Interaction

 

Involved in the structural works for the Al Jassimiya Tower, WEN Qatar WLL is a group company of the Thailand-based WEN HOLDING. The company has executed several landmark projects such as the Al Areen Residential Tower, Islamic Institute at Al Waab, and Sidra Medical and Research Centre in Education City in the country. With a current turnover of QR 200 million, the company has projects like Burj Marina Tower and Business Square Tower in Lusail in the pipeline. Dr Eknarin Sriprasert, Vice Presidentelucidates on the company’s operations and its future plans. Please highlight your contribution to the Al Jassimiya Tower? As subcontractors for developing the RC skeleton of the Al Jassimya Tower project, we were mainly involved in providing labour and supervision of the tower zone and half of the podium zones. We faced major challenges during the construction of the slab with perimeter beams and cantilever slab at each building corner. To overcome these, we designed and fabricated a special table formwork to accommodate these beams and cantilever slabs without reassembling them after each casting. Tell us something about your company’s operations? Our parent company, WEN Holding was established in Thailand in the year 1968. It executed over 100 building and industrial projects as main contractor before exploring its operations in 2004. Name some of your landmark projects. Also elaborate on your ongoing projects. We have executed structural work package of several landmark projects in Qatar including Al Jassimya Tower (3B+G+40), Al Areen Residential Tower (B+G+35), Islamic Institute at Al Waab, and Sidra Medical and Research Centre in Education City. Currently, we are engaged in reinforced concrete and finishing works for the National Museum of Qatar that is designed by Ateliers Jean Nouvel. Our other ongoing projects include Burj Marina Tower and Business Square Tower in Lusail.

Please shed some light on various innovative technologies used by the company

We employ standardised system formwork such as flying table form and climbing form for fast and reliable construction. In addition, we recently accomplished over 1 million square metre of post-tensioned slab structure and employed 3D Building Information Model (BIM) to review and coordinate structural drawings with other trades.

What are the various quality standards and safety adhered to by the company?

We follow Qatar Construction Specifications (QCS) and other standards such as ASTM, BS, and DIN as the project specifications may require. The National Museum of Qatar project also complies with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) – green building standard. The company adopts regulations and procedures issued by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), UK as well as HSE regulations for contractors developed by Qatar Petroleum.

Who are your major clients?

Our major clients include Qatar Foundation, Qatar Museums Authority, ASHGHAL and Damac Properties. We also provide services to contractors such as Hyundai Engineering and Construction, OHL-Contrack JV, Commodore Contracting, and Redco International.

Kindly comment on the current industry scenario in Qatar.

Political stability, continuous and impressive economical growth, FIFA World Cup 2022 host, and a sound National Vision that aims to transform Qatar into an advanced country by 2030 have led to a burgeoning Qatar market. Government-led infrastructure and landmark projects including New Doha International Airport, Lusail Development, Heart of Doha, Doha Metro, Qatar New Port, National Museum, expansion of Education City, and FIFA World Cup Stadiums are being developed alongwith mega malls, hotels and residential buildings .

What are your plans to exploit the current booming market?

We constantly strengthen our professional staff, supply chains, and pool of skilled workers to deliver our projects on time and with best quality. We are confident of attracting new investors and joint venture partners in our upcoming projects.