Gulf Construction Online - RGS builds on local foothold

Scaffolding & Formwork

King Abdulaziz Centre for World Culture in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

RGS builds on local foothold

01 December 2014

After having firmly entrenched itself in Dammam, Resa Gulf Scaffolding is poised not only to expand to other parts of the kingdom but the wider GCC as well.

RESA Gulf Scaffolding (RGS), a company offering total scaffolding services, has supplied to some of the most challenging projects in Saudi Arabia, and is now looking at expanding its presence in the region as well as manufacturing locally.

The Saudi-based firm was set up in 2009 as a joint venture between Spain’s Resa Group and the local Gulf Consolidated Contractors to manufacture, rent out and sell scaffolding materials. Buoyed by the rapid success it has enjoyed over the past five years, RGS is now gearing up to grow beyond its Dammam base and set up operations in Riyadh and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, while exploring the possibilities of opening branches in the neighbouring countries of Kuwait and Oman. It is also planning to construct a fully-functional factory, which will allow it to reduce its logistic expenses and be more competitive, says Carlos Alejandre, deputy commercial manager.

RGS believes that key to its success is ensuring that it adds value to its presence in the kingdom.

“We believe that when you enter a new area, the best way to succeed and make a positive impact is to put your efforts into adding ‘country value’, helping the country you are established in not only by offering goods and services but also teaching local workers how to manufacture those products and offer those services, thus creating a new entrepreneurial network in the country’s economy,” Alejandre says.

Currently, RGS offers two series of tubular scaffolding – Resablok and R-70 – and one electrical scaffold – Mast Climber – as well as an industrial elevator, all manufactured by the Resa Group.

RGS also offers erection and dismantling services, as well as transportation and engineering and structural design, safety analysis and certification. The company’s structure calculation and design tools enable it to provide tailor-made solutions even for the most complex projects. In a latest move, the firm now offers scaffolding manpower to other companies, including Saudi Aramco-certified inspectors and supervisors, and training.

Elaborating on each system and their key advantages and applications, Alejandre says: “The Resablok represents pioneering scaffolding technology, featuring the innovative use of the Rose, a circular joint spoke that allows a 360-degree bearing, wherein components of the system can be easily bonded in, in the exact configuration, thereby eliminating guesswork in its installation. This is a multi-level, multi-directional scaffolding system known for its versatility, ease of installation, and safety.”

More than 150,000 cu m of scaffolding ... this is by far RGS’s biggest project in Saudi Arabia.

The R-70 is a European-style, modular scaffolding system that is made up of rigid tubular frames assembled together by means of platforms and longitudinal bracing rails that give the whole unit a totally rigid structure. It is particularly suitable for working on building facades, in both new-build as well as renovation projects. “A broad range of components is available that allow work to be carried out simultaneously at various levels and one of its greatest conceptual advantages is that it is impossible to assemble the system without its corresponding safety rails. The system is lightweight, versatile and can be assembled quickly,” he points out.

“Both the Resablok and R-70 tubular scaffolding are hot dip galvanised, ensuring durability in any working environment – which is essential when we work in refineries, mines, oilfields and offshore platforms,” says Alejandre.

Meanwhile, RGS’s motorised scaffolding is based on the principle of transmission through gear motors triggering a rack-and-pinion mechanism. Its components are modular and easy to install. It is a type of platform conceived to satisfy the most diverse requirements in terms of repairs, maintenance and exterior finishes, among others, while working with maximum safety. It can be assembled both in single- or twin-mast versions.

RGS offers two lines of motorised scaffolding:

• The MC-3615 is the best solution for the most challenging access requirements, says Alejandre. With a maximum height in the standard configuration up to 150 m and a lifting speed of 6 m per minute, this product allows a maximum platform length of 30 m and a payload of 3,600 kg.

“The platform strikes a perfect balance between sturdiness for the heavy work and cost-efficiency in transport and erection, making it the ideal choice for cladding, window installation or any façade work, as well as sand-blasting, maintenance work on towers and bridges, and civil construction,” says Alejandre.

• MC-10 provides the access solution where space is limited and a light machine is needed for fast and easy erection. Its maximum standard height is 50 m, even though other configurations are possible. The versatility of its configurations allows a maximum width of 17.8 m (dual mast) and 5.8 m (single mast) and a payload of up to 800 and 400 kg, respectively. Complying with the latest HSE (health, safety and environment) requirements, it can carry out the same kind of work as its ‘bigger brother’, the MC-3615, but where space restrictions only allow the use of a smaller machine.

RGS last year launched the R-300 elevator in Saudi Arabia. Designed and manufactured by the Resa Group, the R-300 is the result of years of experience in operating in areas where access is restricted.

“The R-300 elevator, which requires minimal maintenance, incorporates a lifting system through a rack and pinion for a safe and reliable operation. The pinion directly engages with the mast rack, allowing the cabin to go up and down, while electrical integrated disc brakes are used to stop movement in each motor,” explains Alejandre.

RGS has supplied and installed scaffolding at many prestigious projects, including the highly prestigious King Abdulaziz Centre for World Culture in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

“The King Abdulaziz Centre for World Culture project is by far our biggest accomplishment in Saudi Arabia. With over 1,600 tonnes and more than 150,000 cu m of scaffold erected, our engineering team has been working very hard to meet the extremely high requirements and solve the complex problems of erecting such a scaffold. The material we have used is the Resablok, which is designed and manufactured by Resa in Spain,” says Alejandre.

He adds that a project of that size presents all kinds of challenges, starting from logistics to manpower training, coordination, and management and safety requirements, deadlines and coordination with other companies.

“Luckily, our project management team has extensive experience and has dealt with all kinds of situations. It has been able to coordinate, work out and delegate those issues to the right personnel so that work has continued smoothly, ensuring that these issues do not become problems,” says Alejandre.

A good team is key to success, he emphasises. “We are lucky to work with highly qualified and skilled personnel in all the key areas of the company. That’s one of the main reasons for our success, and is based on the philosophies of our parent companies, which can be summed up by what one worker said, ‘when you are working in a company that helps you grow as a person and a professional, you want to do things the right way’ – and that shows in the final output.”

In other assignments, RGS’s commercial team has been able to secure projects with some of the largest and renowned companies in Saudi Arabia.

“Companies such as the Saudi Binladin Group, Sadara, Saudi Basic Industries Company (Sabic), Beck Interiors, Al Muhaidib, Eastern Province Cement Company and Shapoorji Pallonji are utilising our services for prominent projects such as the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, the Sadara Chemical project in Jubail, and other maintenance, decoration and construction projects. Besides, our material – sold over the past five years – is being used in many other projects,” says Alejandre.

RGS has been involved in a diverse variety of projects over the past few years. “All our projects have their distinctive features – there is no easy or conventional project – and that’s how RGS tackles work – expecting the unexpected. Some of the company’s biggest projects have been at the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, the King Saud University in Riyadh, and a desalination plant in Ras Al Khair,” he says.

Commenting about the company’s plans for the future, Alejandre says: “Currently, we find ourselves at the most exciting moment of RGS’s history, as we are preparing to expand our operations bases outside Dammam. We are gearing up to set up operations in Riyadh and Jeddah, and exploring the possibilities of opening branches in the neighbouring countries of Kuwait and Oman.”

“As our Spanish parent company has branches and representatives all around the world, we will benefit from their experience in order to undertake this challenge the right way,” he concludes.