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The times, they are a changin'
Dubai's progressive nature can be daunting to those more accustomed to Europe or the US, where if any action is required, it is pontificated over, consulted, argued and consulted some more before results can be seen. Dubai simply gets on with it.
Take a look at any archive photograph of the city, and even in 1990, Sheikh Zayed Road resembles little more than a two-lane road, flanked on both sides by desert. Nothing more. But what is it like for those caught up in the whirlwind of Dubai's construction industry? Has anything really changed over the years? Physically, the Dubai of 2007 bears little relation to its earlier guises, but what about working and operating in the emirate now, as opposed to 10 or 20 years ago?
Ahmad Etman, managing partner, Al Sahel Contracting, which has been operating in the region for 30 years, recalls the foresight demonstrated by the city in the late 1970s, when construction began on some of the major infrastructure projects. "When I was here in 1979, people saw the Garhoud Bridge and Jebel Ali Port and were saying: ‘Why do this? Why build a road in a desert? Who will use it?' All the infrastructure was ahead [of itself], but it will not be ahead again - the study of infrastructure comes later now, and Dubai will always be playing catch-up."
Despite some doubting the longevity of the construction boom, Etman sees no reason for a slow down yet. "The boom is not at its peak. If Abu Dhabi opens, it will be tenfold that of Dubai. But Dubai has good decision makers, whereas in Abu Dhabi you have to go through many channels. In Dubai there are more business people, so there is a different mentality."
Yet Etman stresses how the entire sector is going through a period of change - unseen in his lifetime - which is having an impact, both good and bad, on the overall industry. "What is changing is that clients are becoming more confident, more effective and more understanding of the business. At the same time, however, this has led to a decline in quality, with contractors demonstrating less interest in the standard of materials than before."
Rasheed Mikati, director, ACC, is effusive over which was the better period, preferring the time when it was easy to obtain supplies: "Business was much easier. The whole supply chain was less stretched than it is now. In the old days when you wanted to recruit engineers, you could go to the UK, Lebanon or Egypt. It was the normal process of supply and demand - if you were willing to pay a decent salary people were available."
This has all changed, however. With burgeoning economies in India and Pakistan, much of the skills base is less interested in working abroad. "In the old days, when we went to recruit 200 carpenters, we had a pool of 1,000. Now we have a pool of 300 and the best one would rather go to New Delhi and work in the construction there - why should they travel and leave their families," adds Mikati.
Political stability has also played its part in the current boom period which is being enjoyed, not just by Dubai, but across the wider GCC and Middle East. "Between the first Gulf War and the second in 1990, with the invasion of Kuwait, the GCC had big reservations about investing," says Mikati. And with low oil prices of US $15 (AED55), coupled with the ongoing unease between Iran and Iraq, uncertainty predominated.
"If you look at Kuwait, it was only after the US-led coalition went into Iraq in 2003 that its boom started, because Kuwait was also worried that Saddam Hussein might come and re-invade."
Mikati believes that the same transition will apply in Syria and Lebanon, which represent key growth areas. "Syria is still at the stage where you have Gulf investors buying land knowing that things are going to boom but they haven't yet. It's a bit more of a ‘land banking', ‘wait and see' attitude," he adds.
Closer to home, it is easy to forget, with projects being announced on an almost daily basis, how far the industry has come.
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