ABU DHABI // A parking system that uses robots is about to make its debut in the capital.
US company ParkPlus is installing its Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in a 12-storey residential building being constructed in Al Nahyan Camp, one of Abu Dhabi’s most congested areas.
The robotic car park, which has 110 spaces, is expected to be up and running in the next six months.
“The AGVs are robots used in factories to transport engines and heavy loads without human presence, but we’ve adapted it to the parking world,” said Cyrus Hodes, the managing director at ParkPlus Middle East.
“They have so far built four of the 12 floors,” Mr Hodes said. “We’re doing the automated car park in three levels underground.”
The Urban Planning Council requires all new buildings to have parking integrated into structures.
“The initial plan was to build 42 conventional parking spaces but we managed to bring it up to 110 with the AGV system,” he said.
Once the entire building is completed, ParkPlus can use the AGV system as a showcase for the region.
“We’re so excited to be able to see our system in action,” said Ahmed Alfandi, director at ParkPlus Middle East.
“A first in the UAE and the GCC, it’s going to revolutionise the parking system in the region. It’s already in the US and in Shenzhen, China.”
A driver with a parking spot takes a vehicle into a loading bay, then a guidance system parks the car.
When the driver needs the car again, he or she can request to retrieve it at a kiosk.
The car is scanned and before and after photos are taken to show there is no damage to the car. For security, there is an explosives detection system.
There is also an option to wash and cool the car before it is retrieved.
Unlike other robotic car parks with the "rack and rails" design on steel structures, multiple AGVs or robots work on concrete structures and are safer, Mr Hodes said.
“There’s never, ever going to be an accident because it’s a robot driving which knows to the exact centimetre where the spaces are,” he said. ”You’ve got multiple robots working and if part of a system breaks, the whole system carries on.”
Both Abu Dhabi and Dubai civil defence departments have approved the system. If a fire is detected, the robot immediately comes around the car where the fire is and removes the car to stop the fire from spreading.
Road safety campaigners said there was a need for any system that relieved the pressure on parking spaces.
Thomas Edelmann, founder of Road Safety UAE, said: “From a road safety perspective, we do not see a big difference in the various options of automated robotic systems.
“What we would welcome is a quick and comprehensive solution addressing the need for more parking space in Abu Dhabi, and the authorities are on the right track to tackle this.”
Its effectiveness would largely depend on how quickly parking facilities can be built, how many vehicles they can take off the cramped car parks and at what cost it will be for users, Mr Edelmann said.
“Ultimately, users want to park their vehicles or get them parked comfortably and get them returned comfortably,” he said.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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