JEDDAH, 14 August 2004 — The National Commercial Bank (NCB) has signed a contract for the construction of two new buildings in Jeddah — an academic training building and a branch on Al-Malik Road. The structural work for the project is expected to be completed within 14 months.
Ahmad Abu Bakur Salih, the head of General Support Services at the bank, said the SR15.4 million project represented a significant transition due to the great attention the NCB was giving to training measures and developing its human resources.
The new building for the Al-Malik Road branch will be constructed according to an innovative design which reflects the new concept for client services at NCB branches.
The academic building comprises four floors and is designed to fulfill the bank’s need for additional training facilities. There will be seven halls, each spacious enough for 25 trainees, in addition to a main hall which is similar to the samples of new branches that aim to develop the practical and technical skills of the bank’s personnel in view of the latest service concepts.
The project design is distinguished by being far from conventional, and follows innovative structuring, be it the interior layout or exterior framework which employs glass and cement outline.
The building will also include administrative offices, multi-functional auditoriums, additional meeting rooms and waiting halls.
Salih said that “the project reflected the bank’s concern for the human factor and expressed its dedication to providing the proper working environment for employees and clients.
The building’s design complements the bank’s modern financing system, which is concerned with elevating the banking industry in the Kingdom.”
The NCB recently signed a contract for the construction of a new regional administrative building in an area of 50,000 m2 in the central region which will cost about SR157 million.
At present, the structural work for the Electronic Banking Service Center in Jeddah is being completed at a cost of about SR60 million over an area of 15,000 m2. The project will be completed in April 2005.
The NCB is notably one of the first national banks to lead the construction development movement in the Kingdom. Beginning with financing of projects, the bank set up a general administrative building in Jeddah in 1979, which is considered a unique structural landmark.
It has caught the attention of many international architectural organizations, and is displayed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York as one of three global projects.