Team – Design Concepts

Executive Management & Head of the Departments

Ar. Girish Shirsalkar

C.E.O. & Principal Architect

Ar. Girish Shirsalkar is the C.E.O. & Principal Architect of Design Concepts. His journey in the world of Art and Architecture began when he passed his B. Arch (Bachelors of Architecture) in the late 1977 from one of the most reputed architectural colleges in India, Sir J.J College of Architecture which is affiliated to the Mumbai University, India. Having great passion for architecture and travelled to Europe before passing to explore architecture of the world.

On his return and completing academic studies he successfully completed his apprenticeship with eminent architect Mr. Charles Correa and worked with him for short period before making it to Dubai in a British firm Fitch & Co. as an architect and gained valuable international experience.

From thereon in 1983, he founded Design Concepts, an Architectural & Engineering Consultancy firm which created structures that satisfied the clients’ ideas and expectations. The prominent landmarks created by Design Concepts are Emirates Holidays building on Shaikh Zayed Rd, Nissan M.E. H.Q. in Jebel Ali, Emirates Rugby 7s stadium on Dubai-Al Ain Rd, Cummins H.O. in JAFZA, Danube chairman’s Villa, Arabian Adventures Office Building in D.I.P., Interior designing of B.M.W. showroom Shaikh Zayed Rd, Lulu Mall in Fujairah, DNATA’s Logistics Centre in DAFZA and hundreds of completed & ongoing projects in Dubai & U.A.E.

Abi K. John

Chief Operating Officer

A Master’s degree in Project Management with a graduation in Civil Engineering and a career spanning more than 20 years, Abi is an experienced office who has worked varied organisations & sectors including a department of Kerala Government & noted firms in the Gulf.

He joined Design Concepts in 2007 in Project Management. He was later taken over in the Head Office to extend his expertise in pre-contract as well as post contract projects & coordinate with clients. In 2017, he took over the post of Chief Operating Officer.

Charru Malekar

Senior Architect

Charru is a graduate in architecture from the reputed J.J. College of Architecture, Mumbai. With a professional career of more than 40 years, he is an expert in designing & coordinating large scale projects. He is well versed with the rules & norms of the region.

He has designed & executed many prestigious projects including the extension of Dubai Museum, Al Ghurair centre, Lulu Mall Sharjah, etc. Charru is a specialist in modern form of architecture (Multi storey towers & Malls) as well as Gulf region’ traditional architecture.

Ashokkumar S.

Chief Financial Officer

Ashokkumar is Master in Commerce as well as Finance Management streams. His acumen for perfection and his sharp eye for details has made him a successful finance & administration head. Multitasking is his forte and he ably controls the company’s money power & manpower.

He looks after the new taxation formalities easily with his 12 years’ experience in accounting & finance.

Abin Boby

Chief of Structural Department

Abin Boby is Post graduate in Structural Engineering from reputed VNIT college, Nagpur, India with experience over 20 years in the Middle East, United Kingdom & India in Structural Design of High-rise buildings, Shopping Malls, Airport Terminal, Hotels, Hospitals & Commercial, etc. He holds License from Dubai and Sharjah Municipalities for Unlimited Heights.

His Expertise includes Design of RCC and Steel Structures, Peer Review of Structural Design, preparation of Value Engineering Proposals for Structural Design etc. He is adept with various Structural Engineering software’s that are used in the Industry for structural analysis and design of structures.

Nizar Basheer

Senior Mechanical Engineer

Nizar Basheer holds a Mechanical Engineering degree from India with exhaustive industry experience of 20 plus years. An expert in conceptual, schematic, detailed design for MEP packages like HVAC, plumbing, firefighting, MEP Project execution with sustainability at the core.

Added responsibilities include Construction design management, construction management, problem solving, and responses to RFIs, provide practical solutions to site issues / constraints, assist project / cost managers in techno commercial management.

A.V. Vargheese

Contracts Manager

A Civil Engineering graduate of a U.K. university, he is a Senior Quantity Surveyor who has an eye minute details. He is an expert in working as per the FIDIC standards.

Preparation of Tender BOQs, compiling tender documents, inviting & evaluating tenders, final negotiations with the contractors are his main tasks. He attends meetings on site to ensure that all commercial and contractual matters are followed to the last word.

Certifying main contractor’s payments, preparation of variation orders, evaluate & approve items procured by the client are is his routine job profile.