Churning out rebar 20 hours a day, Madar Holding's Dubai plant has its work cut out keeping up with demand. It's all about the future, as Jamie Stewart finds out.
If I knew how much further the price of steel can go up, then I would be a very rich man."
So says Madar Holding CEO Sameh Hassan. And though Hassan insists he does not possess the mystical powers of foresight that would allow him to retire early to a life of luxury, he is better placed than most when it comes to predicting the future of steel.
We are looking at expansion in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Sameh Hassan, CEO, Madar Holding
Madar, a subsidiary of Al Fozan Group, was established three years ago as a result of the disparity between supply and demand in the Middle East steel industry. The firm has since expanded its operations to cover the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan, Syria and Sudan.
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The firm's Dubai rebar processing plant, which opened for business last May, has seen Madar become one of the biggest suppliers in the region. With constant talk of supply and demand, materials shortages, and recent accusations from contractors of "hoarding" within the supply chain, Madar has its work cut out.
If he could gaze into his crystal ball and retire shortly after to the aforementioned life of luxury however, you get the impression that Hassan is not ready to hang up his stirrup bender just yet.
"We have now reached 80% to 85% of our capacity at our Dubai factory, and we are looking at expansion in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi," says Hassan.
"Here, we work in two ten hour shifts, so the factory is productive 20 hours a day. We have 100 workers, which rises to 120 at busier times of the year.
The factory has an output capacity of 300,000 tonnes a year, with plans to expand. Such plans are indicative of an industry experiencing an unprecedented boom. It is estimated that demand for steel bars in the UAE alone exceeds 4.5 million tonnes a year.
Hassan hopes that some of this demand can be met through an innovative new type of steel, known as MMFX. Madar is to import MMFX from the US, with the first shipment due to hit UAE shores at the end of August.
Plans are also being developed to manufacture MMFX in the region, following the initial period of importing.
"The type of soil that we have here in the region is corrosive," explains Hassan. "MMFX is five times more corrosion resistant than regular steel. It is therefore suitable for structures that require a lot of resistance to soil corrosion, such as waterfront buildings, high-rises, bridges, tunnels and in particular foundations of high rises."
In terms of strength, the new breed of steel is also grade 100, as opposed to regular steel, which is grade 60. At almost twice the strength, structures will require less volume. This in turn leads to a decreased energy requirement during the production process.
On a tour of the Dubai processing plant, we are given the chance to have a good snoop around the shop floor, with the expert hand of engineer Mahmoud Fouda leading the way.
It certainly seems business as usual, with the constant noise leading a poor Fouda to turn to more primitive technology, this time in the shape of a loud hailer, to make himself heard above the industrial production.
The factory has a cut-and-bend and a wire mesh production facility. "With cut and bend, the steel is sheared to the required size," Fouda explains. "If it requires bending, it goes into a side pocket. Some bending shapes can be complicated, such as those we supply to the Dubai Metro."
The Metro is Madar's single biggest contract, and has helped propel production within the factory to near capacity.
The wire mesh facility has been operational since last June. For the uninitiated, wire mesh is used for concrete reinforcement. Fouda, trusty loud-hailer in hand, takes over.
"We import wire rod which goes to the grooving machine. The machine grooves the wire into a particular size, and changes its flexibility. This makes it more suitable for wire mesh production, and puts the ribs on the rod, which improves the grip of the concrete against the steel."
"The coil is then put onto the wire mesh machine. It gets welded at 180 shots a minute. We can do different sizes of mesh depending on the client."
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