Dubai, July 10, 2010: Emirates Gas, the leading supplier of LPG cylinders in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, recently launched a safety campaign in collaboration with the Public Health and Safety Department of Dubai Municipality, to raise awareness about implementing safety procedures in the handling, storage and usage of LPG cylinders. The two-week long campaign targeted business establishments like restaurants, cafeterias and hotels in Dubai.

The campaign ensured that businesses had special well-ventilated cabinets made of un-inflammable substances that were provided for gas cylinders and that no other hazardous or flammable substances are stored. Emirates Gas also ensured that fire-extinguishers were easily accessible in case of an emergency and pipelines and valves were serviced and maintained regularly.

Hesham Ali Mustafa, General Manager, Emirates Gas said that the company is committed to strengthening the use of safety requirements amongst its customers, “Safety first is our motto at Emirates Gas. LPG cylinders, which is one of the most popular fuels for cooking can also be very hazardous if not installed within certain standards. We believe that educating our customers is vital to reduce the incidence of fires and accidents due to gas leakage which is why it is important that the properties and safe handling are understood and applied.”

Eng. Sultan Al Suwaidi, Head of the Public Safety section at the Health and Public Safety Department, Dubai Municipality said, “Gas distribution companies, restaurants, cafeterias, public kitchens, and bakeries were targeted to avoid gas cylinders explosion due to misuse. It is also part of the daily department activities to ensure the implementation of safety procedures for gas cylinders.”

Emirates Gas regularly trains distributors and their employees in safe distribution, transportation and storage of LPG cylinders.

Etisalat Al Shamil and eLife customers can enjoy Free Wi-Fi access through dedicated hot-spot

Dubai May 12, 2010: As part of its ongoing commitment to providing a world-class communication network, Etisalat has signed an agreement with the Dubai Municipality to provide Wireless data communication at the Zabeel Park, Dubai through dedicated hotspots.  As per the agreement, jointly signed by Eng. Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality and Mr. Ghanim Al Marri, Dy. General Manager, Dubai region from Etisalat, Etisalat will provide wireless telecommunication services to cover the Zabeel Park area, enabling visitors to connect to the Internet.

Starting today, visitors to the park can enjoy uninterrupted connectivity through their Wi-Fi enabled devices, like Smartphones, Netbooks, Notebooks, PDAs and portable gaming consoles, to connect to the robust Wi-Fi network of Etisalat. The Wi-fi service aims to provide fast, reliable data communication services to the visitors at a nominal cost starting at AED 5 for the first 30 minutes.

Etisalat Al Shamil and eLife customers can enjoy free Wi-Fi access of up to 16 hours per month, depending on their subscription packages. Etisalat Internet subscribers and can simply use their existing username and password to avail the Wi-Fi service.

Al Shamil customers with 1-4Mb package can enjoy upto 4 Hours of free Wi-Fi access per month while subscribers with over 4Mb package can enjoy upto 8 hours of free Wi-fi access per month.  Etisalat eLife customers with starter package (1mb) will get 4 Hours of free access to the Wi-fi hotspot, while subscribers with packages above 8Mbps can enjoy 8 hours of free Wi-Fi internet, with additional 8 hours, making it 16 hours of free Wi-Fi access. 

Visitors can simply connect to the Wi-Fi network by making quick payments through their mobile phones and credit cards. Customers who wish to subscribe to Wi-fi access on a monthly basis can also do so for a  monthly fee of AED 95 per month, which will include 12 hours of Wi-Fi internet access, per month.

Etisalat mobile customers, who wish to avail this service can simply get the charges for the service deducted from their Wasel account, or get the charges billed to their post-paid account.

Visitors, who are not existing Etisalat customers, can purchase the Wi-Fi hotspot prepaid cards and Etisalat Blue prepaid cards or make payments through their credit card to use the service.

Commenting on this latest initiative Eng. Hussain Nasser Lootah , Director General of Dubai Municipality said , “Offering state-of-art technology and facilities has always been our priority at Dubai Municipality in our endeavour to provide better services to the residents of Dubai. Our partnership with Etisalat for this latest initiative, will provide excellent connectivity services to the public and is part of our overall plan to ensure access anytime, anywhere.”

Mr. Ghanim Al Marri Dy. General Manager, Dubai region from Etisalat said, “Etisalat is delighted to partner with Dubai Municipality in its vision to provide a holistic and robust telecommunication infrastructure in the Emirate. The new initiative of connecting Zabeel Park through Etisalat’s Wi-Fi hotspot service substantiates our promise to provide a convenience, coverage and value to our customers, who can now connect to the Internet while on the move, at affordable costs.”

For more information on service, customers can visit www.etisalat.ae

MAPEI sponsors high-profile gathering and outlines company’s contributions to sustainable development of Dubai

May 11, 2010

The Dubai Central Laboratory (DCL) department of Dubai Municipality has recently concluded a consultative meeting wherein more than 200 current and potential clients of DCL joined key government officials in discussing challenges and opportunities in promoting Dubai’s sustainable development. MAPEI, global leader in the production of adhesives, sealants and chemical products for buildings, participated as sponsor of the event and provided a presentation of the significant contributions of its premium range of products to Dubai’s green building initiative as well as the special properties that make MAPEI the ideal solution for the region’s climatic conditions.

DCL announced during the event that it is deploying new testing equipment to ensure strict compliance of contractors to Dubai Government’s green building regulations. Moreover, the test facilities will be further expanded to include advanced tests for detecting heavy metals in paint and coating by using ICP, Volatile Organic Compound through Gas Chromatography, Light Reflective Values of external surface and coatings, and solar reflective index for external coating.

Speaking at the event, Eng. Hawa Abdulla Bastaki, Director of DCL, discussed the expanding range of DCL’s services: “The Engineering Material Laboratory section of DCL received accreditation for 25 more tests from Dubai Accreditation Centre as per ISO 17025, and this makes a total accreditation of 51 tests. This accreditation covers tests related to materials such as thermal insulations, asphalt, soil aggregate, concrete, steel etc. We are also in the process of implementing new services, including testing of car tyres, timber and timber products, ceramic tiles, paints and coatings.”

“As per the directions and vision of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Dubai Municipality and other departments in Dubai are implementing green building regulations to address the emirate’s long-term environmental challenges,” added Eng. Bastaki.

Laith Haboubi, Business Development Director, IBS-MAPEI, said: “MAPEI’s participation at the meeting was in line with the company’s commitment to support Dubai Government in its efforts to protect and conserve the environment and ensure a clean and healthy living community. MAPEI is fully prepared to address all environmental requirements of the emirate as we have more than 150 products that are recognised to contribute to LEED certification and comply with most environmental and green building certification systems. Moreover, as Dubai moves ahead with its green building program, MAPEI will continue to focus on a parallel initiative to develop environmentally conscious products that complement the government’s environmental advocacy.”

The meeting was also attended by Eng. Salem Mohammed Bin Mesmar, Assistant Director General for Environment, Health and Safety Affairs; Eng. Khalid Abdelrahim Abdalla, Director of Customer Relations; Eng. Ali Ahmed Elian, Head of Engineering Material Section of Dubai Central Laboratory; and representatives from the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA). An open forum was also held during the event wherein DCL received suggestions and ideas from customers, contractors and consultants.

Selected consultants and contractors were also honoured during the event for their contributions to Dubai’s green building program. Certificates were distributed to all recipients by Eng. Bastaki.

Dubai Municipality has launched a two-month campaign called “Youth without Smoking” this week, which will culminate with the World No Tobacco Day on May 31.

The event, involving 10 schools, will include three sporting events.

A team from the Municipality Clinic, along with members of the Dubai Health Authority and Dubai Medical College, will conduct medical examinations free of charge for young people and make them aware of the seriousness of the hazards of smoking, which threatens their health and future.

System to automate management of 4,237 real estate units

March 24, 2010

Dubai eGovernment has announced that it has integrated the Property Manager System within the Government Resource Planning (GRP) system used by Dubai Municipality’s Asset Management Department-Investment section. The department oversees the development of assets, properties and related resources within the municipality.

The GRP system is offering the Property Manager System in its capacity as the department responsible for providing shared solutions and applications for managing government-related financial, logistic, administrative, and human resource operations within the local departments of the Dubai Government. GRP provides a framework of overall integration with all planning units and systems in areas such as payroll, payments, inventory and asset management.

Property Manager System’s benefits include the automation of property leasing transactions such as application or renewal of lease contracts, transferring of applications to a third party, and the migration of rental, property and client data to a new and highly accurate system. The migrated data covered 2,542 clients, 3,395 lease contracts, and 4,237 real estate units. 

“Our deployment of the Property Manager System at the Dubai Municipality reflects our full cooperation with government bodies. It also affirms the important role of Dubai eGovernment’s shared systems in maximizing government resources and sustaining the success of the GRP system. This cooperative effort supports the enhancement of eServices and transactions covering property management and service integration in a manner that complements the goals set by the Dubai Strategic Plan 2015. Such initiatives promote excellence within government and enable public sector employees to efficiently perform their tasks, thus advancing government services that meet the highest international standards,” said Ahmed Bin Humaidan, Director General of Dubai eGovernment.

“We would like to emphasize our commitment to coordinating with Dubai’s government bodies and departments in order to further centralize eServices in accordance with the aims of the eGovernment initiative. We intend to raise the level of internal efficiency to ensure high-quality services that ease the lives of citizens, residents, visitors and tourists and reinforce Dubai’s position as a leading regional and international economic hub,” he added. 

Bin Humaidan noted that Dubai eGovernment relied on the expertise of local government personnel and the cooperation of the Dubai Municipality IT department to implement the system in a manner that further promotes electronic integration, optimizes the use of human and financial resources, and saves time, effort and money.

Meanwhile, Hussain Lootah, Director General of Dubai Municipality said: “Our adoption of Dubai eGovernment’s Property Manager System is a vital step towards our mutual goal of upgrading services and infrastructure in order to reinforce Dubai’s standing as modern city and a leading regional and global economic, cultural and social destination. We have total confidence in the capability of the new system to efficiently facilitate leasing transactions. This partnership has motivated us to exert extra effort to collaborate with Dubai eGovernment in developing solutions and high-quality services in line with the vision of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, of establishing an integrated, knowledge-based community.”

The GRP system provides the electronic infrastructure needed to achieve integration among Dubai’s government departments and bodies under the emirate’s vision of electronic transformation. The system covers the following areas: financial systems, HR administration systems, payroll systems, supply chains, asset administration and shared services system for staff management, in addition to the added-value systems such as eJob portal eLearning administration. These systems accommodate numerous eServices for the Dubai Government’s around 68,000 employees, such as presenting administrative applications, monitoring leaves, communicating with superiors, and facilitating collaborative work. These services also enhance the practical knowledge of employees, thus raising their professional experience and expertise

Dubai Opening study tours come in line with the common objective of developing leaders to achieve higher levels of success, complementing the Dubai Strategic Plan

Mr. Adel Al Shared, Executive Chairman of MBRCLD handing a trophy to Obaid Al-Shamsi, Assistant Director-General of Administrative Affairs and Services at Dubai Municipality during the ceremony.

Mohammed Bin Rashid Centre for Leadership Development (MBRCLD) Read the full story

With aims to support Dubai Municipality’s ‘Green Roofs’ Campaign, aswaaq  has allocated spaces in its centres in Al Mizhar, Mirdif, Al Warqa’a, Read the full story

Dubai Municipality honors aswaaq

DM awards aswaaq with the best Dubai Municipality Customer Award

aswaaq has been awarded the best Dubai Municipality Customer Award for implementing food safety and control procedures. The award was handed to aswaaq’s CEO, Mr. Abdul Basset Al Janahi by Salem bin Mismar, the assistant director general of the municipality’s Health, Safety and Environment Department in Dubai Municipality and Director of Food Control Department Khalid Sherif. Read the full story

Mohammed Bin Rashid Housing Establishment celebrated today the handing over of 4 villa keys in the Oud Al muteina Housing Project. The celebration was attended by a large number of officials representing various national organizations and bodies as well as all media outlets.

Read the full story

Dubai, February 11, 2008

The two-day Euro-Arab Cities Forum, which was held under the theme “New dialogue for development,” during 10 -11 February 2008 at Madinat Jumeirah concluded with the participants reiterating their determination to pursue the dialogue as the basis for a more peaceful world with a strong local self – government. Read the full story