Theming expert

What are the current trends in theming in the Middle East?

The big thing at the moment in Dubai is outdoor attractions and family oriented attractions; ideally people are looking for attractions that can be used all year round. That is one of the most difficult things; to provide attractions that can be used 365 days of the year.

Also, clients tend to look to a country's heritage for themes, with Arabic theming key to projects like Ibn Battuta Shopping Mall and Madinat Jumeirah.

There are not vast advances in technology; we have been using the same technology for a few years. We've come up with a few new methods such as using ETS, a high density polythene that gives us huge flexibility to pre-manufacture products.

What challenges does that pose and how do you overcome them?

The climate during the summer is the main problem. The secret is to create as many water-oriented facilities as possible, which obviously bring down the temperature, and also a combination of indoor and outdoor facilities.

For example, we are currently working on Atlantis, The Palm, which has both indoor and outdoor attractions and water-related facilities as well. Developed by Kerzner International, it's going to be one of the major attractions in Dubai for the next few years, simply because it is a family-focused attraction. You can be indoors which is air conditioned, you can be in the water or you can be outdoors on the rides. It will create a whole experience.

We are working on the waterpark side of the project and will complete on site in February of this year. WhiteWater West supplied the water slides and we carried out the installation. We also developed the indoor theming for the Lost Chambers, which is where the aquarium - Ambassador Lagoon - is located.

The theming is based on the idea that the Lost City of Atlantis, which existed thousands of years ago, has been discovered around this huge aquarium. Everything is marooned and thousands of years old, and visitors will walk around it and look into this monstrous aquarium.

What are the challenges with the creation of Atlantis particularly?

One of the challenges is to achieve the finish the client wants using a foam material. Kerzer International wants a bronze effect and we have to use different types of materials to achieve such a natural look.

There are limited materials available for underwater attractions and you are even more limited in salt water. It takes a lot of research and trial and error; most of this type of work has never been done before. That was our big challenge - we have had to fly most of our materials in from different parts of the world.

This is the same with the artists; we have to recruit these from abroad.

We have more than 500 people working on the Atlantis project, from management down to the labourers employed by Amusement Whitewater.

The timetable was also a major aspect - the client wanted it finished in record time. That was a huge challenge; working on The Palm in the middle of summer and managing all the logistical problems of getting materials on to site.

What other projects are you working on in 2008?

We are looking at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. There's a waterpark and a theme park planned there, which will be developed by Aldar.

We haven't started on site yet and are just in the final stages of negotiations.

We used to do quite a lot of work outside the Middle East, but now with the amount of projects coming up in Dubai we've decided to stick to the market. There's so much work here and we can service it better based here.

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