Al Assam: "Qualified professionals will ensure that a project remains sustainable and committed to Estidama's core principles"
Dubai-Since the implementation of Abu Dhabi's sustainability drive, Estidama, late last year, it has become imperative that architectural and engineering design firms have the experience and know-how to successfully design buildings that achieve the required Pearl accreditation of Estidama. This in turn emphasises the need for qualified and accredited professionals according to Dewan Architects & Engineers, one of the region's leading architectural and engineering consultancy firms.
Estidama, the Arabic word for sustainability, is a sustainable programme designed specifically for the hot climate and arid environment of the Middle East region, and the Pearl Rating System, one of the first initiatives of the programme, is a framework for sustainable design, construction and operation.
"Estidama is one of the key tenets in transforming buildings, infrastructure and public spaces, and people need to understand how it impacts their projects and what the environmental benefits are," says Mohamed Al Assam, Founder, Chairman and Managing Director of Dewan.
Explaining that our surroundings directly influence our lives, whether at home, at work, or in our communities, he says: "The key to creating a sustainable building or community is to analyse the location and purpose of a building, its flexibility and lifespan, its form and structure, the heating and ventilation systems and materials used, as well as assessing the amount of energy required to build and maintain it. By doing this the physical performance of a building can be enhanced while respecting and nurturing its environmental context."
Dewan, which is dedicated to employing design and construction practices that dramatically minimise resource consumption and the negative impact of buildings on the environment, prides itself on the fact that a large number of its design team is certified LEED Accredited Professionals, with LEED being the US Green Building Council's programme for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. Dewan is also investing in its team to become some of the first professionals in the UAE to sit for the Estidama Pearl Qualified Professional (PQP) certification exams to further show its commitment to Estidama and sustainable design practices. Solidifying the firm's name as a leader in the domain is the fact that, while the programme is still relatively new, Dewan has already received Estidama approvals for several of its projects.
Says Al Assam: "Sustainable design and construction needs to be embraced to help deliver sustainable solutions for each project. As such, key stakeholders need to be actively involved from the start to ensure that practices that will significantly reduce the negative impact of buildings on the environment are implemented.
"Calling qualified professionals aboard from the outset will ensure that a project remains sustainable throughout its entire lifecycle and that it remains committed to Estidama's core principles of preserving and enriching the community's physical and cultural identity, while constantly striving to improve the quality of life for its residents."
Dewan Architects & Engineers is a regional architectural and engineering design firm with offices in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Qatar, and the Philippines and with over 26 years of industry successes across GCC countries, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. The firm was recently ranked amongst the 60th largest architectural firm globally, and the 3rd largest in the region, according to prestigious industry publication Building Design Magazine in its January 2010 issue, which featured the magazine's annual 'World Architecture Top 100' - a unique, definitive listing of the world's largest architecture practices.
-Ends-
For more information, please contact:
Serine Srouji
Senior Account Manager
SAHARA Communications
Your Voice anytime ... anywhere ...
PO Box: 73310 Dubai - UAE
Tel: +971 4 3298996
Fax: +971 4 3298995
Mob: +971 50 3286188
Email: serin@saharagcc.com
Web Site: www.saharagcc.com
© Press Release 2011
