ICE UAE Learned Event
Masdar City – a case study in sustainable urban design
By Steve Severance
Head, Program Management and Marketing
Dubai
Wednesday, 07th February 2018
Time 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM
Level 33, World Trade Club, Sheikh Rashid Tower, Dubai
Overview
Masdar City – a case study in sustainable urban design
In 2008, Masdar broke ground on Masdar City, which aspires to be one of the world’s most sustainable urban communities. Today, the city is a rapidly growing clean-tech cluster, business freezone, and residential neighbourhood – as well as an unmistakable Abu Dhabi landmark, just five minutes from the airport.
Masdar City contains one of the largest clusters of low-carbon buildings in the world. The orientation of the city’s streets and its high-density design optimise natural shading and cooling breezes, making the outdoor environment feel noticeably cooler than other urban spaces in the UAE.
Buildings use low-carbon cement, recycled aluminium and sustainably sourced wood, and they are designed to consume 40% less energy and water compared to American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) standards. The IRENA Building at Masdar City is designed to use around 64% less energy on average than traditional buildings in Abu Dhabi.
Masdar City is currently experiencing the most rapid development in its history. More than 176,000 square metres of completed buildings are fully leased and occupied; a further 740,000 square metres of projects at Masdar City have firm development agreements in place. These include schools, offices, hotels, shops, restaurants and private homes.
About the Speaker
Steve Severance leads the Program Management and Marketing for Masdar City, a low-carbon sustainable city and clean-technology cluster in Abu Dhabi. He oversees numerous projects to ensure they meet program baselines that balance sustainability and economic requirements, as well as program controls guaranteeing each project meets sustainability, revenue, cost and schedule targets.
Additionally Mr. Severance leads the development of the technology lines of business including district cooling, mobility, and smart city initiatives. He develops new business models, execution strategies and partnerships with leading global companies to implement the technology requirements.
Mr. Severance has 20 years of experience in project and programme management, strategy consulting, financial analysis and economic development. He joined Masdar City from Booz & Company in Los Angeles, where he was an Engagement Manager. During nine years at Booz & Company, he led teams handling senior-level clients and their major projects in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. He also headed the development of operating models, governance, organisation, processes, and tools required to improve the success of these projects. Additionally, he led project teams in growth strategy, cost reduction and economic analysis.
Before joining Booz & Company, Mr. Severance served as Project Director for the nonprofit Citizen’s Network in Moldova and as a Business Consultant to the Peace Corps in Moldova. He has also worked for Sun Microsystems, Wyse Technologies and Amdahl Corp., all in California.
Mr. Severance graduated with a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from San Jose State University in California, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in in Business Administration, emphasis Finance, from Cedarville University in the United States.
Event Details
Dubai: The event will start at 6:45 PM with refreshments served from 6.30 pm.
Registration is essential and you will be required to bring along ID on the day.
CPD: This event may be considered for contributing to a recognised Continuing Professional Development (CPD) scheme as part of personal development. Delegates should check their individual scheme requirements.
Lakshmi S Modali
Operations Executive – Middle East
Institution of Civil Engineers
