Kharafi National Magazine

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al SaaD & al WathBa rEViSitED06ProJECtS

ProJECtStriUMPh at haBShan08

oPErationS nEWSal-ShahEED Park17

hoW Do WE MEaSUrE hSE PErforManCE?

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APRIL 2014

MESSAGE FROMTHE CHAIRMAN & CEOas we welcome the new year of 2014, now is a good time to reflect on the past, present and future of kharafi national. Some of you will remember that i am not new to kharafi national, and although this dynamic organization has grown steadily over the years, it has always remained true to its core values, vision, mission and goals. this has been chiefly due to the dedication, commitment and skills of its most valued asset, its staff. kharafi national has always prided itself on the excellent capabilities of its employees and senior managers who have propelled it into becoming one of the leading and most respected companies in the region over the last forty years.

Early in november 2013, i was asked by the owners of kharafi national to step in as the Chairman and CEo of the company. the owners of kharafi national, a privately-held company, have always agreed upon and executed a successful, proven method of management which has resulted in the superior reputation kharafi national has earned among its peers and the regional business community over the years. in order to retain this focus and with a further aim of achieving the goals kharafi national has set for itself, my vision for the future of kharafi national will be to maintain the values and beliefs that have been instrumental in the growth of the company.

therefore, despite the recent management changes, the vision and mission of kharafi national to fulfill its goals going forward into the future remains unchanged. With the support of every member of staff, from manual labourers to senior managers, working together for the realization of their common goals, the company will achieve more successes and set more standards of excellence in the years to come.

With the help of the company’s directors, i am presently in the process of establishing a lean and effective, functional management to oversee the daily operations of the company. i will communicate with you frequently and provide updates on the measures being adopted for the smooth running of the organization.

i also wish to take this opportunity to sincerely thank our owners, senior managers, and manual and non-manual employees for their dedicated service to kharafi national over the last four decades that has transformed kharafi national from its humble beginnings into a well known and respected industry name in the region and beyond today.

i look forward to working closely with each and every one of you to ensure the continued success and growth of kharafi national in the years to come.

Wishing us all a happy and prosperous 2014 and many more years to come.

RIyAdH Al SAlEHCHAIRMAN & CHIEF ExECuTIvE OFFICER

Transmission is kharafi national’s corporate newsletter. it contains news and stories about your company. its purpose is to inform and stimulate.

kharafi national prides itself on the culture of excellence it brings to every project it undertakes and Transmission is expected to reflect this culture.

here in Corporate Communications, we would very much appreciate your comments on the content, design and layout of your corporate newsletter. Please send your constructive criticisms to:

Paul D Kennedy, [email protected] Abbas, Unit Head (Branding Unit) [email protected]

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APRIL 2014

Engineer riyadh ibrahim abdulla al-Saleh BSc is the new Chairman and Chief Executive officer of kharafi national, one of the world’s largest pan-arabian infrastructure Project Developers, Contractors and facilities Management Service Providers. the company has over 35,000 employees.

Eng al-Saleh earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the West Pakistan University of Engineering and technology – in lahore, in 1974.

With more than 38 years of experience in the oil sector in kuwait, Eng Saleh started his career in 1975 at kuwait national Petroleum Company. after three years as a Junior Mechanical Engineer in the Project Department of the Design Division and one year in the Pump and Compressors Engineering Department, he was appointed in 1981 as Deputy Superintendent of the Engineering & Maintenance Department and Superintendent in 1982. he quickly rose through the ranks, becoming GS E&M Department later in 1982, Manager loss Prevention Department for knPC refineries (1983-87) and refinery Manager for Shuaiba refinery (1987-95) until he was finally appointed as Deputy Managing Director Support Services (1995-99). he retired from knPC in 1999.

Eng Saleh joined aBJ Engineering & Construction Company in 1999 as Deputy Chairman and Managing Director (1999-2003). thereafter he became Managing Director of kuwait Catalyst Company from 2003 until to 2005 and President and Chief Executive officer of Blue horizon Center Consultant and training (since 2000). in 2009 he was appointed as Chairman and Managing Director of Petroleum Coke industries Company.

Eng riyadh al-Saleh is strongly committed to civil society in kuwait; he is member of the kuwait Engineering association, kuwait Graduates association, institute of Mechanical Engineers, national fire Protection association, american Management association, american Society of Mechanical Engineers, national Safety Management Society, Society for Petroleum Engineers, and the British institute of Managers.

he is also a member of the Planetary Society, the national Geographic Society, the hawalli Education area fathers’ Board, and the khalida Bint al-asswad School fathers’ Board.

from 1981 to 1995, riyadh al-Saleh was a recipient of knPC inventive rewards. he received the knPC and State of kuwait reward 1990-1991 for work during the iraqi occupation. he has been a member of the boards of directors of many industrial companies in kuwait and has sat on many executive working committees.

WElCOMERiyADH Al SAlEHKHARAfi NATioNAlChairman & Chief Executive officer

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APRIL 2014

ISTP1, Kharafi National’s two BOOT sewage treatment plants in the UAE, began operations just over two years ago. The client is extremely pleased with how the plants are being operated and maintained and, so far, has send KN two letters of appreciation.

Al SAAd & Al WATHBA REvISITEdProJECtS

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al-Saad sewage treatment plant (StP) is located on the abu Dhabi side of al ain, and al-Wathba StP is near al-Mafraq which is about 40km from abu Dhabi city centre. the operations of the two plants are integrated, hence they are known collectively as iStP1.

the client is the abu Dhabi Water & Electricity authority which, in December 2007, awarded the two build-own-operate-transfer (Boot) projects to a consortium made up of Biwater PlC, the provider of advanced eco-friendly technology, and Emirates Utilities Company holding, a partnership between al Qudra holding PJSC of abu Dhabi and Utilities Development Company holding of kuwait, a sister company of kn.

kn was the main EPC contractor for the construction of the two StPs, which it is now operating and maintaining. the original 25-year contract has another 20 years to run.

Both plants use a traditional treatment method of primary, secondary and tertiary treatment but with anaerobic digestion and biogas co-generation facilities. Both StPs clean the effluent to a very high level of purity. ie a maximum level of 2.0 nephelometric turbidity units (ntUs). they are also very eco-friendly.

the biogas produced by the anaerobic digestion process can be used instead of fossil fuels as energy because it is rich in methane and carbon dioxide. indeed, this biogas is used to generate 27% of the energy needed to operate the plants, thus reducing their carbon footprints. in addition, the dried nutrient-rich solids remaining after digestion and dewatering can be sold as fertiliser.

Both plants have to use chlorine for disinfection purposes. But handling and transporting chlorine gas is dangerous because it is toxic and can react with flammable materials. So the plants use simple sodium chloride (table salt) to produce the chlorine they need and this reduces the hazards to humans and the environment.

al-Saad StP accepted its first inflow of sewage on the 11th april 2011 and began to output treated sewage effluent (tSE) two days later. the plant began operating at 90% of its full capacity of 80,000 cubic metres (cu m) per day in January 2012 and has been operating at 100% capacity since february 2013. the operation of this plant is running very smoothly.

tSE began flowing in al-Wathba in august 2011. Since april 2012 this StP has been operating at two-thirds of its total capacity of 300,000cu m a day.

at al-Wathba the incoming untreated water is often outside the expected specifications. in particular, the influent is highly saline at times. in addition, there are regular shock loadings, ie sudden surges in the water coming in for treatment.

these issues have made controlling the plant processes at al-Wathba StP quite challenging. the kn team on site, however, have proved highly resourceful and have used their experiences to improve immensely their capabilities in dealing with unexpectedly difficult situations.

in addition, operating and maintaining iStP1 has given kn a great deal of first-time experience in handling highly sophisticated systems, such as the anaerobic digestion and biogas co-generation system and the onsite generation of sodium chloride. these learning experiences have added immensely to kn’s capabilities ... helping to boost its reputation as one of the most eco-friendly construction and facility management firms in the Middle East.


APRIL 2014ProJECtS

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The successful construction of a fifth gas processing plant at Habshan in Abu Dhabi has consolidated KN’s position as a major player in the oil and gas sector in the Middle East. ..... Project Director Giuseppe Contini explain

TRIuMPH AT HABSHAN

the new plant is part of GaSCo’s integrated gas development (iGD) project which began in 2007.

GaSCo (abu Dhabi Gas industries) is a majority-owned subsidiary of aDnoC (the state-owned abu Dhabi national oil Company) in the UaE.

the iGD has expanded abu Dhabi’s gas production facilities through the creation of new processing units at the haP offshore platform, Das island, habshan and ruwais, and by revamping existing facilities. it has also consolidated production into a single integrated scheme of offshore and onshore facilities.

When fully operational the integrated facilities will have doubled abu Dhabi’s offshore production of high pressure gas to 2 billion cubic feet a day (bcfpd), expanded its output of crude oil from 1.4 to 1.8 million barrels a day and satisfied the emirate’s demand for domestic gas.

the additional high-pressure gas is coming from the offshore Umm Shaif field and khuff reservoirs. it is processed in the aDMa-oPCo facilities at Umm Shaif and then sent to the aDGaS facilities at Das island, where it is conditioned. after that it is sent to habshan through a new 30 inch offshore pipeline for associated gases, which can handle 1 bcfpd.

at habshan, the gases are further processed for optimum lean gas production. this gas is then sent to abu Dhabi for sale, while the natural-gas liquids (nGl) go to the GaSCo facilities at ruwais for further fractionation in a fourth newly-built nGl processing train.

GaSCo split the iGD project into four EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) packages, all on a lump-sum turnkey basis.

the largest of the EPC projects, a contract for the construction of habshan 5, the new gas processing plant, was awarded to a consortium of tecnimont of italy and JGC of Japan. this EPC contract was split, with tecnimont of italy working on the process plant, while JGC of Japan developed the associated utilities.

kharafi national was awarded the construction of process plant which covered the civil works, the installation of steel structures and equipment, the fabrication and erection of piping, electrical and instrumentation works, painting, insulation, refractory installation, fireproofing, and pre-commissioning.

the habshan-5 process plant is massive. it has 10 process units and an interconnecting pipe rack spread over a site measuring approximately 800m x 800m. the plant has the capacity to process 2,150mmscfd of feed gas and deliver 900mmscfd of sales gas. the combined total capacity of the four sulphur recovery units is 5,200tons per day, with a recovery efficiency of more than 99%.

kn’s scope of work was impressive in both scale and complexity. in less than three years, the company has constructed ... two trains for feed gas compression ... one train for condensate stabilization ... four trains for gas sweetening and dehydration (two each for rich and lean gas) ... two trains for rich gas nGl recovery, and ... four sulphur recovery units and two tail gas treating units designed for 99.9% plus sulphur recovery.

this construction work involved massive quantities of materials and products ... 230,000cu m of concrete ... 45,000 tons of steel structures ... 43,000 tons of equipment ... 2,000,000 dia inch of piping ... 2,191km of electrical cables ... 2,178km of instrumentation cabling ... 379,000cu m of insulation works ... 380,000cu m of painting works, and 5,400 tons of refractory installation.


Most of the prefabricated products required for habshan 5, such as pipe spools and supports, were made by aBJ, kn’s fabrication subsidiary, in state-of-the-art workshops expressly set-up for this purpose in Zone three of the industrial City of abu Dhabi. kn also erected temporary facilities on a 400,000sq m area near habshan 5 with the capacity to fabricate 400 inch dia piping a day, prepare and paint 400sq m of piping per day, as well as scaffolding and insulation units.

this massive size of the habshan-5 construction project necessitated the deployment of more than 13,100 employees. to accommodate this large workforce, kn built its own residential camp on a piece of desert land at habshan. the camp had all the facilities needed to create a home-away-from home, such as cabins, a kitchen and mess halls, recreation rooms and a gymnasium, as well as indoor and outdoor sports facilities. it also included banking facilities, internet facilities, and media rooms. this ‘village’ had its own independent water supply and sewage treatment plants and other utilities, and catered for all categories of employees, including management, supervisory staff and labourers.

in order to maintain employee relations at a high standard, kn organized indoor and outdoor tournaments in sports and games in which all nationalities could participate.

Such a large labour force containing diverse languages and cultures might be considered unwieldy and difficult to coordinate on a single project. But everyone at habshan-5 project demonstrated a high level of team work and commitment together with a strong sense of ownership, dedication and perseverance in executing the company’s largest-ever construction project.

this exemplary team-work, along with the strict application of safety and quality standards, has enabled the project to achieve, as of the 15th September 2013, 69.21 million man-hours without a lost-time incident out of a total of 86.46 million man-hours worked.

testing and pre-commissioning were completed in two phases. the first phase, which began at the end of May 2012, was completed in Jan-2013 and the second phase, begun at the end of august 2012, was completed in June 2013. Plant Commissioning works by the Joint Venture is in progress, in parallel with the residual piping insulation works of the valve boxes by kn.

Winning the single largest construction contract the company has ever undertaken is a testament to the success of Kharafi National’s business diversification programme. Now the successful completion of Habshan-5 has raised KN’s profile in the oil and gas market several fold.

Project Brief:Client: GaSCo - abu Dhabi Gas industriesMain Contractor: Consortium of italy’s tecnimont and Japan’s JGC Construction: kharafi nationalProject Number: 2031Scope of Work: Construction of a gas processing plantStart: 1st May 2010finish: Q3 2013Employees (at peak): 13,100 manual + non-manual

APRIL 2014ProJECtS

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APRIL 2014oPS nEWS

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OPS NEWS

KN has been awarded a four-year contract to operate and maintain heavy vehicles and equipment at the Borouge petrochemical plant at Ruwais in the UAE. The client is the Abu Dhabi Polymers Company ltd (aka Borouge).

Borouge is a joint venture between the abu Dhabi national oil Company (aDnoC) and Borealis of austria, which provides solutions in chemicals and plastics. Established in 1998, the JV consists of two separate companies: abu Dhabi Polymers Co ltd (Borouge) in abu Dhabi, UaE, which produces petrochemicals, and Borouge Pte ltd in Singapore which undertakes marketing and sales.

Borouge produces polyethylene and polypropylene for use in infrastructure (pipe systems, power and communication cables), automotive and advanced packaging applications, food protection, energy conservation, healthcare and waste management. located about 250km west of abu Dhabi City, it was the first petrochemical facility in the Middle East.

the plant initially started production in 2001 with an output capacity of 450,000 tons a year. By 2005 annual capacity had been increased to 600,000 tons. in 2010 this was tripled to 2 million tons. after further increases, total production capacity is expected to reach 4.5 million tons a year in 2014, when kn’s work will begin.

the operations and maintenance of the heavy vehicles and equipment at this state-of-the-art petrochemical production plant ... the largest integrated single-site polyolefins plant in the world ... started on the 1st January 2014 and finish at the end of December 2017. kn expects to have 135 employees working on the project.

this project will deliver significant benefits for kharafi national. firstly, kn will be able to create a permanent base for industrial maintenance operations in abu Dhabi, thus enabling it to service specialized shutdown projects in

A new contract at Borouge in the UAE is positioning KN for long-term maintenance contracts in the oil and gas and petrochemical sectors. Gulf National Insulation Systems (GNIS) has been praised for its contribution to Habshan-5. The winning of the Shuaiba North power plant contract has enhanced KN’s reputation in major O&M projects. Meanwhile, the development of al-Shaheed Park is placing KN in the van of the green movement in Kuwait and the Gulf.

INduSTRIAl SERvICES& MAINTENANCE

fire-fighting services:Kharafi National recently signed a five-year contract to deliver maintenance and other services for KoC’s fire-fighting systems in north and west Kuwait ... the first time KN has been awarded this contract.

Kuwait oil Company (KoC) is the government-owned entity responsible for all exploration activities and the extraction of hydrocarbons within the State of Kuwait.

KN’s scope of work on this added-value services contract is to execute all maintenance works for KoC’s fire-fighting equipment, accessories and buildings in north and west Kuwait.

The work on this contract, for which KN will have 125 employees on site, will begin on the 1st January 2014 and end on the 31st December 2018.

Borouge petrochemical plant:the emirate’s process industries. Secondly, kn will be positioned to obtain a major share of the market in long-term maintenance projects in upstream and downstream process plants in the oil and gas and petrochemical sectors.

Prospective clients include Borouge, takreer (oil refining), GaSCo (liquefied gas products), aDnoC (oil production), fErtil (granular urea and ammonia fertilizers), aDCo (onshore oil operations), aDMa-oPCo (off-shore oil and gas production), and ZaDCo (onshore oil production), among many others.


APRIL 2014

EPC-MEP ServicesMinistry of Education HQ

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Excellent execution of the insulation works by Gulf national insulation Systems (GniS) made a significant contribution to kn’s successful completion of the habshan-5 project in abu Dhabi.

Established as a joint venture with riva & Mariani of italy, GniS is a subsidiary of kn. the company develops techniques and applications for the cost-effective preservation of thermal energy during manufacturing processes.

GniS has a 5500sq m purpose-built manufacturing plant within the kn Mina abdullah complex in kuwait.

this facility contains the most technologically advanced machines in the Middle East, ie specialised computer-controlled equipment supplied by Maschinenbau Biland in Switzerland.

GniS carried out four main types of insulation works in habshan 5 ... hot (thermal) insulation, cold insulation, acoustic insulation, and personnel protection. in order to manufacture huge amounts of prefabricated cladding, while ensuring a very high quality standard, kn-GniS established a complete workshop, equipped with advanced machinery, on site at habshan.

overall, 380,330sq m of piping and equipments and 21,000 valve and flange boxes were insulated at habshan-5 ... approximately 10,000sq m a week without any fall-off in quality during the peak of the project, when GniS had 900 employees on site.

the habshan-5 process plant is the largest construction project ever undertaken by kn in the oil and gas sector. the exemplary performance in terms of safety, quality and output displayed by the GniS personnel in the execution of the insulation works made a substantial contribution to its completion.

GNiS: insulation Works at Habshan fM-iS Sewage Works & Water Networksfacilities Management (industrial Services-Sewage Works & Water network) recently secured four new contracts ... one from the Ministry of Public Works (MPW), two from kuwait oil Company (koC) and one from the Public authority for housing Welfare (PahW) in kuwait.

the first contract is for the o&M of rikka Sewage treatment Plant. this is a repeat contract with MPW which kn had executed a few years ago. this contract will run for three years.

the second contract is a new contract with koC for operational assistance at abdaliyah pumping station in West kuwait. kn’s scope of work on this three-year contract includes operating and monitoring the pumping station facilities and the associated systems connected to the station, as well as providing the necessary personnel and vehicles. Work began on the 15th September 2013.

the third contract is also a new contract with the PahW for the construction, completion and maintenance of a surface layer of asphalt and associated works at Saad al abdullah town in kuwait. it is similar to the three ongoing contracts kn has with the MPW for asphalt works in Jahra Governorate. this contract will run for two years.

the fourth contract is a four-year repeat contract with koC for road maintenance works in ahmadi. for more than the last 10 years kn has been executing the same works ... a reflection of the high regard koC has for kn’s capabilities and timely execution.

Kharafi National is executing the electro-mechanical works for the prestigious new head-quarters of the Ministry of Education in Kuwait.

the new head-quarters of the Ministry of Education (MoE) are being constructed in the government zone in South Surra, which affords rapid access to kuwait’s motorways and the rest of the country.

as can be seen from our photos, the design is truly stunning … two curved gracefully-shaped glass and metal structures resting on a two-story base of clad stone. Both structures will lean outwards from the stone base, giving the impression that they are floating, like dhows on the sea, as well as providing protection from the sun. the heart of the design will be a 10-storey grand atrium that will be created by roofing over the interior volume between the two structures.

Special attention has been paid to the spatial sequences in the interior. as a visitor moves from large public areas into smaller areas such as private offices, the scale will step from larger to smaller as if it were following the four elements of learning … curiosity, exploration, discovery and revelation.

the new hQ is huge. it will have a gross area of 135,000sq m and house more than 3,600 MoE employees. there will be 20 staircases, 21 elevators, 17 escalators, 15 bridges, and three underground parking levels of more than 100,000sq m which will have room for 1,640 cars. it is being built by Mak (Mohamed abdulmohsin al kharafi & Sons) on behalf of the Ministry of Public Works. kn is carrying out all the mechanical, electrical and plumbing works on behalf of Mak.

kn’s scope of work covers the supply, installation, testing, commissioning and certification of the electro-mechanical and security systems for the whole building, including a C4 shelter for 100 people in the basement. the scope also covers the water features, the electro-mechanical works for the guard houses, and the external works related to all the mechanical and electrical works, including the irrigation pumps.

Mak began construction work on the site in June 2010, while kn began the MEP works in october 2010. kn will have 650 employees on site at the peak and is working to an expected completion date in early february 2015. kn then will be operating and maintaining the building during the two-year warranty period that will follow. nearly 40 percent of the work has been done already.

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APRIL 2014

kharafi national has begun working on a seven-year contract for the operation and maintenance of Shuaiba north co-generation plant on behalf of the Ministry of Electricity & Water in kuwait.

Shuaiba North o&MShuaiba north co-generation plant is located in the Shuaiba industrial area, about 40km south of kuwait City. a co-generation plant combines power generation and water distillation. Shuaiba north is kn’s first seven year o&M contract in kuwait in which it has full responsibility for a power plant.

the power plant at Shuaiba north has three General Electric gas turbines and one toshiba steam turbine for a total installed capacity of 900MW. it began operating in 2009.

the distillation plant has been in operation since 2011. it uses three MSf-type distillation units from fisia italimpianti, and has a total capacity

With the design development, construction and maintenance of al-Shaheed Park in Dasman, kuwait, kharafi national has asserted itself as a leader in the greening of the country.

al-Shaheed Park is located between the line where the old Wall ran around the City of kuwait and the first ring road. it was originally developed nearly half a century ago to form a ‘barrier’ between the old City (long rebuilt) and what were then the new suburbs. it is now being redesigned and reconstructed, on behalf of the amiri Diwan, as part of the ongoing project to green kuwait.

kuwait has a harsh climate, poor soil, low rainfall and scarce water resources. the greening of kuwait refers to attempts, which began in the mid-1980s, to combat the arid desert by the mass planting of vegetation that can endure the hot, dry weather conditions.

al-Shaheed Park is a belt of greenery covering 235,500sq m. once its development is complete, it will contain four distinct zones ... a memorial area, a ceremonial zone, a parking sector, and a museum

of 45 million imperial gallons (MiG) a day. MSf stands for the ‘multi-stage flash’ process used to turn sea-water in potable water and the evaporators used in the distillation units were manufactured by aBJ.

the o&M of Shuaiba north is being carried out by a joint venture (JV) between kharafi national and tnB–rEMaCo of Malaysia. the tnB rEMaCo-kharafi national JV has entered into long-term service agreements with General Electric for the maintenance of gas turbines.

incorporated in 1995, tnB rEMaCo is a fully-owned subsidiary of tenaga national Berhad (tnB) of Malaysia. With assets of more than US$ 23 billion, tnB is the largest utility company in Malaysia. its core business is the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. tnB has around 12,000 MW of installed capacity, comprising conventional thermal, open and combined cycle gas turbines, and hydro plants.

the scope of work for the co-generation plant covers the operation and maintenance of three gas turbines of 225MW each, one steam turbine of 225MW, three heat recovery steam generators, and three MSf distillation units of 15 MiG a day each, as well as all the remaining plant and auxiliary equipment. the JV partners will carry out inspections

area. kn partnered with the associated Engineering Partnership for the superb reconversion of the park. Each area will have a variety of gardens, water features and buildings.

the ‘soft’ landscape (gardens etc) will include vegetation that is not common in kuwait but which has been developed to withstand the harsh local climate. the design of gardens and water features is being undertaken by specialist landscape and irrigation designers on behalf of kn.

the park will contain six buildings ... an administration building, a memorial, a museum, a guest centre, a ceremonial gate, and an underground car park. the buildings will have green roofs.

a green roof is one that is covered with vegetation. it consists of a growth medium (eg, soil) planted over a waterproofing membrane, as well as a root barrier (to prevent roots gaining access to the structure) along with irrigation and drainage systems. the green roofs are being supplied by specialist green roof system manufacturers.

at the intervals recommended by the manufacturers. they will also be maintaining all electrical systems, instruments and control systems.

having started on the 19th June 2013, this project is expected to finish on the 18th June 2020. it will involve a total of 300 personnel.

Variation orders are likely to increase the value of this contract. however a more significant benefit for kn is that the extensive experience kn is getting will allow it to enhance its tWi (technical work instruction) procedures for the operation and maintenance of power plants. the company will thus be well placed to bid for further o&M contracts as well as for additions to the current project.

kn’s scope of work covers the design and construction of all civil and MEP works. as well as constructing the buildings, the firm will be carrying out the internal finishing works and renovating the existing pedestrian tunnel. kn will also be undertaking 25,000sq m of hard landscaping (roads, paths etc), and 162,000sq m of soft landscaping including the green roofs, gardens, water features and a lake.

kn’s work on developing al-Shaheed Park began on the 7th april 2013 and is due to be completed at the end of May 2014. at the peak, kn will have 400 employees working on the project. as expected with kn, the work is proceeding well on schedule.

facilities Maintenance - industrial Services (Electrical, instrument & Control and Communications)

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APRIL 2014

PDSA (Plan-Do-Study-Act) has been adopted as the basis for management systems throughout the world. It is the basis for OHSAS and ISO standards. And it is how Kharafi National ensures continual improvement in the company’s HSE practices. But what is PDSA and how does it work?

HOW dO WE MEASuRE HSE PERFORMANCE?

CorPoratE

hSE

PDSA (plan–do–study–act) is a four-step management method used for the control and continuous improvement of processes and product safety.

Carrying out tasks safely requires you to take time to think about what is required for safe working. in ‘plan’, the first step in the PDSa cycle, you have to decide how a work process should be carried out to ensure safe working. You then have to implement the plan, ie carry out the particular task in the manner that you have decided will be safe. this is the ‘do’ or second step of the PDSa cycle. it includes collecting data for analysis and action in the next two steps.

the third part of the cycle is ‘study’, ie monitoring outcomes and comparing them against your goal of safe working. You can do this by, for example, observing during inspections, the timely completion of actions and the reporting of near misses.

in the fourth step ‘act’ you take action to rectify any shortcomings in the methods you are using to achieve safety (see figure 1). You do this by analysing the differences between your goal and the outcome discovered in step three and then applying the

all kn hSE audits use the same format. this allows projects to be analyzed against themselves (over a period of time) or against projects with similar risk profiles (within kn or other companies). audit findings are divided into five major parameters as shown in figure 2.

figure 2: three year hSE audit results, showing major trends

now matter how good you may feel about the effort you have put into creating a safe workplace, the acid test is this: did anyone get injured?

as well as analysing near misses and undertaking hSE audits, data on injuries and occupational illnesses such as, for example, ltifr (lost time incident frequency rate) and lDr (lost days rate) needs to be obtained. in future our analysis at kn will also include trir (total recordable incident rate) or the rates for Dart (days away, restricted, or transferred).

figure 3 shows kharafi national’s current ltifr, with 3-sigma process behaviour limits calculated for a level of performance that appears to have reached a stable level of about 0.08, with annual variation predicted to be between 0.06 and 0.10.

figure 3: Example of ltifr to report safety performance

Continual improvement is brought about through preventive action as measured by leading indicators that optimize the performance of the safety system.

accidents provide data from which judgments can be made about the effectiveness of a preventive action. the knowledge gained from studying accidents is the basis for action to improve the preventive measures and the

changes you need to improve the likelihood the process will achieve your goal of safe working.

PDCa is iterative. this means that you have to keep repeating this cycle. Using the PDCa cycle, hSE professionals have learnt that leading indicators are essential to help predict and improve health and safety procedures.

figure 1: PDSa on the work process with examples of leading indicators

Wisely chosen indicators allow safety performance to be improved. however, even if all the indicators were showing excellent performances, you could have missed one crucial indicator where failure could lead to an accident. this is where near misses, as well as injuries and damage, provide valuable information about weaknesses in the hSE system.

leading indicators. the cycle is shown diagrammatically in figure 4.

figure 4: PDSa as an operational definition of safety

Using the PDSa cycle, kn learns from both the process of creating safety (via leading indicators) and the result (via lagging indicators).

leading indicators provide valuable day-to-day information on how precise we are in doing what we say we should do, while lagging indicators provide essential feedback on how accurate we have been in identifying the necessary safety measures required.

however, we also continually revise our judgment of the effectiveness of our safety efforts by the successes and failures we experience. thus, improving the information that we gain from everyone in kn is crucial. therefore i am asking all of you to please report accurately, timely and openly.

near misses describe incidents where no property was damaged and no personal injury sustained but where, given a slight shift in time or position, damage and/or injury could have occurred easily.

the clear message delivered by a near miss is that, despite the avoidance of physical harm, something undesirable happened, and therefore something is unsafe. Correctly understood, a near miss can be a rich source of data for learning and improvement.

as with all incidents up to and including fatalities, you can learn from a near miss through investigation and then take remedial action to prevent the situation that gave rise to the near miss from reoccurring. in a sense the lagging indicator generated by incidents becomes a leading indicator for prevention.

to judge how successful we are in achieving safety during any period of time, we must combine leading and lagging indicators. an important leading indicator with kn’s hSE toolbox is hSE audits carried out on all projects. these are designed to confirm that regulations, processes or rules are being followed.


APRIL 2014CorPoratE DEVEloPMEntS

tEnDErinG

Over the past year, the Proposals Department has undergone major transformations, including the introduction of fresh personnel, a restructuring, and new procedures. The changes have delivered a significant improvement in KN’s bid success rate.

... Corporate Manager (Proposals Department) Chris Reynolds explains

PROPOSAlS dEPARTMENT REvAMPEd

Here are some of the developments that have taken place in the last year:

Experienced proposal managers with strong technical and operational backgrounds in the Power and Water & Wastewater sectors have been hired. these complement the resources the department already had in Construction (oil & Gas) and in facilities Management.

Staff ‘silos’ have been dismantled and have been replaced by a common, single cost centred, multi-disciplined estimation pool, comprising estimators, proposal coordinators, estimation manager, material take-off personnel, document controllers and administrators.

Proposals has begun using CCS CanDY Estimation Software to replace the former Excel-based estimation system. this software has introduced new levels of accuracy, transparency, consistency and efficiency into the bid process.

the department has also launched new Bid-v-no-Bid procedures for EPC, Construction (o&G) and major fM tenders that incorporate detailed input from Business Development, Contracts, operations and Proposals. this more analytical approach to choosing the projects for bidding places a much stronger emphasis on kn’s ability to win ... no more bidding just for the sake of bidding.

the introduction of a project-based e-folder system, with protected access rights, is facilitating greater transparency, consistency, and ease of monitoring, as well as a reduction in the need for hard copies.

the department is now actively participating in the new cross-functional team initiative to enhance interaction and transparency with other departments. in addition, the introduction of ‘sign-offs’ from the operations, engineering, and procurement departments are ensuring a total buy-in to each proposal from the managers of these departments.

the Proposals Department has also formed a comprehensive ‘lessons-learnt’ matrix. this captures all the individual elements of previous lessons-learnt exercises and is contributing substantially to both the build up of skills in tendering and to the ability to maintain the expected profits during execution.

ongoing initiativesthe department also has several ongoing actions designed to improve the efficiency of the tendering process.

it is introducing a more comprehensive approach to the analysis and treatment of risk during the proposals stage. this will not only result in more accurate and robust bids but will also, through the handover of a detailed risk register, assist operations in considering the issues that could become problematic in the execution stage. the department is also reassessing its productivity factors / estimation norms based on lessons learnt from previous projects. this is an important exercise to ensure that the estimated costs, which are based on these productivities, are both achievable on site and are competitive in the current market. the Proposals Department is also realigning its quality management procedures to take account of the new changes.

Significant benefitsone of the positive outcomes of the initiatives the department has taken is the improvement in kn’s bid success rate.

During the first nine months of 2013, kn submitted 96 bids with a total value of US$4.50 billion. these include several budgetary offers, ie non-binding offers that give a client an idea as to how much a particular project is likely to cost, which have yet to be firmed up.

from the 46 results received, kn has so far achieved 13 awards and 6 l1s (ie notifications that kn is the lowest bidder on projects that are yet to be awarded) totalling US$670m in value. these figures represent a direct win rate of 28% (on awards only) and an overall bid success rate of 41% (including the l1s).

in comparison to previous years, this is an improvement in the order of 100%, which is good news indeed and is hopefully the sign of things to come as the Proposals Department seeks to build upon its recent initiatives.


APRIL 2014

ABJ is the only manufacturer in Kuwait, and one of the few in the region, of the evaporators used in desalination plants. Today it is building on a reputation it established nearly a decade ago in this specialised sector.

... K. Viswanathan, Operations Manager (Fabrication Services) explains

ABJ - FABRICATING dESAlINATION PlANTS

By removing salt and other minerals from saline water, desalination provides a source of fresh water that does not depend on rainfall.

there are three main desalination technologies: the multi-stage flash process (MSf), the multi-effect distillation process (MED), and reverse osmosis (ro). MSf is the most popular, producing more than 50% of the desalinated sea-water in the world.

the MSf and MED technologies are based on vacuum distillation, ie the boiling of water at less than

no matter what technology is used, minerals are usually added to the pure water at the end of the process in order to give it a palatable taste.

all the desalination plants in kuwait use MSf technology. initial costs are very high due to the use of expensive materials. for example, any parts in contact with sea-water must be made out of the special high-grade duplex stainless steel or copper nickel needed to withstand corrosion. the heat exchanger tubes must also be made out of copper nickel and/or titanium.

in 2006 and 2007, aBJ fabricated three evaporators on behalf of fisia italimpianti, the leading supplier of desalination plant in the arabian Gulf region. these evaporators are in use in the Shuaiba north desalination plant in kuwait.

atmospheric pressure. the lower the atmospheric pressure, the lower is the boiling point of water, so both these technologies produce steam at a lower temperature than normal. this steam is then condensed as fresh water.

in the MSf process, pre-heated sea-water is evaporated repeatedly (“flashed”) in a series of linked chambers, each of which has a progressively lower pressure, allowing the water to continue boiling (evaporating) as it flows from chamber to chamber.

together, the three evaporators have a total production capacity of 200,000cu m of fresh water a day. Each one is 102 metres long, 30m wide and 9.2m in height and weighs about 2,500 tonnes. as well as making the evaporator units, aBJ also fabricated the interconnecting pipes from nickel-clad copper. in addition, it transported the evaporator blocks to Shuaiba north, where it welded and hydro-tested them on site.

fabricating the evaporators required more than 3,000,000 holes to be drilled in the copper-nickel tube sheet and duplex stainless steel support plates. to do so, aBJ procured three large drilling machines from Canada. to speed up the tube insertion process, the company designed a tube insertion machine that can be used to insert six tubes in one go.

in the MED process sea-water is heated within the chambers by dripping onto a series of tubes filled with steam. the steam that collects is routed through the tubes in the next stage where its heat is used to keep the water boiling (at a lower pressure and temperature).

the ro process is wholly different. ro is based on applying pressure to sea-water so that it passes through a semi-permeable membrane which does not allow the salt and minerals in the water to pass. thus potable drinking water emerges on the low pressure side of the membrane.

impressed by aBJ’s record in the fabrication of evaporators, fisia recently placed another order for use at the takreer refinery in the UaE.

the new evaporator will measure 60m in length, 5m in width and 4.2m in height, and will weight 420 tons.

thus it will be much smaller than the earlier ones. nevertheless, its fabrication entails all the complications of the bigger evaporators, such as the need to drill nearly 1,000,000 holes.

this new evaporator is currently being fabricated in aBJ and is giving kn’s subsidiary some unique additional experience in specialised welding and large-scale drilling.

CorPoratE DEVEloPMEntS

aBJ


APRIL 2014CorPoratE

EQUiPMEnt DiViSion

The Equipment Division is vital for the successful execution of Kharafi National’s projects ... yet few people realise how complex its operations can be.

... an interview with Operations Manager Rafiq Mikhail

EQuIPMENT dIvISION ROuNd-uP

the purpose of kn Equipment Division is to support the company’s projects with reliable, safe vehicles and equipment that are in top-notch condition, along with skilled drivers and operators, at short notice as needed.

“indeed, the Equipment Division is the backbone of kharafi national,” operations Manager rafiq Mikhail told me recently. “fully supporting a project with equipment, drivers and operators depends on many variables ... the equipment itself, safety, weather, traffic, the availability

of fuel and spare parts, the mood of drivers and operators, among a host of other factors. Sometimes all these things do not come together as required and we get the blame,” rafiq said with a laugh. the Equipment Division has not added any major equipment to its fleet so far in 2013, except for a few mobile cranes, six tower cranes and some motor vehicles. Yet at the end of august 2013 the division had a total inventory of just less than 6,000 pieces of equipment. With slightly more than 4,500 of these in

kuwait, the rest of the equipment was overseas in the other countries in which kn operates.

“Due to the nature of kn’s operational requirements,” rafiq said, “we have to be able to mobilise and demobilise our equipment from country to country quickly and efficiently. take the demobilization of the habshan project, for example ... over the past few months we have repatriated vast numbers of equipment and vehicles from the UaE to kuwait.”

Users of the division’s equipment and vehicles find that it is always in first-class condition. this is because all equipment and vehicles are examined every six months by a dedicated inspection team. this ensures that any faults can be rectified before they become too serious. it also enables the quality of repairs to be verified. in addition, these inspections keep track of the individual items in inventory.

“it also means our equipment is long-lasting,” rafiq said. “By analysing the performance of our equipment and then maintaining it in accordance with what we find, we are able to extend its useful life. indeed our Engine & transmission overhaul Programme has proved very successful in lengthening the life of our cranes and other major construction equipment.”

high quality, well-maintained equipment and vehicles are not very useful without skilled operators and drivers who work efficiently and safely at all times. the Equipment Division is well staffed and all its personnel are well trained.

“our ongoing training programmes and safety meetings have reduced accident rates drastically,” says rafiq, “even though our operations teams are very active and are available in round the clock to assist projects.”

kn is renowned for its capabilities in ‘heavy transportation’.

“the Equipment Division has the ability to transport extremely large pieces of plant and equipment,” said rafiq, “up to 550 tons in weight and 60 metres in length. Most of our heavy transporting actives are undertaken at night, as we need special permission from Ministry of the interior in kuwait because roads need to be closed on both sides while these heavy wide roads are passing through.”

for accounting purposes, the division charges projects for the equipment it supplies. “our charge-out rates are much cheaper than market rates,” rafiq told me, “and it is our intention to always keep our hire rates below market prices.”

he went on: “with the release of our latest hire rates, we have become more project oriented. We have take out all additional overheads from our rates and our calculations of equipment overtime have been modified to suite project budgets. fuel rates are now being charged on actual consumption.

in addition, if we have to hire equipment from external sources we still apply our internal rate. the significant changes we have made to our rates give projects greater profit margins.” the Equipment Division has more than 520 saloon cars and Jeeps on lease from third parties. i asked rafiq why the division was renting rather than buying its own vehicles.

“Most of these small vehicles are only used for short periods of time,” rafiq told me. “By renting them we avoid investment and maintenance costs which frees up funds for the purchase of the major pieces of equipment, such as cranes and earth moving machines, kn needs for its operations.”

“of course,” he added, “if a project has a duration of five years and needs lots of light vehicles, we would buy our own vehicles instead of renting them.”


APRIL 2014

A project can be fast-tracked by rescheduling tasks that were originally timed to run one after the other to run at the same time. Though it has its risks, fast-tracking is a very effective way to shorten the duration of a project. This methodology is now being applied with great success by KN Procurement.

... Material Control Manager Dr T Bala explains

PROCuREMENT FOR FAST TRACK PROJECTS

the growing use of professional construction management has been synonymous with the development of new project delivery systems that have resulted in increased expectations from the clients of construction projects. Clients now expect higher quality at lower prices with quicker delivery.

in response to these challenging demands from clients, and in order to mitigate factors such as the high cost of financing and ever increasing construction costs, several new approaches have been developed in the construction industry. all these methods seek to compress the construction time of a project so that

the work involved follows the quickest and most direct route to completion. this is known as executing a project on a fast-track basis.

the amiri Diwan in kuwait recently awarded kn with contracts for the construction of a new administration building in Bayan Palace and the development of al Shaheed Park. Both projects are being executed on a fast-track basis, ie they must be completed within 18 months. the combined cost for materials for the projects is USD150 million.

in any fast-track construction project, the procurement and material management team is under

heavy pressure to make sure that material and services are delivered in the most expeditious and flexible manner. Completing prestigious projects in a shorter time than usual is always a challenge, as it often demands many paradigm shifts. however kn’s procurement team has the experience and resources as well as the well-qualified supplier base needed to rise to the challenge and maintain kn’s reputation with the amiri Diwan.

once these two projects had been awarded, the Procurement Department joined operations and the Quality Control, Engineering, finance and Project Controls

departments in a cross-functional team (Cft) in order to identify problems that may affect the procurement process and to devise appropriate solutions. fast-track projects can run into various types of problems and resolving these requires the cooperation of all Cft members.

the problems anticipated by the Cft included delays in the processing of orders, delivery delays, a lack of information at project sites about the expected time of arrival of materials, delays due to the need to repair and replace materials on site, tight schedules for the inspection of materials, engineering delays, logistical problems due to making deliveries faster, lack of the additional financing required, and difficulties in the necessary by-passing of normal procurement procedures during fast-track procurement.

kn Procurement has benefited immensely from its experiences with these two fast-track projects,

a) the procurement team has learned how to cope with the pressures generated by a shortened project schedule, such as the need for the project to be up and running within the least possible time, as

well as the need to avoid excessive financial costs and to minimise project management costs and other indirect costs.

b) the department has honed its skills in ensuring the necessary cooperation and coordination between operations and the procurement teams.

c) Procurement has developed its ability to identify the potential criticality of supplies by analysing the interrelations between different areas of the project. these interrelations can be seen in our illustration.

these two fast-track projects have enriched the experience of the kn’s procurement teams which are now confident that they have the skills needed to overcome similar challenges at any time in the future.

CorPoratE

ProCUrEMEnt

kharafi national received the “Partnership award” from Joint operations (Jo) in recognition of kn’s contribution towards incident and injury free operations during the year 2013.

Joint operations has ultimate responsibility for all hydrocarbon related activities in the divided neutral zone between kuwait and Saudi arabia, where kn is delivering steam-flood support services.

the award was presented at the 9th annual Contractor’s Environment, health & Safety (EhS) forum which took place at the hilton hotel in kuwait on the 5th february 2014. During his speech at the ceremony, David Barge, the manager of the large-scale steam-flood project for Jo, expressed appreciation for kn’s efforts in delivering the highest standards of EhS.

JoiNT oPERATioNS PARTNERSHiP AWARD


APRIL 2014

THE BIG 5 KuWAIT CorPoratE

inStant aCCESS

for more than 30 years the Big 5 has been introducing buyers in the Middle East to comprehensive ranges of construction products. in recent years it has hosted extremely successful exhibitions in the UaE and Saudi arabia.

this year, the Big 5 held its first exhibition in kuwait, from the 16th to the 18th September, at the international fairgrounds in Mishref.

instant access, a subsidiary of kharafi national, is the leading supplier of construction equipment in kuwait, both on a sale and a rental basis.

“Participating in the first Big 5 in kuwait was an excellent opportunity for us to assist in the next phase of kuwait’s development. Meeting the country’s requirements for both equipment and technology will be vital for its development over the next few decades,” said Chris Brocklehurst operations Manager.

he went on to predict that the construction market will boom in

the next two years. indeed, with infrastructure investment estimated at over US$200 billion, kuwait’s construction sector is going from strength to strength.

Chris Brocklehurst went on to add: “We were at the Big 5 kuwait to serve our clients by providing them with the equipment and service that best enables them to complete their projects on time and within budget.”

By taking a prime location of 900sq metres adjacent to the main entrance to the show, instant access was able to display a wide range of branded, award-winning construction equipment.

the equipment exhibited by instant access included SanY cranes, excavators and concrete pumps; Wacker neusen compactors, vibrators, rollers, rammers and tower lights; CaSE skid steer and wheel loaders, and telescopic handlers; JlG access equipment, scissor lifts and telescopic booms; Clark forklifts; Primax pumps;

Maeda crawler cranes; PM boom equipment; and Eurotower scaffolding.

in addition to supplying its customers with equipment from internationally renowned manufacturers for which it is the agent in kuwait and many countries in the region, instant access supports their operations with advanced operator training, superior servicing facilities and a full range of spare-parts and consumables. the firm also provides the best technical advice in the region.

instant access took the opportunity of the Big 5 kuwait to enhance its relationships with its existing clients and to develop contacts with potential customers in kuwait and iraq. technical teams from its key principals were on hand to provide manufacturer expertise, advice and insight. as a result instant access sold more than US$1,000,000 worth of equipment in three days at the show which further consolidated its presence in the kuwait market place.

Instant Access, the leading supplier of construction sales and rental equipment in Kuwait, was a main exhibitor at The Big 5 Kuwait where it sold more than a million dollars worth of equipment in three days.

CABlE FAulT lOCATION WITH THE BAuR TEST vANEarlier this year Kharafi National began using a Baur test van to locate faults in control and power cables. The van is generating significant savings in time and money for the company and its clients.

... Project Manager Abdul Aziz Khudair explains

although modern cables, whether for power transmission or control systems, are highly developed and very reliable, there are times when cables need to be replaced. Before you can replace a cable, however, you need to be able to find it.

Before kn began using a Baur test van, faults in underground cables were found using cable fault locator instruments that were not accurate. this made it difficult to pin-point exactly where a cable was faulty, which mean that more cable than necessary was replaced, a waste of money as cables are expensive. finding faults also took a lot longer and was more expensive in terms of man-hours.

Baur of Germany is an international leader in testing and measurement

technologies. its cable fault location instruments and systems can be used for finding different kinds of faults ... short circuit faults, cable cuts, resistive faults, intermittent faults, and sheath faults among other faults.

there are two steps in cable fault location ... pre-location ... and pin-pointing. With pre-location the distance to a fault is determined, while pin-pointing determines the exact location of a fault.

the method used to locate faults will vary depending on the type of cable or fault. Baur’s pulse reflection measuring instrument, for example, is used to locate faults in single and three phase cable systems. Surge voltage generators are used to pre-locate and pin-point high and low resistance faults in power cables. Baur has instruments to trace a cable and to show how deep it is buried. its cable identification system can be used to select single and multi-core cables from a cable bundle.

these instruments can be packaged into a customised test van. Baur’s standard system combines capabilities for pre-locating and pin-pointing cable faults, cable testing and diagnosis. the actual instruments can be varied depending on needs.

kn is now using a Baur test van, which was factory-fitted by Baur with the equipment required in kuwait to

find out whether a cable is faulty, trace the route of the cable, and pin-point the fault. as can be seen from the photo, the interior of the van has been ergonomically designed to ensure ease of operation.

the Baur cable test van is being used on project 001072800 which involves laying medium voltage cables on behalf of the Ministry of Electricity & Water in kuwait. kn’s test van can also be used to locate faults in 11kV power cables. the system has delivered major successes in locating cable faults.

the testing equipment is easy to operate, once the basic principles and processes involved in cable fault location and use of the instruments are understood, and the operator has had a bit of practice.

With the Baur test van, kn is now able to pin-point the location of faults in cables much faster and to fix them without replacing an entire length of cable ... a capability much appreciated by clients.

CorPoratE DEVEloPMEntS

aBJ


APRIL 2014

Kharafi National’s summer training programme for engineering undergraduates provides them with valuable work experience that will help them in their future careers.

... by L&D Unit Head Tamer Hamed Salem & L&D Assistant Superintendent Maniyan Shajimon

STudENTS SuMMER TRAINING AT KNCorPoratE

l&D

in order to qualify for kn’s summer training programme, engineering students must have a grade point average of at least 3.0 or average marks of more than 70%, fluency in written and spoken English, and must be entering their final year at the end of the summer. in addition, they must be studying engineering disciplines relevant to kn’s current projects.

this year kn hosted 28 trainees ... 25 in kuwait, one in the UaE and two in lebanon. the programme ran for six weeks from the 29th of June to the 5th of august 2013, shorter than previous years in order to avoid clashing with the Eid al-fitr holidays.

kn provided the students with round-trip economy class air tickets, visit visas, accommodation, transportation, monthly allowances and medical insurance.

Upon arrival, the students had an orientation session conducted by the learning & Performance Management Unit (l&PM), after which they were conducted on familiarisation tours of kn facilities and departments. they then dispersed to the projects to which they had been assigned according to their engineering disciplines.

Each project had a mentor to assist and guide students during

their training. the l&PM Unit also conducted weekly reviews to check the progress of students and resolve any problems.

as is his yearly practice, MD Samer Younis met the summer trainees, along with the young engineers on kn’s graduate development course, in a combined four-hour interactive meeting on the 17th July 2013, where he obtained feedback and suggestions from the participants. after a lively question and answer session, the trainees and graduate engineers left with positive insights into kn and a high level of motivation and energy about their future.

the students had to submit a completed workbook to l&PM along with a report on their learning experiences. they also had to complete a questionnaire that tested their overall understanding kn and its various business lines.

at a meeting on their final day, each student delivered a presentation on their training experiences. they took the opportunity to thank kn for enabling them to experience a “professional working environment” and to enjoy and learn from “practical experience at sites”.

as well as supporting students with on-the-job experience and knowledge relevant to their future careers, the summer training programme provides kn with an opportunity to identify any talented students who, after graduation, would be suitable for the company’s three-year graduate engineers’ development program.

KHARAFI NATIONAl PRESENTEd A PAPER AT THE GPCAthe Gulf Petrochemicals & Chemicals association (GPCa) organised a forum at the rotana hotel in Dubai on the 24th and 25th of September 2013, at which kharafi national presented a paper on ‘responsible Care practices and management systems relating to environmental, health, safety and security issues’.

responsible Care is the chemical industry’s comprehensive environment, health, safety and security performance indicator, which has been adopted globally. the workshop in Dubai concentrated on: (a) how the new management system is becoming mandatory for GPCa Members, and (b) how it will be used as the principle requirement in qualifying for tenders in the future.

the GPCa’s responsible Care programme is based on the experiences of international associations in the petrochemical and chemical industries. to address global issues in a concerted manner, the GPCa has entered into alliances with the american Chemistry Council, the European Chemistry Council, and the Canadian Chemical Producers association.

all petrochemical and chemical companies in kuwait, the kingdom of Saudi arabia, Qatar, oman, Bahrain and the United arab Emirates are members of the GPCa, and the workshop was attended by more than 250 CEos, presidents and managers from major Gulf companies.

kn’s presentation was well received and the company has been asked to sit on the GPCa’s technical board.

CorPoratE

EVEntS

SAfETy PAySas everyone who works in kharafi national knows, safety at work is a fundamental part of corporate culture. the success of kn’s safety policies and procedures is evident in the latest figures for man-hours worked on various projects without a lost-time incident.

Habshan 5 Project for GASCO in Abu dhabi 70 million man-hours

Installation of lSFO, FG & gas-oil pipelines for KOC / Hyundai in Kuwait 22 million man-hours

Construction of new booster station in West Kuwait 14 million man-hours

Pipeline Works (Part-B) for KOC / Petrofac in Kuwait 12 million man-hours

Fabrication of laggan Tormore pipe rack module for TOTAl in Kuwait 5.6 million man-hours

Infrastructure works for AdNEC in Abu dhabi 5.5 million man-hours

Facility Management of Customs for GCS in Kuwait 5.2 million man-hours

Construction of Saadiyat Island sewage treatment plant in the uAE 5.0 million man-hours

Maintenance of production facilities for KOC in East Kuwait 3.0 million man-hours

O&M of Sulaibiya wastewater treatment plant for udC in Kuwait 2.4 million man-hours

Shut-down of Borouge Plant in Ruwais in Abu dhabi 1.3 million man-hours

34 kharafi national

APRIL 2014

KN SPONSORS KuWAIT WATER TECH CONFERENCE & ExHIBITION 2013kharafi national was the main sponsor of the kuwait Watertech Conference & Exhibition which was held on the 4th and 5th of november 2013 in the hilton kuwait resort.

in the GCC region natural water resources are minimal while the rate at which water is consumed is one of the highest in the world. Demand for water is mainly met by desalination plants and wastewater treatment plants.

the purpose of the conference was to explore modern technologies for making optimal use of the limited water resources available in the region, to provide a platform for the exchange of the most advanced technologies in the desalination and water reuse industries, and to ensure that demands for water and challenges to the local ecosystems are met with technologies that are appropriate for arid and semi-arid regions.

By bringing together key industry experts, the kuwait Watertech Conference gave panellists and their audience the opportunity to discuss current challenges and innovative solutions to water industry issues in the Middle East. Case studies on best practices and recent developments in the fields of water leakage, desalination and wastewater treatment were highlighted at the conference.

CorPoratE

EVEntS

KN SPONSORS THE 9TH ANNuAl KuWAIT PROJECTS CONFERENCE

kharafi national was the gold sponsor of the 9th annual kuwait Projects conference organised by MEED Events at the regency hotel, kuwait City, in november 2013.

the conference opened with a pre-conference forum on the 24th and the main conference took place on the following two days. Post-conference workshops were held on the 27th november 2013.

the main objective of the conference was to discuss kuwait’s 5-year development plans for its oil and gas, electricity, water, transport, housing and basic infrastructure sectors. the event brought together the key government and private sector entities involved in turning that US$250 billion vision into reality.

all public-private-partnership (PPP) projects in kuwait were discussed. the conference addressed the latest developments and business opportunities associated with the State’s mega projects as well as how kuwait can successfully deliver its ambitious capital expenditure plans by the inward transfer of global best practices.

the 9th annual kuwait Projects conference was supported by kPC, the Ministry of Public Works and the Partnerships technical Bureau, in coordination with the Ministry of Electricity and Water, kuwait Municipality, kia, the Ministry of health, the DGCa among other government entities.

CorPoratE

EVEntS

APRIL 2014

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