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The introduction of privatization in the Middle East has turned the region into a significant growth area for the development of water and power projects. As PB moves to establish itself there as the leader in development services, it has as an asset Dave Griffin, Group Manager for Major Power Plants at PB Power, who boasts nearly 30 years of experience working on projects in the Middle East.The Middle East market is important to PB, especially with the current proliferation of Independent Water and Power Projects (IWPP), says David Tuson, Director of Engineering, Generation, for PB Power. "Dave Griffin's vast experience in the region, sound technical knowledge of power and water projects, and project management capabilities have made him an invaluable asset. His contribution to the success of projects has been valued by clients as well as by PB."Dave graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from the United Kingdom's Luton College of Technology in 1969, after which he decided to travel, working with a number of firms on projects in Zambia (where he would meet his wife) and Saudi Arabia-his first experience in both the Middle East and in desalination plants. He joined PB in 1977 for a project in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and has specialized in the region ever since, serving on major PB efforts as resident engineer and Project Manager. Dave served as Middle East Regional Manager for Generation-where he was responsible for all power, desalination and gas line projects in the area-from 1991 to 1997, when he returned to the UK's Manchester office to assume his current position.He believes that no two power and water projects are alike-each offers its own particular challenge and opportunity to achieve success. However, very few are as successful as the Shuweihat Independent Water and Power Project in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates-PB's 2004 Project of the Year in the Constructed Projects category-for which Dave served as Project Manager.The Shuweihat plant, the largest operational IWPP in the world, includes a 1,500MW combined-cycle power plant, a 120-million-gallon-per-day (U.S.) desalination plant, 220kV and 400kV power substations and a 188-million-gallon-per-day pumping station. It also features the world's largest multi-stage flash desalination units. Among other duties, PB provided owner's engineer services to the project's developer, Shuweihat CMS International Power Company, for the plant's implementation phase, from pre-construction through completion. For more information on this project, visit the Featured Projects (http://www.pbworld.com/projects/) section. Shuweihat is certainly the most rewarding project that I have been involved with, Dave says. "From its onset, the participants were all completely dedicated to completing the project on time and within budget."He points to Shuweihat as an example of PB's global reach in obtaining the resources needed to complete a major project. He drew on personnel from offices in the UK, Middle East and South Africa.A number of significant problems arose that required additional resources-quite often on short notice-and this is where the PB family really helped, Dave says. "For a project of this size, having PB's vast personnel resources was a significant advantage.""As he looks toward the future, Dave believes that PB has to rise to the challenge of maintaining personnel with the right qualifications and experience throughout the world, especially in his native UK.In the UK, engineering is currently not attracting so many graduates, and over the past few years, the large manufacturing industries have declined. Consequently there are fewer experienced engineers in the marketplace. PB now has to address the problem of finding suitably experienced and qualified staff both for our UK offices and for site-based staff. | 