There is a particular kind of confidence that comes from having watched a city reinvent itself. Approximately 25 years ago, Dubai was already ambitious, but the transformation that would make it one of the world’s most recognisable cities was still gathering pace. For a 19 years young engineering consultancy arriving from Johannesburg at that time, the opportunity was significant, but so was the uncertainty.
Today, CKR has a total legacy of 44 years and is a business of more than 350 people operating across multiple countries, with expertise spanning electrical, mechanical, civil, structural, high-voltage engineering, ICT, ELV, Security, Smart Buildings, BIM and technology services. Its portfolio covers hospitality, retail, commercial, industrial, residential, healthcare and public infrastructure, with data centres and power infrastructure becoming an increasingly more important portfolio.
Yet the company’s leadership stresses that growth has never been the objective in isolation. The philosophy that brought CKR to the Middle East, technical expertise combined with personal, accessible client service, remains at the heart of the business.
“It’s been a fascinating journey,” says Stefano Riccardi, CEO and Managing Partner. “When I first came to Dubai, I came with Mike Berry, and we were fortunate to arrive at what was, let’s call it, the beginning of the boom in Dubai.”
The first opportunity was Royal Mirage Phase II. From there came Madinat Jumeirah, followed by projects across Abu Dhabi, Oman, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Involvement in some of the region’s most ambitious developments helped establish CKR’s reputation and provided a platform for international expansion.
“That was the massive injection we needed as a business to get off the ground,” Riccardi says. “From there, the rest was almost history. We’ve been involved in some incredible projects.”
Riding the Dubai wave
CKR’s Dubai story began in 2001, as the emirate positioned itself as a global destination for business, tourism and investment.
For Mike Berry, COO and Partner, the early years were characterised by an almost relentless stream of work.
“We came here in 2001, and the projects just kept coming,” he recalls. “We were awarded more and more projects, including some significant developments on the Palm, and the future was looking very positive.”
Madinat Jumeirah was particularly significant. The development demanded a broad range of engineering and technology expertise at a time when systems within major hospitality projects were becoming increasingly sophisticated. For a consultancy that was still relatively small, the scale was extraordinary.
Berry describes Madinat Jumeirah and One & Only as projects that remain particularly close to his heart.
“When you consider the scale of Madinat Jumeirah and the fact that we were still a relatively small, boutique engineering consultancy, the opportunity to deliver something of that size was remarkable,” he says.
The experience also established an approach that would become increasingly important to CKR: combining disciplines and technologies rather than treating them as isolated services. That integrated model would eventually become one of the foundations of the company’s One CKR philosophy.
Building resilience
The financial crisis of 2009 was a defining moment for Dubai — and for businesses operating in the emirate.
For CKR, the impact was substantial, but major projects helped the company weather the storm.
The experience proved formative. “I think that gave us the confidence to tackle any crises that followed,” he says. “We tend to come out stronger every time we get to the other side.”
COVID-19 presented a different challenge, but it also accelerated a technological transformation CKR had already begun. Remote working, cloud-based collaboration and digital engineering became essential. For a company already accustomed to sharing expertise across geographical boundaries, the transition was perhaps less disruptive than it might have been.
“In fact, the first projects we did in Dubai actually commenced from South Africa, where they were being designed,” Riccardi explains. “That interaction between different countries and different branches within the wider business became second nature to us without us even realising it.”
The experience also demonstrated the potential of CKR’s Indian operation.
Berry says COVID “really pushed our Indian office forward”.
“From a small office, we suddenly realised that we could use that resource much more effectively,” he says. “That has grown into a significant operation that now services all of our offices, providing engineering expertise as well as
BIM production.”
For CKR, technology had caught up with the way the business had been working for years.
“It streamlined the process and ultimately led us to create One CKR, our global setup,” Riccardi says. “It was a natural progression.”
From boutique consultancy to One CKR
One CKR is less about creating a traditional corporate hierarchy and more about connecting expertise. The ambition is to make the knowledge held across different offices and disciplines available to clients regardless of where a project is located.
“We’ve got all these experts across our business,” says Riccardi. “We’re constantly talking to each other, but we’ve never really leveraged that expertise to the extent we could.”
The challenge is achieving greater scale without losing the personal approach that has defined CKR from its earliest days.
“When we started, clients wanted to talk to the boss,” says Riccardi. “They wanted to talk to the directors. They wanted to be able to speak to someone who had probably lived and done it all.”
That principle has survived despite the company’s growth. “Even though we’ve grown, and today we’re more than 350 people across multiple countries, we’ve retained that intimate flavour,” he says. “We’re still approachable, we’re still involved in projects, and that has helped us enormously.”
Anil Menon, CSO and Partner, describes the philosophy in similar terms. “We’re engineers and we do what we do with passion,” he says. “We run the business professionally, but also with passion, and we can be as small or as large as our clients need us to be.”
That could mean delivering engineering services for a small retail unit of around 45 square metres or contributing to an integrated complex approaching 800,000 square metres.
“We can be both,” Menon says. “I think that’s one of the strengths we bring to any crisis or opportunities.”
Technology: solution or complication?
Engineering technology has changed dramatically since CKR arrived in Dubai.
The company’s engineers have moved from tracing paper and T-squares to CAD and then BIM. Today, AI, IoT, digital twins, smart-building technologies and increasingly sophisticated data environments are reshaping the profession again.
But Menon argues that more technology does not automatically mean better design.
“More often than not, the ingenuity in engineering still exists. The complication comes when technology is adopted too quickly. Sometimes the complexity is actually the result of an overuse of technology.”
His preferred approach is hybrid. Technology should enhance communication and design rather than replace the human interaction that underpins good engineering.
“In the initial stages of a concept or scheme, there can be more conversation between the stakeholders — interior designers, client representatives, operators and others — around the design intent and strategies,” says Menon.
“Today, people have all these devices and applications to communicate, yet they sometimes communicate less. In the old days, we probably communicated better without the devices. So is technology actually a better communication tool? That’s a big question.”
For CKR, the answer is not to reject technology, but to ensure that it serves the people using it.
The smart-building opportunity
That philosophy is particularly relevant as buildings become increasingly connected.
CKR’s combination of conventional MEP engineering with ICT, AV, Security and ELV expertise gives it a strong position in the smart-building market.
“Buildings are becoming smarter,” says Menon. “But with the advent of IoT and micro-level controllers, we’re also seeing a proliferation of systems that can sometimes operate in silos.”
The challenge is no longer simply installing individual systems. It is making them work together.
“To achieve true system integration, almost like an airport master-systems-integration strategy where everything communicates with everything else, is challenging because buildings are often designed in a siloed way,” he says.
CKR sees an opportunity to bring greater integration to buildings, but connectivity also creates new vulnerabilities.
“When you connect all these systems together, you need a zero-trust strategy,” Menon says. “Cybersecurity within buildings is becoming a reality, and it’s something people need to talk about more.”
For an engineering consultancy increasingly operating at the intersection of physical infrastructure and digital technology, cybersecurity is therefore becoming part of the engineering conversation.
From hospitality to data centres
Perhaps the clearest example of CKR’s ability to transfer expertise between sectors is its growing data centre business.
The company’s experience in high-end hospitality has proved unexpectedly valuable.
“In a smart building, security is obviously a major consideration,” says Riccardi. “You then have the BMS, controls and fire and life safety, with all these systems needing to communicate.”
Those same principles are fundamental to data centres, where the consequences of failure are magnified.
Data centres require resilient power infrastructure, sophisticated cooling, controls, security, connectivity and increasingly complex electrical networks. As AI drives demand for computing capacity, those requirements are becoming more demanding still.
CKR has responded by bringing high-voltage expertise into the wider business.
Alberto Riccardi, Managing Director (Africa) and Partner, joined CKR after running a separate high-voltage business that was subsequently incorporated into the consultancy.
“The data centre business required the complete loop, from the connection to the network through to the local networks,” he explains. “We brought the high-voltage capability into the business.”
The move has opened opportunities beyond the Middle East. “We’re finding that, particularly in Italy, there is a significant market for our services, not only in data centres but also in high voltage,” he says.
Saudi Arabia is another major focus, while renewable energy is becoming an increasingly important part of the equation.
“In Europe and other parts of the world, we’re finding that green initiatives and large networks sometimes can’t provide the amount of power required by data centres,” Alberto says.
“If you want to build a data centre, you end up needing to put a significant amount of power back into the grid.”
The implication is significant: the data centre boom is not simply an ICT story. It is becoming an energy and infrastructure story.
Engineering across borders
CKR’s international expansion has taught the business that engineering solutions cannot simply be copied from one country to another.
The fundamentals may be universal, but regulations, infrastructure, culture, geography and history all influence how a project should be delivered.
“Large parts of Europe are at a very advanced level, particularly in the Tier 1 markets,” says Riccardi. “From a data sovereignty perspective and in terms of the growth of data centres, some European markets are very much where the Middle East is today.”
Elsewhere, historic buildings, archaeology, zoning and regulation can make projects more complicated.
“Does that make it insurmountable? No,” Riccardi says. “It’s about understanding where you’re operating, understanding the legislative requirements and understanding who the right people are to speak to.”
The same lesson was learned in Africa. When CKR began working on data centres in South Africa during the period of load shedding, the challenge was not simply designing a building. It was finding an engineering solution to a constrained national grid.
“We managed to get through it by doing the right things: bringing renewable energy into the equation and upgrading transmission lines where necessary because of constrained capacity,” Riccardi says.
That experience is now relevant in Europe and the Middle East, where grid capacity is increasingly becoming a decisive factor for large developments.
“Ultimately, everything is a problem and we need to find a solution,” he says. “These are simply different engineering solutions.”
The philosophy has also shaped CKR’s work across Africa, where levels of development can vary dramatically between markets.
Riccardi recalls working in countries where shopping centres were still a novelty.
“I remember when we installed an escalator in a shopping mall and children were brought in by teachers to learn how to use it,” he says.
The story illustrates a wider point: what is obvious in one market can be entirely new in another.
“If you take that mentality forward, it makes it easier to do business,” he says.
Bringing the ‘Dubai model’ abroad
The reverse is also true. CKR increasingly finds that expertise developed in the UAE is being sought elsewhere.
Menon points to a refurbishment project at a super luxury hotel in Addis Ababa as an example.
“The client told us they wanted the ‘Dubai model’ and that, as long as we could comply with UAE fire and life-safety standards and bring Dubai’s pace, they would be very happy,” he says.
Over the past 2 decades, Dubai has become a reference point for hospitality, mixed-use development, smart infrastructure and high-performance buildings.
CKR has been both a beneficiary and a contributor to that evolution. Its willingness to adopt emerging technologies has also played a role.
Menon recalls projects where CKR used free-space optics and radio-frequency backup to connect developments where conventional infrastructure was constrained by right-of-way limitations.
“We never shy away from the future, but we also don’t want projects to become guinea pigs,” he says.
“We make sure we bring in the best available technology, while understanding what is still in research and development.”
That distinction — between being progressive and simply being fashionable — is central to the company’s approach.
The people behind the growth
For all the discussion of technology, data centres and global expansion, the CKR leadership team repeatedly returns to one subject: people.
The company’s growth, they argue, has always followed the recruitment and development of the right individuals.
Leopoldo Gambale, CFO and Partner, describes the company’s culture as one of its greatest strengths.
“When I joined the business, I think we were around 30 people,” he says. “We’ve maintained that personal touch from when we were 30 people to now, with more than 350 people, and we’ve grown the business tenfold.”
The objective is not to replace that culture with corporate structure as the business gets bigger.
“We always say that we’re a family business with structure,” Gambale says. “That has been one of our successes.”
For Menon, the emphasis is on empowerment. “Leadership is an action, not a title,” he says. “Everyone can be a leader because everyone can influence.”
That applies from interns through to senior partners. The company wants young engineers to understand that joining CKR does not mean simply following instructions.
“We tell them: ‘I’ve got lots to give, but don’t come with a blank-sheet attitude. You can contribute,’” says Menon.
It also explains why senior leadership remains directly involved in projects. “We’re engineers at heart,” says Berry.
The power of being together
The One CKR initiative has also highlighted the importance of relationships within the organisation itself.
Last year, senior leaders gathered in South Africa, initially at a game lodge and subsequently with a wider group of partners at Sun City. The purpose was not simply strategic planning, it was to share ideas across our regions.
“We realised that we enjoyed each other’s company,” Riccardi says of the first gathering.
More importantly, the leadership team realised that regular interaction could help solve problems faster and create opportunities to share expertise.
“We realised that we needed to talk to each other more often because we learn a lot from one another,” he says. “You get energy from those conversations.”
“Problems that arise in one office are often problems that someone elsewhere in the business has already solved,” Riccardi says. “That has been a huge help to all of us.”
The emphasis on connection reflects the wider philosophy behind One CKR: technology can connect people, but relationships determine how effectively knowledge is shared.
The next 25 years
The next phase of CKR’s story is likely to be shaped by many of the forces reshaping the wider built environment.
Data centres will continue to expand. AI will increase demand for power and digital infrastructure. Buildings will become more connected. Cybersecurity will become increasingly important. Electrification will place additional demands on existing networks, while renewable energy will become a more integral part of the infrastructure solution.
CKR believes its integrated engineering model puts it in a strong position to respond.
But Riccardi is cautious about suggesting that the company has reached its destination.
“There are certainly opportunities we’re exploring as we look to grow the business further,” he says. “For now, our major focus is on doing what we already do, but doing it better.”
While CKR has changed considerably since two engineers arrived in Dubai in 2001, the underlying philosophy remains remarkably consistent. Clients should still be able to reach the people making the decisions. Engineers should still be involved in engineering. Technology should be used to solve problems rather than create them. And expertise should be shared across borders.
Perhaps most importantly, the company wants growth to remain personal.
“We never want to lose that,” says Gambale. “The family and personal touch will never go away.”
For Riccardi, the best measure of that culture is not a particular project or award. It is what happens when the next generation begins to take ownership. He describes it using an unlikely analogy for an engineering consultancy: a World Cup moment.
“I was once asked by a junior engineer, ‘Stef, what’s your World Cup moment?’” he recalls. “Initially, I thought we don’t have World Cup moments in engineering. You just keep going.”
But then he reconsidered. A World Cup is not simply the final match. It is the years of training, setbacks, incremental improvements and collective effort required to reach the biggest stage.
“That’s how I now look at CKR,” he says. “We do have World Cup moments.”
Opening an office in Italy is one. Creating One CKR is another. Celebrating 25 years in the Middle East is another. But one moment stands out above all.
“At our 25th anniversary celebration, one of our young engineers stood up and jokingly spoke about office politics, making fun of the classic engineering culture,” Riccardi recalls.
“It was brave, but everyone appreciated it. We all walked away thinking that was something special.”
For him, that is what a World Cup moment looks like.
“Seeing our people come forward, showing that kind of confidence and bravery, bringing the business to the next level and empowering young people to grow, those are my World Cup moments.”
Nearly 25 years after arriving in Dubai, CKR is therefore looking ahead rather than looking back. The projects will get bigger. The technology will become more sophisticated. The energy challenge will become more complex. The company’s international footprint will continue to expand.
The fundamentals, however, will remain the same: engineering expertise, personal relationships, a willingness to adapt and, above all, people prepared to take responsibility for the future.
As Riccardi puts it: “We never shy away from the future.”
For a company that arrived in Dubai at the beginning of one of the world’s great urban transformations, it is an appropriate philosophy for the next 25 years.
Source: ME Construction News
