DUBAI: Facilities management company Imdaad announced on Tuesday it has established a Dh60-70 million acquisition fund.
Jamal Lootah, CEO of the Dubai-based company, said the firm was looking at horizontal expansion, seeking high-margin firms specialising in areas complementing Imdaad’s existing operations.
While Imdaad would consider investments in Oman and Qatar, Lootah told a press conference at Jumeirah Zabeel Saray Hotel that the UAE would be the main focus of acquisitions.
He did not name firms on Imdaad’s radar, or say whether the firm had specific acquisition targets in mind.
Earlier this month Imdaad announced 9 per cent revenue growth for 2016, to $136 million. Describing it as a tough year, Lootah noted sector growth in the UAE was more typically 10 to 15 per cent.
In an interview after the conference, Lootah said he expected Imdaad’s growth to be above 15 per cent during 2017 because of the number of construction projects due to complete in the year, and to continue to rise as Expo 2020 approached.
He said that although the GCC’s total spend on facilities management in 2016 was around $37 billion, only 25 to 30 per cent of that went to dedicated facilities management companies.
“The main challenge is awareness,” he said. “People don’t believe in facilities management. Most of the business people, they have an in-house team doing it, which is not right for the long term.”
He said many people in the GCC believed outsourcing facilities was an added cost, but said economies of scale and digital solutions such as Imdaad’s Internet of Things management system Imtedaad would reduce costs.
“We feel sometimes Dubai is way head of many countries, where we are looking always to technology, and to the best in technology.”
