Industry Leaders Convene to Address Infrastructure Safety and Intelligence at Safe Dubai 2026

Business

Industry Leaders Convene to Address Infrastructure Safety and Intelligence at Safe Dubai 2026

Industry experts and infrastructure specialists will gather in Dubai this month for Safe Dubai 2026, a sector-focused forum examining how intelligent monitoring systems and data-driven insights are strengthening safety, resilience and lifecycle performance across major projects.

Set to take place on February 13 at the Grand Hyatt Dubai, the one-day event is being hosted by geotechnical and infrastructure health monitoring company Encardio Rite. The forum will focus on the growing role of intelligent structures, predictive monitoring and engineering analytics as the UAE accelerates large-scale construction and infrastructure development.

According to industry projections, the UAE construction sector is expected to reach $130.8 billion by 2029, driven by rapid urbanisation and continued investment in transport, utilities and urban assets. With projects increasing in size and complexity, stakeholders are placing greater emphasis on safety, sustainability and risk management across the built environment.

Safe Dubai 2026 will bring together senior engineers, asset owners, consultants and technology leaders to explore how monitoring data can be translated into practical decisions that reduce risk, improve intervention planning and support long-term asset performance.

A keynote address will be delivered by Professor Kenichi Soga of the University of California, Berkeley, who will share insights from global infrastructure projects and discuss how monitoring intelligence and engineering judgement influence real-world project outcomes.

Arushi Bhalla, Managing Director of Encardio Rite Group of Companies, said the industry is moving beyond basic data collection toward predictive, intelligence-led asset management.

“Smart construction has progressed from data collection to predictive and intelligence-driven asset management. Today’s challenge is not access to data, but the ability to interpret it in a way that improves safety, performance and lifecycle outcomes,” she said, adding that the forum aims to showcase how infrastructure intelligence is being applied across complex projects.

Industry research has highlighted the cost of inefficiencies in construction worldwide. A McKinsey study estimates that productivity gaps and fragmented insights contribute to roughly $1.6 trillion in annual losses globally, underscoring the need for integrated, data-led decision frameworks.

Organisers say Safe Dubai 2026 will centre on measurable outcomes from monitoring systems, with discussions focused on efficiency, accountability and safety as core pillars of modern infrastructure delivery and asset control.