Dubai, UAE, 26 August 2018: There is room for improvement in the market with regard to better appreciation for products that provide opex savings, despite possibly higher initial cost. Paul Groves, Business Development Manager, Khansaheb Industries, stressed that moving the dial on the issue requires an ongoing education process. Groves said this is because of different parties in the value chain viewing the issue differently. He said: “The owners and occupiers love the opex savings over the lifetime of the building. Whereas the MEP contractors have little interest in this benefit. We are working with many developers and they are beginning to recognise the value enhancement of having a future-proof building with optimal IEQ, but there is a lot more to be done.”

Gleaning from his experience promoting the benefits of Spiralite, Groves said the best way to secure all the whole-of-life benefits is to encourage the building and MEP designers to adopt a holistic and integrated design process. He said: “We are working hard to achieve this, with very positive results. All the above requires education and training, and that is a large part of our business development initiatives. We are willing to play the long game as the rewards to all parties involved in the construction and development process are substantial, but sometimes they just don’t realise it.”

Groves stressed that the future of the ductworks lies in embracing innovation and taking an active stance on environmental considerations to ensure reductions in carbon emissions. “Additionally, systems should be robust enough to ensure that the least amount of resources is utilised,” he said. “A potential strategy in achieving this is through the use of modular construction which results in better quality, speed and uniformity and significantly lower waste.”

Groves added that with the United Arab Emirates setting clear objectives for a future sustainable economy, reducing energy demand and increasing efficiency is more vital than ever. “In a region with high temperatures, buildings account for up to 80% of the United Arab Emirate’s energy consumption, dominated primarily by HVAC systems,” he said. “Ductwork plays an integral role in this and can account for a significant portion of the energy consumption and, therefore, costs. Thus, it is important to ensure that the ductwork system is not only appropriately designed and selected but also installed properly.” Only then, he said, can meaningful, sustainable and long-term savings be achieved.

Hannah Jo Uy is Assistant Editor at Climate Control Middle East magazine. She may be contacted at hannah@cpi-industry.com