The Big 5: Driving Future Construction Strategies

Celebrating its 40thanniversary this year, Middle East’s leading event for the construction industry has much in store to support construction companies through a shifting economic landscape, boost business, launch the latest building solutions, educate industry professionals, and foster best practices championing technological innovation.

Matt Denton, President at dmg events comments: “This 40-year milestone is a great testament to how our teams have effectively worked towards keeping the show fresh and relevant for our stakeholders and attendees. Innovation and adaptability have always been at the core of our strategy as we transform each edition to keep up with the changing business environment and industry needs.”

Seven events under one roof and a new product sector

For the first time, The Big 5 2019 will cover the full construction cycle. This year, in fact, the exhibition will run together with six co-located events allowing industry professionals to source thousands of products for every stage of the construction projects, from inception to completion. The Big 5 Heavy, Middle East Concrete, HVAC R Expo, Middle East Stone, The Big 5 Solar, and the Urban Design & Landscape Expo will all run alongside The Big 5 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, from 25 to 28 November.

The show will also expand its product sectors’ offeringwith the introduction of the brand new Offsite & Modular Construction sector. “With rapid and efficient construction delivery being in high demand, buyers require state-of-the-art offsite and modular construction solutions for residential, educational, healthcare as well as commercial applications,” Josine Heijmans, Portfolio Director at dmg events, explains.

Here, industry leaders like BK Gulf will be presenting their modular solutionsof pre-engineered mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) units for the first time ever. A dedicated educational agenda, the Offsite & Modular Talks, will simultaneously shed light on advances in offsite and modular construction, analysing new challenges and opportunities for prefab in the region.

The largest research in the construction sector to be launched at The Big 5 CEO Roundtable

Further, in an effort to drive informed decision making, The Big 5 will present the “Voice of the Construction Industry”, the largest research conducted in the construction sector. Based on the responses of nearly 6,000 industry stakeholders from 136 countries, it will unveil current and upcoming trends, opportunities, and challenges faced by construction players. The research will also offer essential insights on which markets are most promising and why, and how industry professionals are preparing to harness business opportunities.

Ms. Heijmans states: “We are extremely proud and excited to be releasing this unprecedented report at The Big 5 2019. We expect the ‘Voice of the Construction Industry’ to massively support the decision-making of construction industry players for the next three years in a shifting economic landscape, providing exclusive intelligence that will help generate revenues, save money, and shape future strategies.”

The key findings of the report will be announced at The Big 5’s CEO Roundtable, a new forum gathering top developers, contractors, consultants, and government entities in the UAE. The initiative, taking place a day before the official opening of the exhibition, will facilitate communication across the industry providing a unique opportunity for key construction stakeholders to meet and discuss current challenges, trends, and strategies in a closed door setup.

Innovation and technologies in the spotlight

In the backdrop of last year’s success, The Big 5 will bring back its popular features dedicated to promoting innovation and technology in the construction sector. The event will once again host some of the world’s most promising industry start-ups at its “Start-up City”, and will present the latest building solutions at the dedicated “Live Innovation Zone”.

The second edition of the FutureTech Construction Summit will run on November 25, with a brand new agenda focused on five trending topics: Artificial Intelligence, Digital Asset Management and Digital Twins, Smart Home, Smart Buildings and IoT, BIM, and 3D printing, VR, AR and drones.

The RTA Innovation in BIM Summit at The Big 5 Heavy will also return on November 26. The summit will explore the impact of BIM on the present and future of the infrastructure industry with updates on AR, 3D printing, industrialized construction and data analytics.

Finally, a wealth of solutions relating to 3D Printing, Drones and Surveillance, Site Mapping, Robotics, Thermal Imaging, and Virtual Reality Trainings among others will be showcased in a new dedicated area at The Big 5 Heavy this year.

Record free and certified educational offering

Beyond bringing to Dubai over 20,000 innovative products, the seven co-located events will also provide more than 220 complimentary high-level summits, practical seminars, and CPD-certified workshops to foster collaboration, support best practices, and provide effective solutions to today’s industry challenges.

At The Big 5, visitors will be able to attend the FutureTech Construction Summit and the Women in Construction Forum & Awards, along with the Architecture & Design Talks, the BIM Talks, the Technology Talks, the Project Management Talks, and the Offsite & Modular Construction Talks.

This year, The Big 5 Heavy and Middle East Concrete will offer an extended education agenda including the ACI Concrete Summit, the RTA Innovation in BIM Summit, the Geospatial Leaders Conference, the Geotechnical and Engineering Summit, the ACI Seminar Series, and the Geotechnical and Engineering Workshops.

The HVAC R Pioneers’ Summit will run alongside the HVAC R Talks at the HVAC R Expo, while the Solar Talks will once again take place at The Big 5 Solar focusing on solar energy in rental property, the future of smart grid technologies, and the role of SME’s in driving a solar powered future.

Moreover, Middle East Stone will offer four days of Stone Design Seminars, and the Urban Design & Landscape Expo will launch the new Urban Design Talks, in addition to the high level Urban Design & Landscape Summit that is returning this year.

The Big 5 is organised by dmg events and runs from 25 to 28 November at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 11:00 to 19:00 daily. The event is free to attend to all pre-registered visitors.

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