Haby Yaqob is a seasoned architectural engineer with a passion for innovation and sustainability in the built environment. A graduate of Cairo Academy, he further specialized in Façade Engineering at the University of Bath, UK, earning certifications from CWCT and Autodesk BIM. He is a proud member of the Egyptian and Saudi Engineers Syndicates, combining technical expertise with a deep commitment to advancing sustainable practices in architectural aluminum since 2007.

In his current role, Haby collaborates with leading experts in architectural aluminum across the Greater Middle East, Europe, and Africa. His work involves forging strong partnerships with designers, architects, consultants, developers, and contractors. Whether designing an elegant sliding folding door for a luxury chalet or crafting bespoke aluminum façades for futuristic vertical cities, Haby approaches every project with creativity and precision.

As an integral part of WICONA, a brand under Hydro Building Systems and a global leader in aluminum solutions, Haby extends his influence beyond the industry. He engages actively with architecture students and academia, sharing insights and staying ahead of emerging trends in design and construction.

Sherouk Al Sayed is the Founder and Managing Partner of FTI Integrated Engineering Solutions (FTIIES), a boutique consultancy focused on the engineering, technical governance, and architectural integration of high-performance building envelopes.

With over 15 years of experience, her work connects façade engineering, façade lighting, and building façade access strategies - three disciplines too often developed in isolation, yet fundamentally interdependent in how buildings perform and endure. Grounded in the conviction that innovation has no value unless it can be built, she has advised leading developers and stakeholders across the Middle East.

Her ambition is clear: to close the distance between architectural imagination and physical reality - through integration, not compromise.

Ahmed is on a mission to help architects, façade designers, and developers to select the right glass for their projects. Ahmed graduated as a mechanical engineer and after that, he worked in the glass field. His passion is to share his knowledge in glass with the different stakeholders to help them select the right glass, making the building’s users feel comfortable and reducing the electricity consumption for a greener society. Ahmed started with Guardian as a specification manager in KSA. After that, he was the demand creation team leader in GCC and Pakistan. Most recently served as regional mega projects manager for Africa and the Middle East.

Jan Scheers is a Belgium born glass professional working as a consultant for Kuraray GmbH.

He was born in Belgium (°1964) and started working for the US chemical giant DuPont after finishing his Bachelor in Marketing. He worked for 14 years in the paints division in DuPont in various functions in logistics, quality control and R&D.

In 1999 he moved to the Glass Solutions division of DuPont where he worked in technical service, product development, marketing and sales.

Since 2014, when DuPont Glass laminating Solutions was acquired by Kuraray, Jan focused on Sales and Technical Service in various countries in EMEA.

Currently Jan is working as a sales consultant for Kuraray, responsible for the Middle East and South Africa. He is based in Dubai, UAE.

Stefan Ernler is a highly experienced façade and building envelope specialist with more than 40 years of expertise in façade engineering, fenestration, and architectural systems. As Manager, Pre-Construction Services – Middle East at Hydro Building Systems / TECHNAL, he leads technical strategy, project support, and the development of innovative building envelope solutions across the region.

Throughout his career, Stefan has held senior technical and leadership positions with internationally recognized organizations including Hydro Building Systems, HUECK, Lindner Fassaden, and Gartner/Permasteelisa. His experience spans façade engineering, curtain wall systems, technical product development, project management, and the delivery of complex building envelope solutions for landmark projects across Europe and the Middle East.

A certified Project Manager, educated at the Steinbeis Transfer Center for Technology and Management and IHK Bayreuth, Stefan is recognized for combining deep technical expertise with practical project leadership. He has played a key role in advancing façade technologies, bespoke architectural solutions, and high-performance building systems that meet the evolving demands of modern architecture, sustainability, and engineering excellence.

At Hydro Building Systems Middle East, Stefan works closely with architects, consultants, developers, and contractors to deliver innovative, technically sophisticated, and sustainable façade solutions that support the next generation of high-performance buildings.

Iman Youssri is a Director of Procurement & Value Engineering with over 25 years of experience across Egypt and the Middle East's engineering consultancy and construction sectors. She brings strategic expertise in technical specifications, quantity surveying, and cost management mastering the full project lifecycle from conception to completion.

Having led as Head of Specifications & Quantity Surveying and as Cost Manager, Iman has consistently delivered high-profile projects in hospitality, healthcare, education, and mixed-use development. She builds robust technical and procurement frameworks that mitigate risk while aligning with international standards and client budgets.

A specialist in Value Engineering and strategic cost management, Iman optimizes project expenditure without compromising quality. She excels at guiding multi-disciplinary teams through complex tender evaluations, constructability reviews, and risk workshops. Recognized as a trusted advisor, she cultivates strong vendor partnerships and delivers quality-driven, cost-efficient solutions that maximize value and client satisfaction.

Maged (Max) Ahmed joined BG&E Façades in 2014 as a senior façade engineer. After two years in the head office in Melbourne, Australia; he re-located to the Middle East where he established the Middle East presence of BG&E Façades. Since then, Max and his team have provided façade consulting services for numerous projects in the Middle East as well as Australia.

Max is a Chartered Engineer with the Institute of Engineers Australia and holds a Master’s Degree in Engineering Management from the University of New South Wales in Sydney. He has 15 years of structural and façade engineering experience and has successfully delivered projects in the commercial, residential, educational and hospitality sectors.

Max’s focus is on raising awareness of façade consulting importance across Middle East region, developing facade systems, building envelope solutions based on simplicity during construction and applying past learned lessons in the industry.

Russell is a Principal, Design Director and Cities Flex Studio Leader that undertakes large scale architectural infrastructure projects in the Gensler London office. With nearly 40 years of design experience, he has amassed a portfolio of high profile, architecture and master-planning expertise across multiple different building types in the USA, Europe and Asia. He formerly worked with SOM, AS+GG, Richard Rogers Partnership and Foster & Partners. Completing award winning, projects including, One Museum Place, Shanghai, ‘Pearl River Tower’ in Guangzhou, China, Protos Winery in Northern Spain, Glyndebourne Opera House, UK, ‘Reichstag’ Parliament Building, Berlin, Germany, 122 Leadenhall and 88 Wood Street in London UK. He has published and lectured internationally on low energy, high performance high-rise building and is a former Advisory Board Member and the prestigious Height Committee for the Council for Vertical Urbanism (formerly CTBUH). Russell has a master’s degree from Oxford Brookes University (UK) and has been a registered architect since 1988.

Arch. Iman Ghaly is a distinguished architectural executive and design leader with more than three decades of comprehensive industry experience. Currently serving as Design Director and Vice Chief Design Officer (CDO) at NGDS, The architectural in-house consultancy of NEWGIZA. She spearheads high-level architectural operations, strategic master planning, and large-scale development initiatives. Arch. Ghaly holds a Bachelor of Architecture and Engineering from the Faculty of Fine Arts at Helwan University (1992) and maintains active professional memberships with both the Egyptian Syndicate of Engineers and the Egyptian Association of Architects.

Her executive tenure at NGDS began in 2007, where she assumed a dual mandate as Design Director and Consultancy Managing Director. In this capacity, she directs multidisciplinary engineering and design teams, delivering comprehensive architectural and engineering solutions from initial conception and master planning through to intensive construction administration. Following a dedicated tenure of over two decades driving the landmark NEWGIZA project, she is currently overseeing major flagship developments for G Development, notably the premier "NEWKAIRO" project located in El Shorouk, East Cairo. Prior to her milestone leadership at NGDS, Arch. Ghaly contributed her expertise to Degla for Engineering Consultancies, managing a portfolio of premium leisure complexes and high-end residential compounds where she established rigorous standards for complex cross-disciplinary project coordination.

Arch. Ghaly’s foundational career was shaped by some of the region's most influential architectural minds. She initiated her professional journey under the mentorship of Eng. Nabil Ghaly, a pioneer of vernacular architecture in the Middle East and a prominent disciple of the legendary Hassan Fathy. She subsequently joined RDSF (Ramy El Dahan and Soheir Farid Consultants), a formative period that immersed her in the preservation of traditional Islamic art and the principles of sustainable eco-architecture long before they became modern industry standards.

Throughout her career, Arch. Ghaly has managed diverse projects across a broad spectrum of scales, from bespoke interior architecture and antique flooring to expansive luxury hospitality resorts. This extensive exposure cultivated a profound commitment to artistic detail and artisanship, which today serves as the cornerstone of her architectural approach, successfully aligning rigorous engineering precision with elevated aesthetic principles to shape complex urban landscapes.

Hazem Alzaro is the Founder and Principal Architect of Zaro Architects, a multidisciplinary design studio working across architecture, interiors, master planning, and place-led urban experiences. His work explores the façade not merely as a building envelope, but as a living threshold between identity, performance, climate, and human experience.

With projects across Egypt, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Europe, and beyond, Hazem’s practice is known for blending contextual sensitivity with bold contemporary design. Through hospitality, mixed-use, cultural, residential, and urban regeneration projects, he continues to challenge the role of architecture as a tool for storytelling, value creation, and meaningful placemaking.

At Zak World of Façades Cairo, Hazem brings a design-led perspective on how façades can move beyond aesthetics and engineering to become the architectural voice of a project - shaping perception, memory, and the relationship between buildings and the cities they inhabit, while inspiring more responsive, emotionally resonant, and future-facing urban environments.

Abdullah Faza is the Director of Fire & Life Safety – Middle East at AESG, leading a multidisciplinary team of more than 40 fire engineering professionals across the middle east. He holds a BSc (Hons) in Fire Safety Engineering from the University of Central Lancashire, UK, and is a member of IFE, UK, IOSH, UK and SCE, KSA.

With over a decade of regional and international experience, Abdullah specializes in façade fire safety, performance-based design, civil defence approvals, and complex fire engineering strategies across high-rise, mixed-use, hospitality, airport, and mega development projects.

He has led and contributed to landmark developments including Al Wasl Tower, UAE Pavilion Expo 2020, Red Sea International Airport, NEOM projects, Diriyah Gate developments, and major hospitality and mixed-use assets across the region. Abdullah is also a recognised speaker at regional fire and façade industry conferences and seminars.

Hisham Elsergany is an architect and façade specialist with 38 years of experience executing complex façade and curtain wall projects across the GCC and Egypt. His career spans landmark developments for leading developers, contactors and consultants including Habtoor Leighton, Arabtec, Carillion and Arkan.

Hisham is the only Egyptian Member of the Society of Façade Engineering (SFE - UK) and holds membership of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSCE).

A committed advocate for raising professional standards in Egypt’s façade industry, Hisham moderates the panel discussion at ZAK Egypt 2026 on technical certification and accountability in façade engineering – a conversation the industry can no longer afford to postpone.

Over thirty years experience in construction management and supervision, architectural design, quantity survey, time schedule, progress reports, quality control, coordination and follow up of various types of projects including residential, educational and commercial buildings, entertainment buildings & Landscape. Experience covers review shop drawings, tender documents, materials procurement and site support.

Sherif Abou El Liel serves as the Chief Projects Officer (CPO) at Nations of Sky, a prominent real estate development company in Egypt. He is a senior executive with extensive leadership experience in the real estate and construction sectors, where he plays a central role in shaping and delivering large-scale development initiatives.

In his position, Sherif oversees the planning, development, and execution of the company’s major urban projects, including smart city developments. His responsibilities span the full project lifecycle, from early-stage planning and design coordination to execution and delivery, ensuring alignment between strategic objectives and on-ground implementation.

He works closely with multidisciplinary teams, consultants, and stakeholders to ensure that projects are delivered efficiently, on time, and in line with quality and innovation standards. His leadership reflects a strong focus on operational excellence, structured execution, and long-term urban development vision.

Through his role at Nations of Sky, Sherif contributes to advancing modern, sustainable real estate projects that support Egypt’s evolving urban landscape and infrastructure growth.

Dr. Hany El Rashidy is a distinguished structural engineer with more than 30 years of experience in structural steel design and façade engineering. He currently serves as Head of Façade Engineering – Cairo Branch at Dar Al-Handasah (Sidara), where he leads multidisciplinary façade engineering teams delivering complex international projects ranging from major airport terminals and stadiums to high-rise towers, mixed-use developments, and iconic architectural landmarks.

His expertise covers advanced building envelope systems, structural glass, curtain walls, skylights, steel-supported façades, and tensile structures. Throughout his career, he has successfully led multidisciplinary teams and provided technical leadership on major projects across the Middle East, Africa, and Europe, ensuring excellence in design, performance, constructability, and compliance with international standards.

Architect Raef Fahmi is a recognized leading and prominent name in the ecosystem of architecture design and urban planning in Egypt and MENA region. He began working in the field of architecture after graduating from the Faculty of Engineering at Ain Shams University in 1986.

Raef Fahmi established his practice Raef Fahmi Architects in 1991, and since the beginning of his journey in the world of architectural design and urban planning, he has contributed to creating exceptional architectural projects for numerous clients and developers, in both the public and private sector inside and outside Egypt.

Raef Fahmy’s architectural works can be considered to have contributed significantly to changing the architectural concept in Egypt and the Middle East in general, and helped many real estate developments win international awards in global competitions overseen by major institutions and companies.

Raef Fahmi Architects mission has always been to push the boundaries of architectural innovation, to reimagine spaces, and to create environments that inspire and transform. With state-of-the art methods and decades of experience, RFA strives to exceed expectations, delivering designs that not only fulfill clients' needs but also elevate human experience.

Raef is also currently serving as a visiting Lecturer in the American University in Cairo (AUC), Teaching Architectural Design theories and methods.

Most recently Raef was selected as a member of the Architecture Committee of the Supreme Council of Culture among a select group of esteemed names, responsible for shaping and directing the regulations and procedures for the future of the Egyptian Built Environment and Urban development.

Marianthi Tatari is a Senior Architect and Director at UNS in Amsterdam, where she leads projects across a wide range of scales and typologies. Since joining UNS in 2007, after earning her education in Thessaloniki, Paris, and Los Angeles, Marianthi has been at the forefront of projects that emphasize design, innovation, and the creation of impactful, human-centered places.

Marianthi thrives in contexts that demand both creativity and systems thinking, where architectural vision intersects with business innovation. Her portfolio includes contributions to some of the UNS most high-profile projects, such as the Booking.com City Campus and the Architectural Branding design for the Doha Metro Network.

At IE University in Madrid, she teaches “Managing Design Businesses”, focusing on how creative ambition, strategic leadership, and innovation drive the growth and resilience of design practices.

Dr. Kamel Elfar is an Egyptian industrial entrepreneur with more than 15 years of experience in manufacturing, business development, and strategic management. He is the Founder of TechnoBond Saudi Arabia and the Founder & Owner of TechnoBond Egypt, one of Egypt’s leading companies in architectural façade solutions and Aluminum Composite Panels (ACP).

He is also the Owner of TechnoBrick Cement Industries Group and has led the development of several industrial and commercial ventures across Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. His work focuses on expanding local manufacturing, enhancing industrial competitiveness, and supporting export-oriented growth.

In addition to his business activities, Dr. Elfar is actively involved in public and economic affairs, serving as Vice President of Al-Waei Party and Head of its Central Industry Committee. He holds an MBA with Distinction and is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA), with a research focus on strategic cost management and industrial profitability.

Ahmed Wagdy is the Africa Specification and Sales Manager for Guardian Glass, a global leader in high-performance architectural glass. With a comprehensive career spanning the entire facade value chain, He began his journey on the front lines as a glazier, gaining invaluable, hands-on technical expertise. He later transitioned to the supply sector, collaborating with market-leading facade material manufacturers to deliver complex architectural solutions. Today, Ahmed Wagdy leverages this unique blend of practical craftsmanship and corporate strategy to drive innovation, sustainability, and technical excellence across the African built environment.

Eng. Mohamed Tammam is the Founder and Head of Design at Archrete Engineering Consultancy, one of Egypt's leading engineering firms. A graduate of the Architecture Department with honors, he launched his career immediately and spent over 12 years refining a bold architectural vision before co-founding Archrete in 2016 alongside Eng. Mostafa Afifi. Under his leadership, Archrete became the first consultancy to operate in Egypt's New Administrative Capital, delivering more than 150 projects and working across 1,500+ residential plots nationwide. His design philosophy, grounded in Scale Theory, gives each project a distinct architectural identity. Notable achievements include the design of the Nile Business Tower — Egypt's second tallest — and eight industry awards in two years. In 2023, Tammam expanded into Saudi Arabia, with plans to establish Archrete across all Arab markets by 2030.

Eng. Mostafa Afifi is the Co-Founder and CEO of Archrete Engineering Consultancy, a leading Egyptian engineering firm established in 2017. With a strong vision for innovation and excellence, he has played a pivotal role in transforming Archrete into one of Egypt’s prominent multidisciplinary engineering consultancies, delivering high-quality architectural and engineering solutions across diverse sectors.

Under his leadership, Archrete has expanded its footprint both locally and regionally, driven by a commitment to technical excellence, sustainable design, and continuous investment in human capital. He leads a team of more than 100 specialized engineers and professionals, delivering integrated consultancy services that cover various engineering disciplines and project development, while contributing to the creation of innovative and sustainable built environments that generate a lasting impact across the region.

Angelos Zografos is a Technical Sales Engineer in Elval Colour and holds an MBA and a Diploma in Civil Engineering. He has more than 10 years of experience in civil and structural engineering, participating in the analysis and design of structural systems, facades with etalbond and design of projects worldwide, while he has supported specifiers in the selection and use of aluminium coated products for the building industry for more than 8 years. He is also Secretary in the BOD of ELIPYKA, the Greek Institute for the fire safety of structures and a member of the Society of Façade Engineers (SFE) HUB in Greece.

Naveen oversees the strategic development of the architectural sector within the EMEA region for AkzoNobel, manufacturers of the market leading brand of powder coatings; Interpon. For over 15 years, he has collaborated with architects, façade consultants, main contractors, cladding sub-contractors and approved powder applicators on a wide spectrum of projects. In addition, he has played a central role in bringing several coating innovations into the market. Through this wealth of experience, Naveen is perfectly positioned to offer in- depth insight into the challenges, trends, and solutions that will shape tomorrow’s architectural landscape.

Leo LIU is the Structural Engineer in KIN LONG, which is the leading integrated one-stop fabrication and solution company of construction accessories & materials in China.

Since 2011, in combination with KIN LONG’s fabrication and R&D capability, Leo and his team have been specializing in design, calculation and installation of various types of facades.

Based on the rich experience in facades, Leo LIU has worked on many projects in the high standard and demanding markets, like UAE, USA, Canada, Australia, UK, etc.