DUBAI – Eram Group, the multi-faceted business conglomerate, has signed a partnership agreement with the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Training & Development - the recognized leader in providing workforce learning solutions - to deliver ASME's courses in the Middle East. The agreement was signed by Dr. Siddeek Ahmed, Chairman & Managing Director, Eram Group, and Madiha El Mehelmy Kotb, President, ASME, at a ceremony held in Dubai last Monday at the Address downtown hotel. The announcement follows the huge success witnessed in 2013 through ASME Public Courses that were conducted in Dubai. Under the agreement, Eram Group will serve as an authorized training provider to deliver ASME's more than 300 courses to the region. The training courses, which will be conducted by world-class instructors have been specifically developed to boost technical competence and heighten managerial experience for engineers and technical professionals. “Our decision to partner with Eram Group stems from their long-standing presence and exceptional knowledge of the Middle East market,” said Kotb. “Through this partnership, ASME aims to facilitate the training and developments needs of the market.” With Global headquarters in Dubai and Regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia, Eram Group constitutes over 22 leading companies across 10 countries in the GCC, Europe and India, and is supported by a strong and multitalented workforce capable of providing innovative solutions to the market. Dr. Ahmed said “It is indeed a great honour for us and we are looking forward to collaborate with ASME to deliver their high quality training programs in the Middle East. ASME is globally known for being the leading developer of standards associated with art, science and mechanical engineering, and the ASME codes are accepted in more than 100 countries worldwide.” “ASME's broad and specialized training portfolio can be effective in the workforce nationalization drive pursued by various governments in the region. We will make every effort to reach out to the vast engineering community working in the region, and will be conducting public courses in various locations across Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait. In the near future, we will also be delivering in-house training to different organizations,” he said. The Signing ceremony was attended by Mark Sheehan Managing Director – Codes and Standards of ASME, Michael Michaud Managing Director – Global Alliances of ASME, Ibrahim S. Al Dhobaie- Deputy Secretary General of Saudi Council of Engineers, Nasar Shiha Director of Jawa petroleum Investment company, Dr. Attawi Dean of Bahrain College and several other guests and employees of Eram Group. Eram Group and ASME's partnership comes at a critical time when Infrastructure developments in the region are at an all-time high. Saudi Arabia alone is estimated to be spending $784 billion on infrastructure developments, according to Citistates' MENA Projects Tracker, while the UAE's spending is estimated at $669 billion. The same report noted that almost 60 percent of the $2.5 trillion worth of projects in the MENA region are taking place in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. — SG
