Dubai Municipality / 2024 / Project Detail

Build in Dubai

Dubai Municipality’s construction platform. It brings more than 60 scattered government services into one portal, from the first design approval to the final completion certificate.

Overview

Build in Dubai is Dubai Municipality's construction portal. Before it existed, permits, inspections and approvals lived across dozens of separate government services, and every stakeholder had to learn a different one. I led the frontend that pulled them together, so an owner, a developer, a consultant or a contractor now follows a single journey from first design to final completion certificate.

A deep exploration of cutting-edge technologies and user-centered design principles, crafted to push the boundaries of what's possible on the modern web.

Core Mission

Develop Dubai's construction sector into a smart, sustainable, and globally advanced ecosystem.

Journey stages

User groups

60+

Service areas

BIM

Core engine

Construction Journey

Building design

Getting building permit

Building execution

Building modification and maintenance

Building usage, renting, or selling

Completion and services connection

Demolition

Types of Users

Owner

A guided path for land, permit, inspection, certificate, and property lifecycle needs.

Developer

A consolidated view of approvals, project status, legislation, and service authority coordination.

Consultant

Design validation, BIM model checking, drawings, code compliance, and consultant information workflows.

Contractor

Execution-stage permits, inspections, site preparation, night work, maintenance, and completion flows.

Find Consultants & Contractors

Consultant Information

Registered consultants, grades, activities, and ratings collected into a searchable reference point.

Contractor Information

Registered contractors, grades, activities, and ratings presented for stakeholder selection and verification.

Legislation & Guides

Al Sa'fat - Green Building RegulationsDOC 01

Dubai Building CodeDOC 02

Code of Construction Safety PracticeDOC 03

Building Advisory GuideDOC 04

Automatic checking of BIM models

BIM / E-Checking

Consultants can upload openBIM IFC models as a zip file, validate designs against Dubai BIM standards and Dubai Building Code rules, review violations in a 3D online viewer, and export BCF results back into authoring software for correction.

IFC model uploadAutomated code compliance3D violation reviewBCF issue exportDubai BIM standards

Service System Highlights

Permit01

Permit for a New Building

Obtain a building permit for a new project, including demarcation requirements before starting onsite works.

Design02

Initial Approval for Design Concept

Validate that early drawings conform to approved standards before moving into final or detailed design.

Completion03

Issue Building Completion Certificate

Certify completed construction works after technical, engineering, and requirement checks are satisfied.

Inspection04

Request Site Structural Inspection

Request structural inspections for footings, slabs, excavation, anchors, and related site milestones.

Compliance05

Building Violations Enquiry

Apply for site visits, correction verification, grace periods, or approval to reconnect services and release suspended transactions.

Demolition06

Permit to Carry Out Demolition Works

Obtain preliminary or final permits for full or partial demolition works.

The Challenge

Defining the Problem

Over 60 government services, each with its own rules, forms and legislation, had to fit inside one interface without turning it into a directory of links. Four different stakeholder types had to find their own path through it without reading a manual first.

The Solution

Crafting the Answer

I built the platform on Vue 3, with Pinia holding the cross-service state and UnoCSS keeping the styling light on dashboards that carry a lot of data. On that base I shaped persona-based flows, so each user type only ever sees the steps that apply to the stage they are actually in.

The Outcome

Permits, inspections and completion certificates that used to require several portals now run in one place, and each stakeholder follows a single path instead of learning a different system for every step.

Key Features

Architecture Design

Created the foundational frontend structure for scalability and high-performance rendering.

BIM & E-Checking

Integrated automated 3D model validation to ensure immediate compliance with the Dubai Building Code.

Stakeholder Roadmaps

Persona-driven UX that guides Owners, Consultants, and Contractors through their specific construction journeys.

Legislative Repository

Centralized access to Dubai Building Code, Al Sa'fat, and circulars with intelligent search capabilities.

Real-time Site GIS

Advanced mapping integration for precise site locating and infrastructure data visualization.

UnoCSS Optimization

Highly efficient styling engine ensuring sub-second load times for complex dashboards.

State Management

Utilized Pinia to manage complex service workflows and cross-entity data synchronization.

Visual Gallery

Technologies

Tech Stack

Every project stands on its stack. These are the tools I pick between for performance, developer experience, and something that still makes sense a year later.

Core Layer

Framework / Primary decision

Vue 3

Modern Vue architecture using composition patterns, reactive data flow, and maintainable interface modules.

Architecture fit94%

Layers

Focused building blocks

Fit

92%

Stack confidence

Scope

Capability zones

L02
State
Pinia
Predictable state management for complex workflows, shared modules, and multi-step application behavior.
Fit90%
L03
Styling
UnoCSS
On-demand atomic styling for fast, token-driven interfaces with a tiny generated CSS footprint.
Fit89%
L04
Architecture
Frontend Architecture
Application structure, module boundaries, routing strategy, and scalable patterns for long-term maintainability.
Fit95%