From civil engineering to consultancy and from steel manufacture to fine furniture and fittings, Italy continues to be a dominant force in the Middle East’s buoyant construction industry.

01 December 2007

Italian companies are looking to further boost their presence in the Gulf – a fact which was apparent at the recent Big 5 show, which featured an even larger turnout of exhibitors at the Italian pavilion.

Italy has been a major participant at the Big 5 since the inception of the event and this year there were a total of 450 exhibitors up by 32 per cent on the number of Italian exhibitors in 2006 (318). These firms had a diverse offering of the latest products and services in building, earthmoving and construction machineries, water and environmental technologies, ceramics, glass and metal products as well as project management and consultancy.
With an estimated total of $295 billion worth of projects under construction in the UAE and most of major projects launched in 2004-2005 now nearing structural completion, Italian companies are eager to participate in the finer finishing and fitting out of these prestigious developments, according to the Italian Trade Commission – the trade promotion section of the Italian Embassy based in Dubai and covering the UAE, Oman and Qatar.
“The construction boom in the UAE will provide opportunities to many Italian companies to showcase their capabilities and their state-of-the-art products. In addition, the expansion of commercial and hospitality activities in the country will also offer avenues for Italian companies to increase their investments and presence in the UAE market,” notes Dr Ferdinando Fiore, Italian Trade Commissioner, Dubai.
Italy’s exports to the UAE increased to €3.3 billion ($4.8 billion) last year, while the number of companies operating in the UAE has risen to 94 in various fields including civil engineering, consulting and contracting, energy engineering, trading in marble, furniture, heavy and construction equipment and vehicles, steel production and refrigeration.
As many as 20 companies are active in the UAE’s construction and engineering sector while eight firms are involved in steel manufacturing, equipment and product supply and five companies are engaged in the logistics field and another five are active in the supply for marble, granite and ceramic tiles and sanitary ware.
Two Italian firms active in the steel sector are Corporate Technology, which manufactures steel rebar and TAD Metals Engineering, which specialises in steel coils and sheets.
“Steel products are consumed as fast as they are produced, thanks to the booming construction industry,” says Lionel Rasquinha, marketing manager of Corporate Technology in Dubai.
“The market demand outstrips supply since steel is the first material used in the construction process before the concrete goes in. We manufacture steel rebar and have a production capacity of about 20,000 tonnes per month,” he adds.
About 4,000 to 8,000 tonnes of steel coils and sheet is supplied by TAD Metals Engineering of Dubai to a variety of industries that include the construction sector, according to Oliver Bertoluzza, general manager of the company.
“We sell steel to traders and resale companies, which in turn supply the construction industry,” he says while noting that the company imports the steel mainly from Europe, besides also from other countries in Asia.
The company’s yearly turnover varies from $10 million to $20 million depending on the type of steel imported, he say, adding that the steel coils and sheets are used in a variety of applications including panelling in airports, tall buildings, elevators and even stairs. While business is stable and its products are finding applications in other sectors such as in the manufacture of kitchen equipment, the company is looking ahead at attracting a greater number of customers through newer, value-addition services.
“We are looking at adding steel processing in future to our portfolio because this will broaden our customer base,” he adds.
Another Italian firm active in the region is Belleli Energy, which is into mechanical contracting and steel manufacture, producing huge storage tanks with diameters up to 100 m and capacity of up to 100,000 cu m.
“We build these tanks from steel plates bought from steel mills around the world and fabricated in our two factories in Jebel Ali (Dubai) and the Hamriyah Free Zone (Sharjah) through cutting, bevelling and rolling processes into the needed shapes and sizes,” says Karim Dummar, commercial manager, Belleli Energy.
“Business is booming and at present, we are building such eight tanks in Taweelah in Abu Dhabi,” he says.
The company began its operations in 1997 with a turnover of about $ 40 million, which has increased to over $200 million today, he points out.
Meanwhile, in the ceramic tiles sector, the 75-year-old Italian Marazzi Group has set up its own representative office in Dubai in May this year. Its products were previously sold through dealers in the Middle East.
“We have factories in Italy and Spain that manufacture these ceramic tiles, and the bulk of our business is done in Italy, France, US and Russia. In the Middle East, most of our business is in Dubai and Abu Dhabi through dealers that supply for buildings, hotels, villas, government offices project,” says a spokesman for the company.
Other Italian firms active in the building and construction sector are ABB, Airmech Al Otaiba-Ferretti, Ansaldo T&D, Aster Associate Termoimpianti, Best Italian Interior Design, Consonni Group Of Companies, Cortem Middle East, Danieli. Officine Meccaniche, Domino Lighting, Enel Power, Fagioli Middle East, Fantini Mosaici, FBM Hudson, Fisia Italimpianti, Giesse Gulf Group, Iseo Middle East, Italconsult, Italian Design, Italian Marble Establishment, Italian Technical Company, ITS (Ingegneria Tecnologie Servizi), Jacorossi/Under International Trading Circle, Lucherini Associati Architectural Consulting, Nitco, Profile Middle East, Proger, Saipem, Salini Costruttori Dubai Branch, Snamprogetti, Tecnimont, Technip Italy Engineering and Valbruna Gulf.

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