We believe in providing healthy homes

BANGALORE: Perseverance. A quality which rare in this fast-paced dynamic world. Few have the courage to steadily be persistent in adhering to a course of action, a belief, or a purpose especially when in a tough business as that of construction. But, Gulam Mustafa, Managing Director of GM Infinite group, a second generation technocrat, is among those rare entrepreneurs who have had the acumen and the patience to stay in the business and drive it to become one of the most contemporary construction companies in the business today. Vyas Sivanand speaks to him about the mantra behind his perseverance and his innovative projects. GM Infinite Group began in 1962. But unlike others in the field, you have stuck to the business and have been evolving new concepts in construction. How have you been able to do so and yet be successful?We started with the construction business and have evolved over time. While in 1962, we were only into contracting, in 2003, we entered real estate business and today we are continuing with both. We have sharpened our skills in this business in every sphere. It has been difficult but our goal was to perfect ourselves and become a brand that is respected for its quality, timely delivery, innovation, price, comfort and of course location. But from a consumer point of view, I would say, they look for three fundamental but profound aspects when choosing a house - location, concept and price. With our focussed experience in the business, we have been able to provide all three while the other aspects of our expertise are value adds.  Today, the group has to its credit over 150 million sq. ft. of constructed spaces in housing, commercial complexes, office spaces, hospitals, hospitality, SEZs and education. Which project are you currently working on and how has location, concept and price been sewn into it?We are currently working on a unique project - Silver Springfield. The concept is one of its kind. While everybody is constructing conventional apartments, Silver Springfield is designed in such a way that there are six floors on each floor with a 360 degree view. So there are no common walls. The design is first of its kind Australian concept. Usually you will see window opening size to be 5-6 per cent, but we have 8ft x 12 ft which is 26 per cent open space in every flat. We believe in providing healthy homes with proper ventilation. The project will have five towers and each will have 19-storeys plus double basement ground. We will be using the Mivan Shuttering which is a Malaysian system involving Aluminium Formwork. It is  a comparatively new technology, saves cost, time and improves the quality of construction.Aluminium Formwork panels can be designed for any condition/component of building. This system is unique as all the components in a building, including slabs, floors, walls, columns, beams, staircases, balconies and window hood, are concrete and there is no need for block works or brick works.It is located strategically on Hessarghatta Main Road, which connects to the new International Airport Road. The elevated expressway and the six-lane Tumkur Road ensure easy access to the apartments. With the metro slated to begin operations from the end of this year, one can reach Silver Springfield in no time. The project is slated to be completed by 2013, which is the time the Metro will be ready.Given the unique concept and an ideal location, the pricing is the most competitive that Bangalore would have seen in recent times.What are your future projects?We are looking at 32 acres in Sarjapur Road which will again be a completely different concept. We are undertaking contracting the Middle-East. In Hebbal too, we are looking at some projects. Contracting work is going on in Chennai. We will be strategically looking at expansion considering the three fundamentals of location, concept and pricing.