The Hub

The United Arab Emirates, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are leading the region in getting a future-ready built environment ready for the coming years. This rapid built-up is also voraciously consuming PropTech – from helping solve commercial problems like increasing foot traffic in malls to managing energy needs in workplaces. 

To discuss the regional outlook and how it compares to the global built environment, CMtoday speaks to Ivo Van Breukelen, partner at The Proptech Connection – a U.S. based consultancy firm which provides bespoke technology solutions to the real estate sector. Breukelen reveals the global trends he has observed in Proptech such as centralised platforms, construction technology, and a push to decarbonise the built environment. Listen to this podcast for more international insights.

UAE’s Facilities Management industry is at a confluence of two demands -- buildings are being upgraded to become smart, while the built environment needs to proactively move towards Net-Zero targets.

Javeria Aijaz, Managing Director of  HITEK, a  Farnek Services company, speaks to Community Management Today on the range of services she is bringing to her clients. She also speaks about harnessing the Internet of Things (IoT), Building Management Systems (BMS), Machine Learning (ML), and Artificial Intelligence (AI) based technologies to be future-ready.

 The projections for Saudi Arabia’s Facilities Management Industry are extremely positive with a predicted CAGR of 11.1% for the coming year. The FM industry is seeing growth on the back of mega and giga projects announced in the Vision 2030 plan. Mike Moore, VP of FM for Al Bawani International speaks to CMtoday about the change seen in the FM industry post the COVID-19 pandemic, the external factors affecting the growth of KSA’s FM businesses, the scale of the adoption of technology, and the challenges the industry faces as it grows in the double digits. Moore is a veteran of the industry with over four decades of experience in Facilities Management.

Artificial Intelligence and machine learning are now ubiquitous to most industries as they form the backbone of research and future-ready products. CMtoday sits down for an exclusive chat with James Massey of MRI Facilities Management to talk about the legacy challenges in integrated facilities management, the future of the industry as building management systems become the norm, and the Middle East’s growth trajectory in the built world. Massey has over two decades of experience in the industry as he has previously been Chief Operating Officer of Castleton Technology and worked in Property Technology before it became the latest buzzword. As Managing Director of MRI’s Facilities Management business, Massey is driving MRI’s global technology strategy into this area.

As Saudi Arabia opens itself to the global market, the country's real estate sector is proving to be a key driver of the economy. Cities like Riyadh, and Jeddah are seeing impressive growth numbers as foreign investors queue up to acquire new assets. CMtoday spoke to Pedro Ribeiro, the newly appointed KSA head for CBRE. Ribeiro is based in the capital city of Riyadh and has over two decades of experience in Retail, Real Estate and Asset & Property Management firms across the Middle East, Europe and North Africa.

#realestate, #CBRE, #SaudiArabia, #builtworld, #assetmanagement, #realestateoutlook, #economicgrowth, #Vision2030

In this edition of First Brick, CMtoday's weekly news podcast, we look at a report by Property Finder on Dubai's Property Market. Meanwhile, JLL has made a new appointment in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. And we look at a report by CRTKL that talks about the benefits and potential energy-saving opportunities offered by universal buildings. Listen to this space for more.

The weekly round-up of news includes developments in the Facilities Management, Community Management, Real Estate and PropTech sectors. AGFS has announced new names to the region’s leadership team. Huspy has acquired two mortgage brokerages to enhance its service offerings. Saudi Arabia has announced the master plan for the development of the Rua al Madinah project. Listen to this podcast to know more.

In this special episode of ‘Breakfast Bytes’, we talk with Majda Rochdi, Director, Marketing & Communications at UD Trucks Middle East, as she shares with us her views and experience in the automotive sector.

Welcome to an all-new episode of Breakfast Bytes by CM today Magazine.
In this episode, editor Namitha Madhu speaks to Dr Dan Simmons, VERTECO's Operations
Director, who goes over the latest trends in smart water management systems and how they can be incorporated into existing buildings.

In this episode, editor Namitha Madhu speaks to Muhammad Ajmal Saeed, CEO of Emerging Horizons Technical Services (EHTS). With an impressive portfolio of clients, EHTS is a leading supplier of fire and safety maintenance services in the UAE.

When the pandemic hit, the company focused on strengthening its services through training and acquiring new technologies. This led to a successful 2021, with the winning of several new contracts.

In this podcast, Saeed talks about the company's plans for 2022 and the current challenges in the market.