Orange Business Services And Meeza Orchestrate Smart City Project In Doha, Qatar

Orange Business Services has signed a multi-million dollar consulting deal with Meeza, a Qatari managed services provider, to deliver the majority of smart services and applications at Msheireb Downtown Doha, a flagship smart cities development in Qatar and in the region.

Msheireb Downtown Doha is a regeneration project at the heart of the traditional centre of Doha that will comprise a mix of residential, commercial offices, retail outlets and hotels. Stretching over 800,000m², the district will be completed in six phases through 2018. Within the framework of the Qatar National Vision 2030, Msheireb Properties aims to develop real estate projects in Qatar that combine modernity and local tradition.

With a goal of improving the overall quality of life for Qatari citizens, Orange Business Services oversees the design of the district’s Smart City Central Command Center, which controls the smart operation of buildings and services, including security cameras, building access control, fire alarms, street lighting, automated waste collection, car parks and public announcements.

In addition, Orange has designed and operates a range of smart applications (for both PCs and mobiles) for the general public, as well as for residents. These smart applications include Apps for community services, wayfinding and online payments. The other services developed and run by Orange Business Services to help regenerate the district include smart energy management, such as smart metering, business intelligence and data analytics, a central service desk management solution and indoor geolocation infrastructure.

The full scope of the project also covers the ICT infrastructure for the district, which is managed by Meeza. This infrastructure includes the network, management of two data centres, provision of IP telephony and management of desktops in the smart ecosystem.

Perfect illustration

Béatrice Felder, senior vice president, Orange Applications for Business, explains: “Orange Business Services is delighted to partner with Meeza on one of the Middle East region’s most prestigious smart cities projects. Msheireb Downtown Doha is a perfect illustration of how the region is transforming itself and better serving its citizens. We are well placed to leverage our global capabilities, innovations and experience to support the digital transformation of the region’s economy. Orange has the advantage of being both an operator and a specialised digital services company that supports digital transformation of societies, enterprises and government bodies. We are already working on large and prominent projects in the Middle East, and Msheireb is another very strong smart cities reference for Orange in Qatar and the wider region.”

Commenting on this partnership, Mr Saad Sabah Al Kuwari, chief marketing officer of Meeza, says: “This partnership marks the start of a new era in the development of smart cities across the region and beyond. It brings about local domain technology knowledge coupled with leading multi-national expertise. We are truly delighted to partner with Orange on this landmark project, which will leave a longstanding impression on the regional and global scale.”