KUALA LUMPUR:Little is known about Teo Ah Khing but he is drawing plenty of attention in the Middle East, especially in Dubai although his works can be seen in a number of projects in Malaysia.

His company Teo A Khing Design Consultants Sdn Bhd (TAK) has undertaken master planning and architecture projects worth over US$50 billion (RM151 billion) todate, of which US$4 billion have been executed.

Among his earliest project was the Miri City Fan which he was sentimental about as most visitors to Miri will not miss it, coming into town from the airport. Among the long list of projects in Malaysia which TAK has a hand in the planning are Miri Resort City, Padang Kota (Penang), Putrajaya Masterplan, Putrajaya Diplomatic Enclave, Kuala Lumpur Flood Mitigation Project, Karambunai Integrated Resort City and Kedah Coastal Extension Propect and Port of Tanjung Pelepas.

An architect and urban planner by profession, Kuching-born Teo, 51, had his early education in Miri and went on to obtain first honours in Bachelor of Architecture. Apart from that he was also University Best Graduate, Royal Australian Institute of Architects Best Graduate and winner of the Prof Eric Daniel prize in Best Residential Design.

Teo obtained his Master of Architecture in urban design from Harvard University Graduate School of Design.

TAK started as a consultancy service company in 1993, providing services in master planning, architecture, engineering, urban design, landscape architecture, interior design, project management and quantity surveying.They then venture into the Gulf region in 2006, especially in Dubai when they were engaged to do a number of projects.

Initially it has offices in Malaysia and Singapore, and now in Dubai where the bulk of its projects are based. It also have offices in Cambodia, Tianjin (China) and Hong Kong. At one time the group employs up to 500 staff when it was involved in the construction of the new racecourse grandstand in Meydan.

TAK’s big break came when it beat a field of well-known international firms for the design of the Meydan Racecourse in Dubai to replace the old Nad Al Shiba race course.Their work caught the attention of the ruling Maktoum family and soon other projects start pouring in.

Teo was the immediate past president of the Malaysian Business Council in Dubai from 2007 to 2009. Last year TAK earned the distinction of winning the Best Malaysian Architecture and Consultancy Company Award in the Middle East.

TAK still has a site office at Meydan racecourse where it is very much involved in the big Meydan City project, of which the racecourse is just part of the integrated city.

Other TAK projects in Dubai are the Palm Deira, which is more than seven times in area than the current Palm Jumeirah where the famous Atlantis resort is situated, and Madinat Al Arab, literally means “The City of the Arabians” along the coast between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

TAK are also in talks with Chengdu city for an even bigger racing project like Tianjin and judging by Chengdu and Teo’s enthusiasm, it looks like another big job may be coming their way soon.

This article appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, April 12, 2011.