MEP design and build in Dubai Production City (formerly IMPZ) 

MEP design and build in Dubai Production City (formerly IMPZ): local context

Dubai Production City, formerly the International Media Production Zone, is a free zone near Al Khail Road combining residential and office towers with light industrial and media-production facilities. It was largely developed from the mid-2000s. Manolia completed MEP for a 2B+G+15 tower with gym here. Plots here are mid-sized and tightly spaced, with towers sharing service roads and neighbouring construction sites.

• Projects fall under the Dubai Development Authority (DDA) approval channel, with Civil Defence review of fire and life safety systems.
• Towers with two basement levels need car park ventilation, sump pumps, and drainage designed for groundwater and stormwater ingress.
• Office and media spaces require flexible electrical distribution, UPS-backed circuits and dedicated cooling for equipment-heavy rooms with high sensible loads.

Building types we serve in Dubai Production City (formerly IMPZ)

For high-rise towers, the work concentrates on pressure-zoned water and drainage stacks, riser and plant-room coordination, stair pressurisation and a cooling source sized for diversity across dozens of typical floors.

Scope of work

• Cooling and heating load calculations, ventilation rates, electrical load schedules, water demand and drainage fixture-unit calculations for authority and utility submission.
• Selection of the HVAC approach, whether district cooling connection, central chilled water, VRF or packaged units, based on loads, plot constraints and lifecycle cost.
• Procurement of equipment against the design intent, with submittals that keep selections inside the calculated duties rather than swapping in undersized alternatives.
• Installation, testing, commissioning and handover by the same organisation, closing the loop between design assumptions and measured performance.

Systems we install

• Ventilation, kitchen and car park extract, smoke management and stair pressurisation systems.
• Fire sprinklers, hydrants, hose reels and addressable fire alarm systems.

UAE site and climate challenges

• UAE design ambient temperatures around 46°C dry bulb with high coastal humidity drive both sensible and latent loads. We design fresh-air systems to dehumidify outdoor air properly, because under-dehumidified ventilation is the main cause of mould and sweating ducts in UAE buildings.
• Air-cooled equipment loses capacity as condenser inlet air gets hotter, and roof plant often sees air several degrees above ambient. We derate selections for real roof conditions and space units to avoid hot-air recirculation.
• VRF versus chilled water for mid-rise buildings: VRF suits phased occupancy and individual billing with no central plant, while chilled water scales better, runs quieter indoors and centralises maintenance in one plant room.

Relevant Manolia projects

Frequently asked questions