Alyusuf supplied world-renowned products for the project.
Alyusuf Decor does ceilings, woodwork
01 October 2001
Alyusuf Decor carried out the false ceiling works, woodworks as well as supply and installation of glass and mirrors for the Bahrain Mall.
"We installed false ceilings in all the shopping walkways, the food-court as well as in the Geant Department Stores itself, which has open-cell ceilings around its perimeter," says Mohamed H. Alyusuf, managing director.
Grid ceilings from Boral of Australia have been installed at Fu-com management offices as well as in the wet areas such as toilets.
"We were also called upon to provide gypsum ceilings by some of the shop tenants of the mall including Bossini, Gravity, Abraj Restaurant and Bahrain Jewellery," he adds. "We have also installed aluminium open-cell ceilings at the Hagen-Dazs cafe and ice cream parlour."
Alyusuf Decor fabricated joinery items at its workshop which were then installed on site. These include display counters at the Geant Stores and vanity cabinets for the washroom areas.
Ornamental gypsum work was another service which Alyusuf Decor provided for the mall project. This included cornices in the central atrium area and the corridors.
The firm received the initial order for the project in September 2000 and had three months to complete it.
Commenting on the challenges set by the project, Alyusuf says: "We did not face much of a problem even though the time frame was short as, being well-stocked with products, we did not need a long lead time to import them," Alyusuf says. "In fact, we supplied other subcontractors on the project as well.
"Being a fast-track project, coordination with the other subcontractors, especially those involved in the mechanical and electrical works, presented a challenge as we had to come in last to close the ceilings.''
Alyusuf says he is very satisfied with the job, especially in view of the fact that it was to be completed within a short time.
Since completion of its initial contract, Alyusuf Decor has received further orders from the mall management including installation of a partition between the mall and the entertainment centre, as well as the fabrication of changing rooms partitioning with slat wall display on the exterior at Geant Stores.
"Last month, we completed the decor work for the entrance reception area of the Fu-Com management offices," he adds.
Alyusuf Decor's sister concern Alyusuf Glass & Mirrors Company (AGMC) supplied frameless tempered glass for the shopfronts to a number of tenants. "The shopfronts were the responsibility of the tenants who were required to install them as per the guidelines provided by the client," Alyusuf explains.
All products used in in this prestigious shopping mall are of world renowned brands, he points out. They include
Alyusuf Decor's origins date back to the 1950s as a carpentry shop. The company, as it is known today, started in 1972 when it began expanding its scope of works to cover carpentry and interior decoration. In the 1990s, the firm further diversified to provide gypsum and GRC (glass-reinforced concrete) works.
Today, it has two workshops - one for joinery and the other for gypsum and GRC work - a showroom and a large warehouse.
Alyusuf Decor is presently working on the Dana Mall, where it is installing all the gypsum ceilings and other types of false ceilings. Alyusuf Glass and Mirrors Company installing all the tempered framless shopfronts for all the retail outlets.
At the Sail Tower in the Seef District, it is responsible for installing gypsum and grid ceilings, and AGMC for the glass shower enclosures and mirrors in the luxurious 14-storey building.
Its other current projects include Babasons Supermarket and a 10-storey residential-commercial building in Juffair as well as the airport project in Muharraq.
The Marina Mall, Bennigans restaurant, Citibank, HSBC and two textile/garment factories are among the projects it has recently completed.
With competition being severe in the market, the company is looking at targeting the more specialised and larger projects and continues to enhance its capabilities to take on such projects.
It aims to set up a dedicated sales department to market its portfolio of materials and products within the next few months.
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