Turnkey interiors specialist Bafco of the UAE says it is a one-stop-shop for customers, with its ability to turn empty spaces into fully-furnished office interiors of superb quality.

The Dubai-based Bafco, which started out as a supplier of office furniture is now looking at consolidating its business in contract material, through a new, dedicated division for this market.

Established nearly a decade ago, Bafco gets its name from its co-founders Badri and Fattahi. It started operations out of a small showroom before moving to its moved to its current location in Bur Dubai.

Besides Dubai, Bafco has a showroom in Abu Dhabi, the two together comprising 15,000 sq ft of space. It also has two workshops in Al Quoz (25,000 sq ft) and another in Rashidiya (20,000 sq ft).

Bafco's three divisions - Office Furniture, Design and Contract and the new Contract Material Solutions - complement each other, moving steadily but surely towards the gratifying totality of a job well executed, says Sibtain Malik, general manager, Contract Material Solutions.

The Design and Contract division was set up three years ago to take care of turnkey interior jobs in the corporate sector. The division is headed by Sunil Prabhakaran and employs some of the most talented designers and space planners in the UAE, all working for the ultimate aim of providing the best possible working environment for its clients.

The Contract Material Solutions (BCMS) division, its trading arm, was established just over a year ago to provide state-of-the-art construction and finishing materials to the market. Its main products are doors, relocatable partitions, laminate flooring and raised access floors.

Bafco supplies furniture from world-renowned names such as BIF Korea, Lineager and Bruno from Italy, Humanscale of the US, Shetug of Spain and others.

"Our position as leaders in this business is defined by the products we supply and further enhanced by the way we deal with our customers. A lot of thought goes into selecting products. We have invested a lot of time, effort and money to achieve a superlative standard which really defines the way any company offering a total turnkey solution should operate," says Malik.

"The company is certified to ISO 9002 and was recently re-certified to ISO 9002," says Prabakharan. "By next year end, we hope to acquire ISO 9001-2000 certification. We have also always been at the forefront of introducing new technologies and were among the first to use CAD in the sales forces."

"Bafco is a one-stop-shop for all our client's requirements," says Malik. "They provide us with their empty office space to be fitted out from floor to the ceiling. We initiate the process by having detailed discussions in order to discover their requirements, chip in our own expertise and the end result is an office where the employees are more comfortable and, as a natural corollary, more productive."

"A stringent management process is followed for each and every project. As a result, 90 per cent of our clients come back to us for their subsequent requirements."

Bafco Contract Material Solutions boasts many niche products from all over the world that have given the company the required edge over other players in the field.

Malik elaborates: "Demountable and relocatable partitions from Hoyez of France promise design flexibility and are available with superb acoustic qualities and a wide array of mind-blowing colours in frames and panels.

"Doors of a different genre that are totally out of the ordinary originate from Barausse in Italy. These range from basic flush doors to glazed and grilled designer doors with real wood veneer or lacquered colours to suit customer choices.

"The raised access flooring from Maxcess Technologies Inc from the US consists of aluminium or steel legs with myriad varieties of panels and accessories. This is handy particularly for cable and wire management, allowing flexibility with the overall placement of telephones, computers, copiers and other electrical systems.

"Terhurne from Germany partners Bafco in supplying beautiful wood flooring and ideal acoustic coverings for existing or new walls and ceilings, while Flex of Italy provides new-wave signage and boards.

"Panelfold, also of the US, produces internal barriers for large office and commercial spaces, such as operable walls and accordion doors, in order to cordon them off into smaller private units."

With the setting up of the Contract Material Solutions division, Bafco's focus has now shifted from commercial to all types of projects like open spaces, auditoriums, stadiums and hotels. "We are now getting involved in projects at an earlier stage and we are going after bigger projects," says Malik. "We are widening our scope of works and looking beyond the UAE. We are planning a presence in Qatar and are looking at Oman, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain."

Bafco employs a broad range of nationalities. "We tend to attract some of the best architects, engineers and designers," says Malik. "Our quality of human resources backed by our technical and operational capability has helped us stand out. We have 80 professional and ancillary staff and we are currently in the process of expanding our installation team to comprise 60-65 workers."

Bafco is constantly investing in personnel, the latest design products and the most contemporary technology and it works very closely with its principals to develop products that are in demand, with its astute knowledge of where the market is heading, according to Malik.

"We offer total package solutions from scratch to finish," comments Malik. "To us a customer is not just a project or a job. It is a relationship, something we cherish and nurture over the years, where we can grow together. It is an alliance where we are comrades in challenges and partners in progress."