High-end lighting provider Artemide has signed a partnership agreement with Al Hassan Electricals (AHE) to target the sultanate's lighting market. The signing ceremony held at Grand Hyatt Muscat on Monday saw the 51-year-old Italian company join hands with the electrical arm of the Al Hassan conglomerate in a deal that will help the two companies focus on luxury hotels, boutiques and other exclusive upcoming projects in Oman.
The agreement was signed by Maqbool Ali Salman, managing director of Al Hassan Group, and Ernesto Gismondi, founder and CEO of Artemide. Salman told Muscat Daily that although the new agreement will help the company target prestige projects, AHE can also provide lighting products for developments at a range of budgets and levels.
Set up in 2007, AHE already has a tie-up with German lighting manufacturer Osram and its subsidiary Traxon as well as partnerships with Zumtobel, Targetti and Illuma.
AHE provided the lighting for the Asian Beach Games project in Musannah.
Although he declined to unveil further plans about tie-ups with other companies, Salman said that the development of partnerships with lighting companies has allowed them to target all market segments.
"It's a journey. You always find companies with innovative ideas with new and different perceptions. Unlike earlier, we don't only sell lights, we sell solutions. You tell us what you are looking for and we provide the solution which fits your budget and your vision."
Gismondi also added that the tie-up felt like a 'great victory' for Artemide. "We are very proud and happy and we welcome your support," he added. Artemide has also worked on the Ferrari World Yas Island project in Abu Dhabi and Qatar Petroleum's Doha headquarters.
Eyeing World Cup in Qatar
Fresh from winning a series of orders in Qatar, Al Hassan Engineering is preparing itself to take its share of the estimated US$100bn to be spent by the gas-rich emirate for the 2022 Football World Cup.
Already in the country supplying low-voltage switchgears to the Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa), Al Hassan managing director Maqbool Ali Salman believes the company can tap into the wealth of the upcoming World Cup projects. He said, "I think it is quite exciting. We are trying to warm up our muscles to see how much we can grab from there. It is huge, and I think there is room for everyone who can go smartly in there. We are trying to get something special for the products we manufacture in Oman, which are our switchgears.
"We are now focusing on UAE and Qatar. We are taking the products we have developed to Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Qatar. We have been working with Kahramaa to supply switchgears developed in Oman. We have a very good facility for low-voltage and medium-voltage switchgears."
Al Hassan will also supervise the installation, testing and commissioning of the low voltage switchgear panels for the Kahramaa project.
© Muscat Daily 2011
