The transnational Gulf City: Saudi and migrant values of public open spaces in Jeddah

This paper outlines patterns of use, perceived benefits and place attachment relating to public open space in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, a city in which almost half the residents are born overseas. The methods included case studies representing different recreational landscape typologies, observational analysis and 85 on-site interviews (46% Saudi, 54% migrants). The findings outline the benefits of visiting as a retreat from busy lifestyles, for everyday sociability, for improving health, for religious practice and for mutual support, highlighting dimensions of gender, transnationality and heritage. The paper explores place attachment related to displacement comparing between impacts of migration and of rapid urbanisation. The narratives suggest that experiences shaped by temporality and memory inform emotional geographies for both Saudi and migrant residents. There are differences in patterns of use between resident groups, but the paper concludes that, within a highly stratified society, the public open spaces of Jeddah provide an important resource of shared pleasures and everyday multiculture.     

Value engineering in public construction projects in Saudi Arabia

It was found that value engineering was in limited use since it has been introduced in 1981. The main reason for the lack of adoption being unfamiliarity with the concept among public sector organizations, as well as local architectural/engineering firms in the Kingdom.     

Important causes of delay in public utility projects in Saudi Arabia

This study was conducted to determine the most important causes of delay in public utility projects, based on the frequency and severity of the causes. A survey of randomly selected samples of contractors, consultants, and owners was carried out to assess the frequency of occurrence and the severity of impact of sixty potential delay causes. A frequency index and a severity index were determined for each cause. An importance index for each cause was then computed as the product of the frequency and severity indices. The results showed that the three parties surveyed generally agree on the importance ranking of delay causes. The causes were grouped also into six major categories of delay. The analysis showed lack of agreement among the parties on the ranking of the major categories of delay.     

Assessment of the types of public building maintenance contracts in Saudi Arabia

The study revealed that Fixed Price, Cost Plus and Purchased Labour contracts are the top three maintenance contracts adopted whilst Unit Price, Cost Plus A Percentage Fee contracts are alternatives used in the Kingdom. Some other types of maintenance contract were thought to be inappropriate by ministry departments.     

Safety management in the construction industry in Saudi Arabia

Safety programmes of sixteen construction companies in the Eastern Province were evaluated and it was found that larger firms had more formal safety training which resulted in higher standards of overall safety.     

Assessing safety measures in residential buildings in Saudi Arabia

The incidence rate of fire in residential buildings in Saudi Arabia accounts for 69% of all building fires. A field assessment of current safety issues for residential buildings in Saudi Arabia is used to identify common safety deficiencies. The survey showed that most residents are ignorant many safety aspects in their homes. A safety audit checklist for assessing the effectiveness of safety measures in existing residential buildings is also presented. Based on these findings, a number of strategies for designers, local authorities, building owners and residents is suggested.     

Factors affecting construction practices in Makkah Al-Mukkaramah, Saudi Arabia

Each year the Hajj attracts over one million pilgrims to Makkah with all the enormous administrative, social and economic implications this signifies. The authors conclude that there are unique factors affecting construction practice in Makkah and it is apparent that early action is always needed to correct aspects of construction, less costly overruns are an inevitable consequence.     

Urban development in Saudi Arabia: Building and subdivision codes

Saudi Arabia is experiencing an extremely rapid urbanization. Large numbers of people from rural and nomadic habitats, as well as foreign immigrants, are moving into the country's urban areas. The rapid growth in population and urban land use has been greater than the nation's capacity to plan and absorb population in a systematic manner. Policies to guide urban development which are environmentally compatible with the landscape and climate of Saudi Arabia must be created and adapted. These policies must also be consistent with the cultural orientation of the society. In this article a modern building and subdivision code is proposed which takes into consideration these environmental and cultural conditions.     

Factors affecting the relationship between contractors and their sub-contractors in Saudi Arabia

Delay in contract progress payment, lack of construction quality, errors and delay in shop drawings and/or approval of sample materials were ranked highest as interface problems, whilst legal disputes, scheduling conflicts amongst sub-contractors, geological problems and weather conditions were ranked lowest.     

Design — Construction interface problems in Saudi Arabia

During the last decade the construction industry in Saudi Arabia employed 15% of the total labour force and used 19% of energy consumed in the country. Abdulmohsen Al-Hammad and Sadi Assaf discuss the results of a survey which identified the interface problems in design and construction, and document the lessons to be learned from that boom period     

Public owners' satisfaction with consultancy practices in Saudi Arabia

Between 1970 and 1985 the public expenditure on three development plans in Saudi Arabia amounted to 1940 billion Saudi Riyals. This paper addresses the professional relationship between the public owners and the local architectural and engineering practices which has been measured in the form of overall satisfaction under a five-point scale ranging from excellent to poor, a second aspect identified satisfaction related to the design service and finally, a measure of satisfaction was gained from owners' response to their professional relationship with the practices.     

Toward a sustainable land management of vernacular landscape in the highlands of south-western Saudi Arabia: indigenous and statutory experiences

The vernacular landscape of the highlands of south-western Saudi Arabia comprises three distinct elements: natural, agricultural and built. The highlands are currently facing land use planning problems which result in deforestation, despite significant attempts at afforestation by several governmental agencies (especially the Ministry of Agriculture and Water) and by municipal governments in the area. Intentions towards more sustainable forms of land management now characterize official documents. With regard to landscape issues, this is marked by a discourse of sustainable land management and the sponsorship of initiatives addressing the relationship between land management and the environment. This paper demonstrates that the approach to sustainable land management is technical, rational and scientific. A more balanced approach would combine scientific knowledge and practice with traditional expertise.     

The effect of contractor size on mark-up size decision in Saudi Arabia

This study is a part of a larger study addressing the bidding decisions of construction contractors in Saudi Arabia. It examines the mark-up size decisions of small, medium, and large contractors in Saudi Arabia. These groups are found to consider and evaluate many factors subjectively when they set mark-up sizes for projects. However, the importance of these factors varies as the contractor's size changes. Bidding document price, strength in the industry, time allowed for submitting bids and other factors are the greatest contributors to the discrimination between contractor sizes.     

Safety design practices in residential buildings in Saudi Arabia

A survey of current safety practices in the design of residential buildings in Saudi Arabia identified deficiencies in governance and design procedures. A systematic safety compliance checklist was developed to address these deficiencies incorporating existing local safety instructions and international safety codes and standards. Checklist use is intended to ensure compliance with minimal safety requirements in the design of residential buildings.     

Professional architectural/engineering consultancy practices in Saudi Arabia

The local architectural engineering firm in Saudi Arabia is handling projects up to 175m SR a year on average. It will have been in practice 13 years, employing 91 people, most holding a B.Sc. degree. Practices are mainly selected by competitive bidding and paid under a fixed fee arrangement. The authors found that the public authorities are the major employers of local A/E design services.     

Evaluation of engineering properties of scoria in central Harrat Rahat, Saudi Arabia

 Although black scoria deposits occur extensively in western Saudi Arabia, there has been little work undertaken on its engineering characteristics as a light-weight aggregate which can be used in concrete for structural, masonry and insulating purposes. In an attempt to remedy this, central Harrat Rahat was selected for an engineering evaluation of scoria deposits in the vicinity of major cities where it may provide an easily accessible resource for natural aggregate. The petrography of the scoria and the deleterious material content were found to be acceptable by ASTM standards, but grading analyses indicated it would need to be processed before use. The other physical properties of the scoria such as bulk density, specific gravity and absorption indicated that samples from Jabal Halat Ash Shaykh quarry gave acceptable results. The porosity of the scoria is relatively high and some of the pore spaces are not interconnected. The material is pozzolanically active and can be also used as an additive to Portland cement. Received: 16 April 1999 · Accepted: 25 March 2000     

Fog collection as a source of fresh water supply in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

In order to harvest water contained in fog, the topographical features and the climatic conditions of 27 cities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were studied. The topography, altitude and orientation are some of the factors that determined the selection of the site. It was identified that the southwest of the region in the kingdom was the most suitable location for the fog‐collection process. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of fog water collection and the site, three identical standard fog collectors (SFCs) with two different local collection materials were designed and manufactured. Experiments were conducted at two different locations in the area close to Abha, namely Soodha. The maximum amount of water collected was 22.9 L/m² in a day and 7.25 L/m² in a 2‐h period. It was found that there was a high probability of fog when the relative humidity was higher than 95%. The results from the chemical analyses of eight sets of fog water samples collected were compared with World Health Organization drinking water standards. It was found that the level of heavy metals was negligible and the level of Fe was marginally high for the first flush only. The study indicates that in terms of both quality and magnitude of yield, fog is a viable source of water and can be successfully used to supplement water supplies in the fog‐prone regions of the kingdom.     

The metamorphosis of the urban fabric in Arab-Muslim City: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has experienced rapid growth inurban development since the 1960s. This urbangrowth is not based on the traditional urbanplanning principles which have been followed inSaudi Arabia for many centuries. Instead,various imported urban forms and planningregulations have been implemented in thecountry. These relate neither to thetraditional built environment and culture norto the local climate of the city. As a result,major cultural and climatic problems haveoccurred. The aim of this paper is to identify andanalyze the types of built environment inRiyadh, as an example of Saudi Arabia's cities,and discuss the cultural conflicts resultingfrom the use of imported planning principlesand regulations. In light of this analysis anddiscussion, the planning regulations will bereviewed and recommendations will be made foramendments.     

Fuel-price reform to achieve climate and energy policy goals in Saudi Arabia: A multiple-scenario analysis

Saudi Arabia experiences annual growth of 6% in its power demand. Generation expansion has been driven by low domestic retail fuel prices leading to a power generation mix based on fossil fuels only. In light of current climate change discussions, this research assesses future generation expansion under different potential fuel-price reforms by an enhanced OSeMOSYS model. Results demonstrate that domestic retail fuel price levels >20% [>60%] of expected international wholesale fuel prices¹ are necessary to minimize emissions when considering emissions penalties [without pricing for emissions]. By 2030 renewables can reach 70% penetration by capacity and 30% by energy.     

Business Improvement Districts and the recession: Implications for public realm governance and management in England

BIDs were introduced in the UK in 2003/2004 and their widespread adoption is linked to their ability to raise funds to invest in the locality, through a mandatory supplementary levy on business rates, voluntary contributions, sponsorship and public sector grants. However, the economic downturn has already restricted those sources of funding, and public sector spending cuts are likely to restrict them even further. This paper discusses a case-study research on the impact that recession and spending cuts have had on the way BIDs operate, and identifies the threats and opportunities to them as stakeholder-led instruments for the management of town centres and commercial and industrial areas. The research shows that although the recession and spending cuts have had an impact on most BIDs, the model itself has not been put in question, and BIDs are becoming permanent features of the governance of town and city centres, and increasingly also of industrial areas. Their roles in public realm management have been varied, from a minor function in complementing local environmental services, to being active players in the transformation of public places into arenas for festivals and spectacle, to coordinators of surveillance, policing and occasionally exclusion. The implications for the public realm of the evolution and consolidation of BIDs will therefore be varied. Some BIDs are likely to play an increasing role in the delivery of public realm services and the shaping of public realm quality, and in those cases the existence of adequate mechanisms to harmonise the interests of levy payers with other local stakeholders will be of considerable importance. Others might have a sporadic impact on the public realm, with a more pronounced role of the local authority in mediating that impact. Understanding how BIDs operate, the aspirations they represent, their relationship to other aspirations and to broader policy objectives, and the role in that operation of fluctuations in the economy, will be increasingly important in thinking critically about the limits and potential of emerging forms of urban governance.