Concrete practices in the Arabian Peninsula and the Gulf

A review of past and present concrete practices in the hot weather of the Arabian Gulf countries is presented in this paper. Several issues are discussed regarding the environmental and climatic aspects in the Gulf region and the Arabian Peninsula. It shows that not all concrete buildings in the Gulf region must deteriorate or become unserviceable or ready for demolition after short periods of service. Available options are discussed such as preparing local building codes and adopting modern technologies, etc. The paper is an attempt to shed some light on the practical approaches that engineers in this region could take. The aim is to preserve existing buildings and to increase confidence in future structures by improving their quality and performance, thus lengthening their service life in the hot weather and severe environment of the Gulf.