ByrneLooby, a leading Irish engineering and project management consultancy, is increasing its footprint in the Middle East as part of its expansion strategy. The company has opened a new office in Saudi Arabia amid growing demand for its services. 

 

ByrneLooby has provided engineering services on a range of critical infrastructural projects in the Middle East and KSA: including mega projects which form part of Vision 2030 such as Amaala, Neom, Jazan Economic City and Qiddaya. 

 

The company is one of the leading marine engineering consultants in the Middle East and has provided engineering expertise on the ports of Aqaba, Dammam, Doha, Dubai's Maritime City and on the CHIT award-winning Doha Metro. 

 

ByrneLooby currently sits on the framework for national utility Irish Water in their homeland, and in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has consulted on projects for the SWCC (the publicly-owned Saline Water Conversion Corporation), including the Shuqaiq Water Treatment Plant. 

 

The Irish engineering consultants first set up operations in the Middle East 11 years ago and the plan is to increase its Middle Eastern headcount to over 100 staff. 

 

Over the past week John Barnes, the Technical Director of ByrneLooby Middle East met Tánaiste, the Deputy Irish Prime Minister, Leo Varadkar on his trade mission to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

 

The four-day trade mission, which included Riyadh and Dubai is supporting the accelerated export-led recovery of Irish businesses in the Gulf region.

 

In 2021, ByrneLooby was ranked 174 in the world's top 225 engineering design firms, based on revenue outside of the home country, (one of four Irish-owned engineering firms ranked in the survey). 

 

Barnes said: "Over the past ten years, we have seen significant growth in demand for our services in KSA. We target large, complex projects where we can add value and which require complex engineering expertise."

 

'This year, it is a huge privilege to help kickstart cruising in Saudi Arabia, providing the detailed design of the Saudi Cruise Berth Improvement Project across three strategically located ports. Our local ByrneLooby office demonstrates our commitment to Saudi and our desire to partner with clients to help achieve Saudi Vision 2030 and contribute to IKVA (In Kingdom Value Add)," he stated. 

 

It is widely acknowledged that this decade needs to be one of climate action and adopting circular economy principles can help decarbonisation. 

 

"Implementation of circular principles could include designing for reuse or adapting existing buildings and assets. Our teams can offer sustainability strategies and strategic environmental assessments for many different types of projects," noted Barnes. 

 

"Having experts in-house provides a holistic approach to solutions, embedding resilience and sustainability into solutions, such as the application of green concrete or providing environmental management plans. Our environmental and sustainability consulting team are well-positioned to help clients realise Saudi Vision 2030 goals of a thriving, diverse economy based on social responsibility," he added.-TradeArabia News Service