Autodesk Building Systems Streamlines Construction Process at Dubai Festival City


Greater productivity results in 144 per cent ROI for MEP contractors, Kharafi National

Dubai, Nov. 30, 2006 - Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) today announced that its Autodesk Building Systems software being used at the upcoming Dubai Festival City project is helping streamline the construction process and improving productivity. Autodesk, the leading software and services company for the manufacturing, infrastructure, building, media and entertainment, and wireless data services fields, has provided Autodesk Building Systems to the Kuwait-based Kharafi National, who is responsible for the mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) work at Dubai Festival City.

With Autodesk Building Systems, Kharafi National was able to reduce the drafting time per drawing and also ensured production of clear and well-coordinated drawings. As an outcome Dubai Festival City has achieved an average Return on Investment (ROI) of 144 percent as a result of significant reductions in labour costs and increased efficiency.

Autodesk Building Systems is the AutoCAD software-based building design and construction documentation application for mechanical/electrical/plumbing engineers, designers, and drafters that helps improve productivity, accuracy, and coordination.

Autodesk Building Systems has enabled Kharafi National to save significant time on project revisions with productivity tools that automate most of the revision process; minimize costly interferences and identify possible issues with powerful visualization capabilities; maintain consistent look and feel of drawings by incorporating company standards in the deployment of Building Systems and realize a positive return on investment in less than six months.

Ahmad Al Jassim, Country Sales Manager, Autodesk, Middle East, said,
"We are pleased to note that Kharafi National has been able to achieve its set objectives at Dubai Festival City using Autodesk Building Systems. For a project of the scale of Dubai Festival City, it is imperative to have an advanced solution to streamline operations and maximize productivity and efficiency to ensure that the project is completed on schedule.

"Autodesk remains committed to supporting our customers' requirements by providing them the most suitable products and solutions for designers, MEP engineers and architects," he added.

Jean Abi Aad, Corporate Engineering Manager for the Engineering Services Department at Kharafi National, said, "Using Building Systems with its powerful visual design coordination capabilities, we were able to layout the extremely complicated mechanical rooms easily knowing ahead of time whether there was an interference. It was also a lot easier for us to coordinate the plant and mechanical rooms. Autodesk Building Systems and its integrated design and documentation tools helped us considerably improve productivity, accuracy, and coordination."

Highlighting some of the advantages of Autodesk Building Systems, Al Jassim said, "Since Autodesk Building Systems links design data with other project information such as schedules and elevations, Kharafi was able to restructure work on the Dubai Festival City project by easily producing detailed sections in seconds rather than hours. When designers make a change, sections and elevations are easily updated with just a click of the mouse. This capability saves time and helps ensure accuracy in design."

About Autodesk
Autodesk, Inc. is a Fortune 1000 company, wholly focused on ensuring that great ideas are turned into reality. With seven million users, Autodesk is the world's leading software and services company for the manufacturing, infrastructure, building, media and entertainment, and wireless data services fields. Autodesk's solutions help customers create, manage and share their data and digital assets more effectively. As a result, customers turn ideas into competitive advantage, become more productive, streamline project efficiency and maximize profits. Founded in 1982, Autodesk is headquartered in San Rafael, California. For additional information about Autodesk, please visit www.autodesk.com.

About Kharafi National
Kharafi National is a Kuwait-based construction firm specializing in mechanical and electrical design and installation. Throughout the Middle East and Africa, the firm provides a variety of engineering, project management, maintenance, and construction services to governments and the private sector. The company specializes in MEP work on large commercial projects such as high-rise buildings, hotels, and airports.Autodesk is a registered trademark of Autodesk, Inc., in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders.

© Copyright 2006 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.

Contact: Alaa Tarabay, CommuniGate Middle East, Tel: +971 4 3988134, Fax: +971 4 3988137, Email:alaa@communigateme.com

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