On its second day, the International Engineering Conference organized by the Saudi Council of Engineers featured 16 sessions that addressed and presented the latest technologies in safety engineering, inspection, civil engineering, industrial engineering, water desalination, architecture, and urban heritage.
96 speakers in the protection and safety engineering track
Dr. Jamil bin Jarallah Al-Baqawi, stated that the conference featured 96 speakers who presented papers specializing in the fields of protection and safety engineering, fire safety, safety engineering management, project facility quality, operations, and construction safety, and addressed transportation, structural engineering, geospatial data, water, and civil engineering, as well as supply chain, industrial operations, quality and inventory management, water desalination, and manufacturing design and modeling, It highlighted architectural and technological heritage, as well as related standards, rules, and regulations, the future of architectural design, affordable housing solutions, and Vision 2030.
Large projects are collections of small parts
The conference featured four keynote speakers, led by former Egyptian Prime Minister Dr. Essam Abdelaziz Sharaf, who said that the conference is very important, and that engineering is a profession that turns dreams into reality and transforms ideas into tangible outcomes on the ground to serve humanity in all aspects.
In his discussion of civil engineering and surveying, and in his presentation of a paper titled “The Road: A Non-Technical Topic with an Engineering Approach,” that a new wave of engineering is emerging from the world’s need for change, noting that the current world needs to be rescued from severe confusion, and that change aims to achieve cooperation, shared development, and shared cultures, so that globalization becomes more compassionate. He explained that the role of this new engineering lies in mega-projects that bring nations together and foster a shared sense among the world’s peoples of the need for unity and understanding under the banner of mutual benefit.
Sharaf noted that large projects are made up of small parts, for achieving a grand dream requires small dreams, and the new world needs big dreams; massive development begins at the local level, and the local engineer rises to the regional and then international level. There is no way around bringing the local engineer to excellence so that cooperation reaches the highest level.
The Role of Engineering in Development
In turn, Eng. Salem Al-Hareesh, General Manager of Aramco’s Consulting Services Department, presented a paper on the role of engineering in development and Aramco’s role therein, focusing on three key areas: the importance of developing engineering standards, advancing digital technology, and utilizing nanotechnology to address numerous challenges and contribute to increasing demand for Saudi oil, praising the role of a large number of Saudi engineers who helped develop Aramco’s building code program.
Fire protection research specialist Paul River spoke about fire protection engineering, highlighting the importance of considering how a fire will behave in order to ensure building protection, implement adequate precautions, and not rely solely on code compliance.
