Ibrahim Mahlab, The Arab Contractors (Osman Ahmed Osman & Company)

Ibrahim Mahlab is chairman of the board and chief executive officer of The Arab Contractors. He is also chairman of The Arab Contractors Investments Company and the Arab Contractors Employees Insurance Fund. Since joining the firm in 1972, civil engineer Mahlab has worked on various construction projects including bridges, tunnels, sports buildings, monument restoration and power plants. The company’s works include the design and construction of the Finance & Customs Ministry complex, the Supreme Constitutional Court and Foreign Affairs Ministry buildings in Eqypt, the Al-Garf Hotel in Abu Dhabi and Dhahran Airport in Saudi Arabia. It was also part of the team that built the iconic Bibliotheca Alexandrina. Mahlab is a member of the International Association for Bridges & Structural Engineers and sits on several Egyptian design code committees.

Contact mahlab@arabcont.com

Osama Bishai, Orascom Construction Industries

Osama Bishai has been a member of the board of directors of Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) since its incorporation in 1998. He is also managing director of the Construction Group. Bishai joined OCI in 1985 in the technical department. He was later part of the team that established the construction business within its US affiliate Contrack International. Bishai played a key role in launching subsidiaries for the company, including OCI Algeria, OCI Nigeria, National Steel Fabrication and National Pipe
Company. He also led the development of OCI’s fertiliser investments in Egypt and Algeria and is involved in Cairo’s first liquefied natural gas programme, through strategic alliances with the US’ KBR, France’s Bouygues and Spain’s Technigas. The Construction Group is involved in more than 100 projects in more than 20 countries, across a range of sectors.

Contact osama.bishai@orascomci.com

Mamdouh Hamza, Hamza Associates

Mamdouh Hamza has worked in the field of geotechnical engineering and foundation design since 1975. He founded Hamza Associates in 1979 and is the company’s chairman. Since 1991, he has been a professor of soil mechanics and foundation engineering at Suez Canal University and has published 59 project-related review papers. Hamza has also been involved in design and construction supervision for some of the most prestigious and complex projects in Egypt, including the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and Mubarak New Valley Pumping Station at Toshka. Overseas, he has worked on the Mujib Dam in Jordan and more than 40 tunnel and road projects. His ports and maritime design activities include the Chevron gravity oil platform in the North Sea, Kuwait naval base, Mina Qaboos harbour in Oman, Khor el-Zubir harbour in Iraq and Port Said container terminal.

Contact consult@hamza.org

Yehia Zaki, Dar al-Handasah Consultants (Shair & Partners)

Yehia Zaki is director of operations in Egypt and Sudan for Dar al-Handasah Consultants (Shair & Partners) and managing director of Dar al-Handasah Consultants ( Egypt ). Senior architect Zaki has been involved in projects encompassing the planning, design and construction of residential, commercial and industrial developments, mostly in Egypt. Duties included project management, contract negotiations and monitoring consultants across tourism, technical, commercial, residential and town planning sectors. Awarded contracts include project management and infrastructure for Madenaty residential development; the initial study for Marsa Alam resort; contracts on Hurghada International Airport; the coastal boulevard in Alexandria; Ain al-Sokhna tourist development; General Hospital at Sheikh Zayed City; and a study of investment in roads in Egypt.

Contact Yehia.Zaki@dargroup.com

Hussein Abbas, Ehaf Consulting Engineers

biography Hussein Abbas is chairman and founder of Ehaf Consulting Engineers. He is also former dean of engineering and professor of metallic structures and bridges at Cairo’s Al-Azhar University. In 1993, Abbas received the Egyptian Academy of Science prize for research in the field of engineering science and technological applications. Two years later, he was awarded the first-class bow of excellence by President Hosni Mubarak for outstanding achievements in science. Abbas is working on projects including hotel developments, hospital facilities, four cities for a UAE developer, 35 kilometres of line 3 of the Cairo metro in partnership with France’s Systra, thousands of square metres of retail, office and residential space, and several large development projects funded by aid organisations. Ehaf employs more than 500 engineers and staff in offices in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Qatar, Sudan and Egypt.

Contact ehafconsulting@link.net

Kamal Allam, Hassan Allam Sons

Hassan Allam Sons was established in Cairo in 1976 by the late Hassan Allam, his son Kamal Allam and other family members. Kamal Allam has led the family business since inception, successfully launching branch offices in Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Libya. It is now one of the largest general contracting firms in the region. Notable work includes the construction of the Nubariya and Cairo North combined cycle power plants in a joint venture with Athens-based Consolidated Contractors International Company (CCC); the construction of Egypt’s first liquefied natural gas programme tanks at Idku as a subcontractor to France’s Vinci Grand Projects; and the Mubarak TV studios complex in Media Production City. Allam is also a member of the American Chamber of Commerce, the British Egyptian Business Association, a board member of the Egyptian Contractors syndicate, and chairman of a holding company family business.

Contact msdallam@allamsons.com