Can you tell something about your current work?
I have been working at RAK Precast in UAE for 11 years now as a technical and commercial manager.
What are your main tasks as the Technical & Commercial Manager of RAK Precast?
As a Technical Manager, I participate in developing technical proposals to our customers, and I try to find the most efficient precast solutions suitable for their needs. As a Commercial Manager, I am in charge of promoting our products to both existing and new customers, and finding new markets for our products. I am also responsible for all the events, seminars and presentation material of RAK Precast.
As the Head of Research and Development, I encourage the department to utilize existing technologies to a higher extent with creative and innovative thinking, and guide the team to research new products and implement them in the local market.
How do you know Peikko?
I first got to know Peikko in 2006. At the time, I was working with a project with hollow core slabs with big openings. As I started to look for a suitable solution, I bumped into a Finnish company called Peikko. Later on, Peikko started its activities in the Middle East, and since then RAK Precast has used several of Peikko’s solutions in various projects. I have even visited Peikko’s head office and factory in Lahti, Finland and seen their work on construction sites in Finland.
Can you name some important projects made in collaboration with Peikko?
Currently RAK Precast is building a large pipe rack in the Sultanate of Oman with Peikko’s connection items. I am satisfied with the fact that in many cases we have been able to convince the customer to change their original design and to use Peikko’s solutions and connection items instead.
How do you find Peikko’s products?
Personally, I am proud of Peikko and its solutions! I try to encourage the use of Peikko’s promising solutions frequently. At the end, precast is all about good connections.
What main tendencies do you see in the future of the construction sector?
Construction is becoming faster and smarter. In the future, there will be more control over the industry in the Middle East, and the market will seek new solutions for construction. The rigid shell of the customary construction system is cracking under the pressure of new technologies and construction methods. This leaves the people in the industry with two choices; either to follow and pursue the new way, or to fall behind. However, it’s not a grim future as more companies, entities, and authorities are coming together and making the change.
Precast is here to stay, and its role is becoming more important in the construction industry in the Middle East. Even if it is sometimes difficult to break conservative mind-sets, precast is the future.
