Agreement Will Enable Saudi Arabia to Leverage GIS for Improved AEC Planning and Operations

REDLANDS, Calif. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — October 10, 2022 — ROSHN, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's national real estate developer, backed by the country's Public Investment Fund (PIF), supports government efforts to increase the rates of homeownership while delivering high-quality living standards. The Saudi Arabia developer builds communities that look both to the nation's heritage as well as evolving resident aspirations. To support its vision and ongoing projects in the region, ROSHN has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Esri, the global leader in location intelligence.

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The agreement enables ROSHN to adopt Esri's suite of geographic information system (GIS) products and solutions to improve the planning and development of 200 million square meters of sustainable neighborhoods across Saudi Arabia.

"This is an incredibly exciting development for ROSHN and the wider real estate sector," said Sabah Barakat, ROSHN's chief operating officer. "As well as deploying the latest GIS applications in the development of ROSHN's new communities, we will also be collaborating with Esri to advance the concept of GIS within Saudi Arabia, including the design of commercial products to be used in the domestic market."

ROSHN's first project, SEDRA, located just south of King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, is a walkable community, with green spaces, cycle tracks, hospitals, medical centers, schools, mosques, and retail outlets. Access to Esri's GIS technology will allow ROSHN to better plan projects like this by enabling staff to analyze and visualize developments geospatially to see how projects impact the surrounding environment, determine whether they meet community needs, and build them more efficiently.

"This is an opportunity to positively impact the architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) community by recommending geospatial technology best practices and exposing AEC industry processes to the latest geospatial tools and products across Saudi Arabia," said Dr. Adel Bolbol Fernandez, Esri's regional public sector lead. "This will also support the transformation and development of geospatial practices and adoption of data standards within the region."

This MOU also aims to further enrich local contractors' knowledge of those GIS best practices, which play a key role in the nation's Vision 2030 for developing local businesses. Barakat also added that "this will empower local supply chains and place the Kingdom at the forefront of a crucial technology."

To learn more about how AEC professionals can use Esri's GIS technology, visit esri.com/en-us/industries/aec/overview.

About Esri

Esri, the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, location intelligence, and mapping, helps customers unlock the full potential of data to improve operational and business results. Founded in 1969 in Redlands, California, USA, Esri software is deployed in more than 350,000 organizations globally and in over 200,000 institutions in the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, including Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, nonprofits, and universities. Esri has regional offices, international distributors, and partners providing local support in over 100 countries on six continents. With its pioneering commitment to geospatial information technology, Esri engineers the most innovative solutions for digital transformation, the Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics. Visit us at esri.com.

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Jo Ann Pruchniewski
Public Relations, Esri
Mobile: 301-693-2643
Email: jpruchniewski@esri.com