Rauf Ali Al Mannai, MRICS, BSc. (CEng), BSc. (AEng), DipSurv, MCIOB, MAPM, ACIArb, FBEng, MIBE Bleng, Arbitrator (GCC CAC) and Principal of M/s Rauf Al Mannai, Chartered Quantity Surveyors and Chartered Building Consultancy in Manama, Bahrain.
What do you do?
Currently I am the Principal of M/s Rauf Al Mannai, Chartered Quantity Surveyors and Chartered Building Consultancy.
Describe a typical working day?
Meeting with potential clients, setting up office work procedures and day to day management of the office.
What is the most interesting part of your work?
It is the day to day challenge of the construction market and satisfying my clients by delivering the best possible professional services.
What is the most demanding aspect of your work?
Is to promote the QS services and to convince clients of their importance to their projects. I found it more demanding to emphasize the difference between the role of the Architect in any construction project and the role of the QS especially when the role of the later is not well understood by most clients.
What made you decide to pursue a career in property?
It is the challenge and the wide spectrum it has. It is widely believed that getting an architect or a team of consultants to provide ‘packaged’ project advice is all it takes to get a project going.
* prepare a design (against a brief)
* prepare tender documents
* recommend contractors for the project
Once the recommendation has been made, the owner gets the contractors and sub-contractors on board and the works are commenced. The architects and engineers in turn administer the contract and certify the works for payments. It is assumed that this approach is adequate to control costs and minimize risks, particularly final construction costs.
However, it does not factor in for the problem that plagues construction projects of all types ambiguity, whether in design, documentation, costing, tendering, or other areas. This leads to a high volume of claims and counter-claims from all parties as they point to the various ambiguities which emerge once the works have begun and a considerable sum of money has been sunk in. This has two outcomes a legitimate claim from the contractor and or insolvency of contractor leading to a halted or delayed project. Owners face a terrible realisation they can neither go backward to rectify the mistakes nor can they move ahead without losing vast amounts of time and money. Thus, involving professional and qualified QS from the inception of the project to the completion is very essential.
How did you get to this point in your career?
It is due to the fact the there are very few local Chartered QS offices operating in this region and the large number of large construction project that are currently have commenced in this region.
What is your greatest achievement?
To start such internationally recognized QS firm.
What project has given you the greatest satisfaction?
Projects that are on fast-track, demanding and having contractual complications.
One particular project was carrying out the modification works of a twenty-five years old hospital for five of its exiting and operational departments including Out Patient, Emergency, Maternity, Pharmacy and the Library.
The project required a great deal of coordination between the project team, contractors, suppliers and the hospital staff. The project was completed with too many alterations and modifications to the original scope of work due to redundancy of most existing services which had to be replaced. This had resulted with too many variations, delays and disruptions of works claims of which were settled at the end of the project.
What are your plans and ambitions for the future?
To be the leading Chartered QS office in the Middle East. Taking full advantage of our specialized skills and our mature service values, we are geared to help our clients derive maximum value from their projects. Acting as the financial and development consultant to the construction and property development industries, we advise clients on the optimal use of funds as well as strategies to maximize human and physical resources. Our approach is to help clients attain their project vision. We are single-minded in generating value at every stage and ensuring that our customers’ built assets work for them in the most cost-effective way.
The quality of our service relies upon our intimate understanding and knowledge of the business and technical environment in which our clients operate, and the drivers that shape and influence their businesses.
Although we provide the most-cutting edge services to the construction industry, we take pride in the fact that our foundations are rooted in old-fashioned values of honesty, integrity, and trust.
What is your favourite building?
It is the new Arcapita Bank headquarters in Bahrain. About to become the longest building in Bahrain, this modern design building is situated in the heart of the business centre of Bahrain’s capital, Manama which will be adjacent to the new 18 floors Four Season Hotel tower and in front of the currently under constriction World Trade Centre Towers and Bahrain Financial Harbour project.