Assessment of the Middle East Steel Structures Market

Client Situation

The client, a subsidiary of a Dubai-based investment manager, is a respected company specializing in constructing high-rise steel building projects. The client was considering the possibility of expanding further into the GCC steel structures market.

Cedar’s Approach

The client mandated Cedar to assist in developing a detailed understanding of the GCC steel structures market to facilitate the assessment of available opportunities. Cedar’s approach was as follows:

• Review of all relevant internal documents related to the strategy and operations
• External research using secondary data collected by Cedar
• Primary interviews with key industry stakeholders such as dealers and competitors
• Integration and analysis of all collected inputs

Outcome

The key outcomes and insights of this program were as follows:

• Residential and commercial property development industry analysis, for the Emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi
• In-depth dealer and consumer analysis:
1. The customers for steel structures were the architect-consultants who designed the structures and influenced the choice of supplier
2. The owner generally still made the final decisions
3. For warehouses, etc., the owner was usually the only decision-maker, along with the contractor
• The key insights of the UAE market assessment were:
1. The UAE had the second-largest market in GCC
2. It was the most sophisticated market amongst all GCC countries
3. There was potential for high rise steel structures
• The key insights of some other GCC market assessments involved:
1. Others included Oman and Bahrain, with a combined 8% share in the GCC market
2. There was market potential in Bahrain, especially for some shopping complexes
• The key insights of the Qatar market assessment were:
1. The market was limited with just a 7% share in the GCC (13,000 tons)
2. The market was growing primarily for PEB structures such as warehouses, and showrooms
3. HR structures were mainly used for shopping malls and industrial purposes
• Identification of critical challenges in the steel structures industry, such as:
1. There was a perception that the steel structures may corrode over a period of time
2. Lack of awareness regarding time and cost savings due to steel structures