DIVERSITY AND CREATIVITY IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT Pihl is a global civil engineering and construction group based in Denmark and is one of the country’s oldest contracting companies. Philip Yorke looks at its wide spectrum of activities and the strategy behind its success.
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ounded in 1887, Pihl is one of the largest civil engineering companies in the world and is engaged in countless major international contracts. The company works on a project-orientated basis with a flexible management structure that involves its many subsidiaries and consortiums. Pihl is currently working in 16 countries worldwide and is involved in major global projects ranging from tunnels, motorways and harbours to railways and municipal buildings. Pihl’s headquarters is located at Kgs.Lyngby, Denmark, and the company currently employs more than 3300 people worldwide.
Firm foundations It was in 1887 when a master builder in Copenhagen, Lauritz Emil Pihl, established his own construction company in the capital that the company began its journey to become one of the world’s leading civil engineering contract companies. During the years that followed, Pihl built up the business to become one of the leading construction companies in Denmark. Its fortunes were enhanced further in the 1940s by Kay Langvad, a master in civil engineering, who purchased 50 per cent of E Pihl & Son AS in 1947. The company then saw significant growth with large civil
engineering projects being undertaken in Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. His pioneering work in the 1950s and 1960s formed the basis for the company’s further internationalisation which was based on his flexible management approach. This is where individual company specialists come together to form an optimal team and where relevant experience is pooled to optimise the success of each project. It is flexibility and a commitment to creativity to achieve the best outcomes that has kept Pihl at the forefront of the global contracting industry. The success of this strategy is further enhanced by its commitment
