BK Gulf grabbed the Mechanical Project of the Year for its work on Dubai Opera.
Dubai Opera is one of the most iconic new developments in the UAE, described by Dubai Ruler and UAE Vice-President HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum as ‘a new cultural centre and architectural masterpiece”.
Judges described the project as “one of a kind” in the GCC, which successfully overcame a lot of challenges due to its sophisticated architectural design.
The building services were modelled in 3D based on approved international standards by BK Gulf’s central engineering department. BIM enabled the engineers to coordinate mechanical equipment and distribution with the building structure to accurate details to minimise vibration and noise generation. The equipment and material selection played a crucial part in achieving the required parameters.
To ensure the highest level of quality control of thermal and acoustic insulation of the ductwork, the ductwork was pre-assembled in modules off-site at BK Gulf’s modular facility. Acoustic calculations were carried out for all plant serving the auditorium and non-auditorium area for noise levels for different octave bands. It was a challenging task to create a balance between equipment sizing and acoustic attenuation considering space restriction.
Chris Barry, regional operations director, executive director Zeyad Ahmed Baker, and Steve O’Sullivan, general manager collected the award for BK Gulf.
Commenting on the contract win, Barry said: “We’re ecstatic. I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Dubai Opera one of the most iconic buildings in in the city. It is the first building of its kind so it was a challenging project, but Emaar was entirely cooperative and that’s one of the main reasons this project has succeeded.”
Barry said BK Gulf would be open to working on more projects within the regional cultural construction sector.
O’Sullivan highlighted the significance of using BIM for the project: “The project was fully BIM-enabled and BK Gulf is BSI-certified for BIM application too. That helped (architects) Atkins and our designers to collaborate on this project’s requirements.”
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