Winning on competence Skanska Group

WINNING ON COMPETENCE

Leading global construction giant Skanska Group is investing in innovation to ensure it continues to meet the demands of its internal, residential and commercial clients. Emma-Jane Batey spoke to the MD of Skanska Sweden Jorgen Persson to find out more.

From modest beginnings in a small Swedish town, the Skanska Group has grown to become one of the world’s leading construction conglomerates, with a wide network of global subsidiaries. Today Skanska is organized in national business units, with Skanska Stomsystem in the Swedish construction unit, where it primarily supplies the concrete structures for projects for Skanska Sweden. Skanska Group was founded in 1887 and is celebrating its 125th anniversary in 2012.

Mr Persson said, “People outside the business think that Skanska is mainly in the residential and commercial construction business, and while that is an important aspect of Skanska Sweden, our civil engineering activities are as big as our commercial and residential construction activities in each of our markets.”

Multi-national presence

Active in the US, Latin America and several European countries, the Skanska Group has a multinational presence. It can call on the collective skills of subsidiaries of the Group, with each operating independently on a dayto-day basis yet with the strong infrastructure the Group provides.

Skanska Sweden is only active in Sweden, so it primarily undertakes projects in its domestic territory, with residential and commercial construction projects representing around 60 per cent of its turnover and civil engineering projects representing the remaining 40 per cent. In 2011 Skanska Sweden had a turnover of 28 bn SEK (3.5 bn Euro). Customers

include landowners, property developers and entrepreneurial organisations that want new premises. Mr Persson said, “Skanska’s main construction activities are building large-scale residential and commercial buildings and roads and bridges, including all the related engineering demands. We also produce the asphalt and concrete elements needed to support our construction and civil engineering projects.”

Managing director of Skanska Stomsystem Jorgen Persson told Industry Europe how the Swedish subsidiary fits into the National Business Unit, Skanska Sweden. He said, “We are all fully owned subsidiaries of the Skanska Group and we work together to deliver the best possible construction solution to our customers in each market. All the knowledge Skanska offers is available for our local and regional customers, so we provide a comprehensive service that utilises our exceptional know-how in large-scale construction and engineering projects.”

Skanska Stomsystem employs 400 people, which are included in Skanska Sweden’s 10,000 employees. Skanska Stomsystem generates a turnover around 800 mn SEK (100 mn Euro) annually. The company is still experiencing some challenges from the global economic crisis, although Mr Persson is feeling positive. He added, “I’m an optimist, and with good reason! We are enjoying a very strong order book and have a number of projects

that will allow us to utilise our skills and experience – and deliver an excellent result for the customer.”

Around 60 per cent of Skanska Stomsystem’s projects are internal, but these jobs are not bookmarked as internal projects. The company has to apply by tender on Skanska Group jobs the same as any other company, but with its strong history in meeting the demands of commercial and residential construction projects, it is able to rely on winning many of the projects for which it applies.

Steel and concrete structure production has been a part of Skanska Sweden’s most recent change programme. In line with Skanska’s development of its industrial processes the company has invested in its off-site pre-fabricated concrete capabilities, allowing more work to be completed off-site, saving the customer’s time and money. In 2011 it also invested heavily in a brand new concrete station to allow it to make more qualified products, providing enhanced capabilities for customers. Mr Persson added, “For example, we have invested in a technologically-advanced concrete station that allows us to integrate desired colour and surface into the concrete products, so customers can have long-lasting concrete façade quality with a huge variety of design options. This can even include the customer’s logo!”

As Skanska Stomsystem looks to continue its positive achievements into 2013 and beyond, Mr Persson explained that the company is presently looking at the possibilities of positioning itself in the market by offering an alternative built on competence and expertise to its customers. With the hope that the construction and engineering markets in which it operates will develop against more qualified construction solutions, it expects that its ability to be competitively priced and to offer exceptional expertise will see it win yet more projects. n