Here are some of the biggest players in the construction business within the Middle East:
Consolidated Contractors Company
With annual revenues of more than US$5.2bn (Dh19.09bn) last year, Consolidated Contractors Company is the largest construction company in the Middle East.
It is currently headquartered in Athens, having moved there from Beirut in 1975 after the outbreak of the Lebanese civil war.
It won its first major contract in 1950, to build pipelines from Kirkuk in Iraq to the Mediterranean coast. Since then its portfolio of projects have included some of the major airport construction contracts in the Arab world.
It is involved in the building of the new Muscat International Airport in Oman and the new Tripoli International Airport in Libya, both of them won as joint ventures with its partner, TAV. It also has won work as a sub-contractor on the new Doha International Airport.
Its other major projects have included the construction of the huge Qatargas terminal at Ras Laffan, which now handles the equivalent of 30 per cent of the world's liquid natural gas, and Dubai Mall, a project equivalent in size to 50 football pitches.
The company has offices and projects in more than 40 countries, and a workforce of more than 150,000.
TAV Construction
TAV Construction, Turkey's leading construction group with projects worth more than $10.4bn on its books, specialises in futuristic and ultra-modern airports.
Its first major contract was the Istanbul Atatürk International Airport in 1997. As a result, according to the company's history, "Foreseeing the tremendous growth of the aviation and travel sectors both in Turkey and internationally, coupled with the demand for new airports of the highest quality and technology, the founders of the company established the aim … to become the leading brand in airport construction".
In 2010, the international construction journal Engineering News Record ranked TAV the fourth-largest construction company in the world specialising in airport construction.
TAV is already at work on the Midfield Terminal at Abu Dhabi International Airport, carrying out foundations work on the site.
Arabtec Construction
Arabtec Construction, one of the largest construction companies in the UAE, was established in Dubai in 1975. Its projects include work on the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, and Terminal 1 at Dubai International Airport Other major high-profile projects under way include the 80-storey Okhta Centre in St Petersburg, Russia, which will be the tallest building in Europe, the Infinity Tower and Dubai Sports City.
Arabtec, which employs more than 40,000 people, has contracts in housing, sports facilities and office complexes. It has units based in Abu Dhabi, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Syria.
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If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
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Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
'Ashkal'
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What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Angela Bassett, Tina Fey
Directed by: Pete Doctor
Rating: 4 stars
