A R Suresh Kumar is the General Manager – Projects Corporate Business Development – International Operations Business Group (IOBG) of Voltas Limited. Suresh joined Voltas in 1988 at Chennai, India in the air conditioning business group, became Operations In-charge of Cochin Branch – Kerala, India.

He moved to Bangalore, the software capital of India when the IT boom started in 1995 heading various IT infrastructure projects especially leading International Tech Park (ITPL) as a nerve center of India’s IT operations. In 1998, moved to the International Operations Business Group of Voltas to head its Joint Venture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, looking after MEP services and setting up the elevator business for the Kingdom.

operations in the United Arab Emirates, handled iconic projects such as Etihad Towers, World Trade Centre Abu Dhabi (Central Market Redevelopment) and YAS Mall. Currently handling all the projects and corporate business development of Voltas in UAE.

Aly has extensive engineering and design management experience with Balfour Beatty on major construction projects both within the UK and overseas. Aly worked on the Heathrow Terminal 5 Rail projects and the new Heathrow Terminal 2 Concourse B project as the MEP Design and Engineering Manager.

Aly led the engineering, design, production, testing, and commissioning of the MEP. He is a Chartered Engineer and member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), has conducted research into engineering and project management at the University of Manchester where he was awarded his Masters and Doctorate degrees. Aly led various innovation initiatives within Balfour Beatty and the industry. He also judged the UK IET Built Environment Innovation awards in 2011 and 2012.

Chartered Mechanical and Electrical Engineer 1983 Region Manager Trimble 2002 Engineering and Construction Division.

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2002 - 2005 Survey and Construction - Africa, Middle East and India Construction Division.

2005 - 2008 Civil Engineering and Buildings - Africa, Middle East and India.

2008 - Present Civil Engineering Division - UK, Ireland, Africa and Middle East.

After joining the firm in 2016 as Regional Development Director for the Middle East and South Asia, Chris Seymour, who is also co-Chairman of the Middle East Council for Offices, will now serve as the Managing Director forMott MacDonald in the Middle East.

Seymour has nearly 30 years of experience in project and commercial management, including a specialist interest in the private-public partnership, financing, procurement and risk management. He crossed to Mott Macdonald from fellow METRON design and engineering firm Arcadis, where he started out in 2000 as an executive director for their UK office, before moving up to Head of Markets and Development for the Middle East prior to his switch.

Seymour has worked in most of the major cities in the region since arriving in 2009.

Tobias Bauly has worked on many large-scale projects, particularly within the sports and leisure sector.

With over ten years’ experience, he has been involved in projects from competition and early concept design through to construction. Having delivered a number of feature projects such as the O2 Arena roof structure, Bauly has an excellent working knowledge of long-span steel design.

Cynthia Corby is an Audit & Assurance Partner in the Dubai office and DME Construction Industry Leader. She is a South African Chartered Accountant and a Fellow of the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (United Kingdom) and has over 20 years of professional experience.

Cynthia has worked extensively with the major construction companies in the UAE and Middle East Region and has significant advisory experience on corporate transactions, including acquisition, due diligence, and group re-organizations. Cynthia is the founder and regular author in our annual publication GCC Powers of Construction, which gives an expert view on the firm’s assessment and outlook for the industry.

Denis McNelis joined BAM in 2017 as the engineering manager for the Museum of the Future, a BIM LOD [500] project. Denis began his career in 1988 working for ARUP in London as a consulting structural engineer after graduating from UCC in Ireland with a 1st class honors degree in Civil Engineering.

After moving back to Ireland in 1991 he went on to work for Punch Engineering starting as a structural engineer and IT support for the computerization of the practice, migrating from the drawing board to AutoCAD. During this time, he first started working with steel fabricators who were detailing in 3D using StruCAD. In 2001 Denis was made a director of the company.

Dr. Marwan Abu Ebeid is a Sr. BIM Manager and Head of the BIM division for Turner Construction International, a New York based Construction Project Management firm with regional office in Dubai, UAE. In this capacity, Marwan provides operational oversight, technical support and training of staff in BIM practices for all Turner projects in the GCC and the greater Middle East.
Marwan has over 17 years of experience in Construction Project Management and Building Information Modeling where he has worked in a variety of notable and landmark projects of various kind and use. He is an author of several academic publications, a guest Lecturer at Heriot watt University, a guest Trainer at RICS, and an expert industrial advisor and specialist speaker in various international exhibitions and conferences.  Dr. Marwan obtained his PhD from Heriot Watt University – UK majoring in construction project Management and Building Information Modeling.

Euan leads Al Tamimi & Company’s construction & infrastructure practice. Euan is admitted as a solicitor in England & Wales and New South Wales and has practiced in a variety of civil and common law jurisdictions across Europe, the Middle East as well as Asia Pacific (where he was the Group General Counsel of a global construction and engineering company for over 4 years).

Euan has advised different stakeholders on various high-value concession agreements, construction contracts,  O&M contracts and consultant services agreements in respect of a variety of power, utilities, infrastructure, building and development projects.

Euan also has significant construction claims and contentious construction experience (including in the form of arbitration, court proceedings, expert determination and mediation/conciliation). Euan speaks at various construction industry events and regularly publishes topical articles. He is also the secretary of the Abu Dhabi branch of the Lighthouse Club.

Harold S Dickenson Jr joined AECOM in February 2011 where he worked as a multimedia specialist in the Creative Marketing and Communication department. His role included bid production, B2B and B2C communications in print, web, video and motion graphics.

Development into immersive technology was a natural expression progression as he developed strategies for communicating complex projects to non-technical approvers and stakeholders. He is working as a cross-media design strategist with an aptitude for using technology to simplify the complexity in communicating construction projects.

Amjad Almkhalalati manages Virgin Hyperloop One’s operations in the UAE as part of the Global Projects team at Virgin Hyperloop One.

A Civil Engineer by background, Amjad has spent the majority of his career on the development and delivery of large-scale transportation infrastructure rail projects in the UK and UAE. Projects he has been involved in include Etihad Rail, Dubai Metro, and Metronet. Amjad is a Chartered Civil Engineer, Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers, Member of the UK Engineering Council, and holds a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering from City University London, UK.

Prior to joining Virgin Hyperloop One, Amjad was the Rail Design Center Manager for Parsons Corporation in the UAE. He also worked previously with Atkins, both in the UK and UAE. Amjad is based in Virgin Hyperloop One’s Dubai office.

Kevin Hogan is a Construction Professional with over 10 years’ experience specializing in design management and project coordination of several high-valued projects in Australia, India and most recently in the UAE where he is currently responsible for Jumeirah Gate, a 77 storey tower, also known as The Address Residences, located in Dubai. 

Prior to moving to the UAE, he was the Project Manager, Design - Unitech Corporate Park in New Delhi, India on a joint venture project between Brookfield and Tata. With experience from complex projects, he has technical expertise and experience in using Building Information Modelling through all facets of the construction process including Design Management, BIM, Cost Management, Facade and Finishes, FF&E, Sustainability and Green Star Ratings with experience in numerous sectors including commercial, retail, residential, industrial and infrastructure. Hogan holds a Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Construction Management.

Ghassan leads McKinsey’s work on major projects in the Middle East. He brings decades of leadership experience in the heavy-civil-engineering sector and has supported the successful delivery of many multibillion-dollar infrastructure projects across the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and the United Kingdom.

Over the course of his career, Ghassan has supported multiple government clients and private developers in master planning, design, and construction supervision of infrastructure for residential neighborhoods, industrial zones, and public-realm upgrades. He has also provided design, value engineering, construction-engineering support, and program management for groundbreaking transportation projects, including airport expansions, urban rail development, and the construction of highways, bridges, and major marine crossings.

Ghassan has authored many papers on infrastructure and engineering topics and has presented at leading industry conferences around the world. He is a fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers and a founding committee member of its United Arab Emirates branch. He has also chaired the UK Trade and Investment’s UK–UAE infrastructure working group and currently serves on the industry advisory board for Abu Dhabi University.

Before joining McKinsey, Ghassan served as regional director for infrastructure major projects at Atkins, where he established and rapidly expanded the Middle East infrastructure consultancy division. He was previously with AECOM, where he served as regional managing director, establishing the Malaysia and Singapore offices and expanding the business to the Middle East.

Nicky Dobreanu works as a managing quantity surveyor for C-Quest, a division of KEO International Consultants. Nicky has a Master’s Degree in Civil Engineering, a Bachelor’s Degree in Commercial Management and is currently studying towards an LLM in Construction Law and Arbitration.

He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building (FCIOB), a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb), a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute (FCMI) and a Chartered Quantity Surveyor (MRICS).

Nicky is also one of the few RICS Certified BIM Managers and BRE BIM Informed professionals and one of the many PMI Certified Project Management Professionals (PMP). He started his journey into BIM in 2009 in Ireland, where he assisted practices, universities, and NGOs in the adoption of electronic estimating systems, training to date over 400 students and professionals in the review and quantification of BIM designs.

Currently, Nicky is based in Dubai and he is working on a number of public and private projects spread across the MENA region.

Pierre Sironval serves as General Manager of the Middle East Business Unit, where he is responsible for all operations in the U.A.E., Oman, Qatar, and Bahrain. He has over 20 years of experience in the contracting industry throughout the Middle East, Europe and Africa, which aided in Six Construct’s success in being regionally recognized as one of the leaders in the construction sector today.

Sironval started his career with BESIX in 1995 as a Project Engineer where he was assigned to the construction of a Beach Resort in Mauritius. A few years later, he became Project Manager and successfully led the development of numerous assignments in Europe and in the Middle East. Sironval held the title of Project Director in Qatar in 2007, where he was in charge of the construction of the iconic Sports City Tower (Aspire Tower) situated in Doha.

In 2008, Sironval was appointed as Country Manager for Six Construct in Qatar before moving to Abu Dhabi in 2012 to take over the management of Six Construct in the United Arab Emirates.

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Sironval has a Masters in Civil Engineering and Architecture as well as a Bachelor in Special Mathematics from KU Leuven. He is fluent in several languages, including French, Dutch and English.

Unnikrishnan Vijayan Gokulam was the BIM manager for Drake and Scull from 2013 to 2018. Prior to joining Drake and Scull, Unnikrishnan was a design and Project manager with ETA MNE in Abu Dhabi.

He is Certified Project Management Professional(PMP) and FIDIC with 16 years experience in project management, design and engineering. He has been involved in numerous high-value projects across the UAE covering High-rise, Healthcare, Theme Park, Airport and Museum projects. These include the Marina 101, Cleveland Clinic in Abu Dhabi, and the Louvre Abu Dhabi.

Paul began his career in the construction industry 27 years ago. A 1992 civil and structural engineering graduate from Leeds Metropolitan University, he spent many years working as a structural draughtsman and project engineer.

An industry expert with hands-on field knowledge, he was one of the early adopters of 3D structural modeling. Paul subsequently transitioned to the software construction business where he has remained since.

With his excellent knowledge of enterprise, ERP, and BIM technology solutions, Paul has spent the last 19 years in the UK, Far East, USA and now the Middle East providing support, training, consulting and management thus enabling commercial engineering, offshore EPC companies, fabricators, and contractors to successfully adopt BIM.

Paul is based in Dubai and leads as the Area Business Director for UAE and India operations.

Wael Allan is a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Institute of Chemical Engineers (FIChemE). He has a Master’s (MSc) in Biochemical Engineering from the University of Swansea in the UK. He has also received executive education from Harvard, Wharton Business School, and INSEAD.

Allan’s track record of successful project implementations globally demonstrates his functional expertise in achieving strong results spanning both operations and business development. He specializes in project delivery, project & programme management, risk management, quality and documentation as well as engineering, construction management and commissioning. Prior to his current appointment, Allan was Group CEO of Drake& Scull in 2016 and 2017. Wael arrived in the Gulf in 2009 with Hyder Consulting, delivering profitable growth for five consecutive years. A notable project was Burj Khalifa, where Hyder Consulting was the architect of record and construction supervision consultant. Promoted to Group COO in 2013, Allan assumed responsibility for group operations, with staff across 13 countries in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Australasia. Other senior management roles include CEO for Arcadis Middle East, and Executive Vice President of Skanska USA Buildings, the third-largest contractor with global revenues of more than $17 billion. During this period, Allan was also President and CEO of subsidiary Skanska Pharmaceutical Group. In 2017, the magazine Arabian Business ranked Wael Allan the 40th most influential Arab in the world.

Wajdi Mereb is a degree-qualified architect with primary professional experience in asset management and Building Information Modelling (BIM) for mega-construction projects. Mereb’s professional career extends through market-leading organizations and blue-chip contractors in the Middle East. Mereb is leading the transformation process towards the automated digitized assets management in one of the biggest reputable transportation authorities- RTA, besides, managing the BIM implementation in all its projects, mainly the Metro Route 2020 project.

Over his career, Mereb has worked through all phases of project delivery, from design to construction to facility management and operations, working with clients, contractors, and consultants. He has operated on a wide array of projects, varying in size and scope,  including rail transport, airports, residential complex resorts, multi-use commercial towers, hotels, schools, and hospitals. Mereb holds a Bachelor of Science degree in architectural engineering from Birzeit University, Palestine as well as a Master of Science in engineering management in An-Najah National University, Palestine, and a Master of Science in management from the University of Sheffield, UK, executing his thesis on “An Analysis of Quality Control as a Factor for Effective Building Information Modeling (BIM)”. Mereb began his career in Palestine as an architect with Al-Ta’meer Consultant Office before moving to Consolidated Contractors International Company. While at Consolidated Contractors International Company, he served on the Muscat Airport, Oman project team; he carried that experience to TAV CCC Arabtec JV serving as Senior BIM Coordinator-Architect on the MTB- Abu Dhabi new airport project. He is currently BIM Projects Manager - deputy manager of Assets Performance development section for Roads & Transport Authority Dubai.

With over 10 years’ experience in the construction industry, Chris leads the development and implementation of strategic BIM processes to leverage their benefits for InSite (a division of KEO).

In this time he has championed the use of Revit for master planning and Landscape Architecture and shown how it can be used to effectively deliver project packages. He has also been a figurehead in developing the approach to design data management and integration with virtual reality, on some InSite's key projects.

Sachin Kerur is Head of the Middle East Region for Pinsent Masons.  He has lived in the Middle East for over 13 years and is also Head of the firm’s Middle East offices. Sachin advises Government and the private sector on privatized and publicly procured infrastructure and development works, particularly across the Middle East and India.

He has advised on some of the most important airports, road and rail networks, power plants, commercial and residential developments, oil and gas facilities, water supply plants, hotels and education facilities in the Middle East and Sub-Continent. For the last three years, Kerur has been listed among the 75 most influential figures in the Middle East construction industry by the region’s leading construction publication, Construction Week and is listed in the Who’s Who Legal’s Guide to the best Global Construction Lawyers as well as Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners. Sachin is frequently called to speak and write on the Middle East and Indian infrastructure sectors.

Electrical Engineer with focus on Software and Electronics and more than 12 years with Trimble, Nico started as an application specialist in Trimble. He then moved to software development and then for 5 years, acting as the product manager for Trimble Access SDK, Trimble Precision SDK, and Trimble Catalyst SDK.

Nico worked on Projects like Augmented Reality for construction Site Vision, designing a construction worksite office Simulator to empower surveyors and site supervisors with useful tools with an easy learning process & Building APP that integrates with Sketchup to make building models using easy workflow.

Rezan has been in the Architecture, Engineering and Construction industry for more than 15 years. After obtaining his bachelor’s degree from the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands, Rezan Shahwan started working for one of the world’s most renowned construction companies, BESIX/Six Construct, which operates in many diverse activities on the international stage.

Famous projects that BESIX/Six Construct have built include the Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi and the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, among many others. Before joining BESIX, Rezan worked on another unique project in Brussels, Belgium - the new headquarters of NATO - where he developed his BIM processes.

Rezan recently worked on the unique and exclusive Warner Bros. World project in Abu Dhabi as Sr. BIM Manager, supervising 60 BIM subcontractors with 800 3D models. On the Warner Bros. World project, the following BIM activities where used/implemented: 3D scanning (Scan to BIM), 3D printing, QR labeling, Facility management, 4D Simulation, 4D Animation and Virtual Reality.

Ronald van Coevorden graduated from the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands in the field of Geodetic Engineer.

He has 25 years of industry experience with 15 years at Trimble in various positions throughout the world including:

2003-2005: Segment Manager Survey APAC based out of Raunheim, Germany, 

2005-2013: APAC Regional Sales Manager for Trimble's survey division, based in Trimble's office in Bangkok, Thailand, 

2013-2016: Worldwide Segment Manager for Geospatial based out of the Westminster office in the USA, 

2016 – present: Advanced Solutions Manager EMEA based out of Utrecht, the Netherlands. 

In his current role, he is responsible for the mobile mapping sales in EMEA, inpho/ecognition sales in EMEA and managing the technical sales engineers team for EMEA. 

Based in Dubai with over 30 years of cross-industry experience with numerous consultants and contractors alike, Craig is recognized as a leader in global digital project delivery at the highest level.

Building on extensive knowledge of complex geometry projects, Craig’s skills are tuned to the creation, development, and experience of data management throughout the supply chain.

Working as part of the client's representative team during construction has led to a practical understanding of on-site digital delivery to facilitate, digital construction, supply chain manufacturing, facilities management and operational requirements.

Craig speaks and presents extensively within the industry and has accepted various awards on behalf of BuroHappold including 2017 Winner AEC Excellence Award & Twice winner of the Excellence in BIM Implementation Award 2017 & 2018

Mark Andrews, Managing Director of contractor Laing O’Rourke, has more than three decades’ experience in the construction industry. With a career spanning nearly 40 years, Mark graduated in civil engineering from Imperial College London in 1980, and joined Chicago Bridge and Iron Company where he spent 9 years in a variety of senior project delivery roles, many based in the Middle East.

Following a five year period working in senior corporate and business development roles in the chemicals and petroleum industry with BOC Group, he joined Balfour Beatty in their major projects division, before leading their Utilities business. He has also held the chief executive role in North America for Pirelli, before leading NG Bailey for 6 years as Chief Executive. NG Bailey is one of the UK’s leading independent engineering, IT and facilities services businesses – where he played an instrumental role in the development of the specialist offsite manufacture division. He returned to the Middle East in 2010 and has been with various major contracting businesses prior to joining Laing O’Rourke

Mark has an MBA from Cranfield and is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, the Institution of Civil Engineers, and the Chartered Institute of Management. He was awarded an OBE for services to apprenticeships, education and training in the construction industry.

Gerry McFadden is BIM Manager at WSP. He has nearly 30 years’ experience of delivering major global multi-discipline projects. Gerry relocated to Dubai in 1998 and is proud to have contributed to the growth of Dubai from the small town of 1998 to the mega city it has become today. He has been involved in the delivery of some of the most iconic projects in the UAE such as the ‘Ain’ Dubai and a number of Expo 2020 projects. Gerry has been delivering BIM projects since 2008 and is passionate about the benefits BIM can bring to all phases of the design, construction and operation lifecycle. Gerry truly believes BIM is already having a positive impact and that it is transforming our industry forever.

Soeren Schramm is the Product Application Manager for Trimble EMEA. Soeren has more than 10 years’ experience in the aggregates and mining industry working with clients on 5 continents and in more than 15 countries. Leading the development of a range of industry-led Trimble products, Soeren has a passion for working with clients to optimize their operational processes. Before joining Trimble in New Zealand, Soeren held positions as a business analyst, state sales and marketing manager in Australia and Germany. Soeren holds a Bachelor of Science degree (Economics) from the University of Lueneburg, Germany. After living for the last 15 years in New Zealand and Australia, Soeren lives now with his wife in Germany.

Philippe Boissinot is a former Navy officer for 19 years (1984-2001). He holds a PhD in Acoustic signal processing. His career includes being the responsible for sales at Kongsberg Maritime, acoustics devices, multibeam echosoundersfor Southern Europe and the Sales Manager  for Reson A/S Southern Europe and Northern Africa before joining Trimble Marine SM in 2012. 

As the Chief Executive Officer of MECIC, Sameer Daoud is responsible for the overall activities of the contractor MECIC. Sameer has nearly twenty years experience in the construction sector with a career that began in the United States at the HNTB Corporation. He has proven himself as a business leader heading up departments spanning from HR, marketing, sales, legal, commercial, operations, and finance. He came to the Middle East to work with WS Atkins and WSP Middle East. He joined Hyder Consulting as the Regional Managing Director - Transport & Infrastructure, and after the company's acquisition by Arcadis, he got promoted to Global Business Leader for Infrastructure & Water. Prior to his current appointment, Daoud held the position of Group Chief Development Officer and Managing Director of Drake & Scull (DSI), a leading engineering and construction company. He was responsible for all activities in UAE, KSA, Jordan & Algeria, managing a business of over USD 1 Billion.

David Clifton previously worked at Faithful+Gould as regional development director. According to a statement from AECOM, he has more than 18-years (USA, UK and the Middle East) of experience and boasts a broad network of contacts and in-depth knowledge of the region’s macro-economic and construction economics’ trends. He also has first-hand experience in the delivery of large projects and has contributed to several industry improvements including the development of PMOs. AECOM’s Construction Services’ Middle East portfolio includes Midfield Terminal Complex, Warner Bros. World, King Khalid International Airport, Tatweer Schools Program, Mall of Oman, Doha Oasis, DAMAC Heights and Ministry of Housing projects in Saudi Arabia.