DUBAI, United Arab Emirates--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Al Fajer Properties (AFP) is pleased to announce completion of the superstructures for phase 1, five of its nine towers, in record time. The 5 Jumeirah Business Center (JBC) towers, once handed over, will add 2 million sq ft of office space and an additional 83,000 sq ft of retail space within the Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) Community. This tremendous achievement comes within the last 12 months since disbanding the old management team coupled with an extensive restructuring of the company.

The strengthening of the company’s balance sheet by AED 3.2 billion well before the global financial crisis makes AFP today one of the strongest developers in the local market owing purely to its decisive course of action, implemented within the first 90 days of the new management team coming on board.

Even though AFP felt the impact of the well known national cement shortage, the extraordinary efforts by Al Ahmadiah Contracting (AFP’s main contractor), enabled the project to achieve a rate of a 4-day cycle per floor for phase 1, which today has resulted in 5 towers being built in a span of twelve months. Two of the superstructures in phase 1 are currently in the process of having their construction cranes dismantled with the scheduling of all construction cranes to be removed across the 5 towers by the end of the month. Phase 1 is due for hand over in the last quarter of 2009 with deployment of phase 2 – JBC 6 and Ebony/Ivory towers, well underway.

His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Hasher Al Maktoum was quoted as saying, “We have achieved our most significant milestone to date and I am extremely pleased with the results. I would also like to thank all the various project teams involved in helping us to reach this goal since the change in management. Our results are testimony to what proper management and a Tier 1 rated construction company can achieve in record time.”

Andre Van Schalkwyk, Project Director of Al Ahmadiah was quoted as saying, “This could only have been achieved through the streamlined processes and standards created by the new management team along with effective decision making and timely execution. We are proud to be part of such a great achievement.”

AFP is the premier developer in the Dubai World DMCC Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) community and is the only developer to include a 5-floor atrium within the lobbies of its towers. Its 9 towers, situated within a free- zone, once completed will offer high-end commercial properties attracting both large local companies and multi-national organizations from around the world. The unique state-of-the-art facilities of the JBC Towers cumulatively offer exclusive freehold offices totaling a leaseable area of 3.6 million square feet and an additional 150,000 square feet dedicated to retail across all 9 towers.

Al Fajer Properties (AFP)

Al Fajer Properties LLC (AFP), was established in November 2004 as a wholly owned subsidiary of AFG (Al Fajer Group). Since then the company has built up a significant land bank of note. The company is currently in the process of developing its flagship project which consists of 9 commercial towers located in the Jumeirah Lake Towers Community. With an estimated project value of over AED 3 billion the company has positioned itself to become a leading player in the fastest growing real estate market in the world.

Al Ahmadiah Contracting & Trading (AAC&T)

A leading national contracting firm with over 35 years of widespread experience across UAE. Al Ahmadiah Contracting & Trading currently has a team of over 7000 employees comprising of qualified and highly professional Engineers, Architects, Draughtsmen in the construction industry. Armed with its own ancillary divisions for electro-mechanical, plumbing installations, wooden joinery workshops and concrete block making units. The various types of construction include palace complexes, multi-storey buildings, military facilities, medical facilities, commercial projects, communication facilities, industrial projects, luxury villa complexes, school projects, marine & off-shore projects, religious facilities, shopping malls and amusement parks.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=5965975&lang=en