Lessons from the old and the new

Piping systems are one of the most fundamental components of urban infrastructure, and the regional market is a dynamic one. UME spoke to one of the most established players about how it is adapting its business model to counter the downturn, as well as to one of the newest players in the market about opportunities and challenges.

One of the most established and experienced piping systems and fittings suppliers and manufacturers is Hepworth PME LLC, part of Corys, the holding company owned by the Abdul Ghaffar Hussein family. Corys was formed to establish various JVs with some of Hepworth’s principal partners.

Hepworth PME LLC has agreements with about 15 international companies, including Hepworth Building Products of the UK (owned by Wavin Holland) and Georg Fischer Piping Systems of Switzerland, representing a range of premier products.

Story continues below

Advertisement

FEATURED COMMENT Please click here to comment on this article

“As a logical progression, Georg Fischer JV Corys was formed to manufacture high-volume items such as fittings locally in order to get away from high transportation costs.

Cost pressure is a specific issue in this day and age,” comments Georg Fischer Piping Systems Dubai sales office GM Wolfgang Ronfeldt.

Georg Fischer has been collaborating with Hepworth in the Middle East specifically for about 35 years, and established its own office within Hepworth PME LLC since 1999.

Hepworth PME LLC deputy GM Alan McKeown says the latest development on the manufacturing front is to target rubber seals through another JV, namely Corys MDS.

“We obviously import a lot of rubber seals for our pipes and fittings, so the next move was to manufacture our own. We brought MDS of Germany in as a technical partner,” says McKeown.

Hepworth began manufacturing GRP and uPVC pipe locally in 1991. “In those days we started with one uPVC and one GRP extruder, and still imported all the fittings from the UK and Europe. This was because we saw ourselves as not just a pipe manufacturer, but as a total solutions provider.”

McKeown says the local manufacturing component of the operation has expanded steadily over the years, with over 20 extruders at present in total and a size range of 16 mm to 630 mm.

The company has manufacturing facilities in Dubai and Qatar, and branch offices in Bahrain, Oman, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Al Ain.