Dec 5 2007
Construction projects in Dubai have been breaking records for years. New buildings are springing up against the backdrop of countless cranes. This rapid expansion of the infrastructure has fuelled an increased demand for shopping facilities. In the center of the Burj Dubai complex, not far from the world's tallest building, one of the largest shopping centers on the planet is currently being constructed: The Dubai Mall, covering an area of 1,000,000 square meters.
This "mega-mall" will house 1,200 elegant stores, a vast gold souk with 220 retail outlets, and more than 150 restaurants and bars. Over 30 million people from all over the world are expected to visit the Mall in the year following its opening, which is scheduled for some time next year.
A major project like this places special demands on the efficiency of the cooling system, because huge buildings heat up quickly in the ferocious heat of a middle-eastern summer. The Dubai Mall will be kept pleasantly cool thanks to a sophisticated system of district cooling pipes. To ensure that the water only has its cooling effect on-site and does not warm up before being fed into the Dubai Mall, the supply pipes are jacketed with a rigid polyurethane foam system. This material offers better insulating properties than any other material on the market and provides very efficient insulation, protecting the piped water against the heat of the surrounding environment. Trade Circle Technical Industries (TCTI) - a leading local provider of refrigerated warehouses and vehicles - supplied a total of 70 kilometers of thermally insulated pipes for the project. The jacketing is based on the Baytherm pipe insulation system from Bayer MaterialScience, applied at a density of 65 kg/m3. In addition to the above-mentioned system, the BaySystems Pearl polyurethane systems house of Bayer MaterialScience in Dubai also supplied the complete technology package, including the equipment needed to apply the foam insulation to the pipes.
"The close cooperation between BaySystems Pearl and TCTI is typical of the intensive customer focus of our systems business, which Bayer MaterialScience has been operating globally since March 1 this year under the umbrella brand of BaySystems," says Peter Vanacker, head of the Polyurethanes Business Unit and member of the Executive Committee of Bayer MaterialScience. "Thanks to the local presence of BaySystems Pearl with its production facilities and technical support, we can respond quickly and flexibly to our customers' demands," says Subash Sumanasekera, managing director of TCTI.
"In addition to the heat insulation system, we also provide our customers with a mobile unit to fill in the joints. Working closely with TCTI, we have developed a comprehensive and tailor-made system solution that is ideal for the demanding requirements of this construction project," notes Feroz Saleem, Managing Director of BaySystems Pearl. On the basis of this success, Baytherm systems from this systems house have also been approved for use in further projects headed by Emaar Properties.