Building materials
Building materials
The boom in new real estate projects is driving up construction material costs by up to 15%
building material
UAE orders companies to revert to former building material prices Abu Dhabi
The new units will be supported by centralised finance, human capital, technology, strategy & transformation and a new projects function Abdallah Massaad
In conversation with Abdallah Massaad, Group CEO of RAK Ceramics Architecture
More architects are focusing on the carbon footprint of their building, rather than flashy features that once may have earned them a place in history books alongside great architects building and construction
The two entities launched a Beijing-based centre to explore opportunities for joint projects in research and development of the materials, which have cost, efficiency and environmental advantages over metal alternatives
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arabian Post
2 hours ago
- Arabian Post
G42 Plants Flag in London to Power Europe's AI Ambition
G42 has unveiled a new London‑based subsidiary, G42 Europe & UK, designed to amplify its AI infrastructure and services across the United Kingdom and continental Europe. The entity, co‑chaired by Omar Mir and Marty Edelman, will deliver end‑to‑end AI offerings—from advisory and model deployment to supercomputing infrastructure—for sectors including finance, healthcare, energy and manufacturing. The launch comes as G42 continues its strategic European rollout, following the roll‑out of AI compute clusters and data‑centre capabilities in France and Italy. Positioned at the heart of London, the new hub aims to serve as a local nexus for AI innovation, bridging the gulf between regulatory frameworks and technological delivery. Omar Mir, an international board member at World Wide Technology with more than two decades of experience in 5G, cloud and AI services across Europe and the Middle East, will co‑lead the initiative. His counterpart, Marty Edelman, G42's group general counsel, brings deep expertise in legal oversight and governance—a reflection of G42's emphasis on secure, sovereign deployment in regulated markets. ADVERTISEMENT Mir emphasised the vision: 'Our goal is to harness G42's proven AI expertise and localise it for European and UK businesses—fuelling digital transformation, enhancing competitiveness, and building resilient, sovereign AI infrastructure in partnership with public and private stakeholders'. Edelman added that the UK and Europe represent dynamic markets with significant scope for AI‑driven innovation, and that a London hub enables the company to align closely with local regulatory regimes. G42 Europe & UK will leverage the group's global computing backbone—comprising supercomputing nodes, data centres and AI‑modeling platforms—to deliver a full spectrum of capabilities. Services will span strategic advisory, AI model development, infrastructure deployment and managed services, all with a focus on local data sovereignty and regulatory compliance. The initiative complements G42's earlier announcements of strategic investments in AI infrastructure in France and Italy. In Italy, G42 is partnering on a €1 billion supercomputing build with iGenius, while in France it has established an AMD‑powered AI facility in Grenoble. The London operation is expected to accelerate regulatory engagement and foster partnerships tailored to the European sovereignty agenda. Analysts suggest the move is part of a broader ambition by the UAE and G42 to position themselves as credible alternatives to US and Chinese cloud and AI providers. By offering sovereign, locally governed infrastructure, G42 aims to appeal to European clients seeking secure, high‑performance computing solutions. G42's broader portfolio, including Khazna data centres, Core42 sovereign‑cloud capabilities, cybersecurity firm CPX, analytics outfit Presight and AI lab Inception, will support the London hub's operations. This integrated ecosystem underpins G42's 'Intelligence Grid', a unified platform delivering enterprise‑grade AI research, analytics and cloud services. London's strategic significance is two‑fold. As a pre‑Brexit financial and regulatory anchor, it provides a gateway to both UK and EU markets. Moreover, it enhances G42's ability to work alongside national and regional authorities in shaping next‑generation AI infrastructure and data governance frameworks. Employee responses on social media underline the positive reception. A post from G42's LinkedIn noted the subsidiary 'will drive localized AI solutions and lead infrastructure build‑outs across the UK and continental Europe,' garnering broad applauds from industry peers. Industry observers acknowledge that G42's European foothold aligns with wider trends in AI geopolitics. Investment in local compute and data sovereignty reflects growing European determination to reduce dependency on US or Chinese technology ecosystems while scaling home‑grown digital capacity.
Gulf Today
5 hours ago
- Gulf Today
India faces two years of sugar surplus, growers and officials say
India is set to produce surplus sugar for at least two consecutive years, as millions of farmers expand the area under sugarcane cultivation amid ample rainfall, boosting crop yields, growers and industry officials said. The rebound in production would allow the world's second-largest sugar producer to increase exports in 2025/26, they said, after poor rainfall cut sugarcane yields and led to two years of export restrictions. 'Sugarcane usually gives us good returns, but sometimes we can't plant it due to a lack of water,' said Umesh Jagtap as he planted the crop on a three-acre plot in Maharashtra, a leading sugar producing state in the west. 'This year, we had heavy rain in May, and the forecast says more rain is on the way. So we're planning to plant more than usual.' Farmers from Maharashtra and neighbouring Karnataka struggle to irrigate their sugarcane crop in May. This year, however, Maharashtra and Karnataka received 1,007 per cent and 234 per cent more rainfall than average, respectively. The rainfall will benefit the crop to be harvested in the 2025/26 season, starting October, and will also support planting for the 2026/27 harvest, said Prakash Naiknavare, managing director of the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF). Sugarcane typically takes 10 to 18 months from planting to harvest. As a result, farmers who began planting this month are expected to harvest their crop during the 2026/27 season. The NFCSF estimates gross sugar production in 2025/26 to rise by nearly a fifth from a year earlier, reaching 35 million metric tonnes. For the 2024/25 marketing year to September, India's net sugar production is expected to fall below consumption for the first time in eight years. This decline stems from a 2023 drought that hit sugarcane planting and forced India to prohibit sugar exports in 2023/24 and allowing merely 1 million tonnes in 2024/25. India was the world's No. 2 sugar exporter during the five years to 2022/23, with volumes averaging 6.8 million tonnes annually. 'Looks like production is set to bounce back strongly, so New Delhi will probably have no trouble allowing exports of over 3 million tonnes in the next season starting October,' said a Mumbai-based trader with a global trade house. Meanwhile Cristal Union, France's second-largest sugar and ethanol maker, on Tuesday posted a 62 per cent fall in net profit in 2024/25 to 117 million euros ($134 million), weighed down by a fall in sugar prices, and warned of weak results in the current fiscal year. Sales for the year ended January 31 declined to 2.65 billion euros from 2.8 billion the previous year, while adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by a third to 287 million euros, the cooperative said. Other European sugar and ethanol groups, including France's largest producer Tereos and Germany's Suedzucker, have also posted steep profit declines, pressured by weak European sugar prices amid high local supply and strong Ukrainian imports. Higher volumes partly offset the decline in European sugar prices and limited the fall in revenue, the group said. However, a further slide in sugar prices since the start of the year and high costs were likely to weigh on this year's results, it said. 'The Group expects sharply lower results for 2025/26, as a result of much more unfavourable market conditions and sharply rising agricultural and industrial production costs,' the group said in a statement. Meanwhile Argentina's government has increased the prices of sugar- and corn-based bioethanol for mandatory blending with fuels for local use, according to a resolution published in the Official Gazette on Friday. The Energy Secretariat, under the Ministry of Economy, set the price of sugarcane-based bioethanol at 792.122 pesos (about $0.67) per liter, up from the previous price of 788.181 pesos per liter. Meanwhile, the price of corn-based bioethanol rose to 726 pesos per liter (about $0.61), up from 722.395 pesos before the resolution was announced. The changes take effect from the date of publication in the Official Gazette and will remain in effect until a new price is published to replace them. Reuters
Arabian Post
12 hours ago
- Arabian Post
G42 Stakes Claim in Europe with London AI Hub
G42 has inaugurated a London-based subsidiary, named G42 Europe & UK, marking a strategic expansion into the continent's private and public sectors. The entity aims to deliver AI-driven solutions and collaborate with governments and industry partners to erect critical AI infrastructure across continental Europe. The new operation will be co‑chaired by Omar Mir, a board member at World Wide Technology with over 20 years' experience in 5G, edge computing, cloud and AI deployments, and Marty Edelman, G42's group general counsel leading legal and compliance strategy for its global operations. G42 Europe & UK intends to localise the parent group's 'supercomputing nodes, data centres and AI capabilities' to support end‑to‑end AI services—ranging from advisory and model development to infrastructure deployment and managed services—across sectors including finance, healthcare, manufacturing and energy. ADVERTISEMENT Omar Mir stated the goal is 'to harness G42's proven AI expertise and localise it for European and UK businesses — fuelling digital transformation, enhancing competitiveness and building resilient, sovereign AI infrastructure in partnership with public and private stakeholders.' Marty Edelman described the region as a 'dynamic market with immense opportunity for AI‑driven innovation,' emphasizing London's relevance as a hub with deep regulatory understanding. This launch follows G42's broader continental push, tied to its data‑centre and high‑performance compute announcements in France and Italy, including a €1 billion supercomputing initiative with iGenius in Italy and an AMD‑powered facility in Grenoble. That wave of infrastructure expansion reflects Abu Dhabi's growing AI footprint in Europe. Analysts view the move as part of a broader UAE strategy aimed at offering European markets an alternative to leading US and Chinese AI suppliers, positioning G42 as a sovereign‑oriented provider of AI compute services. The London hub is expected to accelerate regulatory engagement and foster collaborations tailored to the region's data sovereignty agendas. G42's portfolio of specialised subsidiaries—including Khazna Data Centers, Core42 sovereign cloud, cybersecurity firm CPX, analytics arm Presight and AI lab Inception—will underpin the expansion, offering a comprehensive suite of AI infrastructure and services. Regional demand for locally governed, secure AI infrastructure continues to grow. G42's expansion is aligned with high‑profile European initiatives, such as the Italian supercomputer and AI campus in France backed by Abu Dhabi investment. London's hub will provide direct interface with European regulators and corporate partners seeking sovereign solutions outside dominant US/Chinese tech ecosystems. G42 Europe & UK is expected to engage with national and regional bodies to support regulatory frameworks and technological standards, as it rolls out next‑gen AI infrastructure. Its services aim to blend advanced technology nodes with legal and governance oversight suited to European data and digital resilience priorities. Observers suggest the London operation not only signals G42's ambition to be a key infrastructure partner in Europe, but also frames Abu Dhabi's broader economic diplomacy. With partnerships including Nvidia, AMD and Microsoft, and high‑capacity projects like Stargate UAE, G42's European hub is expected to amplify the UAE's influence in global AI development.
