Saudi mega project adopts grooved technology

Just a short distance from the world's largest mosque, the DOKAAE complex includes seven towers, each taller than the next, in a pattern designed to deliver maximum visibility of the Holy Mosque and a maximum capacity of 65,000 guests or visitors. The developer and contractor is the largest construction company in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi Binladin Group.

Known as the Abraj Al-Bait Towers, these seven structures currently hold several world records of their own, including the world's tallest clock tower at 530 metres, the largest clock face at 1,849m2 and the world's largest floor area at approximately 1.5 million m2. The Towers also contain the world's tallest hotel, which at 601m is currently one of the world's tallest hotels.

Victaulic grooved mechanical piping systems were used in all areas of DOKAAE including HVAC, Fire Protection and desalination, with pipe sizes ranging from 2" up to 60" (50.8 to 1525mm) and pressure ratings of up to 17.75 bars. Piping materials used included both copper and stainless steel.

The project took over seven years to complete and included a nine-storey chilling plant with more than 65,000 tonnes of cooling water capacity. Victaulic was used extensively, including 168 heat exchangers, as well as on main connections and risers.

Using Victaulic systems enabled prefabrication, whilst flame-free assembly using grooved products not only sped up installation times but kept welding to a minimum, as local ambient temperatures rose over 50 degrees centigrade.