Bahrain-based Bramco Group, a pioneer in the quarrying business, has built up its reputation on stone over the last 30 years.

The company now plans to increase overall production by about 60 per cent to meet the constantly-increasing demand for stone and stone products brought about by the construction boom, says senior marketing and sales manager Probhir Rakshit.

“The market is extremely good and it is likely to be so over the next eight to10 years,” says Rakshit.

Bramco is known as one of the innovative industrial leaders of Bahrain, being involved in the country’s construction industry as well as in a host of associated industries and manufacturing and trading ventures, he says.

Since its inception in 1977, Bramco has implemented a successful programme of growth and diversification. Besides taking up projects the world over, the company has also been expanding into neighbouring Gulf countries.

In Bahrain, it has executed a number of projects in the hospitality sector and has carried out work for the Radisson SAS (lobby and restaurants) and Sheraton Hotel (cladding of columns in the lobby), six cinemas at the Seef Mall and the Bahrain Islamic Bank.

In Saudi Arabia, the company has carried out a number of projects for the royal family and prestigious hotels and other developments in Riyadh and Al Khobar.

Outside the Gulf, Bramco has targeted the US with its intricate stone work. There it has captured the niche market for religious buildings where its stone and reconstituted stone carving works have been used in projects including a mosque in New York, a church and the Venkateshwara and Swaminarayan temples (all in New Jersey), as well as in restoration work on buildings owned by US business magnate Donald Trump. Architects have also picked Bramco for its excellence in mosaic work and water-jet patterns for projects including the Marriott Hotel in New Jersey.

Bramco has set up stone fabrication facilities in Oman and Qatar (Natural Stone Company) as well as in the US (Natural Stone Depot).

Among the company’s many innovations is a proprietary product – lightweight marble with honeycomb backing, which comprises 4-mm-thick marble slabs that are cut using special diamond saws. Bramco developed this product primarily with the hotel sector in mind.

Pagebreak

“We started these special panels during 2006 and the response has been very encouraging especially from the high-end customers. We currently produce on an average 750 to 1,000 sq m per month. Over 75 per cent of our production is exported to other GCC countries and Europe.”

Some of Bramco’s prestigious projects using its lightweight marble panels are the Sheikh Isa Library, Bahrain, Grand Hyatt Hotel, Doha (wall cladding and flooring), Gulf Hotel, Bahrain and the interiors of a private yacht in Europe.

On the advantages of lightweight marble panels over ceramic tiles, Rakshit says:

“Lightweight marble panels are prefabricated in large sizes to meet customer requirements and hence does not require grouting and reduces the overall installation time. Ceramic tiles are available in standard designs and sizes but on panels any design can be created using water-jet machines.”

Rakshit points out that the company’s marble and granite processing facilities are one of the most comprehensive in the world and cover a 50,000 sq m area in Askar.

The polished granite unit can polish and cut to size 3,500 sq m per month. “We produce about 40,000 sq m of polished granite annually, of which 50 per cent is exported,” he says.

The major projects where Bramco has supplied polished granite are Al Ahli Bank, Bahrain, Bahrain Financial Harbour, Sheikh Isa Library, Al Areen Spa, Bahrain, Gulf Hotel Bahrain, Commercial Bank, Doha and many other projects worldwide

The company procures raw materials from Saudi Arabia, Oman, Iran, India, Pakistan, Italy, Spain