Wafi raid forces construction sector to rethink security

Quotes in the aftermath of this incident indicated that more needs to be done to protect business. A spokesperson comments; "We upgraded our security after the first attack and it adheres with all the requirements of Dubai Police". The Wafi ram-raid is an opportunity as "business men and mall designers can learn a lot from the incident in terms of how the mall can be designed to further protect the stores" (7Days). The upcoming conference, at Le Royal Meridien, Abu Dhabi, 27-30 May 2007,Infrastructure Security Middle East will present the first interactive forum in the middle of the regional construction boom where all stakeholders; government, developers and consultants can outline a vision to tackle unavoidable challenges.

Professor Peter D'Arby, Advisor to the Ministry of Interior (UAE) and Abu Dhabi Private Business Section, Abu Dhabi Police, will be addressing regulation in the regional security. Professor D'Arcy states "The opportunity is here now, the UAE has opened the door. The value to every society is self explanatory".

Sessions by global leaders including Armor Group and GE Security will provide solutions to combat the current approach to integrating security and risk planning into pre-design and design phases. The Development and Infrastructure Security conference will bring together international experiences of Johnson Controls, United Security Group, Britam Defence and Control Risks on ground-breaking projects from Nakheel's 'The Palm' to Wembley Stadium (UK).

Executive partners including NBB Investment and Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance will be outlining how developers and their contracted project management companies, architects and engineers can reap massive savings on insurance premiums, operational costs and facilities management by designing properties that combine environmental design, crime prevention and terrorism deterrence as standard.

Dr. Peter Ryan, Group Director, Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience, Hyder Consulting, who has worked as security adviser to the International Olympic Committee, will equip developers in the region to embrace corporate social responsibility and take active steps to implement security and risk management into every project from day zero, in the respect of both public security and business continuity.
The conference will deal with rapid urban growth, adding value commercially through security and risk mitigation, implementing fit for purpose security, moving from compliance to best practice, streamlining expenses in operation and maintenance, creating a duty of care, and delivering on promises to clients and end-users. Organisations contributing include: Abu Dhabi Police, Dubai Police, Schirmer Engineering Corporation, SKM Consulting, PRM International, Transguard Group and many more.