Green Precast CEO Salvatore Saker.

Head of marketing and sales for Jehan Green Walls Cedric Pinto.

Managing director Walid Taha.

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Cheaper, greener, faster, stronger

Can you build a villa superstructure in 24 hours? Apparently it's not that difficult. This week CW looks at some of the innovative wall construction systems being touted as cheaper, greener, stronger and faster than conventional techniques.

A positive spin-off of any recession is that innovation is often brought to the fore, and this is already starting to show in the Gulf's construction industry.

Consultants are now searching for cheaper and more efficient methods of construction, which might otherwise have been overlooked in the boom times.
As such, some of the most innovative companies in wall construction say fresh contracts and inquires are growing at unprecedented rates despite the downturn.

Green Precast

After starting operations in the UAE six months ago, Australian company Green Precast has already secured a number of sizeable projects including a US $109 million (AED 400 million) contract to build villas in Abu Dhabi.

CEO Salvatore Saker says the firm has also received more than 50 invitations to work in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait, a staggering figure considering the lack of new contracts being signed at the moment.

The secret to the company's success is its precast concrete building system, which uses computerized hydraulic moulds to produce 3D monolithic structures at the site of the project.

The system operates like an onsite production line and as such is ideally suited to large scale villa projects that require a fair amount of repetition.

Saker explains the production process: "First is the fabrication of the steel element. Steel cages are produced every six hours and then go inside a mould. You then fit all the MEP, which also goes inside the mould. Then you pour the concrete.

After nine-twelve hours you can lift the module out of the mould. Installation takes between 2-2½ hours to put together a 500m² villa by dropping the modules into place.

"So basically in 24 hours you have a cycle that produces anything from one to ten villas depending on the number of moulds committed to the project."

Apart from speed, Saker also promises that the Green Precast method will be greener, stronger and cheaper than regular block-work construction.

First of all, there is much less transportation of materials required and almost zero wastage on-site, which not only reduces costs but also the carbon footprint, he says.

Secondly, Green Precast has developed its own thin wall technology which uses around 1/3 less steel and concrete while maintaining strength and insulation.

"Basically our internal 9cm thin wall is equal to a regular 30cm thick wall," says Saker.

"Our external walls are 20cm to achieve the thermal rating that the GCC requires. We have two insulations, sandwich panel insulation and an external UV paint coating which can give us a U-value between 0.28 - 0.38 W/m²°K.

"This is significantly better than a standard wall and helps to keep the running cost of the building cheaper by 50%."

In terms of strength, Saker says all walls are load bearing, fire-proof and earthquake- proof. The system also incorporates controlled joints, 2cm of mastic filler, between each module which acts as a shock absorber preventing up to 90% of on-going maintenance for cracks in the walls, he says.

Overall, Saker says the Green Precast system will save developers between 5%-50% on construction costs. The cost saving is mainly dependent on how quickly the developer wants to build, he says.

Jehan Green Walls

Another firm promising significant savings and quick, green construction is Jehan Green Walls.

The company began operations at its Sharjah-based factory in the UAE only two months ago but has already picked up six contracts and is getting "inquires left, right and centre", according to head of marketing Cedric Pinto.

The factory produces 3D panels, which are composed of a fire-retardant polystyrene core and 3mm of galvanized steel mesh covering either side which is connected through the core by diagonal truss wires.

Pinto says the panels are used to create a reinforced insulated wall and form the basis of three different walls solutions. The first is Jehan's own "shotcrete" construction system where the 3D panels are erected as walls and slabs in the shape of the desired building before being sprayed with concrete.

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