REGIONAL REPORT DFI Middle East Khaldoun Fahoum, Ph.D., P.E. Chair DFI Middle East [email protected] Recent announcements regard- ing mega-projects in the Middle East have reinvigorated the con- struction market in the region. In Qatar, the country is bracing for a new wave of construction pro- jects to support the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and in Saudi Arabia, the completion of the foundation works for the 3,300 ft (1,006 m) high Kingdom Tower was announced in December 2013. In Dubai, the construction indus- try is expecting a significant boost with the city winning the bid to host the World Expo in 2020. We expect the DFI Middle East Chapter’s technical activities to surge over the next couple of years, in tandem with these developments. Conferences and Events The Second DFI Middle East Conference (DFIMEC) takes place in Dubai on April 2-3, 2014. The first one was held in November 2012, attended by more than 150 participants from the region. This year’s conference builds on the success of DFIMEC 2012 and promises to provide a top-quality forum for discussing cutting-edge technologies and developments in the field through case histories. The aim is to provide an opportunity for the region’s geotechnical engineering practitioners and academicians to interface, exchange information and experience, and present the latest developments in the deep foundation field. The conference will be held at the American University in Dubai in collaboration with the Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone Authority. The foundation works for the Dubai Pearl project with more than 500 drilled shafts are complete, and superstructure construction is currently underway. A DFI-sponsored dewatering workshop held in 2013 also attracted more than 100 local attendees. We expect the 2014 conference to draw more participants, given the recent launch of new mega-projects in the region. Professor Dr.-Ing. Rolf Katzenbach of Technical University of Darmstadt is the keynote speaker at the conference, and he will discuss the latest developments in pile-raft foundations. The First Arabian Tunneling Conference took place in Dubai on December 12-13, with the support of several DFI Middle East Chapter corporate members. Among the keynote speakers at the conference were Soren Eskesen, president of the International Tunneling Association and chief project manager at COWI in Denmark, and Joe Roby, vice president at The Robbins Company in Seattle, Wash. Projects Nakheel, the real estate development firm behind Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah Island project, recently closed the bidding process for major foundation works in the proposed $680 million Nakheel Mall, which will be constructed on the so-called trunk section of the island. The project includes 4.5 million sq ft (418,000 sq m), supported by drilled shafts. One of the main challenges is the construction, waterproofing and protection of three basement floors, which will be fully submerged in a highly corrosive marine environment. The project is scheduled to go on a fast track, with a projected completion date of December 2016. The Saudi Railways Organization confirmed that the Saudi Railway Master Plan (SRMP) is on schedule. The project entails more than $17 billion in infrastructure investments through the year 2025, with the goal to connect the kingdom’s main cities through a high-speed rail network. Among the early phases of the project are the Dammam-Jubail Rail Link and the Mecca-Medina DEEP FOUNDATIONS • MAR/APR 2014 • 41
