 2007; the Dh400 million Green Lake Towers for ASAM Real Estate, scheduled for completion in June 2007 and comprising two 34-storey and one 38-storey residential towers with 761 luxury apartments.
ABM is currently executing the Dh300 million Old Town Phase One, Burj Dubai development, which is rated among the region’s most prestigious projects and forms part of the most exclusive square kilometre on the planet.
“Securing projects such as the Old Town confirms the reputation the company enjoys with major developers for the quality of work it has been producing over the years. This being an upmarket development with the developers wanting only the best finishes, we were selected on the basis of our track record with Emaar,” he says.
Apart from the Old Town, ABM is executing a 36-storey residential tower known as Marina Tower at Dubai Marina for Emaar, a 20-storey tower for Sharaf group also at Marina and a 36-storey Tower at Al Marsa. The firm is close to completing work on a 28-storey residential tower in Al Mankhool for ASAM Real Estate on behalf of Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum. It is also currently building the Gold and Diamond Park Phases 2 and 3, which have been awarded after it successfully completed the first phase. The second phase comprising gold manufacturing units has been completed in a record time of seven months.  Phase III valued at Dh105 million is currently in progress to be completed by March 2006.
ABM has currently set itself a ceiling of nine to 10 major projects a year as the company does not want to compromise on its construction standards and intends to always deliver a high quality that surpasses the expectations of the clients.
The company is registered with Dubai Municipality with an ‘A’ class unlimited licence, permitting it to construct projects of any type, size or value. ABM has an ISO9000 certification, with the company policy ensuring all activities are conducted within a safe working environment and results “are free from defect the first time”.
Since its inception, ABM has grown to become a group with diverse interests. Currently, it has a highly skilled and motivated workforce of more than 7,000, including 250 qualified and experienced engineers, planners and safety personnel. The entire ABM group has a staff strength of 10,000 people, which speaks well about its growth.

Bilt Middle East
Since his early days in Dubai ABM’s chairman realised the necessity of having a specialised MEP (mechanical, electrical and plumbing) company both for doing the in-house work for ABM as well as catering to the huge requirements of similar construction projects.
Bilt Middle East was set up as a separate company under the ABM Group umbrella in 1978 and clinched major contracts in the 1980s and 1990s, providing MEP services to ABM for its own projects while also growing as an independent MEP contractor.
The ISO9001-certified company is now a leader in the field of electro-mechanical contracting and provides complete design-and-build services for MEP works of large residential and commercial high-rise buildings, office complexes, five-star hotels, villa complexes, sports complexes and industrial plants.
“The company constantly endeavours to carry out works of superior quality, on time, at competitive prices to build customer confidence and win loyalty, which is proven by many repeat orders,” Talwar says, who also heads Bilt Middle East.
“We are successfully handing over to Emaar the prestigious township development of 1,051 residential villas at Arabian Ranches with facilities such as an equestrian clubhouse and community centre, with a total built-up area of around 3 million sq ft.  The consultants for these projects are Schuster, Pechtold & Partners, RMJM and DSA Architects, and the value of MEP works is Dh140 million,” Talwar points out.
Bilt has just been awarded a MEP contract worth Dh100 million for the Green Lakes Residential Development at Jumeirah Lake Towers. The project entails 4,600 tonnes (TR) of air-conditioning, electrical, plumbing, drainage and fire-alarm and fire-fighting services, central battery system, and structured cabling.
Besides these developments, the company is currently carrying out electromechanical works for several other prestigious projects in Dubai, notable amongst which are the six Gate Precinct building for DIFC (Dubai International Financial Centre), Burj Dubai Development – Old Town, Phase One, 45-storey Grosvenor Hotel at Marsa and two tower projects at Dubai Marina - the 39-storey Marina Tower for Emaar and a 50-storey luxurous residential apartment tower – Le Reve.
The state-of-the-art Gate Precinct buildings for DIFC built on 1.1 million sq ft has Turner Construction International as project manager, while Halcrow International and RMJM are the consultants. This Dh130 million project is set for completion in 14 months and involves 4,100 TR of air-conditioning, electrical installation of 22 MW as well as plumbing, and installation of drainage, fire alarm and fire-fighting systems, a state-of-the-art building management system (BMS), ductless car-park ventilation system, standby generators, security system, and central battery system.
For Emaar’s Old Town Phase One, Bilt is installing 2,500 tonnes of air-conditioning, electrical, plumbing, drainage and fire-fighting services, central battery system, UPS system, BMS and a standby generator. DSA/Al Burj are the consultants with EC Harris Mace as project manager.
The 45-storey, five-star Grosvenor Hotel and Serviced Apartments at Marsa call for 2,600 TR of air-conditioning, 13.5 MW of electrical installation, plumbing, drainage and fire-fighting services and state-of-the-art RMS (room management system) and BMS, structured cabling.and other requirements of a five-star facility. This hotel complex, for which Archon is the consultant, is managed by Le Meridien and consists of 218 guest rooms as well as 218 one and two-bedroom serviced apartments.
Among the other major projects completed by Bilt is the 20-storey five-star Le Meridien Al Aqqa Beach Resort at Fujairah for Emirates airlines, and lighting systems for four international standard football stadiums at Al Nasr, Al Wasl, Al Shabab and Al Ahli Clubs. “This was a special project for us as it was completed in a record time of six months including lighting design and specially-manufactured masts,” he indicates. “All projects carried out by Bilt Middle East are in compliance with the international standards such as IEC, NFPA and BS as well as meeting the regulations of Dewa (Dubai Electricity and Water Authority) and Dubai Civil Defence authorities.”
Bilt is manned by a team of qualified and experienced engineers, skilled technicians and draughtsmen, who are dedicated to the highest and most exacting standards of workmanship, safety and quality to provide the best customer service, Talwar says.
Currently, Bilt has on its rolls a workforce of 3,000 including supervisors, technicians, skilled and unskilled workers.
“We place paramount importance on human resources and the ABM Group has a stringent selection process with employees evaluated for their technical and psychological suitability.  To this end, specialists from various trades are invited as trainers.  ABM’s team of highly-qualified and enthusiastic engineers, supervisors as well as skilled workers are motivated to achieving the highest quality of work,” he adds.
“A deep sense of commitment to quality has motivated both ABM and Bilt to develop their own quality management system, covering the companies’ operations in entirety, specifically targeting the construction sites. The system complies with ISO 9001-2000. The ABM Group believes in achieving the right quality the very first time, avoiding unnecessary rebuilding and associated cost and negative environmental effects,” Talwar concludes.