• 8 weeks from first inspection to race weekend
• First Formula 1 race at Sepang since 2017
• 248 contractors and more than 600 workers across all facilities disciplines
• 55 generators in a fully coordinated temporary power system
• Around-the-clock working, with day and night shifts throughout
• Every designated area handed over on time, within the original budget

When the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2026 was relocated to Sepang International Circuit (SIC) in Malaysia for 2-4 October, it created one of the most demanding facilities challenges our team has faced. Sepang is a world-class venue, but it had not hosted Formula 1 since 2017. In that time, the sport’s operational requirements have moved on considerably.

A project of this kind would normally be planned over many months. We had eight weeks, in another country, at a venue we did not operate.

Bahrain International Circuit’s (BIC) Facilities Management team was asked to assess the venue, define the works and lead their delivery in partnership with SIC’s facilities team. It was an opportunity to apply two decades of Formula 1 experience in Bahrain to a very different environment, and to show what close regional collaboration can achieve.

Our first step was a comprehensive inspection of the entire venue. We covered every critical race operations area: track, team garages and chalets, the plant building, paddock, pit building, Royal Lounges and supporting infrastructure. We also covered the areas that shape the fan and guest experience, including grandstands, the fan zone and corporate lounges.

The assessment revealed substantial maintenance and refurbishment needs, as well as upgrades required to meet current Formula 1 standards. Rather than treating this as one large project, we broke it into a prioritised programme driven by three factors: operational risk, quality and the date each area had to be handed over. That discipline shaped every decision that followed.

The scope was wide: mechanical systems, electrical and specialist systems, civil repairs, architectural refurbishment and deep cleaning. Electrical reliability was the most critical element, requiring both the restoration of existing infrastructure and a dependable temporary power and backup system for race operations.

Working day and night, the combined BIC and SIC team delivered the full programme and handed over every designated area on schedule.

Speed depended on choosing contractors who could start immediately. We relied primarily on Malaysian firms, drawing on SIC’s established relationships with companies that already knew the circuit, its infrastructure and its access requirements. That local knowledge removed weeks of familiarisation from the programme.

Every contractor was assessed. We reviewed the scope with them, examined their technical approach and checked their track record on similar work. Selection was based on capability, available resources and a credible ability to deliver to Formula 1 standard within the deadline.

In total, 248 contractors were engaged across all disciplines, with more than 600 workers distributed among them according to the size and nature of each package.

The real challenge was turning this into one team rather than hundreds of separate packages. BIC Facilities Management led the overall programme jointly with SIC Facilities, and each discipline team took ownership of its own works. The programme was built backwards from fixed handover dates and tracked every day. Daily BIC-SIC coordination meetings, together with direct supervision on both day and night shifts, meant clashes, access issues and quality concerns were resolved within hours rather than days.

Above all, the result reflected genuine partnership. The BIC and SIC teams shared priorities, supported each other’s people and worked to a single goal: a venue ready to race.

Conventional tendering was not an option within eight weeks, so we designed a faster process without giving up control.

Procurement was run jointly. BIC’s procurement team carried out rapid market research to identify capable contractors, while SIC brought its supplier network and knowledge of the Malaysian market. Combining the two shortened sourcing and appointments dramatically.

We tailored the route to each package. Specialist and complex works were awarded directly to proven contractors. Where time allowed, we obtained competing quotations and assessed them on technical capability, price and ability to meet the programme. Every price was benchmarked against market rates using SIC’s local insight and BIC’s facilities expertise. Fixed-price contracts were used where the scope was well defined, and measured quantities where it was less certain.

Price alone was never the deciding factor. The best offer was the one that came with the resources, expertise and commitment to finish on time and to standard.

The controls that mattered most were not complex contract clauses. They were firm deadlines, close supervision on site and daily project management that exposed problems early enough to fix them.

A key early decision was to source as much as possible within Malaysia. This protected the programme from international shipping risk at a time when global supply chains remain unpredictable. Selected critical components were brought from Bahrain where we needed complete confidence in their quality.

Temporary power was the most demanding requirement. We needed a supplier able to provide a large generator fleet and support the venue’s full electrical demand throughout the event. In the end, 55 generators were deployed across the circuit.

This was a systems challenge, not just a procurement exercise. The generators had to operate as one coordinated network, with loads, distribution and backup designed together. BIC’s electrical team worked hand in hand with SIC and trusted suppliers to deliver an arrangement that performed reliably throughout race weekend. The compressed timeline did create price fluctuations and premiums on some items. Through coordinated procurement and tight cost control, these were absorbed and the project remained within its original budget.

Local sourcing was also our main logistics strategy. By keeping supply chains short, we reduced exposure to freight delays and rising fuel costs. Items needed from Bahrain were identified during initial planning and scheduled precisely against the works programme.

Transport and fuel costs were carried within contractor budgets, and generator fuel was supplied locally. We did not separately quantify logistics as a share of total cost, so we would not attribute a specific figure to fuel prices.

On site, logistics were as important as supply. Construction, maintenance, installation and event set-up were all taking place at the same time. Working closely with the security team, we coordinated access so that every delivery reached the right area at the right point in the sequence.

The result: no major delivery delays across the entire programme.

The accelerated programme came at a price. By our estimate, the facilities works cost approximately 20% more than equivalent work would under a conventional schedule. Five factors drove this premium:

• Market inflation: rising prices for materials, equipment and services in the local market.
• Short-notice premiums: contractors and suppliers priced in the cost of mobilising immediately and reprioritising their existing commitments.
• Round-the-clock working: overnight shifts and continuous activity carry higher labour rates and lower output per hour.
• Larger simultaneous workforces: more trades on site at the same time required additional supervision and coordination.
• Reduced competition: the timeline allowed fewer competing quotations, and some specialist packages had to be awarded directly.

Coordinated procurement and tight cost control kept these pressures within budget, but the premium is a clear measure of what an emergency timeline costs.

In my professional view, consistent preventive maintenance in earlier years would have reduced the corrective work required. However, it is important to distinguish maintenance shortfalls from upgrades and event-specific requirements. Preparing any complex circuit for current Formula 1 operations requires investment, however well it has been maintained.

The wider lesson is clear: deferred work does not disappear. It concentrates cost, risk and resource demand into a short and expensive window. Planned maintenance and renewal allow owners to spread investment, procure with flexibility and avoid emergency interventions altogether.

Every major project faces challenges. What set Sepang apart was the number that had to be overcome at the same time: in a compressed timeframe, at an unfamiliar venue and far from our home base, with a fixed race date that could not move. Success did not come from avoiding these challenges, but from identifying them early, confronting them decisively and resolving them as one team. The eight principal challenges, and the measures that overcame each one, are set out below.

1. An extremely compressed timeline

Challenge: Eight weeks for work that would normally take months.

Mitigation: The programme was prioritised by operational risk and handover dates, with work continuing day and night.

2. Working at a venue we did not operate

Challenge: Unfamiliar systems, infrastructure and site conditions, at a circuit that had not hosted Formula 1 since 2017.

Mitigation: A comprehensive inspection before works began, supported by SIC’s knowledge of its own facilities.

3. Delivering in another country

Challenge: Working away from BIC’s home base, suppliers and established ways of working.

Mitigation: Close partnership with SIC, drawing on its local network of contractors and suppliers.

4. Coordinating at scale

Challenge: 248 contractors and more than 600 workers, many working in the same areas at the same time.

Mitigation: A single joint BIC-SIC structure, daily coordination meetings, clear discipline ownership, and supervision on day and night shifts.

5. Maintaining quality at speed

Challenge: Delivering to Formula 1 standard without the time normally available for checks.

Mitigation: Contractors assessed before appointment, direct supervision, and daily progress and quality monitoring.

6. Reliable temporary power

Challenge: Designing and running a 55-generator network for critical race operations.

Mitigation: BIC’s electrical team worked with SIC and trusted suppliers to design load, distribution and backup as one system.

7. Price volatility and fast procurement

Challenge: Market inflation and short-notice pricing, with no time for conventional tendering.

Mitigation: Joint procurement, benchmarking against market rates, and contract types matched to each package.

8. Site logistics and access

Challenge: Construction, maintenance and event set-up all taking place at the same time.

Mitigation: Deliveries coordinated with the security team and sequenced to match the works.

For governments and developers building assets today, our experience points to five priorities.

Plan for the whole life of the asset from day one. Every major facility needs a funded preventive maintenance programme, accurate asset records, regular condition assessments and clear ownership of critical systems. Those assessments should directly inform annual budgets and long-term replacement plans.

Assess fitness for purpose, not just condition. An asset can still function yet lack the capacity, reliability or configuration that a larger or more demanding event requires. Readiness reviews must test facilities against how they will actually be used.

Build relationships before you need them. SIC’s local network was one of the greatest strengths of this project. Owners should know in advance which contractors have the right expertise, what they can mobilise and where critical equipment can be sourced.

Get the fundamentals right. A clear scope, defined responsibilities and a programme built around operational handover dates are essential. Dependencies, procurement, access, testing and handover should be addressed early, with progress, quality, cost and risk reviewed together so decisions are made in time.

Collaborate. BIC brought Formula 1 facilities and operational expertise; SIC brought local knowledge, established relationships and a committed team. Neither could have achieved this alone in eight weeks.

Our role did not end when the last area was handed over. Throughout race week, the facilities team stayed on site and resolved or supported 175 technical and facility issues. Preparation only succeeds if it carries through into live operational support.

For Bahrain, this project was proof that the expertise built through two decades of hosting major international events can be applied anywhere. Delivering a Formula 1-ready venue in eight weeks, in another country, on time and within budget, is an achievement shared by every member of the BIC and SIC teams and their contractors. It is also a clear demonstration of what the region’s event and facilities professionals can deliver together.

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