How increasing sophistication in design is shaping ultra-projects that are sustainable as they are smart

Equipped with over 26 years of experience across three continents, Matthew Tribe, Managing Director, Planning, Design, and Engineering, Middle East & Africa, AtkinsRéalis shares his experience of the GCC’s rapidly evolving construction industry, and why his work on Saudi’s visionary The New Murabba and The Mukaab is a career defining moment.

For almost seventy years, the construction industry remained largely unchanged from its industrial roots, until about a fifteen years ago when the advent of digitalisation and increasing awareness about climate change forced the wider industry to reimagine itself with the sizeable, and rapidly developing benefits of the digital age. As an outcome, the past decade has been one of the most exciting periods of development, not only in terms of what is possible, but how projects are being delivered.

In the GCC, we are in the midst of a fascinating metamorphosis, developing mega projects on a scale never seen before, while simultaneously redefining the way we work. As an outcome, collaboration has become an early-stage requirement for most projects, a feat made possible through an array of digital tools and platforms that deliver high performance design solutions for the built environment.

By moving away from siloed workflows, projects immediately benefit from optimised design and planning processes, enhanced communication between stakeholders, optimised cost, greater innovation, and ultimately happier clients and customers. At AtkinsRéalis, our approach of hyper collaboration has meant that each project becomes a living, breathing process where real-time communication and information sharing, early contractor involvement, integrated workflows and enabling technologies are maximised for the best possible outcomes.

There is no doubt that the most recent technologies are game changers for our industry. The ongoing development of BIM, automation and generative AI allows a higher degree of technical assurance and optimised solutions far earlier in the planning and design stages. We believe Generative AI holds immense potential for augmenting workflows, accelerating the ideation process, and ushering in a new era of data-driven design. However, a key consideration in adopting AI is identifying all the stages across the value chain where AI could provide a significant advantage, and assessing how practical this will be to deliver.

As a company fully committed to sustainable urban master planning, AtkinsRéalis’ work on Riyadh’s New Murabba and The Mukaab is not only the most challenging project to date, but the embodiment of human-centric design, where technology has been leveraged to deliver usability, functionality, and an integration with nature never before seen within an urban environment. Set to become a “gateway to another world”, The New Murabba will be a human-first downtown, which includes access to greenery and amenities within five mins, with The Mukaab as the indisputable centrepiece. Comprised of a mixed-use megastructure of 400x400x400 metres, The Mukaab will not only become Riyadh’s tallest building, but also a global destination for immersive entertainment, hospitality, lifestyle, retail, culture, commercial and recreational activities.

Beyond its concept, scale, and our ability to develop it in the most efficient way possible, we are arguably most proud of our project sustainability commitments. Through AtkinsRéalis’ long-standing investment towards sustainable best practices, our focus encompasses our material selection, through to understanding the complete lifecycle of the project, meaning a 360-degree approach that includes the building’s operational emissions and how each element can be reduced as part of our wider industry journey to net-zero.

As a result, we’ve advocated for modern construction methods, including prefabrication and modularisation techniques that streamline project delivery. This has also helped greatly in terms of logistical coordination; a fundamental requirement when building a city, within an existing city. Additionally, the use of green materials can help minimise the environmental footprint. For instance, the development of green cements, for which AtkinsRéalis has been a key proponent, can contribute to a more sustainable and efficient building process.

It should go without saying that none of this would be possible without the sheer volume of skilled and experienced professionals working in harmony to deliver a common goal. Nor would it be possible without a regional leadership that embraces new technologies and upholds an unwavering commitment to creating high-quality, liveable urban environments. While there will always be challenges in every industry, the GCC is leading a sea change in the global construction industry - to a period where open-source knowledge sharing, increased transparency and wider collaboration is resulting in a more climate-resilient designs, and the potential to deliver awe inspiring projects, that also meet the needs of our communities while respecting our natural environment.

This article was first published at Construction Business News Middle East in May 2024.