Established in 1976, the Bahrain-based company Universal Electro-Engineering (UNEECO) has consistently adapted and implemented innovations to meet the diverse and changing needs of the region’s electrical and electronics engineering sectors. A large portion of the groundwork for the company’s success was laid by importing products from the UK and Europe.
UNEECO, which established its first assembly plant in Salmabad, later moved to Mina Salman Industrial Area, where it operated for nearly 15 years, following which it rooted its state-of-the-art facility in BIIP at Bahrain’s Al Hidd Industrial Area.
Since then, the company has earned itself the reputation of being the leading manufacturer of Low Voltage (LV) Switchgear Products and has expanded its import portfolio.
Over the years, UNEECO tied up with various international players in the field of electrical and electronics engineering. “With these international associations, UNEECO delivers quality products and services to the society at par with global practices and standards,” said UNEECO Chairman and Managing Director, Abdulrahman Juma.
One of the companies which UNEECO represents is the UK-based Schneider Electric, which is a world-leading manufacturer of state-of-the-art low-voltage feeder pillars and fuse boards for installation in public distribution networks. These are manufactured in Scarborough, a town in north-east England.
UNEECO’s COO, Jayashankar Viswanathan, explained: “We have proudly worked with the UK for almost three decades, starting with Schneider’s GenieEvo product range. After that, specifications for certain electrical products changed in Bahrain so we shifted towards importing and selling low voltage fuse boards. Utilities providers in the Kingdom of Bahrain, to this day, prefer to use these products because of their lasting quality and reliability.
“We are very happy with our enduring co-operation with the Schneider UK team and hope to maintain a partnership with them for many years to come. All of our infrastructure contracts in Bahrain use their UK products, such as mini feeder pillars, and we are in constant contact with Schneider since we place orders regularly multiple times a week.
“We are very happy to be working with UK companies because of the quality and consistency of products. They are also very flexible; whatever we want they are willing to modify or tailor things to the Bahrain market.”
In addition to their partnership with Schneider, UNEECO imports other British-made products such as mini feeder pillars, Zettler’s advanced security systems, in particular their Thorn product line, Context Plus smoke detectors from Stockport, UK, and FG Wilson electrical generators also from the UK.
In total, UNEECO did more than GDP3 million worth of business with the UK in 2021 alone.
The company has been involved in several recognisable projects and developments using their extensive portfolio of international products. Their imports from the UK in particular were put to use on some of Bahrain’s biggest development projects. These include: AXA Insurance, Bahrain Bay, Kingdom Mall, Once Mall, Abraj Lulu, EWA, Bahrain Airport, Salmaniya Medical Complex – Accident & Emergency Hospital, IKEA, Mall of Dilmunia, Alba, Ministry of Housing, Diyar Al Muharraq, Address Hotel and Marassi NBR.
“We’ve made a clear effort to provide our clients with excellent, high-quality products sourced from the finest manufacturers, and also provide leading after-sales service. That’s what our key to success has been – our customer-centric approach and attention to their satisfaction.
“We hope to continue working with the UK for many years to come. I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for her Platinum Jubilee. Ruling for 70 years is an incredible achievement and I wish many more years of prosperity for her and her people,” Mr. Juma concluded.
