THE ever-surging demand for housing in Saudi Arabia, currently running into hundreds of thousands, has put Qanbar Dywidag Precast Concrete Company (QDC) in an enviable position given its reputation in the market.

The veteran precast concrete specialist sees bright prospects ahead in terms of business, given the huge demand for its products that are helping speed up housing projects in the Eastern, Western and Northern provinces. The Saudi company has recorded a significant increase in the volume of work compared to last year, and is looking forward to a good year ahead.

QDC has, for more than 30 years, been providing quality precast concrete products at a competitive price and backed by outstanding service to customers in Saudi Arabia. Hence, it counts among its clients some of the most reputed names in the kingdom including Saudi Aramco, the Royal Commission of Jubail and Yanbu, Saudi Basic Industries Corporation’s (Sabic), Saudi Electricity Company (SEC), Ma’aden and various military and civil governmental authorities as well as the private sector.

QDC designs, manufactures, delivers and installs architectural and structural precast, prestressed concrete products for commercial, residential, industrial and government projects throughout Saudi Arabia.

To cater to the increased demand in the market, the company recently opened a new sales office in Jeddah and will be expanding its sales staff in Jeddah, as well as in Riyadh and Jubail, according to Mohammed Abdullah, QDC’s sales manager.

The company has had its services called upon for projects that demand a high level of expertise. Among such projects is a unique development in Thuwal (Northern Province), which is poised to be completed in record time.

“The project is the Aramco National Guard family compound, which consists of 500 villas being carried out by Azmeel Contracting Company,” says Abdullah.

Apart from this project, QDC is currently involved in a large number of other developments in Saudi Arabia. These include two housing projects in Jubail for the Royal Commission, involving the supply of the total precast frames and cladding for the family apartments (C14), Nama Housing, Advanced Apartments, Sahara Housing and RC Family Apartments, where Khonaini International is the contractor, and full-frame precast components for housing units (C-12) with Al Osais Contracting as contractor. It is also supplying full precast frames for Sabic’s mega housing project in Jubail (with Beijing Construction).

But housing is just one segment of the huge market QDC caters to. The company is also engaged in supplying precast components to a number of contractors working on Sadara Chemical Company’s integrated chemical facilities in Jubail, which calls for providing pipe racks to Sinopec Company, and precast cladding to Fluor Arabia; and full-frame precast for the Chem III project to Gulf Co-operation Symbols Contracting.

Other projects it is involved in entail the supply of a full precast frame car-park building in Jubail for Al Mouwasat Hospital; precast cladding for Madinah Hotel (International Building Systems); precast cladding for Saudia facilities in Jeddah (Specialised Contracting Company); precast cladding for Aramco in Rabigh (Saudi Arabian Baytur Construction Company); Al Haramain Railway project in the Western Area (Inabensa Company); Marafiq boundary wall in Yanbu (Azmeel Contracting Company); hollow-core slabs for a car park in Jeddah Islamic Port (Project Build Company); a Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) water transmission project in the Western Area with Sinopec; Jizan Refinery blast-resistant substations with Daewoo Company; Ali Reza Centre in Jeddah with Jawdat Company; Makkah Al Mukarama Complex (Muzdalifa Area) Phase Three, having completed phases one and two in a record time with Al Fawzan Trading and Contracting Company.

The company is also expecting to get a good share of work in the Waad Al Shammal Industrial City Development.

QDC was established in 1981 as a partnership between Al Ansari Holding Company (Abdul Razzaq Mohammed Qanbar Al Ansari and Sons), one of the leading business conglomerates in the Eastern Province, and Dycherhoff and Widmann (Dywidag), one of the largest German general contractors and precast concrete manufacturers. In January 2002, Al Ansari Holding became the sole owner of QDC with Dywidag remaining as a technical partner.

Its products are manufactured in modern three factories, located in Jubail and Rabigh, which have a combined production capacity of more than 5 million sq m per year (2 million sq m at the Jubail factories and 3 million sq m the Rabigh Factory). These facilities are regularly upgraded and expanded to ensure they are able to meet the growing demand as well as add value to the company’s products.

For instance, QDC was already installed a highly-automated state-of-the-art concrete batching plant at its main factory in Jubail, and four additional hollowcore lines at its Rabigh factory. Also at the Rabigh factory, it is set to launch the construction of a new administration building, mess hall and mosque.

QDC is also a joint venture partner in Qatar International Precast (QIP) in Doha, Qatar, producing a full line of precast and pre-stressed concrete products for the country’s rapidly expanding building construction and infrastructure market in anticipation of the 2022 Fifa World Cup.