Fakhroo: "the center will provide vehicles inspection services"
Prof. Khalid Bin Jabr Al Thani: "We aim to establish a technical inspection center according to the highest standards".
Doha, Qatar: BARWA Al Baraha, a subsidiary of BARWA Real Estate, has announced the signing of a contract for the construction, use and transfer of ownership (BOT) for a state of the art technical inspection center with Qatar Technical Inspection Center (QTIC), Qatar's leading vehicle technical inspection company. The Technical Inspection Center will be located within BARWA Al Baraha Truck Park. The first of its kind Truck Park in Qatar and the Middle East and the biggest in the world with a total capacity of more than 4,200 trucks was opened in January 2009.
The contract signing was announced at a press conference held at BARWA Headquarters, Al Sadd Street attended by Mr. Ibrahim Youssef Fakhroo, CEO, BARWA Al Baraha and Professor Sheikh Khalid Bin Jabr Al Thani, Deputy Chairman & Managing Director, QTIC.
The construction contract includes a declaration of intent for mutual cooperation between the two companies regarding BARWA Al Baraha Technical Inspection Center . BARWA Al Baraha has allocated a plot within its leading integrated labor city and it desires to develop it in cooperation with an investment company. QTIC was chosen to develop and operate the Technical Inspection Center for a period of 15 years ending 1 March 2026, when ownership will return to BARWA Al Baraha Company.
"The signing of the Contract between BARWA Al Baraha and QTIC comes within the framework of BARWA Al Baraha strategy, which aims to establish a global integrated city embracing the largest truck parking in the world with all the services it requires, including high quality technical inspection services. In turn, the contract falls within the strategy of BARWA which seeks to promote cooperation and exchange of experiences and make partnerships with leading companies. QTIC was selected to develop and operate the center so that others will benefit from QTIC's experience and strong reputation in the vehicle inspection industry," said Mr. Ibrahim Fakhroo, CEO, BARWA Al Baraha.
According to the contract, BARWA Al Baraha will provide land for establishing the technical inspection center no later than 1 March 2009. It will also deliver the second part all the documents necessary for issuing permits. Upon receiving the site, QTIC will develop the center fully within a two year period. QTIC, under the supervision of BARWA Al Baraha, will develop the building of the center and its surrounding green spaces and car parking, as well as providing equipment, tools and machinery. Demonstrating its commitment to protecting the environment of Qatar, QTIC will ensure the safe disposal of all waste resulting from its operations at BARWA Al Baraha.
Professor Sheikh Khalid Bin Jabr Al Thani, Deputy Chairman & Managing Director, QTIC, said: "The Company seeks to establish a Technical Inspection Center in BARWA Al Baraha Truck Park, the first of its kind in Qatar and Middle East and the biggest in the world, and to expand its branches and enhance its position as a leading company in the field of vehicle technical inspection. QTIC intends to develop the BARWA Al Baraha Technical Inspection Center according to the highest standards, and aims to provide a wide range of services to its clients, such as periodic inspection of vehicles and other tests of engine efficiency, gearbox and other accurate inspections that service individuals desirous of purchasing and selling used vehicles. We are confident that the cooperation between the two companies will be useful for us all, hoping it will accomplish the results we are seeking".
BARWA Al Baraha is a master planned, integrated labor city offering every residential facility needed by employees and laborers. In addition BARWA Al Baraha will help reduce the traffic congestion caused by trucks parking on Doha roadsides, as well as providing security and safety through specially designed truck parking that meets international standards.
Designed to accommodate 53,000 workers, BARWA Al Baraha is located in Doha's Industrial Area and will be constructed in two phases. Phase 1 constructing the truck parking and services; Phase 2 will see QR3.4 billion invested in building labor accommodation. The labor accommodation comprises 64 buildings, with each building consisting of four floors with 130 rooms in each. Buildings are distributed in four blocks, each of which contains 16 buildings in addition to service facilities and green spaces. The total area allocated for the four blocks is 252.050 sq m, while the total area is 455.872 sq m accommodating 50,000 workers, making it the largest labor camp ever built in Qatar and the GCC to the highest international standards. Labor accommodation includes all facilities necessary for the comfort of tenants, with eight dining halls to provide three daily meals with a variety of food choices according to the workers' different cultures. BARWA Al Baraha also includes other essential services such as a central laundry, 48 commercial shops in each block and public & green spaces with a total area of 32.500 sq m including mosque, football, basketball and volleyball pitches.
BARWA Al Baraha's Employees Compound consists of 16 buildings each accommodating 3,000 workers in 97 rooms spread over three floors. Total built up area is 91.500 sq m, while the total constructed area is 65,744 sq m. Employee Compound buildings are surrounded by green gardens, dining halls and sports facilities.
BARWA Al Baraha Project includes Truck Park which is the first of its kind in Qatar and the Middle East and the biggest in the world. Extending over 675,878 sq. meters, it provides a total capacity of 4,200 truck parking spaces, making it the biggest in the world. The previous largest truck park, Iowa 80 in the American state of Iowa, accommodates just 800 trucks.
The Truck Park offers a good number of services such as security which has been contracted to a specialist company which will supply security guards, state-of-the-art security surveillance systems. Cleanliness services have also been awarded to another specialist company to provide manpower to maintain cleanliness in the project. Transport is provided to transfer drivers to and from the nearest public transport in the Industrial Area. Furthermore, BARWA Al Baraha offers mobile quick maintenance services including oil change, tire repair and vehicle electricity maintenance. To streamline operations, BARWA Al Baraha offers payment in advance through special automatic payment booths located throughout the park. In addition, the park's administration intends to provide more services before the end of the year such as workshops, general maintenance, truck washing, diesel and petrol stations.
To ensure fluent entry and exit to and from the Truck Park, it provides receptionists and cashiers on the entry and exit gates to do the needed actions and to collect fees. In the same context, a state-of-the-art automatic system has been implemented on all entry and exit gates. The advanced system reads plate numbers and determines the vehicle size for charging and allocating parking, and then it allocates the appropriate color to identify the vehicle and the charge.
BARWA Al Baraha features a unique used vehicle showrooms and auction area. Each building is composed of a ground floor with space for displaying 49 vehicles plus two administration floors above covering 60,000 sq m. These showrooms aim at facilitating selling and purchase of used cars and vehicle spare parts. This component of the project offers a 14,000 sq m auction area, in addition to a number of showrooms for used vehicles and trucks. There is a 21.250 sq m area designed for specialized truck and vehicle maintenance workshops, while a 11.636 sq m area has been allocated for mixed-use storages.
Extending to an area of 23.200 sq m, the project's shopping center includes supermarket, 46 shops on two floors with a total built-up area of 16.925 sq m and 3 movie theaters showing the latest movies. BARWA Al Baraha shopping center removes the need to travel into Doha for shopping, thereby reducing traffic, fuel consumption and parking problems by providing all these services in one location.
A 38,772 sq m central administrative building is located near the main road and includes 39 office units arranged on 3 floors with a total built-up area of 16.423 sq m. A medical center, built over a total area of 10.951 sq m, provides basic health care for drivers and tenants in the surrounding areas. The medical center enjoys easy access from different ways and has an emergency unit for urgent cases. Special coordination with official authorities means BARWA Al Baraha has its own security and safety centers.
Covering a total area of 15.545, sq m, a three-storey hotel is designed. The 130-room hotel features café and terrace. Located on the main front of the project, along Doha Causeway, the hotel enjoys a unique location that enables it to service the project and surrounding areas.
BARWA Al Baraha provides every means comfort for tenants including the main leisure and entertainment facilities which shall extend over an area of 40,000 sq m cricket pitch serving residents of the project and surrounding areas.
Testimony to the success of BARWA is the size and number of development projects being implemented on behalf of BARWA inside and outside Qatar. Projects inside Qatar include BARWA Al Baraha, BARWA Doha, BARWA City, BARWA Commercial Avenue, BARWA Al Khor, BARWA Al Rayyan and BARWA Financial District.
International projects are spread in different regions worldwide and include Somerset Alfateh (Bahrain), Somerset Corniche Project (Doha), Ajman Towers (UAE), New Cairo (Egypt), the Four Points in Paris (France) and Istanbul Sea Gate (Turkey).
-Ends-
About BARWA Al Baraha:
BARWA Al Baraha project, which lies in the heart of the industrial area, is a residential compound for workers in which all support facilities services needed in such big complexes are available. The total capacity accommodates fifty three thousand people, in addition to parking for four thousands and two hundred Trucks. The project includes several distinguished and well planned facilities to serve the administrative and hotel buildings, shopping center, medical center and cinema.
About BARWA:
BARWA is one of the premier organizations in the State of Qatar. As the name "BARWA" or "Contractual Commitment" suggests, we are inspired by our vision of a glowing future for Qatar.
With business interests in real estate & project development, property & facility management, construction material production, environmental activities & health, banking & finance, hotels & resorts, technology & utilities, education, communications and agriculture, BARWA is driven by the conviction that people deserve a comfortable living and working environment.
With extensive operations in Qatar and around the world, we believe that every BARWA project is the seed for an incredible journey, where our greatest achievement is realizing the dreams of our stakeholders.
www.barwa.com.qa
For further information, kindly contact:
Bassel Hanbali - Chief Communications Officer - BARWA
Mobile: +974 654 2099
Email: bassel.hanbali@barwa.com.qa
© Press Release 2009
