Built to survive: Meet the CIBSE MENA Awards finalists engineering the Gulf's future

The CIBSE MENA Awards will be presented on 29 October at the W Hotel, Palm Jumeirah, in Dubai. In a climate where functioning infrastructure is a matter of survival rather than comfort, the convention offers to engineers who make these buildings work a chance to showcase innovation to the developers, investors, and occupiers who depend on them.

The shortlist for the CIBSE MENA Awards 2026 has been announced, and the winners will be revealed at a ceremony in Dubai on Thursday 29 October. The CIBSE MENA Awards shortlist provides a valuable overview of how building services engineering is evolving across the region. What stands out is the increasing emphasis on measurable performance, practical decarbonisation and operational resilience, particularly within existing buildings.

Across the Middle East, challenges such as Low Delta T Syndrome, inefficient pumping and the gradual loss of design intent continue to affect energy consumption and asset performance. Addressing these challenges does not always require wholesale plant replacement. Better data, targeted diagnostics, recommissioning and system optimisation can often deliver meaningful improvements while extending the useful life of existing infrastructure.

At a broader level, major public-sector energy-efficiency programmes in Dubai demonstrate the scale at which coordinated retrofit can contribute to regional sustainability ambitions. At the same time, developments in solar thermal technology, including applications within the hospitality sector in Ras Al Khaimah, highlight the importance of piloting, monitoring and validating new solutions, not only for energy efficiency but also for operational resilience.

Together, these themes reflect the different but complementary pathways available to the region: optimising existing systems, delivering large-scale retrofit programmes and adopting proven low-carbon technologies. The CIBSE MENA Awards provide an important platform for bringing these conversations into the wider professional community.

The opportunity is not simply to celebrate individual achievements, but to encourage the sharing of technical knowledge and help proven approaches move from isolated applications into wider industry practice. This is how the building-services profession can support a more efficient, resilient and lower-carbon built environment across the region.

The full shortlist

Projects

Project of the Year Award
Aquarabia, Qiddiya City (Ramboll); Dubai Trump Tower (Meinhardt); King Salman Park Water Treatment Complex (Egis Engineering Consultants); Sharjah Marine Research Institute, University of Khorfakkan (Arup); Zayed National Museum (WSP Middle East)

Electrical Project of the Year Award
Aquarabia, Qiddiya City (Ramboll); Dubai Trump Tower (Meinhardt); Refurbishment at The American University in Cairo (Tridonic); Wasl Tower (SEED Engineering Consultants); Water Treatment Complex at King Salman Park (Egis Engineering Consultants)

Sustainability Project of the Year Award
Mohammed bin Rashid (MBR) Solar Park, Dubai (Meinhardt); Moro Data Center Phase 3 (Meinhardt); Rixos Al Mairid Solar Thermal Decarbonisation (SolarisKit)

Mechanical Project of the Year Award
Aquarabia, Qiddiya City (Ramboll); Dubai Trump Tower (Meinhardt); Granada 1 (Design Solutions Inc); King Salman Park Water Treatment Complex (Egis Engineering Consultants); Mandarin Oriental Wasl Tower (SEED Engineering Consultants); Zayed National Museum (WSP Middle East)

Plumbing Project of the Year
Aquarabia, Qiddiya City (Ramboll); Dubai Trump Tower (Meinhardt); King Salman Park Water Treatment Complex (Egis Engineering Consultants); Staybridge Suites Dubai Plumbing Retrofit Project (DCServe Equipment Trading LLC); Zayed National Museum (WSP Middle East)

Retrofit Project of the Year Award
At Jebel Ali - The Resort, JATR (FJ Energy Solutions); Brighton College (Design Solutions Inc); Dubai Municipality Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Programme (Dubai Municipality); Enhancement of Building Elevations in Dubai Internet City, Phase 3 (Inhabit ME Ltd); Five Hotel Palm Jumeirah – Delta T Optimisation & Pumping System Performance Enhancement (DCServe Equipment Trading LLC); Nobu Restaurant (WSP Middle East)

Smart Project of the Year Award, Sustainable Façade Lighting Project of the Year, Data Centre Project of the Year – Consultancy, Sustainable Lighting Project of the Year and Data Centre Project of the Year – Contractor will be revealed at the ceremony

People

Woman Professional of the Year Award
Farah Kais (WSP Middle East); Francesca Paganini (Vertiv); Jasmin Ebin Muhammed (FujSeng Construction LLC); Maria Dautant (HLB Lighting); Rouba Nassar (AESG); Sarah Hussain Zahidi (Qcloud); Sheeba Benny (Stantec Middle East Limited); Sherien Kasban (Trilux Middle East FZCO); Surabhi Saran (AESG); Yassmin Al-Khatib (Egis)

Young Engineer of the Year
Alifya V J (Design Solutions Inc); Bushra Siddiqua Oosman (RED Engineering Design); Diyaa Tayeh (BK Gulf LLC); Esraa Hesham (Meinhardt); Fadila Rafique Wangde (AESG); John Peralta (NORR Group); Josephine Jane Joseph (AESG); Mariam Alqaydi (Arup); Reha Hansraj (Egis Engineering Consultants); Shoaib Shaik (Monarch Design Engineering Consultant); Tom Cookson (WSP Middle East); Tracy Emad Saroufil Ishak (Red Engineering)

Engineer of the Year Award – Manufacturer
Kim George Joseph (Century Mechanical Systems Factory LLC); Nizar Hamed (FJ Energy Solutions); Shaheem Khan (Watts Water Technologies Inc); Vyshakh Rajan (Century Mechanical Systems Factory LLC)

Plumbing Engineer of the Year
Athikesavan Paramasivan (AECOM Middle East Ltd); Ayman Aly (Egis Engineering Consultants); Danish Idrees (Meinhardt); Dilip Narasimha (WSP Middle East); Jitesh Gudwani (Monarch Design Engineering Consultant); Karthik Devaraj (FujSeng Construction LLC); Musharib Mohammad Khan (Subana Consultants Pte Ltd – Dubai Branch, SJ Group); Nagarajan Thanu (Consistent Engineering Consultants LLC, UAE); Satish G T (NV5)

Executive of the Year – Contractor
Samiuddin Mohammad (FujSeng Construction LLC); Satayef Kassab Bashi (Geco M&E Ltd); Talib Hussain Khan (FujSeng Construction LLC)

Graduate of the Year Award
Athiya Junaid (WSP); Hana Engida (Red Engineering Design); Ma. Fatima Bansil (Black and White Engineering); Mayam AlShehhi (WSP Middle East); Mohamed Aqeel Cheru Veedu (Egis Engineering Consultants); Momen Dawdi (Buro Happold); Zeina Iskandarani Mohamad (AESG)

Mechanical Engineer of the Year
Eleftherios Marios Vassilatos (Arup); Ghassan Almotasib (Egis Engineering Consultants); Gokul Sundaresan (DCServe Equipment Trading LLC); Kayley Lockhead (WSP Middle East); Khaled Ahmed Abd El Hamed Ahmed (FujSeng Construction LLC); Mari Manivel Ramasamy (KPM); Minhaj Mahamood (Surbana Consultants Pte Ltd); Shaaz Hussain Syed (Archcorp Architectural Engineering); Shoaib Shaik (Monarch Design Engineering Consultant); Sundaram Karuppaiah (Buro Happold); Varun Malhotra (WSP Middle East); Zain Syed (Meinhardt)

Electrical Engineer of the Year
Ahmed El Alfy (GHD); Jubin Jacob George (WSP Middle East); Khaled Fakhry (Meinhardt); Mohamed Baioumy (Egis Engineering Consultants); Osama Souf (AESG); Eby Paul (RED Engineering Design Ltd); Owais Ahmed (First Gulf Company); Prabhu Thirugnanam (Arup Gulf Limited); Rami Badaoui (RED Engineering Design Ltd); Roshan Thomas Koshy (Arab Engineering Bureau); Sujin Keyakumar Arulanathan (FujSeng Construction LLC); Tony Varkey George (Acoulite); Vishnu Venugopal (Design Solutions Inc); Zafar Shaikh (Buro Happold)

Sustainability Engineer of the Year
Aishwarya Chengappa (Egis); Dr Faisal Ghani (SolarisKit); Jayaprakash Murali (Meinhardt); Josephine Hane Joseph (AESG); Keerthana Ravikannan (BK Gulf LLC); Neetha Susan George (Trilux Middle East FZCO); Roaa Babiker (Buro Happold); Surabhi Saran (AESG)

Executive of the Year – Consultant
Abdul Ahamed Sab (Al Bawani CC); David Quinn (Egis Engineering Consultants); Imran Siddiqui (Meinhardt); Mahmoud El-Sawaf (GHD); Nicholas Byczynski (AESG); Prabhu Karuppaiah (Archcorp Architectural Engineering); Sanu Mathew (SEED Engineering Consultants)

Executive of the Year – Manufacturer will be revealed at the ceremony

Companies

MEP Consultancy of the Year Award
AECOM Middle East Limited; AESG; Buro Happold; Cundall; Design Solutions Ltd; Egis Engineering Consultants; Meinhardt; SEED Engineering Consultants; Surbana Consultants Pte Ltd; WSP Middle East

Supplier of the Year
Faisal Jassmin Industries LLC; FJ Energy Solutions; Frontier Pitts Middle East; Ecoval Trading LLC

Manufacturer of the Year Award – Technology Excellence
LEGIOMIX®evo 6003 series (Caleffi Hydronic Solutions); Rheem Centurion VRF with Hot Water Calorifier & Heat Reclaim System (Rheem Manufacturing); Vertiv™ CoolChip CDU (Vertiv); e:cue Fusion (Traxon e:cue)

Manufacturer of the Year Award – Sustainability Impact
Central Ventilation Systems (CVS); Grundfos Gulf Distribution FZE; Leminar Air Conditioning Industries LLC; Rheem Manufacturing

Vertical Transportation of the Year – Consultancy, MEP Contractor of the Year and Vertical Transportation of the Year – Manufacturer and Supplier will be revealed at the ceremony

Innovations and products

Digital Innovation Initiative of the Year – Consultants
AESG Automated Handover BOT (AESG); Automated MEP Design Suite (Design Solutions Inc); Egis MEP Hub (Egis Engineering Consultants); Intelligent Digital BIM Engineering Excellence (Meinhardt); MLEA – Machine Learning Energy Audit (CarbonCross); The Automation of Ventilation and Air Conditioning Design (Arup)

Digital Innovation Initiative of the Year – Universities
ROS Integrated BMS System (Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Dubai); Building Climate Leaders (Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Dubai); Renewable Energy Engineering (University of Birmingham, Dubai)

Embodied Carbon Initiative of the Year – Manufacturer/Supplier
CVS-Novenco; Faisal Jassim Industries LLC (FJI) – Aquaflo Pumps and Systems (APS); LEDFlex

Embodied Carbon Initiative of the Year – Consultant
Design Solutions Inc; Egis Engineering Consultants; Meinhardt

Innovative Lighting Product of the Year
Geiode Lighting; Trilux Middle East FZCO; Traxon e:cue

Be in the room on 29 October

The winners will be announced on Thursday 29 October at the W Hotel, Palm Jumeirah. The ceremony brings together the engineers, consultants, contractors and manufacturers behind the region's most demanding projects, offering a rare opportunity to engage directly with the industry leaders and innovators shaping the built environment across MENA. For those invested in the future of building services engineering, be in the room to understand the standards being set, connect with the professionals defining them, and carry those insights back into their own practice. Secure your tables and individual seats now.

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