Operations management analysis of DUBAL. Class Presentation for EDIBM Course

1. Evaluation of Operations Strategy of
Dubai Aluminum Company Ltd (DUBAL)
Task 2 – Operations Management (EDIBM)
Presented by:
Harinda Weerasinghe
Murthy Ranjit Murthy
Muhammad Shabeen
Charitha Anushka
Yogeshwaran Selvarajah
Deeptha Kalana

2. Overview of DUBAL
 Dubai Aluminium Company (Dubal), is the largest aluminium producer in the Middle East and it merged with
Emirates Aluminium in 2015 to create Emirates Global Aluminium, the world's fifth-largest aluminium company
with an enterprise value of about $15 billion.
 The Company was formed in 1975, and by now is the UAEs industrial flagship which employs a workforce of
around 4000 skilled personal and representing 7% of country’s GDP.
 DUBAL’S core activity is production of Aluminum in three major forms which are;
 Foundry Alloy for automotive applications
 Extrusion-Billet for construction, industrial and transportation purposes.
 High Purity Aluminum for Electronics and Aerospace industries.
 The Company’s operations are based in Jebel Ali, supported by a Primary Aluminum Smelter, 2335 Megawatt
Power Plant, Storage/Warehouse and other related facilities.
 DUBAL satisfies over 50% of demand for Aluminum in UAE Market, and also some 300 customers in 45
countries which represent 5% of Global Demand.

3. DUBAL’s CURRENT OPERATIONS STRATERGY
 The Company’s Operations Strategy and plan is derived from its Corporate
Vision/mission which is to:
 “Provide the Global Economy with High Quality and Sustainable Material”
 & is also supported by the following self-imposed standards:
 Quest for Continues Improvement.
 Ongoing Innovation.
 Enhanced Productivity.
 Minimum Operational impact on the environment.
 Enhanced Energy efficiency.
 Green Supply Chain Principles.

4. DUBAL’s Current Operation Strategy - Material
Strategic (Core)
Materials
• Alumina
• CP Coke
• Liquid Pitch
• Backed Anodes
•Aluminum Fluoride
• Pot lining Material
• Process Materials
• Refractory Items
General
Materials
• Major equipment
spares
• Mechanical
equipment spares
•Electrical spare
•Power & Desalination
spares
•General Materials
Suppliers/Supplies
Supply
Warehouse Material to
Plant
DUBAL Berth
Jebal Ali Port

5. DUBAL’s Current Operation Strategy - Manufacturing
Information
Strategic material
From warehouse
Manufacturing Plant
Carbon Plant
7 Pot lines
1573 reduction cells 3 cast houses
Dross Plant
Carbon
Anodes
Recycle
Metal
Dross
Crucible
Information
Extrusion Billets
Standard Ingots
T.Shape Ingots
Small Ingots
Stores
External Customers
Power Plant
2350 MW
23 Gas Turbines
7 Steam Turbines
Power
Power
Power
Power
Desalination Plant
Waste Energy
Potable
Water
Sea
Water
General Material
From & To Supplies
Potable Water
From & To Sales/Distribution
To Carbon Plant &
Pot Lines
To Carbon Plant ,
Pot Lines, Dross Plant&
Cast Houses
From warehouse
PowerPower

6. DUBAL’s Current Operation Strategy– Sales & Distribution
Finished Product
from Plant
DUBAL
Storage
Facility
Customer
Base
Asia (44%)
Europe (23%)
GCC/Mena (21%)
Americas(12%)
Information from Supply &
Manufacturing
Information from Regional
Sales offices/Representatives

7. Evaluation of Effectiveness of Current Strategy
 Suppliers
 Worldwide Suppliers of materials
 Long term relationship positioning DUBAL as Customer of Choice
 On time payment to Suppliers & dedicated process for the same.
 Diversified Industry Standard Suppliers – Supported by Formal long/medium/short term
Contract Agreements.
 Company is able to have Competitive Cost Advantage while enjoying uninterrupted supply
of raw material
 JIT
 The Right Materials at the Right Time in the Right Quantity of the Right Quality at the
Right Price and from the Right Source
 TQM
 Applies latest Reduction Cell technologies such as D18+ and DX+ Ultra on Plotline
Operations, which reduces emission of greenhouse gases.
 Applies state-of-the-art, Logic Control-Pot Control System to control and monitor a group
of pots in a Pot line
 Most Technologies have been developed in house through R & D initiatives.
 Finished products undergo multiple quality checks before reaching Stores.

8. Evaluation of Effectiveness of Current Strategy
 Water
 Self Sufficient water supply met through processes of on-site Desalination plant
 Not dependent on Ground water; Sea water pumping though multi-stage filtration system
 Strategy for reducing water consumption & Recycling water
 Transportation & Logistics
 Negotiations maintained with major shipping lines to obtain best freight rates and alternative
supply.
 Air Freight & Land transportation managed by third party providers with Government support
 Effective management of logistics at the Warehouse to ensure smooth movement inwards &
outwards
 All shipments of raw material are closely monitored for timely delivery avoiding additional costs
such as demurrage.
 Close coordination maintained with plant for timely delivery of material needed.

9. Evaluation of Effectiveness of Current Strategy
 Energy
 Self Sufficient power production, based on purchased pipeline natural gas
 Additional power from Jabal Ali power plant
 Optimized Energy consumption strategy using DX Cell reduction Technology
 Customers
Relationships strengthened by
 dedicated regional sales personal stationed worldwide.
 Response to customer complaints within 24 hrs
 Talor made/Customized solutions are offered.
 Technical support provided to customers in accessing their individual requirements.
 Consultations by Technical Experts offered to customers in improving their operations /plant start-
ups.
 Marketing
 Sales & Marketing are done thru EMAL which has support from the GCC Aluminium committee &
the Government. So, good customer reach.
 Collaboration with EMAL working well to expand to new markets and acquire new customers
 All Marketing communications are grounded in Equity, honesty & Cultural sensitivity

10. Evaluation of Effectiveness of Current Strategy
 Inventory management
 DUBAL believes in successful contract & supplier management with strong purchasing
strategies for stringent inventory control.
 DUBAL Warehouse operations comprises of 2 main & 4 satellite warehouses for storage &
effective management of the Inventory
 DUBAL uses latest technology to manage the inventory control at the management agreed
optimal levels
 Effective Cataloguing is done to maintain the integrity & quality of the Inventory
 Information management
 Constant tracking and analysis of commodity prices, market conditions and competitor
performance for timely anticipating of operational changes.
 Integrated systems with customer/supplier portals for allowing access to track supplies and
orders.
 Real-time information on production components for detection of possible malfunctions in
advance.
 Transparent Information handling policy, beneficial for overall efficiency.
 Employees
 Supply Chain is managed by 125 Professionals with expertise in related fields who are
deployed at relevant departments across the operational design.
 Employees at all levels are trained on cross-functional operational aspects.
 Free voice to employees is a part of DUBAL’s ethos & integrity to its employees. DUBAL has a
in-house Employee management program for developing talent.

11. Tools currently used for Operations Strategy
 MRP
 Warehouse Inventory Control (MRP) system based on bar
cording technique which can be accessed from hand held
appliances.
 Problem Solving
 DUBAL uses Six Sigma (LSS) principles for problem-
solving.
 Balanced Score-card
 Helped in optimizing certain areas like Energy Saving,
Power consumption

12. Suggestions for Improvement
 Practices to be continued ..... No Change
 The company has been awarded with the following Certifications such as ISO 9001, ISO
14001, ISO/TS 16949, OHSAS 18001, ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 20000, ISO 50001, ISO
22301, ISO/IEC 17020, ISO 29990. These pertain to Quality Management,
Environmental, Health & Safety, Technical Specifications and Energy Management
standards
 All systems are contributing fairly on minimizing cost adding time.
 Supply Chain can be considered as Responsive and Reliable.
 It can be concluded that there is a perfect connection between the Operations Strategy
and actual Operations therefore recommended to continue with same.

13. Suggestions for Improvement
 Areas of improvement ….. Change Needed
 Climate Change is making Carbon taxes levied in some countries which have suppliers
for DUBAL. This could impact the price of raw materials. So DUBAL needs to source
alternative suppliers.
 Recommend to have tie-ups with leading software companies in view of obtaining
dedicated IT solutions, rather than attempting to develop their own.
 In view of acquiring best talent, recommend to implement recruiting Top Ranking
Engineering students from UAE Based Universities.
 In Early 2000 DUBAL’s market share was above 65% in UAE market and today it has
dropped to 50 %, as the 15% is fulfilled by Chinese and Indian Products –this could be
avoided with more market penetration & competitive pricing strategies.
 In order to diversify the market DUBAL, can expand its market presence in emerging
markets(Sri Lanka, South East Asia )
 DUBAL should continue to look for developing Technologies and applications related to
its Manufacturing of Aluminium

14. Future Sustainability of the Strategy
 Future Sustainability of current operational strategy is assured by
 Mutually beneficial Partnership based long term relationship with suppliers and
customers.
 Guaranteed Financial Returns for the stake holders which encourage continuous
investment.
 Contribution to the country’s economic system in terms of productivity growth and
employment.
 Minimal impact on environment by effective management of Gas emissions, Waste;
Zero waste to landfill; recycling; Shipping of waste
 Effective contribution to social system in working closely with communities in fulfilling
organizations CSR, whereby in return the business is viewed as an asset of the country.
 More effective Waste minimization and elimination techniques – Recycling within the
region, Secondary aluminium production Plant etc

15. Sources & References
 Building a Sustainability business at DUBAL, Report by DUBAL.
 DUBAL Corporate Review 2008/2009– Growing Stronger together by
DUBAL.
 DUBAL Sustainability report, 2010-2012 by DUBAL.
 DUBAL Sustainability report, 2008-2009 by DUBAL.
 Technology and innovation at Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) by Ali Al
Zarouni
 Balanced Score card to create a strategy focused organizational at DUBAL
by Barathan Viswanathan, Philip Thomas, Anantharaman Pichai, Nasser
Khan
 DUBAL & EGA Websites
 National Online Business news articles on EGA & DUBAL