With an estimated $163.5 billion worth of construction projects currently in concept stage in Saudi Arabia in the coming year, the four-day “Big 5 Saudi 2012” will open Saturday to provide unrivalled opportunities for the regional and international industry to access these projects in concept stage. “The response we have received to this year's event, in advance of it officially opening its doors, has been exceptional and we look forward to a very exciting event at the Jeddah Centre for Forums and Events,” Andy White, event director for The Big 5 Saudi, said. “Our knowledge partner, Ventures Middle East, has estimated there are $163.5 billion worth of projects currently in the concept stage in Saudi, meaning there is phenomenal opportunity for exhibitors to do real business during the event and for buyers to source thousands of new and innovative products.” The Big 5 Saudi 2012 will host over 500 companies from 36 countries. The event will include a brand new dedicated Concrete Zone, which will provide a platform for exhibitors to position their products and services in a tailored environment. This ensures visitors have easy access to international products, trends and innovations all in one place. In addition to the exhibition, which has doubled in size this year to accommodate demand, there will be two workshops taking place alongside. The LEED workshop will be facilitated by Mario Seneviratne, LEED fellow, USGBC LEED Faculty, and director of Green Technologies FZCO. The second workshop will focus on Concrete Repair, ensuring participants are up to date with concrete repair and corrosion knowledge in line with the most recent European Standards and Concrete Society Technical Reports. It will also provide the opportunity to improve their ability to effectively mitigate the risk of concrete damage to improve life-cycle costs and maintain structural integrity.
