Gulf Construction Online - Masy embarks on regional expansion

Bahrain World Trade Center

High standards ... Masy will be installing automatic doors at the shopping mall as well the towers.

Masy embarks on regional expansion

01 December 2006

Masy International has embarked upon ambitious plans that are designed to catapult it to the ranks of a major regional player in the building and construction sector.

As part of its growth strategy, the firm intends to transform into a holding company, which will enable it to offer a diverse range of services under one umbrella.
Established in 2003, the company made a strategic move in late 2004 – setting up Masy Maintenance and Services to provide after-sales support services for automatic doors – that has borne fruit and enabled it to capture the lion’s share of the automatic revolving doors market in Bahrain.
“Setting up Masy Maintenance and Services has contributed immensely to our growth and enabled us to capture a 90 per cent of the Bahrain market for revolving doors,” says Yazan Zurikat, general manager. “We have seen a significant growth over the past year. In fact, our sales during the first nine months of this year are already on par with the total turnover for last year.”
Masy Maintenance and Services, which started operations with a staff of two, today has a total of 15 employees.
Masy International offers a wide range of building finishing components including:
• Dorma automatic doors, which boast outstanding operational flexibility. These doors have a wide range of individual styles and matching frame or profile systems to ensure aesthetically-pleasing entrances for any type of building. Microprocessor control ensures that they are user-friendly, reliable and functional, offering the highest standard of safety. The range includes revolving doors, sliding door operators, swing door operators, curved doors and accessories and automatic horizontal sliding walls;
• Aluminium skylights, which are favoured by architects and developers for interior spaces in shopping malls, offices, hospitals and other buildings;
• Customised shades, which can be tailor-made for individual projects such as car-parks, stadiums, auditoriums, shopping centres, restaurants and swimming pools. Masy carries out the design, manufacture, engineering and installation of these high-quality structures according to customer specifications.
• Rolling shutters and sliding gates, including garage doors, industrial shutters, sectional doors, boom gates and sliding or swing gates; and
• Floor mats, which are manufactured by Scheybal, Austria, using a wide variety of high-quality materials.
Masy International has a large number of projects in hand including the Bahrain World Trade Center (BWTC). For this development, the company is supplying automatic revolving doors, sliding doors, floor mats, partitions and stainless steel railings.
The company has installed the first of the many revolving doors at the centre – both at the Sheraton commercial complex refurbishment and expansion project and the Bahrain World Trade Center – under an order worth an estimated BD400,000. The stainless steel railings for the project will be hand-crafted and feature a satin finish.
“We have supplied Dorma automatic doors to most of the leading hotel projects in Bahrain including the Ritz Carlton, Crown Plaza and Diplomat as well as banks such as Shamil Bank and Taib Bank. Each door operator features the Masy logo, thus enhancing brand awareness in the country,” Zurikat points out.
Masy International, he says, relishes challenges and the BWTC was one such project which has required a very high standard of safety and finishes in its execution.
“The Bahrain World Trade Center is one of the most striking projects in Bahrain and we are proud to be associated with it. Working with Haj, Atkins and Nass Murray and Roberts has been a highly educational experience, as these sector leaders have demonstrated and utilised the latest engineering skills on the development, which has enhanced the skills not only of our staff but also of those of many of the contractors working on the project,” he says.
Apart from the BWTC project, Masy International has just clinched a major order to supply a PVC membrane roofing structure for the Adari Park in Bahrain which is undergoing a major facelift. The company is currently working on the Bahrain Financial Harbour development, which involves the supply of stainless steel railings; the Bahrain University, where it is installing PVC membrane roof shades; and the Malkiya Shopping Centre, which calls for the supply of automatic doors and a PVC roof structure.
Among the fast-track projects completed by the firm recently is a development at Amwaj Islands involving the design, fabrication and erection of a PVC membrane roofing structure, which was completed within the stipulated 60 days, he says. Masy International has also been involved in the Bahrain International Racing Circuit project and more recently the Gulf Air Flight Simulator Centre, where it supplied PVC car-park shades, aluminium composite panels for the façade, skylights, stainless steel handrails, automatic doors and floor mats.
Commenting on his business strategy, Zurikat says: “Our aim is not merely to sell a product but a solution. We are not dealing with a product that can be just picked off the shelf; we provide a total service including engineering, fabrication and maintenance. We avoid competition in price and instead focus on providing the right solution and like to get involved in a project right from its initial stages offering design services and ensuring that various elements such as safety, quality and specifications are fully complied with.
It is this approach that has helped the company to see rapid progress within a span of four years. “Our success is also due to the support we have received from the Bahrain Government, which has helps us grow dramatically within a span of three years,” he adds.
“We have realised that contractors want a one-stop shop for all their sub-contracting requirements hence we are now becoming a holding company with three divisions, which will offer the market an A to Z of services.”
Using Bahrain as its operating hub, the new entity will spread its wings throughout the region. Masy International – which has also undertaken projects in Qatar and Saudi Arabia – plans to create a strong brand name in the region through a pan-Gulf network of offices.
To enhance its competitive edge in the market, the firm also intends to enter into a joint venture with a leading German membrane engineering firm to offer specialised designing services for the entire Gulf.
Among other developments within the company, Masy is currently developing a business management software to ensure a streamlined operation and efficient service to clients. The new software is expected to be launched early next year.
The company has a staff strength of 38 of whom around 80 per cent are Bahrainis.
“Since our inception, we have been targeting highly skilled Bahrainis who can grow with the company,” he adds.
With landmark developments such as the BWTC, the Amwaj and a string of five-star hotels already in its portfolio and equipped with a range of products from leading brands as well as skills to match, Masy International is well set to achieve its targets in the regional market.