BE.Europe

ACHIEVING BUSINESS EXCELLENCE ONLINE INCLUDING

british american tobacco: eldorado gold:

EUROPEAN EDITION Issue No.4

aktor: aqualogy:

Transcending water into wellbeing A global benchmark when it comes to providing water solutions for sustainable development

HERE’S WHY ONTARIO, CANADA

IS YOUR NEXT

BIG IDEA Opportunities for mineral exploration in Ontario abound. Powered by global leaders in innovation and safety standards, our mining practices are among the safest and most sustainable in the world.

With business costs lower here than in most G7 countries, Ontario suppliers are more competitive – so you can depend on quality goods and services, delivered on time, on spec and on budget. Innovation is at our core. Make Ontario your next big idea.

YourNextBigIdea.ca/Mining

$2.9B

in non-metallic minerals, including diamonds, was produced in Ontario in 2012

$2.6B in gold

$1.5B in copper

$1.4B in nickel

$787M

in other metals such as platinum and silver

Paid for by the Government of Ontario.

business excellence

Business John O’Hanlon Editor johanlon@bus-ex.com Will Daynes Editor wdaynes@bus-ex.com Matt Johnson Art Director mjohnson@bus-ex.com Louise Culling Production Designer lculling@bus-ex.com Richard Turner Director of Sales rturner@bus-ex.com Vince Kielty Director of Editorial Research vkielty@bus-ex.com

Business Excellence brings you content from leading business influencers and strategic thinkers providing inspiration and guidance to help you and your business grow.

We showcase some of the best examples of successful organisations from around the world giving you a unique insight into how they operate.

Sharon Rooke Administration & Operations srooke@bus-ex.com Matt Day Head of Technology mday@bus-ex.com Andy Turner Chief Executive aturner@bus-ex.com

Contributors Exact Software Business software developers

HINT: For the best experience, click the fullscreen icon

David Sturges Chief Commercial Operator at WorkPlaceLive

Subscriptions & Enquires info@bus-ex.com

Jacquard House, Queen Street, Norwich, NR2 4SX. England

Infinity Business Media Ltd

The content of this magazine is copyright of Infinity Business Media Ltd. Redistribution or reproduction of any content is prohibited. Š Copyright 2014 Infinity Business Media Ltd.

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features

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14

8 mining

Mining in the Scandinavian Peninsula

Some of Europe’s most important locations for mining are expected to grow in importance in the decades ahead.

14 operations

A brave new world of work How companies need to equip changing workforces with information sharing tools.

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Professional services – thrive in a genuinely global, flexible market space Two key reasons why professional services companies need the right ERP.

28 technology

How the cloud is helping companies beat cybercrime

Don’t be afraid of the cloud: your information is as safe there as in your own server - in many ways much safer.

contents

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energy & utilities: 32 Aqualogy

Transcending water into wellbeing

Aqualogy’s efforts throughout the world highlight precisely why it is positioned as a global benchmark when it comes to providing water solutions for sustainable development.

40 Tedagua

Water, water, everywhere

Tedagua is a significant player in Spain’s bid to lead the global desalination market: as its domestic market contracts the company is concentrating its efforts overseas.

50 Element Power

An elementary approach to renewable energy

40

It is in Ireland where global renewable energy developer Element Power is bringing to fruition several vital wind energy developments.

oil & gas: 58 MISTRAS Group

Enhancing life expectancy

MISTRAS Group Executive Vice President, Phillip T. Cole, discusses the group’s priceless contributions toward North Sea development over the last 20 years.

66 Offshore Marine Management (OMM) Made to measure solutions

66

Offshore Marine Management (OMM) has carved out a reputation for expertise and operational excellence in several industries, one of which being the oil and gas sector.

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business showcases

marine & shipping 74 Maersk

Riding the waves of change

As Maersk Line’s Chief Operating Officer, Morten Engelstoft explains, despite being the largest container ship operator in the world, Maersk Group continues to steer itself forward into new areas of growth.

Infrastructure:

74

86 BBT-SE

Fast track below the Alps

The Brenner Base Tunnel is one of those infrastructure projects that has an historical as well as an engineering dimension – symbolizing cross border collaboration as much as a free market in Europe.

construction: 100 aktor

Greece’s construction colossus

Greece’s largest construction company, AKTOR has grown to become a major player on both the local and international stages.

100 110

Mining & Minerals: 110 Eurostar Diamond Traders

A cut above the rest

Even in the face of challenging market conditions the sheer quality and unmatched excellence of Eurostar Diamond Traders products mean that it remains a leading global force in the diamond sector.

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contents

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120 Cobre Las Cruces (CLC)

21st Century mining

By maximizing its return on considerable investment in recent years Cobre Las Cruces (CLC) is well on the way to achieving its vision of becoming a benchmark standard in modern mining operations.

128 Eldorado Gold

138

Discipline delivers

Eldorado Gold presents itself as a low-cost gold producer with a vision to create a long-term, profitable business with healthy margins using a disciplined approach to growth.

manufacturing: 138 british american tobacco

Sparking a chain reaction

The ability to change and adapt has always existed within British American Tobacco. Arguably no other area of its business better encapsulates this quality than its Global Supply Chain.

160

160 Eti Aluminyum

Among the integrated elite

How Eti Aluminyum has channelled a great deal of effort and capital into a comprehensive modernisation programme that is now set to bear fruit.

Telecoms: 170 AirTies Turkey

Connecting the dots

AirTies Turkey CEO, Philippe Alcaras discusses how the company’s success in Turkey can act as a springboard to international expansion.

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Mining Scandinavia

The unique geology of the Scandinavian of Sweden, Finland and Norway into som mining, locations that are expected to g Words by

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Wi

Mining

g in the an Peninsula

Peninsula has helped transform the likes me of Europe’s most important locations for grow in importance in the decades ahead

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easuring approximately 1,850 kilometres in length and with a width varying between from 370 to 805 kilometres, the Scandinavian Peninsula is one of Europe’s largest. Covering Norway, Sweden and most of northern Finland, the Peninsula we see today has been shaped through history by the impact of various Ice Ages, events that have deepened its river valleys, created the famous fjords of Norway and left only a small percentage of the land arable.

The crystalline substrate of the land and absence of soil in many places have consequently exposed vast mineral deposits of metal ores, such as those of iron, copper, nickel, zinc, silver, and gold, the most valuable of which being the deposits of iron ore found in North West Sweden. It was the discovery of such deposits that brought about the building of a railroad from North West Sweden to the seaport of Narvik in Norway. From Narvik the iron ore could be exported by ship for smelting into iron and steel in other European countries, including Germany, Belgium and the United Kingdom.

To this day, Sweden, Finland and Norway remain among Europe’s elite mining nations. Indeed as of December 2009, Sweden was noted to have had

a total of 879 active deposits, while Finland and Norway possessed 343 and 160 deposits respectively.

Sweden’s mining legacy dates back more than one thousand years with the country today one of the European Union’s (EU) largest ore and metal producers, and far and away its largest iron ore producer.

Indeed almost 90 percent of the EU’s iron ore mining takes place in Northern Sweden. The country, together with Finland, also contributes significantly to Europe’s total production of gold, silver, zinc, copper and lead.

As of 2008, the production value of mining and quarrying in the Swedish part of the Barents region alone was estimated as being 2.5 billion euros, a figure that is equivalent to 66 percent of the country’s total mining production. In addition to iron ore, the active exploration for and development of Sweden’s substantial base metal and gold deposits means that mining is a direct contributor to roughly 0.3 percent of the country’s annual GDP. Unsurprisingly, given its long and successful history, Sweden’s mining sector also plays a leading role in metallurgical research and development, as well as in the development of advanced and ecological underground mining.

Much like its neighbouring country, Finland also has a long history for hosting

“In the years to come the level of activity within the mining industry across the Scandinavian Peninsula is expected to increase significantly” 10 |

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Iron Ore Mine Factory Plant in Narvik Norway

A coal mine on the side of a mountain - Mine 2b, Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway

Mining

“The continuous demand on the global mineral and metals markets has even led to some analysts to suggest that Sweden alone could triple its mining production by 2025, creating as many as 50,000 new jobs”

mining operations. Copper, nickel, cobalt, zinc and lead ores as well as chromium, vanadium and iron deposits have provided raw material for the country’s metal industry for a number of years, with significant processing and refining of copper and nickel concentrates occurring at Harjavalta, zinc at Kokkola, chromium at Kemi, and iron at Raahe.

Finland has excellent geological databases, good infrastructure and readily available exploration services.

These factors make operating in Finland attractive and cost effective, with present activity concentrated in gold, platinum group metals, base metals, diamonds and industrial minerals.

Since Finland became a member of the EU in 1995, it has enjoyed a constant exploration interest and this increased interest and seen the number of people working within the mining sector steadily expand also. Between the year 2000 and 2008 there was a near 30 percent increase in the number of people employed directly by mining and quarrying companies, taking the number up to almost 1,400 people. Furthermore, figures taken at the end of 2008 showed that almost 67,000 people were employed with companies

involved in the manufacturing of metals, machinery and equipment, areas that are all very much dependent on the success of Finland’s mining sector.

In the years to come the level of activity within the mining industry across the Scandinavian Peninsula is expected to increase significantly. The continuous demand on the global mineral and metals markets has even led to some analysts to suggest that Sweden alone could triple its mining production by 2025, creating as many as 50,000 new jobs.

Such a scenario would see Swedish iron ore production more than tripling to some 90 million tonnes annually, while volumes for other minerals could conceivably double over the same period of time as continued exploration generates additional deposits. This would create a mining sector capable of generating between three and five percent of GDP growth.

If such events do unfold in not only Sweden but also across its fellow Scandinavian nations, and there is little reason to doubt that they could, then the region stands to play a hugely important role within the mining world for many years to come.

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Operations

A brave new

world of work

Companies face losing customers and revenue unless they equip changing workforces with the information sharing tools they need to take them out of the digital dark ages Words by

John O’Hanlon

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sector in particular seems to have n a very short space of time – less spent millions on IT systems and then than a decade really – technology millions more on setting up firewalls has changed the way people live their lives. It has also changed and restrictions to access that limit their the way they work. It was in 2008 that data geographically and departmentally Kevin Roberts, the worldwide CEO of within the organisation. The fact is that Saatchi & Saatchi, told me how his the real excitement of the digital age iPhone freed him from the constraints has been dampened by the entrenched of geography, enabling him to run the conservatism of big businesses – tankers business as effectively from his home in that are turning frustratingly slowly.

New Zealand as from his office in New The problem is not just that workers York or Lancashire, where he happened to are not allowed to use personal devices be at the time. Distinctions between work for work; managers think their job is and leisure time had all but disappeared to manage, and that to manage is to from him – the technology control. Despite all the was beginning to enable a talk of empowerment different approach to work people management “It is as if we and to the very structure is seen as directing of the organisation. the behaviour of were fish, which That was five years employees, not freeing after aeons ago, since when platforms them up to pursue the for accessing information ultimate goals of the suddenly became have progressed beyond business. To do that aware of water!” what was imaginable even would mean allowing then. In another five years access to information the capability and reach of – allowing them to knowledge storage and capture systems become iWorkers, a word which (no brand will undoubtedly progress even faster. connotations here) could be defined as The futurologist James Gleick last month intelligent workers, intuitive workers, came up as he can be relied on to do, inspired workers: reliable and skilled with an elegant insight when he said: “It employees who have 24/7 access to all is as if we were fish, which after aeons the necessary information to meet the suddenly became aware of water!” Just needs of the business and its clients. imagine what will be available to us by According to new research 2018 – and imagine is all we can do. commissioned by Ricoh Europe only Roberts and Gleick are far from being four percent of business leaders would the only people who have been excited currently describe the majority of their by the possibilities linking technology staff as iWorkers. This is based on and life, of which business is just a responses from 735 senior business and part. But it seems to have been a hard IT decision makers across eight vertical sell at the corporate level. The public sectors, education, legal, utilities/

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energy, healthcare, public sector, retail, manufacturing and financial services sectors in the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium, the Nordics (Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark), Switzerland and Russia.

Things can’t stay that way. Ineffective information sharing is having an enormous impact on the effectiveness of enterprises with lost revenues, lost customers and a lack of customer insight, in that order, identified as attributable to information bottlenecks.

The people questioned predict significant change over the next five years, with 37 percent believing that by 2018 the majority of their workforce will be iWorkers.

The study also shows there are challenges to overcome prior to increasing

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“The population of iWorkers is forecast to rise significantly: the question is, are businesses ready?” the presence of the iWorker in European businesses. While almost three quarters are investing in new technologies to improve employee productivity inside and outside of the office, the majority highlight the need to review existing processes so that employees can access business critical information more easily.

Over 70 percent believe the inability to access documents from a mobile device is holding their business back, while twothirds say that unsuitable search functions are preventing employees from finding the information they need to help the business move forward. In addition 62 percent say that disjointed information silos are hindering the sharing of information.

David Mills, COO at Ricoh Europe says: “The population of iWorkers is forecast to rise significantly: the question is, are businesses ready? Business leaders are more aware than ever before of the need to further optimise the way they use technology and eliminate the information silos occurring across the business. There is an urgency to review and change traditional ways of working and keep up with technology-led change, which will continue to bring new challenges.”

Ricoh is a good example of a company that has reinvented itself to survive. Known as a supplier of equipment like copiers and fax machines – not so long ago key

Operations

vehicles for information sharing – it had to transition from its old manufacturing mindset and become a service company.

David Mills modestly describes himself as a born again photocopier salesman but he is in reality as much a futurist as James Gleick. “The next five years are as much an opportunity for Ricoh as for our clients – we are in the fortunate position of having a soft landing ahead of us.” By this he means that the company is still actually growing on the hardware side though that may not be the case by 2018.

As long ago as the 1980s Ricoh was confident that the future of the workplace was digital and set about re-engineering itself to focus on the technology that would support this vision, such as OCR, introduced in 1985. Now the company’s technology and consultancy is already helping many businesses across the globe to receive, store, search, index, digitise and extract monetary value from critical information, unlocking the power of ‘Big Data’ by making it easier to manage and understand.

It is this topic and the issues surrounding it that formed the recent research report examining the next important questions in the ‘Big Data’ challenge for European businesses. As Mills puts it: “Now is the time for organisations across Europe to optimise critical business and document processes to prepare more effectively for the future. With greater innovations and technology led-change on the way, the establishment of the iWorker as a more informed workforce is essential to realising business growth, improved business agility, efficiency, productivity and responsiveness to client needs.”

What this research confirms is that the

“The establishment of the iWorker as a more informed workforce is essential to realising business growth” majority of businesses are still in the digital dark ages. They are in no state to drive digital transformation. It’s certain that a lot more technology-led change is on the way.

Businesses will need to be able to adapt quickly to new client demands, economic conditions and to maintain a competitive advantage. To meet the challenges posed by this change, IT management should no longer be sidelined as a supporting role: instead CIOs should be given their head to influence business models, client interaction and employee productivity.

This should start with business critical processes - the number one ranked activity to impact business growth, says David Mills. “CIOs can combine technology expertise with commercial acumen to review, and change the organisation’s traditional ways of working. In turn they will gain much more than cost savings. The business will benefit from being able to move forward with a more productive and agile working model where employee knowledge sharing is enhanced and they are more responsive to client needs. In the longer term, with these strong foundations in place, the CIO can focus on the core business areas and successfully lead the organisation into a brighter digital future.” The likes of Kevin Roberts may see a bit further than this, but it would be a start.

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Professional servi genuinely global, fle

Two key reasons why professional se Words by

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Exac

Technology

ices – thrive in a exible market space

ervices companies need the right ERP

ct Software

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he professional services landscape is changing – and fast. Professional services firms are embracing the opportunity to tackle new markets, finding economies of scale in larger operations that align well with international clients. However, with increased complexity comes greater difficulty in managing the business effectively. Expansion must not come at the cost of efficiency and responsiveness.

As a result of this, it’s clear that the human shape of these organizations is also changing significantly.

Key trend 1: Internationalization Whilst small professional services firms remain in the majority, many of the businesses that dominate the sector have successfully realized growth in volume and complexity through geographical expansion. Whether organically or through M&A, they have successfully sought out new opportunities abroad and committed to creating genuine in-country presence overseas.

Diversity as a defense mechanism To have the best chance of surviving into the medium to long term, diversification can be an important part of the corporate strategy – not just in terms of the services and expertise that you’re able to offer, but with respect to physical location as well. With every country experiencing problems of some kind, not to mention the introduction of new measures and regulation to try and repair the damage, spreading an operation across borders can be an effective way to manage the risk

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and uncertainty associated with any one region or set of evolving legislation.

Fertile ground for M&A In the period following 2008, most western economies have seen a significant drop in demand for consultancy and other professional services. As belts tightened, the appetite for hiring external experts for major projects had to be decreased.

Handle it in-house, wait or forget. While successful services companies changed their priorities and business models to adapt to the changing environment, many either didn’t survive this drop in demand, or were led into significant downsizing.

This in turn provided new opportunities for the stronger businesses. Healthy companies with cash in the bank or continuing access to finance could put M&A firmly on their strategy radar. Absorbing or joining other businesses provided an effective route for companies to achieve international growth, strengthening their

Technology

“To have the best chance of surviving into the medium to long term, diversification can be an important part of the corporate strategy” position by spreading potential risk over multiple markets.

International reputation a valuable asset Firms that can source the investment needed to achieve this expansion often find an immediate advantage in tendering for work against smaller domestic companies. The prestige associated with running an international operation can be a key differentiator in competing for work with local only companies, particularly if customers have international ambitions of their own.

Green shoots sprouting from the ashes In addition to the new opportunities that are appearing as Europe evolves out of the crisis, the rest of the world also offers niches for services companies willing and able to offer services overseas. The BRIC countries, for example, are showing a thirst for ‘Western’ knowledge. Domestic enterprises are luring companies in to benefit from their experience as they look to capitalize on new markets filled with expanding businesses. German car manufacturers starting up joint ventures with Chinese automotive companies is one example, the learnings of a mature multinational the key to enabling these local operations to continue their impressive growth curves.

Both parties benefit with such an approach, the western company able to gain valuable penetration in a new sector. The local knowledge gives them a head start in overcoming the challenges associated with breaking new ground, whether economic, social or cultural. They get an open door to the economies actually achieving and maintaining growth.

Emerging markets showing signs of maturity Whereas this was initially only interesting for manufacturing and wholesale businesses, the rapid development of these markets has now made it compelling for services businesses. The relatively young companies who have excelled there are now in need of experienced management, accounting and legal advice. The combination of local presence and international experience from a trusted foreign brand can be a powerful sales tool with prospective clients. And with most of the emerging markets having invested heavily in education over the last decades, why not benefit from highly skilled individuals who are able to deliver excellent quality for a fraction of the cost associated with western professionals.

Key trend 2: Flexibility People today want greater choice than ever before, being able to make the most of their talents and their earning potential,

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“In terms of supporting this change toward greater selfemployment, connectivity and mobile technology is playing a major role” while also having greater control over their work-life balance. Traditional employment models are increasingly seen as outdated and irrelevant. More and more people are turning away from fixed employment to work for themselves.

They see themselves as products, uniquely positioned and hyper-specialized, branding their experience against specific corporate issues.

reputation is on the line. Having local skills is no longer essential, it now a realistic option to bring in a genuine specialist from almost anywhere. In line with the benefits of internationalization, a new office in Asia could still benefit from lower local salaries for the majority of employees, with specific expertise shipped in whenever it’s necessary to ensure promises to customers are kept.

Cultural shift It’s become so commonplace that some commentators have suggested a near future where payrolls consisting of 50% fully-contracted employees, and half freelancers. Despite the challenges of managing a workforce with such a large external component, this flexible set up is widely considered to offer benefits for companies of all sizes.

Underpinned by technology In terms of supporting this change toward greater selfemployment, connectivity and mobile technology is playing a major role. As the ease with which telecommunications become available further increases, it’s likely that more than 5 billion people will have access to mobile technology and internet within the next ten years. And not just within the growing collection of mega cities – broadband is coming to the rural communities of the world at pace. A global consciousness, the likes of which has never been seen before, will become a distinct reality. Insight into what the rest of the world is doing, in real time, will become practically taken for granted. And companies will be able to look for both customers, and expertise, almost anywhere.

Cost effective Despite the relatively higher fees demanded by freelance consultants, using contractors allows companies to easily adjust the payroll in line with workload, without compromising the ability to take on and deliver complex assignments.

And with their enthusiasm to make their skills count and expand their personal portfolio, the contractor will often work wherever they are required, and with the determination and commitment expected of someone whose personal

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Corporate evolution How this will affect the development of companies has been much discussed.

Technology

Many have suggested the emergence of mega-companies, conglomerates that extend their reach on a genuinely global scale. They will likely expand their portfolios to include presence in wide, diverse ranges of products and services, using their financial might and brand power to reach out to and then attract new customers.

At the same time, a further explosion of microentrepreneurs will likely be a key component in these gigantic corporate engines. They will target niche skills, using powerful interconnectivity and global communications to allow them to service practically any client anywhere.

In ‘Age of hyper specialization’ MIT’s Tom Malone suggests something similar - super specialized freelancers doing fractions of existing jobs on a global scale. Given how many work floors now have freelancers in the mix, it seems we’re already well on the way to realizing this scenario.

Indeed, flexible workforces are already a significant aspect of many smaller services firms experiencing insecurity

in the current financial climate. In harder times, working with outsourcers, subcontractors and freelancers equals ‘no projects, no costs’. Significant flexible layers in companies will become more and more common, making it easier to run a ‘skeleton crew’ when business is slow.

Personal marketing easier with ‘The human cloud’ MIT have referred to use of the ‘human cloud’ by all kinds of services businesses, platforms built by intermediaries connecting freelance professionals with corporate jobs. In addition to simplifying job-hunting for self-employed specialists, they facilitate human resources and recruitment activities for companies, often providing additional services for tracking and then managing performance and financial transactions. If this trend continues, it could soon be that company HQs regularly consist merely of management and some specialized professionals – the rest of the company’s

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“The future seems to hold the promise of increased international expansion” activities taken care of by people who are brought in as and when it’s necessary.

The importance of the right IT infrastructure The future seems to hold the promise of increased international expansion, supported at least in part by the adoption of more flexible workforces.

Global enterprises will offer high quality services, leveraging empowering digital communication to blend external niche expertise with a core of more traditional employees. That said, whatever the chances awaiting these businesses, it’s also clear that these changes will bring significant new operational pressures – for both management and IT. Get ready Any professional service business looking to continue its development and achieve growth will likely have these two areas on their strategic radar. With that in mind, what should they be doing to ensure they are ready to profit from these trends when relevant opportunities appear? How can you prepare your company for a journey in either or both of these directions? How do you compete successfully against the other companies that leverage these trends successfully?

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Technology

Choose software with international support Working in an international environment will ask a great deal from your company, both strategically and operationally.

HR alone, with employees in different countries, from different backgrounds and speaking different languages will be a major challenge. And then there’s the financial side – cross-border data management and reporting, with overall co-ordination of financial results to follow at the top level. Accounts payable and receivable may need to be managed in multi-currency, with transactions not always directly related to the country they’re realized in. How will you handle sending a Spanish consultant to a project in the UK? Invest in ERP that can support multi language, multi legislation and manage central master data from across multiple subsidiaries and you’ll be off to a great start.

Choose software with full integration Project management and administration will also need to work smoothly with the ERP system, integrated with financials to ensure minimum information leakage and maximum insight across the company.

Strong control mechanisms will need to

“The future of your company may well rest in hands outside your country” be in place, as will powerful solutions for planning and resource management to ensure you know who’s doing what, when. It will help ensure people are optimally deployed on the projects that are underway, and that it’s clear who is available for the ones sitting in the pipe.

Maybe you’ve got a consultant in France looking for work, and a project in Africa short on capacity. You need to be able to put 2 and 2 together to ensure efficient profitable use of resources.

Internationalization and flexibility – perhaps the two key themes shaping the future of professional services operations.

The future of your company may well rest in hands outside your country, hands that perhaps aren’t even on your direct payroll. Taking time to ensure the right IT structure is in place will enable businesses to benefit from the exciting opportunities these changes in the market space will certainly offer.

About the author Exact develop ERP, CRM, HR, financial and industry-specific business software for more than 100,000 customers around the world. Based in the Netherlands, where they remain market leader in the SMB segment, their on-premise, hosted and cloud solutions focus primarily on manufacturing, wholesale & distribution, professional services and accountancy companies. With offices across Europe, Asia, Australia and America, their internationally oriented products combine with local support to offer real customer value. Read more Exact business insights at: www.the-biz-box.com

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Technology

How the cloud is helping companies beat cybercrime Don’t be afraid of the cloud: your information is as safe there as in your own server in many ways much safer Words by

David Sturges

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A

ccording to a recent study by security firm McAfee and the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIC), The Economic Impact of Cyber Crime and Cyber Espionage the USA, the world’s largest economy, loses about £65 billion from cybercrimes every year including loss of key business data and intellectual property. The report also states that cybercrime costs the global economy $500 billion annually and is a main contributor for dragging down economic growth across the world.

Recent research published in the UK

by Ernst & Young, stated that cyberattacks are the number one threat for UK businesses.

The company surveyed 1,900 senior executives and revealed 96 percent of UK businesses fear their security functions are not strong enough. Furthermore, 66 percent of senior executives feel there has been an increase this year in security incidents and only four percent of UK businesses feel they are fully equipped to deal with cyber threats.

Businesses around the world are

struggling to cope with the threat of cybercrime, due to limited IT and financial resources and lack of effective security strategies. Indeed the Ernst & Young survey highlighted that 69 percent of businesses say they face budget constraints and lack skilled resources to deal effectively with cybercrime. Whilst it is impossible to prevent cybercrime, there are ways to minimise the risks.

One solution being adopted by many companies is ‘cloud computing’.

Moving into the cloud and using a reputable provider can help address security fears and ensure that a business is afforded greater protection than if they continue with their server based in-house technology.

With cloud computing the user’s physical device - whether it is a desktop PC, laptop, tablet or smart phone - loses its importance. Data can’t be stored on any device, so if it becomes corrupted in any way, it can be completely erased and reinstalled in minutes without any data being lost. Equally, software and other applications cannot be installed by users without permission as the system is locked down. This prevents anyone from

“96% of UK businesses fear their security functions are not strong enough. Furthermore, 66% of senior executives feel there has been an increase this year in security incidents and only 4% of UK businesses feel they are fully equipped to deal with cyber threats” 30 |

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erroneously downloading destructive software or installing applications which could lead to information being leaked.

It also minimises the risks of data loss if there are disgruntled employees or incidences of cyber leaks that can occur with insider knowledge.

When a company adopts cloud computing, its data and IT is managed by professional cloud computing providers who will secure it in a reputable UK data centre behind corporate grade firewalls.

They will ensure audit trails are provided and perform regular data and security backups using the latest anti-virus and spam filters – all measures that will help to protect the businesses from attacks.

There are other benefits too, including cost savings, reduced administrative and personnel overheads and a more efficient setup. Opting for a managed cloud computing service completely removes the need for a business to perform any software installation and updates, which can lead to downtime, as this is all taken care of by the cloud computing provider.

However, outsourcing confidential data to a third party is perceived to be a big step, particularly when IT has always been managed in house.

Perhaps you can never truly be sure that you can prevent a cyber-attack however, putting your IT into the hands of trusted professionals who manage it and keep it safe can reduce the risks.

About the author David Sturges is Chief Commercial Operator at WorkPlaceLive. www.workplacelive.com

5 tips when moving to the cloud 1.

Work with an accredited and trusted cloud computing service provider with a good reputation. Check they have relevant accreditations such as ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 and can provide references.

Accreditations are important as it shows the provider can demonstrate the highest levels of security.

2.

O pt for a privately managed cloud computing service, such as a Desktop as a Service (DaaS), where all data is professionally managed and stored in a secure UK datacentre behind corporate grade firewalls.

3. Make sure you differentiate between public cloud services like Gmail, Icloud and Dropbox, and privately managed services.

While such public cloud services are popular with many users, some customers may require more from their cloud service provider, such as knowing where exactly their data is actually stored.

4. Companies using public cloud services often won’t know where their data is held and so will be moving from their secure desktop environment to a potentially less secure one. The Information Commissioner’s Office stresses that companies are responsible for where their data are held, even when using third party vendors. Organisations must know where their data are held and to take responsibility for its security.

5.

Fully understand how cloud computing works and the value it could bring to your business so you can weigh up the benefits and costs.

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32 | BE Europe

Aqualogy

Transcending water into wellbeing Aqualogy’s efforts throughout the world highlight precisely why it is positioned as a global benchmark when it comes to providing water solutions for sustainable development

written by: Will Daynes research by: David Brogan

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View of La Farfana sewage treatment works in Chile

Aqualogy

A

chemical compound whose molecules are made up of one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds, it covers 71 percent of the earth’s surface and is a vital ingredient to all known forms of life. I am of course referring to water, a commodity that can all too often be taken for granted for people living in developed societies The same however can certainly not be said about Aqualogy, the global brand of integrated water solutions for sustainable development. It understands that water is essential to achieving a higher quality of life and wellbeing in society, as well as being a basic resource for productive economies on all continents. It is for that reason that the company sets out to tackle the serious challenges posed by the lack of proper water management in parts of the world by providing intelligent and innovative solutions that also help facilitate sustainable development.

It is the company’s mission to promote research based on knowledge and experience in order to respond to the current and future challenges of its customers and society, thus allowing it to become the leading figure in the development of water solutions and technologies. In striving to achieve this Aqualogy conducts itself under a strict set of values which include maintaining excellence in its performance, its commitment to innovation and the talent of its people, its ability to adapt to each individual customer’s needs, and its commitment to creating lasting value.

Aqualogy is present anywhere in the world where it is able to provide solutions to improve

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71% Of our planet’s surface is covered with water

Detail of one the installations at La Farfana

36 | BE Europe

water management. Indeed its global reach is impressive by any standards, what with 1,939 drinking water treatment plants, 264 desalination plants, 20 supply networks, 726 sewerage networks and more than 10,000 professionals based across the world.

In locations subject to shortages, such as northern Africa, the company is helping to ensure water supplies, while in Europe it is working to develop integrated solutions for the urban water cycle and serve the demanding needs of the food, energy, healthcare, tourism and pharmaceuticals sectors. Meanwhile, in Turkey it is preparing innovative initiatives that it believes will open the door to new markets.

Elsewhere, Aqualogy provides solutions tailored to the needs of its customers in the United States, Mexico and Brazil, while in Chile it has established a successful model for integrated water management. In rural Latin America it has also implemented several projects relating to water access and the promotion of efficiency in the use of water resources.

All of Aqualogy’s activities are executed using its own resources, either through public-private partnerships or in collaboration with other companies. Its four main areas of activity involve providing solutions to companies within the water sector, developing

Aqualogy

One of the installations at La Farfana

hydraulic engineering building projects, providing specialised services and solutions aimed at improving water management, and offering services based on knowledge and people management.

Examples of Aqualogy’s work have their roots in all manner of industry sectors and global regions. For instance, in Oran, Algeria, the company has installed its iDROLOC system to search for leaks in the drinking water supply network. The system itself uses helium as a tracer gas to pipelines where conventional acoustic methods cannot be used to locate leaks.

Oran is familiar territory for Aqualogy with the company previously contributing to a number of important projects including meeting the challenge of providing the population of the entire province with water 24 hours a day and modernising its water analysis laboratories.

Head west across the South Atlantic Ocean and across South America into Colombia and you will find yet more evidence of the diversified work of the company, this time in the form of its role of supervisor in the construction of a submarine outfall. Built over a period of 17 months in the city of

“Aqualogy understands that water is essential to achieving a higher quality of life and wellbeing in society�

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The Ice Pigging technological solution truck

Idroloc s

“Aqualogy aims to become a benchmark in each and every sector in which it operates and a key partner for water-related and environmental projects�

Cartagena de Indias, this outfall is the third largest anywhere in the world and completes the city’s plan to install a network of aqueducts, sewerage systems and basic treatment facilities. The outfall constitutes the most important project within the water sector for the city and means that Cartagena de Indias will become the first city in Colombia to be able to treat 100 percent of its wastewater.

38 | BE Europe

Aqualogy aims to become a benchmark in each and every sector in which it operates and a key partner for water-related and environmental projects. To do so Aqualogy offers its customers its solutions and technologies, in order to provide a highquality service, adapted to suit their needs.

The company presently focus its efforts here on three important value drivers.

They are the optimisation of the amount of

Aqualogy

system, centred on leak location

water required in a given process, in order to draw up contingency plans and water source studies; the quality of the water and the environmental impact, from the prior treatment of process water to wastewater treatment; and the optimisation of waterrelated operations, with the operation and maintenance of assets and the supply of materials and products.

Come 2050, it is expected that the world’s population will have reached approximately nine billion people, the majority of whom will remain concentrated in large metropolises.

Combine this with the effects of climate change and it appears inevitable that water will increasingly become one of the most valued and sought after assets on earth, when it comes to both domestic consumption and

View of La Farfana

use in agriculture, industry and services.

Aqualogy understands that in facing such a future it is imperative that sustainable water management models continue to be promoted. This will enable water to remain available to the entire population that encourages wellbeing and economic development. This has been Aqualogy’s fundamental aim since the day it was created, therefore it stands to reason that every decision it makes or project it takes on going forward will be designed to achieve a future where H2O continues to flow.

For more information about Aqualogy visit: www.aqualogy.net

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Water, water,

Tedagua is a significant player in Spain’s b as its domestic market contracts the comp

written by: John O’Hanlon |

40 | BE Europe

Tedagua

, everywhere

bid to lead the global desalination market: pany is concentrating its efforts overseas

| research by: David Brogan

BE Europe | 41

Tedagua

T

Tertiary Treatment of the WWTP of Altona (Melbourne, Australia)

he Ancient Mariner complained abut the lack of drinking water on his ship in 1798 but fails to mention (perhaps Coleridge didn’t know) that Samuel Pepys had requested one of his naval captains to carry out “… an Experiment of producing fresh water (at Sea) out of Salt” as early as 1684. The outcome of that is not known, but it can’t have been that successful as onboard desalination doesn’t seem to have progressed much until the invention of the multi-stage flash (MSV) distillation process in 1955.

The desalination industry has grown exponentially: so has the water treatment industry, particularly in emerging markets But the technology and the market are constantly changing. One of the most agile players in this market since it was founded in the Canaries 1983 is Tedagua (Técnicas de Desalinización de Aguas SA). It started out as a small company but was acquired in 2001 by the leading Spanish infrastructure group ACS and was incorporated into the Cobra Group, which operates in the field of green energy. Tedagua was established due to the need for drinking water in the Canary Islands. Thanks to the support of Cobra, Tedagua has had the opportunity to grow substantially and is now one of the biggest and most respected water companies in Spain, and globally. The company now has permanent locations in all 5 continents, and is an international leader in the design, construction, operation, maintenance and engineering of desalination plants, systems for producing drinking water from brackish feedwater, and plants for recycling water

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from sewerage feedwater. The company is also a leader in the design and construction of plants for treating and reusing urban and industrial waste for electricity generation. It has delivered more than 150 water treatment plants with a global capacity of 2,400,000 cubic metres per day.

One of the main reasons for the company’s success is the support it has received from its collaboration with Cobra Group, as it has been

awarded projects it would not have been able to handle before the collaboration. An example of such a project is the water treatment plant in Lima, Peru, which we discuss below. Today Tedagua has the capacity to act as a global player, says its CEO Miguel Ángel Fernández.

“This is why today, whenever the opportunity arises to bid for a new contract, in a new country, we rarely turn it down. And once we have worked in a new territory we like to

“Whenever the opportunity arises to bid for a new contract, in a new country, we rarely turn it down” 44 | BE Europe

Tedagua

Installation of the submarine infall of the WWTP of Taboada (Lima, Peru)

set down a permanent base innumerable cities and there.” Because of different countries across the world – to name only a few it has legislation and regulations installed plants in Australia, it is always difficult to start Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Panama, a project in a new country, Year Tedagua Costa Rica, Central America, he adds, but the culture of was founded Tedagua is to be very proactive the Caribbean and Africa. rather than risk-averse when One really important it comes to expansion. current project is to build The success of this strategy is largely down the largest wastewater treatment plant in to the company’s greatest asset, its people, South America in Lima, Peru. Lima claims who show great personal commitment in Mr to be the world’s second biggest desert city Fernández’s opinion. “I think our excellent after Cairo. Operations began at he Taboada technicians are a really important element WWPT in February this year, and the plant in giving us an edge over our competitors.” will boost the treatment of sewage water in The can-do culture that they demonstrate Lima and the neighbouring city of Callao. has gone a long way to establish Tedagua Until now, most of the sewage water from as a truly global company, operating in Lima and Callao, with a population of over

1983

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nine million, has been sent out to sea without any prior treatment or filtering — 20 cubic meters of raw sewage per second. The new plant will deal with an average flow of 14, and peaks of 20 cubic metres per second. No chemicals or disinfectants are used in the treatment process, and after several stages of treatment, the water will be sent out to sea along a 3.5 kilometre underground pipeline.

This year the company has also signed a contract to improve the drinking water systems in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

These three projects alone demonstrate the global scale of the company, but this has been built up over a period of time with many small desalination plants executed for hotel complexes or small farms in the Canary Islands, the large sea water

“I think our excellent technicians are a really important element in giving us an edge over our competitors�

Beni Saf Desalination Plant (Algerie)

46 | BE Europe

Tedagua

WWTP of the city of Escatrón (Spain) with the Combined Cycle constructed by Cobra Group at the end

desalination plants of Escombreras in Spain or Skikda and Beni Saf in Algeria and tertiary treatment plants such as the RWTP in Altona, a suburb of Melbourne, Australia or the WWTP at Taboada in Lima (Peru), the largest in South America.

North African countries like Algeria have never had enough water for their people. The World Health Organization considers Algeria to be “water stressed” and desalination is a significant part of its water solution. The Beni Saf desalination plant went into operation in 2010, a facility designed to produce 200,000 cubic metres of quality water to cover the

needs of a population of 750,000 from the region of Oran and neighbouring areas.

Tedagua was the main contractor for the design and construction stages of the plant and subsequently assumed responsibility for its current task of management and maintenance of the facility over a 25-year period.

So the first decade of this century has been good for Tedagua, says Fernández. But the emphasis is now moving away from the domestic market. “From our point of view the AGUA programme has effectively come to an end, and the opportunities that arise in

BE Europe | 47

Construction of one of the seven sand removals of the WWTP of Taboada (Lima, Peru)

Tedagua

2,400,000 Cubic metres of water delivered by Tedagua treatment plants per day our own backyard are more directed towards residential, service and industrial markets.

Our big focus is now on the international market. India, China, Australia, Arab Emirates, America and North Africa, for example, are all investing in desalination and inviting tenders for large desalination plants.” Spanish companies, he adds, are very active in these international markets, and Tedagua itself has installed capacity in many of them.

The forward strategy for Tedagua is to grow, and to be the strongest and most recognised company in its sector, says Miguel Ángel Fernández. “More specifically, we would like to grow within the industrial sector. For example, we have signed a very important industrial contract with a Colombian petroleum company – a plant of 80,000 cubic metres a day. The company will, however, also focus on other areas, such as food and mining. The mining sector, especially in countries such as Australia, Peru and Chile, has considerable requirements in the field of water management.”

For more information about Tedagua visit: www.tedagua.com

BE Europe | 49

An elementary approac

to renewable ener

It is in Ireland where global renewable energy developer Element Power is bringing to fruition several vital wind developments, including the ground-breaking Greenwir

written by: Will Daynes research by: David Brogan 50 | BE Europe

Element Power

ch

rgy

r d energy re Project

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Mike O’Neill, President and COO, Element Power Group

Element Power

I

n more than two decades since the three people to one employing between first wind farm project was realised 60 and 70 in a matter of years.” in 1992 at Bellacorrick, County Mayo, At the time that O’Neill, Harte and his wind energy’s contribution to Ireland’s former colleagues at SWS Energy, Tim electricity supply has steadily risen to Cowhig and Kevin O’Donovan set up Element the point where it had installed 1.7GW of Power’s operations in Ireland, the country’s capacity by the end of 2012. domestic wind business was in many ways With the country now tasked with a struggling sector, one facing problems achieving its national targets for renewable with curtailment, refit schemes and with energy by 2020, which calls for 40 percent establishing greenfield developments due to of its electricity to come from renewable a lack of good grid connections. The answer sources, an estimated 5,500 to 6,000MW of to these challenges was for the company wind generation is required. to buy into two existing projects, the One of the companyies contributing Garranereagh Wind Farm Project and the towards Ireland’s long term Monaincha Project, which it energy plans is Element has since gone on to develop Power. Owned by Hudson and improve upon further. “ T he Ga r r a ne r eag h Clean Energy Partners, Wind Farm Project is a Element Power is a global renewable energy developer 9MW project that was The generation capacity that develops, acquires, officially commissioned in of the Greenwire export August of this year, while builds, owns and operates project to the UK the Monaincha Project is a portfolio of wind and a 36MW undertaking that solar power generation facilities worldwide. The company is active is currently under construction, with in 16 countries, with more than 9,280MW the turbines due to arrive on site at the of projects in development and a number of beginning of December, with the aim operating assets already sold. being for it to be commissioned come “Element Power itself is not an old the Spring of 2014,” Harte continues. “In company, having only been set up in 2008 addition to these we have a further two

by President and COO, Mike O’Neill,” projects, the 17MW Acres Project Donegal states Peter Harte, Chief Technical Officer and the 32 MW Barranafaddock Project for Ireland. “What it does possess however in Cork, where construction is also set to is a management team with a great deal begin during 2014.” of experience having previously been a A quick glance at Element Power’s busy part of SWS Energy, a very successful calendar of activities over the coming months independent wind business that we highlights the fact that the wind power collectively built from having a staff of industry has undergone a notable change in

3gw

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Fehily Timoney & Company (FTC)

Fehily Timoney & Company (FTC) is a leading consultancy in the wind energy sector, providing specialist services throughout the project lifecyle. We are market leaders in this sector, working with key industry players, to deliver projects of exceptional quality. Our in-house capability extends across full EIA & planning services, technical due diligence, design, construction and

operational monitoring. Our engineers and scientists are of the highest calibre, with significant experience in specialist areas such as ecology, geology, peat stability, water quality, noise and shadow flicker, turbine base & civil infrastructure design and construction management.

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Element Power

only the five years since the company was planning, grid allocation and pricing, making established. The driving force behind this it more favourable to build wind projects change is without doubt the aforementioned in the country. I think in many ways this Irish national policy to meet its target of was a relatively easy policy decision for the ensuring that 40 percent of its electricity is government to make because, while it could derived from renewable sources by 2020. meet its renewable targets using a variety This itself is the result of European Union of technologies, Ireland already boasts demands that 16 percent of exceptional wind resources the country’s total energy and the type of favourable mix should originate from conditions that have allowed it to become a most renewable methods by the turn of the next decade. mature and competitive “In response to being renewable source for a percentage of our electricity.” set these targets,” Harte Ireland’s installed In addition to the various explains, “the Irish wind energy capacity projects detailed previously, government introduced a as of the end of 2012 Element Power has also spent raft of policies centred on

1.7gw

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the better part of the last three years laying the groundwork for one of the largest and most ambitious wind power related undertakings ever seen anywhere in the British Isles. I am referring to the Greenwire Project, a 3GW export project to the UK. “To date, we have secured private land for approximately two of the three gigawatts for the Greenwire Project, have secured a good connection in the UK for a 2017 connection date and will be looking to submit a complete planning application in 2014,” Harte says. “Powered by a fleet of approximately 40 projects in the midlands of Ireland, the objective for the Greenwire Project is to have it providing green power to the UK by 2020 for an estimated operating lifetime of 25 years.”

The sheer scale of the Greenwire Project can be highlighted in several ways. In megawatt terms the project alone will deliver more than twice the amount generated across Ireland at present, while in terms of wind farm sites it will see Element Power building a further 40 on top of the 160 that already exist.

Meanwhile the scale of the grid connection alone is huge, with over 1,000 kilometres of underground cable being required to connect up all the turbines and export the power to the UK. “As you can imagine, this is a very

specific engineering task in itself,” Harte says.

“Nevertheless, the feasibility and costs have been demonstrated pretty well by the recent 500MW East-West Interconnection, which was commissioned last year.”

The significance of Harte’s reference to the East-West Interconnection also stems from the fact that this was a project overseen by

“The Irish government introduced a raft of policies making it more favourable to build wind projects in the country” 56 | BE Europe

Element Power

British Energy Secretary, Edward Davey with President and COO of Element Power, Mike O’Neill at the Liberal Democrats party conference in 2012

Dermot Byrne, a highly respected figure in the Irish energy business who was officially unveiled as non-executive director of Element Power’s Irish subsidiary at the end of October.

“Dermot joins us having successfully led EirGrid, the transmission system operator for Ireland, through a substantial period of change to become a world leader in the integration of wind power into the power network,” Harte enthuses. “Element Power will be able to call upon his experience to guide it, particularly throughout the Greenwire Project which will break a lot of new ground in the years to come.”

Other plans for the months and years ahead for Element Power look set to revolve

around continuing to acquire projects that are not yet fully developed, before improving them through the use of its own development expertise and construction skills. “We have good access to both bank and equity finance and this will allow us to continue to replicate the business model which has proven so successful to date, and place us in a position to have two or three projects running through the system at any one time,” Harte concludes.

For more information about Element Power visit: www.elpower.com

BE Europe | 57

MISTRAS Group

Enhancing life expectancy MISTRAS Group Executive Vice President, Phillip T. Cole, discusses the group’s priceless contributions toward North Sea development over the last 20 years

written by: Will Daynes research by: Marcus Lewis

58 | BE Europe

A robotic pipe scanner mapping internal corrosion in pipe-work

MISTRAS Group

I

n the last four decades no fewer than 698 offshore fields have been discovered in the UK Continental Shelf, producing in that time some 41 billion barrels of oil and gas.

With another 20 billion barrels estimated to remain untapped it comes as little surprise that the North Sea continues to be a huge boon to the UK and other surrounding nations.

One of the many companies fortunate enough to have been part of this continued prosperity is MISTRAS Group, who have been a consistent presence supplying a range of highly specialised products and services in the North Sea for almost 20 years.

“We began our activities here supplying valve leak detection technology in the form of our VPAC solution, which we developed together with BP,” explains MISTRAS Executive Vice President, Phillip T. Cole.

“An acoustic emission instrument, VPAC can estimate the quantity of material leaking through valves using its accompanying proprietary software and with more than 1,000 systems currently in use it is the instrument of choice for valve leak detection.”

It was then in January 2002 that MISTRAS successfully completed its first installation of a structural monitoring system on an FPSO. “This system is designed to monitor eight critical areas of the FPSO, areas that have been identified by stress analysis as being the most prone to cracks,” Cole continues. “This is technology that we used in the past on bridges and pressure vessels before adapting it to offshore use. Similar technology also extends to our installations that monitor and detect any failures in the structural wire armour or carcass of flexible risers.”

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In addition to its crack detection sensors, MISTRAS Group also possesses arrays of strain monitoring gauges which collect comprehensive data that can be used by engineering consultants to refine fatigue models and in some cases considerably extend the life of certain structures.

A further service offered is what MISTRAS calls the on-stream inspection of process equipment. This service has been designed to

answer the question of how an operator can carry out inspections of pipework and vessels without the need to shut down production or place somebody in a potentially dangerous environment.

“The non-invasive approach that our technology utilises,” Cole says, “involves using scanning systems around the outside of the pipes or vessels so that we can actually map the wall thickness at extremely high speeds

“MISTRAS can monitor clients’ equipment and infrastructure on a continuous basis to effectively manage its integrity over the course of its remaining life”

Working from ropes is the access method of choice for inspection work

62 | BE Europe

MISTRAS Group

A robotic scanner operated via umbilical cable can map at rates of 15 – 150 square metres per day

“The key reason that there to an accuracy of around 0.25 millimetres. This allows is demand for our services,” us to see where coatings have Cole continues, “is simply failed or where corrosion that our approach to doing is taking place.” things, where we work What binds all of MISTRAS’ with end clients and their activities together is the fact engineering consultants to that they are specifically develop faster and more Number of barrels of oil and gas believed to geared towards improving efficient ways of providing remain untapped in the detailed information about an safety and productivity by North Sea helping structures and plants asset, makes sense.” to remain online rather than One of the reasons it does shutting down operations so is because MISTRAS has to carry out invasive inspections. The very spent considerable time and effort designing nature of its work means that MISTRAS can and manufacturing many of its mapping monitor clients’ equipment and infrastructure and monitoring systems in house, a trait on a continuous basis to effectively manage its that differentiates it greatly from much of its integrity over the course of its remaining life. competition in the marketplace. “A lot of the

20

Billion

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Final adjustments prior to launching a mapping scanner

A weld scanner identifies

“The trust that the industry places in MISTRAS and its technology can be clearly seen in the host of tasks and projects it has been involved in over the years” technology we use is that which has been developed by ourselves with our more unique applications being the result of talking to clients and developing solutions to meet the issues they have discussed with us,” Cole enthuses.

The trust that the industry places in MISTRAS and its technology can be clearly seen in the host of tasks and projects it has been involved in over the years. One of its more recent undertakings saw the

64 | BE Europe

company carrying out an inspection on around a kilometre of structural weld using a combination of two ultrasonic techniques, TOFD and Phased Array. Traditionally competing techniques, they were brought together by MISTRAS and used on the same weld inspection. The result was the most detailed and conclusive batch of information possible, something which has and will prove invaluable for the client in question.

MISTRAS Group

s cracking and corrosion in welds

Of course, while the impressive quality of the technology itself is one thing, just as vital are the men and women tasked with using it. “Clearly, given the specialist nature of many of the operations we conduct,” Cole says, “it requires our staff members to carry with them several years of experience. For this reason we make it our priority to invest a lot in each employee, providing them with the training and apprenticeship opportunities that help them become proficient in carrying out their tasks on a daily basis.”

As previously stated, the North Sea remains a vital source of international capital, with activity and investment continuing to increase. With this also comes added pressure to extend the life of existing assets and this is arguably the biggest

Under-deck inspection using rope access

present driver of MISTRAS’ business.

“In the US onshore sector we are the largest service inspection company present and that is obviously what we would like to be here in the North Sea as well. The best way for us to achieve this is by continuing to introduce our technology to new clients and getting it put in place. While in some ways it is fair to say that we a relatively small player in the North Sea at present, we do remain at the top end of a technology spectrum that is in the midst of a continuous process of innovation.” Cole concludes.

For more information about MISTRAS Group visit: www.mistrasgroup.com

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Offshore Marine Management (OMM)

Made to measure solutions In little more than ten years Offshore Marine Management (OMM) has carved out a reputation for expertise and operational excellence in several industries, one of which being the oil and gas sector

written by: Will Daynes research by: Peter Rowlston

BE Europe | 67

Offshore Marine Management (OMM)

S

ince its formation in 2003, “What we endeavour to do is allow the client Offshore Marine Management to be more involved and hands on in such a (OMM) has grown within way that ultimately we are helping them build the renewable energy, subsea their own capabilities. Our own strategy in telecoms and oil and gas sectors, recent years has involved developing further expanding from providing personnel for into operations and maintenance, and it is offshore projects to taking on turnkey cable with the type of contract that we have secured installation contracts. Indeed, OMM’s ability in the Middle East that we open ourselves up to adapt to ever changing market conditions to this area of the market and the contract has allowed it to flourish even in times of secured in the Middle East by CAOMM is an economic uncertainty. indication that our investment and strategy “Since we last spoke several years ago, we is valued and required by the clients.” have evolved further as a company to the OMM’s recent experience has led point where we went through Bruckschen to highlight that a full restructuring of the the Middle East is indeed a buoyant market, especially business at the beginning when it comes to power cables of 2013,” explains Chief and the services required to Operating Officer, Eckhard Bruckschen. “Since then we connect these from offshore The year OMM was picked up a number of key platforms to shore. This is not established contracts, one of particular strictly limited to this part of note being a maintenance the world however. contract in the Middle East secured by our “We have also witnessed a similar trend joint venture company CAOMM.” gaining momentum in Mexico, where the Within this three year maintenance contract government has recently opened up deep water CAOMM is responsible for maintaining the zones to international investment,” Bruckschen submarine power cables running between a says. “Currently there is one project underway network of platforms. Understandably there off the Mexican coast that involves the use of were a large number of players vying for this interconnected power cables.” contract, however the perfect choice was Latin America has been the source of other CAOMM. This is one of the largest submarine recent successes for the company, one of the power cable maintenance agreements more recent being the awarding of a multiin the world to date. million dollar Engineering Procure Install “One thing we have always taken great and Commission (EPIC) project, in this pride in is the fact that we are different from instance by Chilean electrical company Grupo those contractors who appear on site to provide Saesa. This particular contract is unique to a specific service and then disappear as soon Chile in that it will see OMM and its partner as the work is done,” Bruckschen continues. companies installing a submarine cable, the

2003

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Offshore Marine Management (OMM) first of its kind in the country, which will join the island Seatrench AS specialise in the subsea burial of cable of Huar in the Los Lagos and pipeline products. Seatrench AS developed systems region to Chile’s Central have proven their effectiveness and efficiency in the most Interconnected System. challenging of worksites. Seatrench AS supply a reliable, “Being an EPIC contract efficient, cost effective and safe solution for product this project will see us protection in shallow water. Seatrench AS offer a worldwide service to the telecommunications, renewables and providing a full assortment of oil and gas industries. management and engineering www.seatrench.com services including cable route design, marine surveys, installation and the provision of marine resources,” Bruckschen states. “This is very much a ground-breaking project and again represents the type of work that we hope to concentrate more on in the future.”

Once again, the awarding of this contract saw OMM and its partner companies overcome a highly competitive international tender process, where the group was up against a considerable number of other organisations.

The process itself demanded that prospective companies adhere to strict regulations and provide detailed case studies and examples of management procedures. OMM’s partnership with local companies is important to OMM, and contributed to its ability to deliver this important project to its client.

The completion of the project is expected to generate massive benefits to the 520 families

Seatrench AS

“What we endeavour to do is allow the client to be more involved and hands on in such a way that ultimately we are helping them build their own capabilities” BE Europe | 71

“We will continue to spread ourselves across various disciplines and geographic regions, all the while remaining on top of market fluctuations” living on the island including huge savings on the cost of electricity, which will encourage further local investment. Additionally the island can expect to see considerable environmental benefits as the new supply will reduce its use of fossil fuels.

With Latin America proving itself to be a

72 | BE Europe

hotbed of activity and increasing exploration making the Middle East an epicentre for oil and gas development OMM has every right to feel confident about its own growth opportunities, and that is before taking into account other possibilities the market has to offer.

“In Europe we are witnessing oil and gas

Offshore Marine Management (OMM)

growth mainly coming from activity within Russia’s Barents Sea, and we believe that has the potential to create more work in the region,” Bruckschen says. “Elsewhere, all along the Norwegian coast to be exact, there are a number of existing platforms that will eventually be connected, meaning there will be a big demand for submarine cables once that work is commissioned. Decommissioning activities will continue to grow at a steady pace, while any further growth across key regions will of course be determined by future exploration.”

While being optimistic about the future, Bruckschen remains aware of OMM’s need to remain on a steady course that will allow

it to avoid the pitfalls of growing too rapidly that it stretches beyond its means. “Of course we remain open to investment in the future, however it needs to be the right match for us,” he concludes. “In the meantime we will continue to spread ourselves across various disciplines and geographic regions, all the while remaining on top of market fluctuations, focusing on our established client base and working diligently to attract new business.”

For more information about Offshore Marine Management (OMM) visit: www.offshoremm.com

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Riding the waves of change As Maersk Line’s Chief Operating Officer, Morten Engelstoft explains, despite being the largest container ship operator in the world, Maersk Group continues to steer itself forward into new areas of growth

written by: Will Daynes research by: Peter Rowlston

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Maersk

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Maersk

F

or some companies their very name has come to be synonymous with their particular area of industry.

Think mobile phones or tablets and Apple springs to mind. For oil and gas it will be BP or Royal Dutch Shell, while mention of the fast food sector immediately conjures up images of McDonalds or Burger King. While these businesses are hugely different when it comes to what they do, what they share is the fact that their strong history and track records of success have made them the leaders in their field.

The same holds true for Maersk Group, arguably the most recognisable name in the global maritime world. Made up of four core business, Maersk Line, APM Terminals, Maersk Oil and Maersk Drilling, with Services and Other Shipping set to become its fifth core business unit from 2014, the group today employs around 121,000 people across 130 countries and generated some $59 billion in revenue in 2012 alone, a figure that is all the more astounding when one considers the challenging environment the group finds itself in at present.

“Our market as it exists today is unquestionably tougher than it has been in the past,” states Maersk Line’s Chief Operating Officer, Morten Engelstoft. “At present we are witnessing a trend whereby our more mature markets are experiencing flat development, while emerging markets are slightly better, giving us a global annual growth rate of between three and four percent.”

While growth of any kind is of course welcomed, it does pale in comparison to the tenplus percent yearly growth that the industry

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NUTEP – Russian growth success story NUTEP (situated in Novorossiysk and owned

by DELOPORTS) is the most modern container terminal in the South of Russia • Constructed greenfield in 2004-2005 with several completed expansion projects since inception • Modern technological equipment and infrastructure • Own 5-track railway park • Throughput capacity – 350 thous. TEUs • Container turnover in 2012 – 215 thous. TEUs • 32% of container turnover of Russian ports in the Azov and Black sea basin • Plans to launch construction of a unique deepwater berth for ocean container vessels

DELOPORTS Tel.: +357 25 591 501 E-mail: deloports.com E-mail: post@deloports.com www.deloports.com

Maersk regularly experienced in the deloports years between 2002 and DELOPORTS owns and operates container, grain, oil 2007. Nevertheless, where products terminals and a bunkering services company in there is growth today there Novorossiysk. Total turnover in 2012 - 4.7 million tons. is opportunity, particularly if NUTEP is DELOPORTS’ specialized container terminal you happen to be the largest (throughput capacity - 350 thous. TEUs), which was container vessel operator built greenfield in 2000’s and thus benefits from modern equipment and infrastructure, offering a unique client on the planet. service. Execution of NUTEP’s development plans will secure “Emerging markets are its leading positions in the Russian container market. definitely the source of any MAERSK has been a partner for NUTEP since 2006. In 2011 green shoots we are coming MAERSK launched ECUMED via NUTEP - its first direct link across at the moment,” between Latin America and the Black Sea. Engelstoft continues, “with www.deloports.com Latin American, African and Intra-Asia freights all experiencing strong growth characteristics in recent years. Meanwhile, what we term our back haul business, meaning business moving from regions such as Europe into China, is also picking up well, which is a reflection on the fact that China is importing more now than it has previously.”

The reality of the situation that the container industry finds itself in today is that it is a highly fragmented market in which a vast number of players are essentially competing to offer very similar products and services. Understanding the necessity

“Maersk Group today employs around 121,000 people across 130 countries” BE Europe | 79

$59 Billion In revenue achieved by Maersk in 2012

to stand out amongst such a crowd Maersk has focused a great deal of effort on the service it provides its clients by creating its own Customer Charter. Made up of eight key components of services that its customers themselves highlight as being most important to them, the Customer Charter provides a transparent overview of how the business is performing in these areas and what its long term targets are for improving itself further.

Another area in which Maersk is very much taking the lead is energy efficiency. The drive towards this actually began in 2007 when the group set itself a target of reducing CO2 emissions per container kilometre by 25 percent before 2020. Remarkably this figure was actually achieved eight years ahead of schedule in 2012. Maersk Line would then go on to raise the bar further by setting itself a 40 percent reduction target by 2020.

One of the more impressive examples of Maersk’s work in this field is without doubt its new Triple E class of vessels, launched in July 2013. Measuring 400 metres in length and boasting a capacity of 18,000 TEU, the Triple E vessel is the largest ever built. It will also represent one of the most energy efficient vessels on the planet, reducing CO2 emissions by around 50

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Maersk

percent per container moved, compared to the industry average CO2 performance on Asia-Europe trade routes.

“In many ways the Triple E vessel showcases the way Maersk Group undertakes a continuous process of innovation when building for the future,” Engelstoft enthuses.

“It also highlights how we do not shy away from ploughing considerable amounts of capital into better, more fuel efficient vessels,

what with each Triple E vessel representing $185 million in investment, $30 million of which has been spent on environment and efficiency improvements.”

By mid-2015 Maersk expects to have received delivery of the 20 Triple E vessels it has on order, each of which will be periodically deployed into the group’s network where they will replace older vessels that are operating along the Asia

“Measuring 400 metres in length and boasting a capacity of 18,000 TEU, the Triple E vessel is the largest ever built” BE Europe | 81

“This methodology of building upon Maersk’s achievements will ultimately see it further improving on the successes of the Triple E in the years ahead”

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Maersk to Europe trade lines where much of the group’s business is currently emanating from.

Interest in these massive new additions to Maersk’s fleet has been impressive.

More than 250 customers and government officials, and thousands of people, have participated in events in the maiden voyage ports of call; however Maersk’s attention is already turning towards applying the Triple E’s fuel and energy efficiency learnings to other Maersk Line vessels, and replicating it across the group’s different business divisions.

“Looking at the Triple E it should be immediately clear that they are built upon industry leading experience, innovation and confidence in our abilities,” Engelstoft says. “A good example of this is the vessel’s Waste Heat Recovery System, the installation of which costs approximately $10 million per vessel alone. The purpose of the Waste Heat Recovery System is to reduce the engine’s need for fuel and therefore its CO2 footprint. The effect is a reduction in the engine’s fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by approximately nine percent.”

This system was actually developed and perfected on earliest vessel classes, before being upgraded to become a key feature of the Triple E’s energy efficient design. It is this methodology of building upon Maersk’s achievements that will ultimately see it

further improving on the successes of the Triple E in the years ahead.

A separate development that has occurred in recent months took place in June of this year. It was then that news broke that Maersk Line, MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company and CMA CGM has agreed, subject to regulatory approval, to establish a long term operational alliance on East-West trades, called the P3 Network.

“If and when we get regulatory approval, we will operate a joint network of approximately 250 vessels with a total capacity of around 2.6 million TEU,” Engelstoft highlights. “The creation of this network will benefit all parties by providing increased cost efficiency and will also provide our customers with better

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Maersk

$185 Million The amount invested in each Triple E Class vessel

frequency, increased coverage, lower CO2 footprint, and ultimately a better product.”

While 2013 will go down as a year of big achievements for Maersk Line; longer term we know that the coming months will remain challenging, with annual market growth expected to reach between four and five percent.

One of the primary reasons for this will be the increase in vessel capacity set to be delivered throughout the world’s major markets. This trend however is expected to subside during 2015, meaning that the sector does still possess encouraging growth potential in the long-term.

“Our own business approach revolves around the fact that we want to grow with the market, retaining our market share,” Engelstoft concludes. “In the meantime we will continue to work to improve our bottom line by working to reduce our cost levels to among the lowest in the industry, and to deliver best-in-class customer service, all while carefully watching how the industry performs so that we can grow accordingly as the environment evolves.”

For more information about Maersk visit: www.maersk.com

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BBT-SE

Fast track below the Alps The Brenner Base Tunnel is one of those infrastructure projects that has an historical as well as an engineering dimension – symbolizing cross border collaboration as much as a free market in Europe

written by: John O’Hanlon research by: Abi Abagun

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BBT-SE

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he Alps are Europe’s great natural boundary, cutting Italy off from the rest of the continent. Getting from one side to the other whether for purposes of travel, war or trade has been a headache ever since ‘the iceman’ Ötzi lost his life 5,000 years ago on the Fineilspitze, not 20 miles to the east of the Brenner pass.

The Brenner was not used for regular traffic until the second century AD and remained a very minor crossing right up to the late 18th century when Maria Theresa caused a road to be built. It is however the lowest of the six major Alpine passes, which is why it was chosen as the route for the Brenner Railway from Innsbruck in Austria to Bolzano and Verona in Italy. However the railway still has to climb to fairly dizzying heights, reaching 1,371 metres at its highest point, on the border between Italy and Austria and overcoming the gradient by means of two spiral tunnels.

That means it is a slow route, exacerbated by the need to change engines.

Goods traffic between northern and southern Europe is constantly increasing and it is the goal for much of this traffic to be transferred from road to rail to protect the sensitive Alpine environment, which is a global heritage. The case for creating a ‘flat’ rail link, along which more of this freight can travel became compelling as long ago as 1971 when the International Union of Railways (UIC) commissioned a study for a new Brenner railway with a ‘base tunnel’ – a term which is a direct translation of the German ‘Basistunnel.’ By 1989 three feasibility studies had been drawn up which formed the basis

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Technological Partners:

BRENNERCOM. THE CLOUD REVOLUTION YOU CAN TOUCH. 3 SERVER FARMS 3 COUNTRIES ITALY, AUSTRIA, GERMANY 6 CITIES BOLZANO, TRENTO, VERONA, MILAN, INNSBRUCK, MUNICH

www.bcloud.brennercom.it

Südtirol • Alto Adige

Brennercom A fiber-optic network straddling the Alps: Brennercom brings high-speed data to BBT

the most dynamic in the European economy.

Thanks to this transmission “backbone”, the offices and construction site of the BBT can “Lighting up” the work in the Brenner Basis use a fiber-optic access network (FTTH) Tunnel (BBT) is a fiber-optic data network, with a speed of 100 Mbit/s or a radio link at provided by Brennercom that allows 30 Mbit/s, achieved with MPLS technology, communications between the south side and which optimises the flow of administrative and the north side along the route between Bolzano technical information. and Innsbruck, where the offices of BBT are Brennercom has been present in the regional (voice connection is also provided in Bolzano) market since 1998 and is now increasing and between the two tunnel portals of Fortezza the range of services it offers to a wider / Franzensfeste and the intermediate one of geographical area. Optical networks, DSL Stafflach - Wolf. The operator of reference or, in areas with more difficult accessibility, for the enterprise market in Trentino - Alto radio links allow broadband services and the Adige as well as the Cloud Service Provider, necessary data infrastructure to be given to Brennercom has its head offices in Bolzano a large customer base, which numbers over and other offices in Trento, Verona, Milan, as 7,000 companies and government agencies, well as subsidiaries in Austria (Innsbruck) and providing, amongst other things, several Germany (Munich): all “nodes” in a high-speed business parks. fiber-optic transmission network that connects Top-level communication networks and IT a large transnational area which is one of services find a new synergy in Brennercom.

The three new-generation data centres in Bolzano, Trento and Innsbruck, connected by one of the fastest transmission networks in the whole of Europe, are at the base of the innovative range of solutions based on the cloud computing model. Company clients can thus access data processing and storage as well as connectivity resources in a flexible and “tailored” way, with the additional guarantee of having information totally protected, thanks to top-level technology platforms, partnerships with the most authoritative international brands, international certifications and support by qualified personnel.

Dr. Karl Manfredi, CEO

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www.brennercom.it

BBT-SE

for further planning of the Brenner Base under construction or actually operational.

Tunnel, however it wasn’t until 2004 that The only way to create a high-speed line BBT-SE, the Austro-Italian company that is across the Alps was to tunnel below them: building the tunnel, was formed. the maximum elevation above sea level is just The BBT is much more than just a tunnel 794 metres and the steepest incline just 6.7 through a mountain. The ₏8.5 billion degrees. The BBT is 55 kilometres long from Fortezza in Italy to Innsbruck project, funded by the EU and the Austrian and Italian North, however if you add it governments, is the main to an existing section built element of the new Brenner in 1994 that bypasses the railway from Munich to city emerging at Tulfes, Verona. It is a key link in the the tunnel is 64 kilometres priority EU project to create a in length, making it the 2,200-kilometre railway axis longest underground railway between Berlin in Germany connection in the world.

Cubic feet of soil and Palermo in Sicily. Three Professor Konrad extracted quarters of this axis is already Bergmeister was appointed

17

million

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RENAISSANCE Construction - INFRASTRUKTUR: Untertagebau | Kraftwerksbau | Bahnbau

T

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RENAISSANCE CONSTRUCTION

The RENAISSANCE Group was founded in 1993 in St. Petersburg and has delivered more than 430 turnkey projects with more than seven million square feet of enclosed space and is one of the leading construction companies in Europe. The current order backlog exceeds five billion dollars with a workforce of over 30’000 employees in eleven countries.

The focus of the RENAISSANCE is the construction of shopping centers, office buildings, hotels, chemical and petrochemical plants as well as hydro and wind power plants. The youngest division of the RENAISSANCE Group

is the infrastructure sector (mining, railway construction).

The RENAISSANCE Construction GmbH Hergiswil with about 130 employees, has been instrumental participating since 2001 in the construction of the longest railway tunnel in the world – the Gotthard Base Tunnel in Switzerland, and since 2008 also the railway equipment of this century project is running significantly.This provides the basis for the development in the area of infrastructure.

E. info@rencons.ch www.rencons.ch

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Management and design Offering integrated engineering services to the most demanding and qualified clients who are acutely aware of the need for careful design and planning to complete the work within budget and on time.

T. +390471099521 E. info@3m-engineering.it www.3m-engineering.it

Seen

Contact us today and put your company in the spotlight!

vincent@bus-ex.com 96 | BE Europe

of the other two. Connecting tunnels link the main tubes ever 330 metres, providing a high level of accessibility-and security.

The exploration tunnel will be valuable as a drainage and service asset (it lies twelve metres below the main tunnels) once the other two have been built using a combination of blasting and tunnel boring, depending on circumstances, though 70 percent will be excavated using TBMs. The main reason for driving a pilot tunnel was a geological one, Bergmeister explains. “Though we know a lot about the geology of the Alps, it was impossible to know exactly what rock conditions we would encounter. The tunnel has to cross something called the periadriatic fault, or seam: we know it is there but at that depth we don’t know exactly how it behaves.�

BBT-SE

“We have turned to the most innovative technologies and materials in designing this tunnel for a lifetime of more than 200 years!”

The exploratory tunnel is important to obtain further information about the inside of the mountain and therefore plan the construction of the main tubes with a higher degree of precision, he emphasises. “Such geological information as we started with was based on preliminary studies that have been going on for decades. More than 34 kilometres of drilling was done, in which over 27,000 cubic metres of stone were removed

from the mountain, to evaluate the rock mass along the planned tunnel route.”

During construction the spoil from the main tunnels will be removed through the exploratory tunnel, speeding up the latter stages considerably. “We are removing all the spoil from the main tunnels through the exploratory: it is moved all the way to the discharge site using a series of conveyors and no trucking will be involved,” says

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BBT-SE Bergmeister. In all there will be 17 million cubic feet of spoil to be disposed of, and this will come out through four access tunnels, of which the ones nearest the Austrian and Italian ends are already complete. The 1.3 kilometre Ampass access tunnel and the 2.4 kilometre Ahrental access, together with about a quarter of the exploratory tunnel on the Austrian side, have been completed.

The Wolf access tunnel was the last to be put out for tender for an estimated contract sum of 140 million earlier this year, and is now progressing well. This is also the longest, at four kilometres.

Currently, completion of the exploratory tunnel early in 2014 is a priority. TBMs capable of advancing 30 metres a day stabilise the ground as they go using piles and special grouting, and the tunnel is lined with 20 centimetre thick segments manufactured off site using a steam system that accelerates setting. The cutters mounted on the face of the TBM cut the rock into chips which go into a hopper that drops them onto a conveyor belt at speeds up to 700 cubic metres per hour.

The Brenner Base Tunnel will change the face of Europe’s infrastructure forever, says Konrad Bergmeister. “We have turned to the most innovative technologies and materials in designing this tunnel for a lifetime of more than 200 years!� he says. As a world authority in concrete engineering, his word is to be believed.

For more information about BBT-SE visit: www.bbt-se.com

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AKTOR

Greece’s construction

colossus Greece’s largest construction company, AKTOR has grown to become a major player on both the local and international stages

written by: Will Daynes research by: Jeff Abbott

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Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre

AKTOR

B

eginning life in the early 1960s as a general contractor for medium to large scale projects occurring within Greek territory, AKTOR would go on to expand rapidly during the subsequent decades making it one of the leading players in the Greek construction sector by the mid-1990s.

Buoyed by a combination of Greece’s economic growth between 1998 and 2007, which was in part driven by the country’s first build-operate-transfer (BOT) schemes, projects related to the 2004 Olympic Games and the significant improvements made to Greece’s infrastructure network, AKTOR would go on to amalgamate local contractors to become the largest construction company in the country.

AKTOR’s expertise extends to a number of important areas, including buildings, industrial, waste water treatment, mining and quarrying, and facility and project management. In 2012 the company’s turnover reached €904 million, while as of November 2013 its construction backlog has reached a value of 2.8 billion euros. Today AKTOR boasts a presence in 17 different countries and has over 8,000 collaborators at home and abroad.

“On the back of the experience we had gained through the realisation of countless milestone projects in Greece, the last ten years has seen the company embark on a programme of overseas expansion,” explains General Manager, John Bournazos. “The first steps in this programme saw the company establish a presence within the Balkans and the Middle East. These two remain regions within which we continue to experience

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“AKTOR has a moral commitment towards maintaining a long-term corporate social responsibility program” strong demand, while they also provide a good foundation from which to continue growing our regional activities.”

With the company obliged to adhere to European Union policy on providing financial assistance to what it calls pre-accession countries, road, rail and metro based infrastructure projects remain the thrust

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of AKTOR’s activities today. Nevertheless, recent demand for renewable energy projects has seen the company establish a strong position as part of crucial solar, wind and hydroelectric schemes, while also taking on roles in the construction of waste water treatment plants and various other facility management projects.

AKTOR

Egnatia Odos Metsovo Bridge

When asked what he thinks has contributed to the company’s success, Bournazos has no hesitation in giving his option. “Without doubt our highly qualified and specialised manpower, combined with our fully owned fleet of equipment and the way we implement strict HSEQ procedures in each and every project, have contributed immeasurably to the continued advancement of AKTOR.” It is these strengths and characteristics that have seen the company take responsibility for countless important, prestige projects that fall into the road, rail and metro infrastructure, and industrial and building project fields. Recent infrastructure projects of significance include the company’s work

on several Greek road concession schemes that are transforming the country’s road networks into modern motorways following the success of the Athens Ring Road, and the expansion of sections of the metro lines in Athens and Thessaloniki.

Further afield AKTOR was also charged with the construction of the 16 kilometre long Dubai Fujairah Freeway, which included the construction of five bridges crossing over water and gas pipelines, and was involved in the finalisation of sections of Corridor X along the TransEuropean Road Network in FYROM (Macedonia) and Serbia, as well as the completion of the Tirana to Elbasan Motorway in Albania.

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€2.8 Billion Value of AKTOR’s construction backlog as of November 2013

Lukoil Refinery, Burgas Bulgaria

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In Greece the fruits of AKTOR’s labour can also be seen in the form of various buildings.

These include the New Acropolis Museum in Athens, a unique structure that provides testimony to both the country’s history and its modern architecture, the restoration of the iconic 19th Century Municipal Theatre in Piraeus and the construction of the Costa Navarino in Messini. This latter project involved the building of two luxury five star hotels within 1.3 million square metres of seaside landscape and the transformation of a further 200,000 square metres of surrounding area into both hard surfaces and green areas housing over 4,000 trees and 300,000 shrubs.

Internationally AKTOR was heavily involved in the building of the New Doha International Airport in Qatar, constructing the aircraft maintenance hangar, the service cargo complex, maintenance facility building, motor transport workshop and training centre, while it currently chases new opportunities in the country including Doha Metro. Meanwhile, in Abu Dhabi, the company has worked on several Phase 2 developments on behalf of Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (ADNEC). These included the building of four exhibition halls, a multipurpose hall and two multi-storey car parks.

AKTOR

New Acropolis Museum

Industrial projects brought to life by the company include waste water and water treatment plants in major cities in countries including Greece, Cyprus, Germany, Croatia, Slovenia and the UAE, as well as refineries on behalf of Lukoil in Bulgaria and EL.PE./EKO in Greece. Furthermore, AKTOR has built both underground and above ground facilities for the exploitation of polymetalic deposits within the Cassandra mines, operated by Eldorado Gold.

In addition to its obvious objective of growing as a profitable business, AKTOR has what it describes as a moral commitment towards maintaining a long-term corporate social responsibility programme. “This program involves a number of important responsibilities,” Bournazos enthuses.

“These include ensuring the preservation of the cultural heritage of regions that are of particular natural beauty, participating alongside various charities, being a sponsor

“We will continue to improve our operational and managerial models in ways that will increase our production optimisation” BE Europe | 107

Navarino Resort

AKTOR of sporting activities, supporting research programs and local multi-technical schools, and providing private medical insurance to all of our employees. These are just some of the things that make us a responsible and consciences member of the communities in which we operate.”

In recent years, particularly in light of the economic downturn that has affected several of its key markets, AKTOR has recognised the need to become more extrovert. It has done so by internationalising the business to the point where more than 50 percent of its turnover originates from overseas markets.

“In the coming years our strategy will pivot around several key axes,” Bournazos says. “The first will require us to galvanise our market leading position when it comes to project construction throughout Greece by not only taking on more public and private projects, but also by enhancing our input within co-financed projects. Achieving increased vertical integration will be ever more vital, while further expansion overseas is something we are aggressively pursuing not only in Europe and the Middle East, but also in North Africa and other selected territories. Last, but certainly not least, we will continue to improve our operational and managerial models in ways that will increase our production optimisation and secure sustainable development for the company for many years to come.”

For more information about AKTOR visit: www.aktor.gr

BE Europe | 109

A cut above the rest Even in the face of challenging market conditions the sheer quality and unmatched excellence of Eurostar Diamond Traders products mean that it remains a leading global force in the diamond sector

written by: Will Daynes research by: James Boyle

110 | BE Europe

Eurostar Diamond Traders

Polishing the pavilion facets

Eurostar Diamond Traders

T

he diamond industry has been on something of a rollercoaster ride since the global financial crisis of 2008, with prices plummeting in 2008 and 2009, before rebounding to reach historically high levels in 2010 and 2011. This pattern of extremes was replicated in 2012, with retail sales of diamonds growing 1.8 percent from 2011 to $72.1 billion at the same time that overall prices for rough and polished diamonds declined by 14 percent and 13 percent respectively.

Reassuringly, given that we are fast approaching the November/December period that is traditionally the healthiest for diamond retailers in any given year, the market has shown signs of continued improvement during the first half of 2013.

“The main positive we can take from this year so far is that we have seen business levels remain slightly higher than those recorded in 2012,” explains Kaushik K. Mehta, Chairman of the Eurostar Group.

“The real litmus test for the sector will come during the pre-Christmas months which are typically the busiest on our calendar.”

Mehta has been at the helm of Eurostar Diamond Traders ever since he founded the business as a diamond processing plant in Belgium back in 1978. In the 35 years since he has witnessed all manner of economic events and successfully guided his company through both good times and periods of uncertainty. As such you would be unlikely to find a business in this field of industry better prepared for what the next couple of months hold.

“We have already undertaken the work

BE Europe | 113

$72.1 Billion Global diamond retail sales in 2012

Facetting

114 | BE Europe

necessary to set ourselves out for the busy period that will be upon us shortly and for the sudden increase in consumer demand that we have come to expect,” Mehta states. “The Christmas buying season has always proven to be one of the most crucial times for us, if not the most crucial, and because of this we prepare many weeks in advance to ensure that our inventory levels and processes are up to scratch, thus making us perfectly positioned to satisfy consumer demand.”

As one of the world’s leading diamond wholesalers and manufacturers, it is Eurostar Diamond Traders’ expressed aim to help in shaping and leading the global diamond market. In order to do so it has expanded its own operations into some of the most important regions for diamond sales, namely the United States, China and India, and this fact continues to reap considerable benefits to this day.

Indeed, looking at the market ’s performance over the first half of this year, some of the most encouraging trends have originated from the US, Japan, China and India, with sales in the first two rising particularly strongly on the back of accelerating GDP growth, a trend that looks poised to continue during the remainder of 2013.

Eurostar Diamond Traders

Every Eurostar diamond undergoes 32 meticulous quality checks before reaching your doorstep

“While demand from key markets across Europe has slowed compared to that of previous years, this has been supplemented by the increase in demand we have been receiving from the US, China and India,” Mehta continues. “It is these parts of the world that we expect will go on to be the

driving force behind our sales throughout November and December.”

The emergence of China and India as important growth centres for Eurostar Diamond Traders and the diamond market as a whole is an event that has taken on even greater significance in the last five years or

“The Christmas season has always been one of the most crucial times for us and we prepare many weeks in advance” BE Europe | 115

“The emergence of China and India as important growth centres for Eurostar Diamond Traders has taken on even greater significance in the last five years” so, and Mehta has a pretty good explanation for this. “Higher average incomes in these countries certainly seem to be one of the main factors driving demand,” he says. “Higher incomes have resulted in growing middle

116 | BE Europe

class populations and it is these people who are now being able to demand a better quality product when it comes to the diamonds they purchase compared to those which they were able to afford previously.”

Eurostar Diamond Traders

Marked rough diamonds, ready for sawing

Fortunately for Eurostar Diamond Traders, the foresight of its management and owner has enabled it to be extremely well geared towards the growth it is experiencing in these developing nations, as well as in the US which remains a vital marketplace in its own right. Today it retains a strong presence in these markets with offices in New York City, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Mumbai respectively.

While Eurostar Diamond Traders’ peerless commitment to quality products and service has enabled it to retain what Mehta refers

to as its ‘bread and butter business’, the fact remains that growth across the greater part of the world has come to something of a standstill. This makes attracting new business the biggest challenge facing companies in the diamond market today.

“From an infrastructure and business model standpoint we are confident we have the tools in front of us to overcome such difficulties,” Mehta highlights. “In addition to the hugely important sales and marketing centres that we have in places like China and the US we also have a number of teams made

BE Europe | 117

“What is as true about the company now as it has always been ... is the fact that it has never lost sight of the need to continually improve from within�

Sawing quality control

118 | BE Europe

Eurostar Diamond Traders up of highly experience professionals whose job it is to remain in direct contact with all of our key retailers.

This allows our brand to maintain a sizeable presence in our core markets, thus we are able to retain our existing business while also making every effort to attract new growth as and when it appears.”

What is as true about the company now as it has always been, even during those first years following the economic crisis when the diamond market suffered Sorting rough diamonds greatly, is the fact that it has never lost sight of the need “The diamond market to continually improve from of today is very much within. This has meant that a fragmented one,” he investment has continued to concludes. “The reality is that be poured into its facilities there are too many players and polishing centres to at present and I believe that The year that Kaushik K. Mehta founded the ensure that they follow in the long run this number company will diminish, especially if the latest international economic conditions remain s t a nda r d s a nd are much as they are at present. adequately equipped with innovative, state-of-the-art technologies.

This will leave behind a scenario where only If diamond market data from the last the very best players are left and we will five years has highlighted anything it is continue to do our very best to prove that we the unpredictable nature of the business remain one of these players.” in what are uncertain economic times. In spite of this Mehta does have a theory as For more information about to how the market, and as such Eurostar Eurostar Diamond Traders visit: Diamond Traders, will evolve in the shortwww.eurostardiamond.com to-medium term.

1978

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Cobre Las Cruces (CLC)

21 Century mining st

By maximizing its return on considerable investment in recent years Cobre Las Cruces (CLC) is well on the way to achieving its vision of becoming a benchmark standard in modern mining operations

written by: Will Daynes research by: Louisa Adcock

BE Europe | 121

Cobre Las Cruces (CLC)

L

Ariel view of mining operations

ocated at the eastern end of the prolific Iberian Pyrite Belt in the province of Seville, Spain, Cobre Las Cruces (CLC) is a highly innovative open pit mine and the first industrial installation of its kind to operate within Europe.

Providing direct employment to 800 employees, as well as generating approximately 1,500 indirect jobs, CLC represents a major €840 million industrial investment into an area that also spans the Spanish provinces of Badajoz and Huelva, and extends through the south of Portugal.

Exploration of the mine site commenced in 1992, with a complete site evaluation running from 1994 to 1999. June 2009 saw the start-up of production at the mine, which has an estimated lifespan of 15 years.

“Since the production phase began,” states Plant Director, Enrique Delgado, “the growth of the business has been marked by the evolution of the site’s production plant, which has been steadily approaching its maximum output of 6,000 tonnes of copper cathodes per month, a figure which was just achieved in mid-2012. In 2012 alone we produced 58,000 tonnes of copper cathodes, with a resulting turnover of €425 million .”

The hydrometallurgical plant is the heart of the operations and the key element of the complex. Unique to Europe, it is where the ore is converted into copper sheets following a process that offers clear advantages at a technical, economic and environmental level; in fact it is considered by the international mining industry as being a clean technology for obtaining copper. The finished result

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Moving toward the future!

INSERSA

INGENIERIA DE SUELOS Y EXPLOTACIÓN DE RECURSOS, S.A.

Mining and Tunnelling Drilling Civil Works Building Construction Paseo del Coso, s/n Minas de Riotinto (Huelva-SPAIN) Tel: +34 959 590 506 Fax: + 34 959 590 537 insersa_riotinto@insersa.es www.insersa.es

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124 | BE Europe

is grade “A” copper cathodes with a purity of more than 99.999 percent, according to the London Metal Exchange. It is this that makes up the final product of CLC, ready for commercialization and transformation into rods or copper wire.

Today the core focus of the business is to advance the asset to its next phase, which fundamentally means gaining access to new, under-developed areas of the site. As far as the production plant goes, the company’s efforts are focused on optimising its output.

This is a task made all the more important by the fact that 2013 marks the first full year during which the plant will have operated consistently at maximum capacity.

Other long-term plans for CLC include examining the possibility of the exploitation

Cobre Las Cruces (CLC)

Hydrometallurgical plant

of other complementary mineral resources containing copper deposits. Bearing this and the aforementioned on-going developments in mind, it explains why the company has endeavoured to invest consistently in its operations.

“Once the major investment stage during the construction of the plant complex was complete we immediately began the process of undertaking important improvement works

elsewhere around the complex, including the construction of our water treatment plant,” Delgado continues. “By the end of 2012 investment in the mine and its associated infrastructure had exceeded €80 million .”

While CLC does indeed work with many of the most qualified international suppliers, especially when it comes to the innovative technology used at the mine, it is a preference of the company to work with local suppliers

“In 2012 alone we produced 58,000 tonnes of copper cathodes, with a resulting turnover of €425 million” BE Europe | 125

who it considers to be every bit as valuable to the mine’s success.

Similarly CLC has, since the start of the construction phase, given particular priority to the training of local professionals who join the business. “Today there are many individuals from this region that carry out functions in the business for which they have been specifically trained.” Delgado highlights.

“Providing employment is however just one

way that our operation positively impacts the local economy. With many of our employees, as well as contractors, being residents in neighbouring areas around the mine it has helped create a large number of indirect jobs in all manner of services including hospitality and transport.”

The concept of sustainability also exists as a high priority within CLC’s ethos. “As is the case with work safety,” Delgado says,

“First Quantum Minerals have already made it clear that they intend to invest more than €100 million into this project in the coming years”

126 | BE Europe

Cobre Las Cruces (CLC)

“with regard to the environment our belief is that prevention is better than cure. As such there are three key themes that we continue to work towards. These involve the progressive environmental restoration of the area in which we function, the total care of the water resources in said area and the absence of tailings ponds, which completely eliminates the well-known risks associated with such facilities.”

Happily for Delgado, CLC’s employees and the suppliers and communities which benefit from the mine’s presence, the future of the development looks very healthy indeed.

“Our owners, First Quantum Minerals, have already made it clear that they intend to invest

more than €100 million into this project in the coming years,” Delgado explains.

“Furthermore, if the feasibility of additional mineral resource exploitation is approved, this would require additional investment to carry out such a project. However, if the current estimates are confirmed, we could be talking about expanding the mine activity between 10 and 15 years longer than currently planned, which will be great news for everyone.”

For more information about Cobre Las Cruces (CLC) visit: www.cobrelascruces.com

BE Europe | 127

128 | BE Europe

Eldorado Gold

Discipline delivers Based in Vancouver, Eldorado Gold presents itself as a low-cost gold producer with a vision to create a long-term, profitable business with healthy margins using a disciplined approach to growth

written by: john o’hanlon research by: Jeff Abbott

BE Europe | 129

Development works in the main 8,5km tunnel linking Stratoni to Olympias mine

Eldorado Gold

D

iscipline is a great virtue in the Eldorado has seven operating mines and challenging price environment a pipeline of projects in different stages of the gold mining industry finds construction, development and exploration. itself in today: the players who Though it also operates in Turkey, China and can keep operating through the South America the company has a special lean times will be the ones best place to take focus on northern Greece, to which it was advantage of anticipated price rises. But though attracted by its solid infrastructure, wellthese struggled upward to the tune of some educated labour force, reliable legal system $60 over the course of January – and western and consolidated democratic institutions. economies are showing signs of growth allied Eldorado Gold has been present in Greece to greater confidence – prospects for 2014 since 2008, when it acquired the Perama Hill remain uncertain. Investors know that, and project in Thrace, which is at an advanced they continue to set a premium on discipline. stage of development with an environmental This disciplined approach is reflected impact assessment (EIA) expected to be nowhere better than in the cost of production. approved during the course of this year. Final With that in mind it was an approval of the Perama Hill achievement for Eldorado’s EIA was in fact expected in 2013, however with local Chief Executive Officer elections taking place this Paul N Wright to be able year it is not now thought that to announce a ten percent the approval will be granted increase in production over Increase in gold before then. Assuming the course of 2013. Gold production in 2013 production for the year was a late 2014 construction 721,201 ounces. However start, Eldorado now expects at an average of $494 an ounce, cash costs to be committing $25 million, less than came within a whisker of the 2012 figure of had been previously earmarked.

Perama Hill together with the Olympias $483 and considerably better than the midyear estimate of $520 per ounce. It will be and Skouries deposits that Eldorado Gold no surprise if that rises in 2014 to between is currently advancing in Greece have the $550 and $590 an ounce, but against a potential to make that country Europe’s further six percent expected increase in gold leading gold producer by 2016. With proven production this year to between 730,000 and probable reserves of approximately 8.6 and 800,000 ounces that rise should remain million ounces of gold in Greece, Eldorado’s sustainable. The positive effect on cash flow operations are estimated to be able to generate of $272.5 million saved last year, derived more than €1.6 billion in direct taxes for the from reductions in capital expenditure, Greek State over the next 20 years. Having exploration and G&A costs will further already spent more than €78 million in Greece impress the market. since February 2012, Eldorado will invest

10%

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FREDERIKOS S.A is an engineering firm located in Kavala, North Greece.

FREDERIKOS S.A premises, covering an area of 6000 sq. meters, have the capability to produce high quality castings and demanding machine works. Field of expertise includes mining, oil, renewable energy and chemical industries.

T: 0030 2510316793 0030 2510316968 F: 00302510316967 E: info@frederikos.com www.frederikos.com

Q U A L I T Y

Services and products include: n turn key electromechanical projects n casting of various ferrous non-ferrous parts n construction and maintenance of industrial equipment n construction of different types of pumps n construction of crushers

H A S

I T S

O R I G I N

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Utsevere enim pressure. ad minim minim veniam, quis nostrud The company’s percent veniam, quis 95nostrud owned exercitation Skouries ullamco laboris goldexercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex eaiscommodo nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo copper project located The Olympias flotation plant consequat.

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Excepteur eu fugiat nulla pariatur. sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt

FREDERIKOS SA FREDERIKOS SA, was established in 1972 .

Today it is a modern unit able to provide high quality services by investing in cutting edge technologies and by having a comprehensive selection of equipment.

The company is divided in two divisions; the machine shop and the foundry.

The combination of the foundry and the machine shop gives the flexibility to fulfil difficult tasks and bring innovative ideas to life.

FREDERIKOS SA philosophy is simple; “Treat all our clients with the dignity and courtesy they expect, from small business to the largest industry”. This includes the exemplary customer service, combining lasting and effective support at all levels.

FREDERIKOS SA has managed through the years, to build strong ties with partners like HELLAS GOLD (member of the EL DORADO GOLD family), AKTOR (the leading

construction company in Greece), ROKAS renewable ( a subsidiary company of IBERDOLA, Spain’s largest energy group), KAVALA OIL (the only oil extraction company in Greece) EL.FE(one of the largest fertilizer industries) and a long list of large and small industries throughout the Greek territory and abroad.

FREDERIKOS SA is at the top of the industry and undertakes large projects. Quality is a prime importance in the engineering industry in general. FREDERIKOS S.A. highlights the quality control system by highly qualified staff performing inspections, disciplined quality control of all equipment, continuous training of staff, and the availability to quality control by our customers.

E. info@frederikos.com www.frederikos.com

BEBEEurope WEEKLY| 133 |2

Mr. Roderick Trigwell | General Manager | rod@gedh.com Mr. Adrian Vuvrea | Manager | vuvrea.adrian@genfor.com

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Eldorado Gold

Olympias mine: a jumbo drilling machine and employees at work

operational in 2015 and is expected to be in operation for more than 25 years in total.

In 2013 the project received its installation permit, while construction and underground development started under an experienced management team aided by around 400 employees. 2014 will see plant construction continuing, with work starting on the open pit and tailings dams.

Olympias is a replacement mixed sulphide body with 3.8 million ounces of gold, 57.7 million ounces of silver, 599,000 tonnes of lead, and 796,000 tonnes of zinc in proven and probable reserves. Olympias also contains 270,000 ounces of gold in tailings left over from earlier operations, and these are being re-processed. During 2014 the company will continue to process

“The positive effect on cash flow of $272.5 million saved last year‌ will further impress the marketâ€?

BE Europe | 135

tailings as part of a mandated environmental clean-up. At this site, Eldorado is currently cleaning up over 2.4 million tons of tailings left by a previous operator. When complete, 30 hectares of the Olympias valley will be returned to a greenfield state and given back to the local community.

The Chalkidiki Peninsula where the mine is situated is an attractive part of northern Greece, peppered with ancient sites and an

attraction for tourists. Where areas are no longer needed for mining, Eldorado focuses on rehabilitation wherever it operates, but Greece is somehow uniquely precious, so rehabilitation is a very sensitive topic for the community. The area will be re-planted with native species grown in the company’s own plant nursery – the largest in northern Greece and the company is already working with the Forestry and Natural

“At Olympias Eldorado is currently cleaning up over 2.4 million tonnes of tailings left by a previous operator”

Rehabilitation of Olympias tailings pond

136 | BE Europe

Eldorado Gold

Olympias flotation plant: employees at work

Environment Department of Aristotle University in Thessaloniki to conduct in-situ pilot planting tests 760,000 tonnes of tailings will be processed this year at a grade of 3.1 grammes per tonne (g/t). Additionally, $60 million will be spent on continuing underground development to access the ore body as well as mining equipment, infrastructure, and the decline linking Olympias to the adjacent Stratoni Valley deposit. Last year 1.4 kilometres of this 8 kilometre linking tunnel was constructed.

When completed it will pave the way to ore extraction from the underground mine at a rate of 400,000 tonnes per annum. 2013 also saw three kilometres of underground development and one kilometre of

underground rehabilitation at Olympias, as well as the announcement of a ten percent increase in measured and indicated reserves to 4.7 million ounces.

Looking to the future, Eldorado Gold as a group has ambitious growth targets, aiming to produce 1.7 million ounces of gold by 2016.

This figure represents more than double its total gold production of 721,000 ounces for 2013 and equates to 160 percent growth over a five year period. Needless to say then that its operations in Greece will play a critical role in delivering this.

For more information about Eldorado Gold visit: www.eldoradogold.com

BE Europe | 137

138 | BE Europe

British American Tobacco

Sparking a chain reaction

The ability to change and adapt has always existed within British American Tobacco.

Arguably no other area of its business better encapsulates this quality than its Global Supply Chain

written by: Will Daynes research by: Vincent Kielty

BE Europe | 139

Bernd Meyer, Group Head of Supply Chain

British American Tobacco

B

ritish American Tobacco has never been afraid to embrace change. This is a quality it shares with the most successful businesses throughout history and has been a major contributing factor in the Group’s success over the past 112 years since it was formed in 1902. In recognising the need to move with the times, British American Tobacco has itself evolved into one of the world’s leading tobacco groups, with more than 200 brands sold in over 180 markets, utilising 44 cigarette factories in 39 countries, and a global workforce numbering more than 55,000.

One employee, Bernd Meyer, is as in touch with the concept of change and its importance as any other within British American Tobacco. Meyer successfully transformed South Africa’s Heidelberg cigarette factory from an underperforming operation based on manual labour to a highly automated and high performing state-of-the-art factory.

Since then, Meyer has held the position of Global Head of Plan, Logistics and Service for a period of more than a year, and is now almost a year into his current role as Group Head of Supply Chain.

“As you can imagine,” Meyer says, “taking on what was my first global role in 2011 as Global Head of Plan, Logistics and Service involved quite a significant culture change for me, as before my focus was centred on a particular region and area, Southern Africa.

What you appreciate first and foremost is the sheer scope of the work at hand. This inevitably means that instead of having a hand in every little detail on an area level,

BE Europe | 141

SOLVAY ACETOW

Rhodia FilterSorb™

1 | BE WEEKLY 144 | BE Europe

An important element of almost every cigarette is the filter, mostly composed of cellulose acetate filter tow. Solvay Acetow is one of the leading producers of cellulose acetate tow for cigarette filters. Headquartered in Freiburg (Germany), Solvay Acetow has five production sites on four continents. Two of these production sites are located in South America and the CIS, making Solvay Acetow the only cellulose acetate producer in these regions.

Solvay Acetow is a previous member of the French chemical and pharmaceutical group Rhône-Poulenc which deposited the first patents for cellulose acetate in 1911. Solvay Acetow’s key product is Rhodia® Filter Tow, a cellulose acetate filter tow available in a wide range of technical specifications to cover all possible designs for cigarette filters: from standard cigarette filters to other tobacco applications such as roll-your-own, cigarillos, pipes, slim filters etc. Recently Solvay Acetow has developed and launched three new and innovative products to provide filter solutions which enable our customers to always be one step ahead. All these products provide a reliable performance, something that Rhodia® Filter Tow

British American Tobacco

is known for, and can be used with existing filter makers: Rhodia Coloured Tow™ offers endless possibilities in combining colours and different shapes of acetate filter rods and is therefore a unique opportunity for the market to customize cigarette filters. Rhodia DETow™ is a more environmentally friendly cellulose acetate tow solution which uses the synergy between enhanced photodegradation and biodegradation.

It degrades in the environment five-1toten times faster than a standard filter tow. In October 2013, Solvay Acetow won the ICIS* Best Product Innovation Award 2013 for its new product Rhodia DE-Tow™. Rhodia FilterSorb™ is an innovative filtration additive from Solvay Acetow. This unique silica based granule in a cellulose acetate matrix, adds a second filtration step to a standard filter to provide optimized filtration without loss of flavour. All in all, Rhodia® Filter Tow has the widest product offering in the industry with a priority given to innovative products, customer service and cost efficiency.

E. silke.zaulig@solvay.com www.solvay.com

Rhodia Coloured Tow™

WEEKLY| 145 |2 BEBEEurope

“I believe bringing agreed processes and solutions into British American Tobacco’s global supply chain can benefit the business both in the short and long term” the scale of the global task now requires the need to adopt a matrix management structure of working. This remains the case when it comes to my role as Group Head of Supply Chain.”

146 | BE Europe

One particular cultural and professional change that Meyer would also have soon encountered upon moving into a global role is just how much more challenging it is to put one’s own stamp on things. Fortunately,

British American Tobacco

BAT tobacco field in Sri Lanka

his recognition of the importance of having a matrix management system in place has helped make this task a little bit easier.

“For this particular department to operate at its best it is absolutely vital that we provide the people who report to us throughout the business with the appropriate levels of direction and focus,” Meyer explains.

“This creates a situation where everybody possesses a clear understanding of what our priorities, objectives and targets are as a department, and as a business. This is the first way that one can put his or her marker

down and easily spread the message about what you want to achieve now and in the future. This approach also extends to our relationship with our suppliers and in many ways helps to create a strong degree of transparency between all parties.”

Of course implementing change is never easy, particularly within an organisation the size of British American Tobacco. Nevertheless, what Meyer has done in his relatively short time in charge of the Global Supply Chain is identify several areas within the Group that would benefit from a different approach.

BE Europe | 147

British American Tobacco The first of these areas SWM INTERNATIONAL is what he refers to as the As a premier specialty fine paper company, we are a global federalism that continues to leader of engineered solutions for the tobacco industry exist within British American worldwide, including our groundbreaking Alginex® waterTobacco. “We have a situation based and Glucigen™ starch based technologies. We within the organisation benefit from our global commercial and industrial footprint, where we have different employing close to 2800 people at 12 different locations on 4 continents. We pride ourselves on our long-standing regions undertaking certain business relationships with our customers. Together, in this processes in different ways,” ever changing market, we are poised to write a new page by Meyer states. “While this supporting the industry in 2014 and beyond. can be the right thing to do www.swmintl.com in some isolated instances, in most cases it proves more efficient to apply the same standards globally, thus creating synergies for the business. One significant example would be having one shared methodology behind how we calculate and determine inventory levels, or on a bigger scale how we apply manufacturing, logistics and procurement processes in our factories and supply chains.

This is just two instances among many where I believe bringing agreed processes and solutions into British American Tobacco’s global supply chain can benefit the business both in the short and long term.”

The current implementation of a common SAP system across the world within BAT will finally enable common processes and

55,000+ British American Tobacco’s global workforce Technician at the nursery in Brazil

BE Europe | 149

112 years Since British American Tobacco was established

Dried leaves at the Nigerian facilities

150 | BE Europe

procedures and also will be a significant milestone when it comes to aggregated, realtime information, faster availability of data and finally additional benefits by avoiding duplication of efforts and having bespoke systems that are not interlinked with each other. This is, Meyer enthuses, a true example of a company and supply chain unlocking the potential of its global scale.

While the primary objective for British American Tobacco’s supply chain, providing value to the business, has remained the same for some time, it has arguably never been more important than today for it to achieve its mission. In a time of global financial uncertainty it has become the goal of the supply chain to achieve savings where possible and in ways that are in no way detrimental to the quality of the Group’s products or the service it provides to its customers and consumers. “In many ways,” Meyer highlights, “the supply chain is increasingly acting as something of a value chain to the business.”

That statement goes some way to encapsulating how the supply chain has evolved in recent times. “I believe that the key to a successful supply chain today is achieving synergy and the best way to

British American Tobacco

Finished products before packing at the Ceylon Tobacco Company

do this is through aggregation,” Meyer continues. “The aim of this basically revolves around creating a single drum beat which the department works to, one aligned process if you will, that helps rid the business of the inefficiencies that stem from the multiplication or replication of

data and processes. What we have seen in the short time since we began pushing for this model to be embraced is a greater coming together of local and regional supply chains than we have witnessed in the past. Today there are clear signs that a better flow of communication now exits

“At the very heart of British American Tobacco is the belief that in order to grow as a business it must operate sustainably” BE Europe | 151

WE WELCOME THE CHALLENGES OF THE FUTURE Celanese provides a broad range of products essential to everyday living – including components for countless conveniences you enjoy, and materials helping to advance innovation.

Behind these innovations are people. Celanese is made up of world-class chemists, material and polymer scientists, engineers, operators and professionals across the globe representing diverse backgrounds and cultures. Many are industry experts, recognized as among the best for their contributions toward creating breakthrough technologies and solutions.

Our customers come to us to help them address a problem, accelerate product development or deliver a new solution for their customers.

Meeting these challenges is what makes Celanese the firstchoice chemistry solution source for our customers.

British American Tobacco and this has resulted in agreements over shared Celanese Corporation is a global technology leader in standards and priorities, the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and things that ultimate benefit specialty materials used in most major industries and everyone concerned.” consumer applications. With sales almost equally divided Another development between North America, Europe and Asia, the company that Meyer has witnessed uses the full breadth of its global chemistry, technology and business expertise to create value for customers within British American and the corporation. Celanese partners with customers Tobacco has been the to solve their most critical needs while making a positive way the business rolls impact on its communities and the world. Based in Dallas, out innovations. “We are Texas, Celanese employs approximately 7,600 employees trying to focus more and worldwide and had 2012 net sales of $6.4 billion. For more more on big ticket items, information about Celanese Corporation and its product rolling out big innovations offerings, visit www.celanese.com or our blog at www.celaneseblog.com faster at a larger pace,” he highlights. “Instead of trying to invent something in a single end market, what we are doing now involves developing innovations and creating products that we can roll out with speed, while making full use of our global presence. Such an approach didn’t exist in the past, but what it shows is how we are increasingly thinking globally about what is right for the Group.”

While the aforementioned developments have made significant positive impacts on British American Tobacco’s business in their own rights, arguably the most significant

Celanese Corporation

44 Quality checks are performed on the tobacco before it goes through to be sorted

British American Tobacco cigarette factories today found in 39 countries

BE Europe | 153

“We have a situation within the organisation where we have different regions undertaking certain processes in different ways�

Leaf sorting at BAT Souza Cruz

154 | BE Europe

British American Tobacco evolution to occur within the Group’s supply chain in the last several years has revolved around the concept of having one fully integrated supply chain within the Group rather than having supply chains led by different functions, for instance operations and trade marketing and distribution.

“One of the things we are currently embarking on is the integration of both the primary and secondary supply chains, which have in the past been split into two separate parts,” Meyer says. “While still a work in progress, this supply chain integration programme is now fully in motion and is Production line at Ceylon Tobacco Company achieving further synergies throughout the end to end supply chain.” and safety, environmental At the very heart of British protection and how we can American Tobacco is the best manage resources, belief that in order to grow particularly water.” as a business it must operate Fur t her more, when Number of brands sold by sustainably, creating value it comes to every single British American Tobacco for not only its shareholders, investment decision British but also society as a whole, American Tobacco makes, and as Meyer is keen to the Group ensures that it point out, the global supply chain of the always carries out evaluations in regards Group plays a hugely important role in to the sustainability of the business. For achieving this aim. “Throughout the world example, if the Group decides to build a our factories are constantly working on new factory it will first conduct an extensive achieving improvements in areas such as environmental impact assessment which energy efficiency, power generation, health also considers the long-term impact on the

200

BE Europe | 155

ENHANCED EMBOSSING DRESS UP YOUR BR AND

www.boegli.ch bg@boegli.ch

156 | BE Europe

surrounding area of the project in question.

“Long-term thinking has always been a core facet of British American Tobacco,” Meyer enthuses. “The simple fact that we have been around as a business for well over 100 years and plan to be around for well over a hundred more says a lot, in my opinion, about what our thought process is, and without doubt this has influenced the way we look at how our activities influence the world around us.”

As Meyer approaches a year in his role as Global Head of Supply Chain, it seems as good a time as any to ask him what he believes the immediate and long-term future holds for British American Tobacco’s supply chain.

British American Tobacco

Leaf technician in Nigeria

Production line after sorting

“One of the things we are currently embarking on is the integration of both the primary and secondary supply chains” Understandably he has several predictions about what will influence his department going forward, the first of those being changing international regulations that target tobacco products.

“Our product’s quality, its taste, has never been more important and has become the biggest differentiator in the market. From

a supply chain perspective this puts even more focus on sourcing the best tobacco, the best materials, and developing and producing the best blend that our consumers demand. This attention to detail when it comes to the finished product is one of the main reasons why we stand head and shoulders above our competitors.”

BE Europe | 157

Retail outlet in Lagos, Nigeria

British American Tobacco Continued innovation, both in terms of new products released to market and internal processes will also factor heavily on the future efforts of the supply chain. New product categories that gain significant traction amongst consumers, e-cigarettes for example, require almost an entirely unique supply chain in themselves compared to traditional, combustible products, while advances in technology within the Group’s existing infrastructure are helping make vital information more readily available.

Quick access to facts and figures covering everything from consumption levels to the use of parts in individual factories is also contributing to faster, more accurate decisions being made at local, regional and global levels.

In many ways this all harks back to that key word, integration. “As a global company it is imperative that we work hard to eliminate inefficiencies at a local level, and the best way to do this in my opinion is for us all to be singing from the same hymn sheet as it were,” Meyer concludes. “Personally, I would very much like it if we were able altogether to stop talking about separate regional and local supply chains, and instead focus on the fact that we have an integrated global supply chain. At the end of the day a company like ours should be one where every man and woman shares the same core objectives and targets, and these centre on providing the best products, made to the highest quality, at the best cost to our consumers.”

For more information about British American Tobacco visit: www.bat.com

BE Europe | 159

160 | BE Europe

Eti Aluminyum

Among the integrated elite Since it was privatised is 2005, Eti Aluminyum has channelled a great deal of effort and capital into a comprehensive modernisation programme that is now set to bear fruit

written by: Will Daynes research by: Abi Abagun

BE Europe | 161

T

he world’s second most used metal after steel, aluminium is blessed with a host of positive characteristics that have made its use invaluable to the modern world.

The most common metal found in the earth’s crust, it possesses a remarkably low weight-tostrength ratio, high resistance to corrosion, is easy to shape and is 100 percent recyclable.

Despite aluminium’s importance to several multi-billion dollar sectors, including the aerospace, transportation, medical and construction industries, surprisingly there remain only a handful of integrated aluminium producers in existence today. One of the elite few is Turkey’s Eti Aluminyum.

Eti Aluminyum was originally established in 1962 by the Turkish government, with 15 years passing before it reached full capacity production in 1977. More recently the company embarked on a transition into the private sector when it was acquired in 2005 by the Turkish construction, energy and mining group Cengiz Holding. This event kick started a comprehensive modernization process for the company, one that continues to this day.

Eti Aluminyum is Turkey’s only producer of liquid aluminium and it is the country’s only fully integrated producer which takes in untreated ore downstream and then has the capacity to fulfil every process requirement to the finished product. The company has its own bauxite ore mines located just 20 kilometres away from the factory and this is the starting point of its operations—the chemistry of aluminium means it is always found combined in other minerals, most frequently bauxite ore.

162 | BE Europe

Eti Aluminyum

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CYTEC A leading supplier of chemical reagents to the mining industry for nearly 100 years, Cytec enables customers to improve productivity and reduce operating costs while meeting complex economic, environmental and metallurgical challenges.

As the demands of the industry are changing, Cytec is partnering with mining companies around the world to deliver reagent solutions for the recovery and production of copper, alumina, gold, nickel/ cobalt, polymetallic ores and many other metals and minerals.

Cytec Industries provides the alumina industry with value-adding, efficiencyenhancing technology for all stages in Bayer Process alumina production. Cytec’s technological innovations for alumina processing began with programs for the solid-liquid separation processes and the introduction of synthetic polyacrylate flocculants to replace starch.

Cytec developed the HX flocculants over 20 years ago and since then has remained the premier supplier to the mining industry.

Our flocculants are constantly improved to better meet the industry’s requirements and CYFLOC® ULTRA Series, is the latest advancement in flocculant. The performance benefits includes: • Allows difficult to handle bauxite (high silica >5%) to be processed economically.

• Process variability is reduced due to steadier operation in the clarification section

166 | BE Europe

• Overflow suspended solids are reduced by 50% or more over polyacrylate flocculants, resulting in significant improvements in filtration.

• Gives superior results over existing HXPAMS at reduced dosage requirements • Rapid settling rates allow for high throughput in settler operation.

• High mud densities combined with improved rheological properties of the underflow solids results in less torque on the thickener rake system.

• If the product becomes frozen its performance is fully restored when thaw and mixed All of Cytec’s initiatives in alumina are supported by a global team of field engineers - and a vertically integrated supply chain - to support today’s programs and technologies with an eye on future industry needs. www.cytec.com

Eti Aluminyum

Hot rolling mill

Using the technology of today there are two main production phases. These are bauxite primary ways of producing aluminium, the mining, aluminium production, liquid first being from ore, creating what is known aluminium production, the alloying and as primary aluminium, and the other being casting of the liquid aluminium, and the from scrap, creating secondary aluminium. last but by no means least, the production Eti Aluminyum’s SeydiĹ&#x;ehir Aluminium Plant, of semi and/or end products through the located in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey, use of the aforementioned casting, rolling is an integrated primary and extrusion processes. aluminium production plant.

Today Eti Aluminyum From here the company is provides employment for more than 1,300 individuals, able to convert aluminium while its plant possesses the ore into metallic aluminium capacity to process some by first processing the ore and then shaping it through 460,000 tonnes of bauxite ore Processing capacity the use of casting, rolling and each year and 60,000 tons of at Eti’s Seydisehir aluminium per annum. There extrusion systems.

Aluminium Plant of is also an on-site casting The integrated production bauxite ore per year facility with a capacity of process itself consists of five

460,000 tonnes

BE Europe | 167

75,000 tons a year. Eti Aluminyum produces primary and cast aluminium products as well as wet and dry aluminium hydroxide, calcined alumina and a small quantity of high Mg-alloyed plates. In addition, the company’s facilities are also equipped to handle the production and commercial sale of aluminium hydrate, alumina, and aluminium sulphate and vanadium sludge.

The aluminium hydroxide product is used by aluminium sulphate, poly aluminium chloride (PAC), zeolite and other special hydrate producers. The metallurgical alumina product is used mainly by the smelter department internally, as well as by refractory, ceramic and other special alumina producers. The casting products consist of re-melt ingot, alloyed and non-alloyed ingots, billets and slabs. Here, re-melt ingots are used by billet and slab producers while the alloyed and non-alloyed ingots are used by piston producers, cable manufacturers, etc. Billets are used by extrusion producers and slabs are used internally by the rolling plant. Meanwhile, the high Mg-alloyed plates that the plant produces are typically used by machinery builders, ship builders and the defence industry.

Since its privatisation, modernising the legacy of Eti Aluminyum’s plant and related

facilities has been a key priority. While its existing infrastructure has undoubtedly served the company well for almost 40 years, a comprehensive upgrade was nevertheless of paramount importance if it was to be able to increase equipment and process efficiency, plant productive, improve work conditions and safety, and reduce emissions.

Making all of this a reality was always going to be quite the challenge and it is one that the

“Machinery used throughout Eti Aluminyum’s operations is being systematically brought into line with new technology and regulations” 168 | BE Europe

Eti Aluminyum

company is continuing to face meeting around 15 percent of up to as we enter 2014. As Turkey’s annual aluminium well as upgrading all of the demand. Therefore it stands equipment and infrastructure to reason that many within relating to its two methods the country are waiting Of Turkey’s annual excitedly for the company’s of aluminium production, aluminium demand machinery used throughout modernisation plans to is provided by Eti Eti Aluminyum’s operations is bring about an increase Aluminyum being systematically brought in its plant’s production into line with new technology output from 60,000 to and regulations, while great 75,000 tonnes of aluminium progress continues to be made towards the by early 2014, a target that appears well construction of a new coal powered steam within its reach. boiler plant and the installation of a more modern smelter. Both the latter undertakings For more information about are expected to be completed in 2014.

Eti Aluminyum visit: Eti Aluminyum’s Seydişehir Aluminium www.etialuminyum.com Plant is estimated to be responsible for

15%

BE Europe | 169

170 | BE Europe

AirTies Turkey

Connecting

the dots

AirTies Turkey CEO, Philippe Alcaras discusses how the company’s success in Turkey can act as a springboard to international expansion

written by: Will Daynes research by: David Brogan

BE Europe | 171

AirTies Turkey

A

t the time when Alexander Graham Bell and Charles Sumner Tainter carried out the first wireless telephone conversation in 1880, even their great minds probably couldn’t have envisioned how significant a part this technology would go on to play more than 120 years later. Today, barely a week goes by before a new wireless device is brought to market and the spread of the technology in developing countries has come to be one of the tell-tale signs of economic strength.

Defined by the IMF as an emerging market economy, Turkey is one such country to have experienced a rapid growth when it comes to technological advances in recent times. “It was roughly around ten years ago that mass use of the internet started to really boom in Turkey,” explains AirTies Turkey CEO, Philippe Alcaras.

It was around this time, 2004 to be precise, that AirTies was established. Led by a senior management and technical team from Silicon Valley, the company’s strategic intent was, and still is, to be the market leader for the wirelessly connected home through the design and development of its own software and hardware.

“Our introduction to the Turkish market,” Alcaras continues, “saw us bring a number of innovations to the country. Perhaps the most significant of these was the opening of our own 24/7 call centre to help customers to properly install their internet service.

This is one way that we demonstrate how our origins have always been closely linked to our customers, their individual user

BE Europe | 173

2004 The year that AirTies was established

Philippe Alcaras

174 | BE Europe

experiences and the bringing to market of the best products and services.”

The opening of its own call centre in Turkey was in many ways a visionary move by AirTies Turkey, bucking the trend created by other device manufacturers that tend to outsource such services, often at the expense of forging close relationships with their customers and gaining a better understanding of their concerns and issues.

“Our decision to forge this link really helped in creating a greater level of recognition for our brand and is one of the reasons why there are now more than three million Turkish homes using our products,” Alcaras enthuses.

In addition to these domestic customers the company has also built up an impressive portfolio of business clients.

One of the unique characteristics that make AirTies stand apart from the competition is that it retains full control of its products and solutions from inception to launch. By developing its hardware and software through internal research and development and customer feedback the company is able to quickly respond to market demands.

“Today, the fundamental driver of our growth is the fact that our system is designed to guarantee 100 percent wireless coverage

AirTies Turkey

Air 7210 High Definition Hybrid IPTV/OTT/DVB-T/C Set-Top Box with dual tuners

throughout a user’s home or business; however what is now central to our business was much more of an accessory as recently as five years ago,” Alcaras states.

This all changed with the arrival of the iPad. From that point on it became clear that the days were numbered when home networking could simply be resolved using power lines and electricity to bring the

internet into every room. As Alcaras rightly points out, in the average US home today there can be as many as twelve wireless connected devises under one roof and this trend is going global at a rapid pace.

Therefore the need to be able to provide for an environment where all these devices can connect seamlessly to a strong internet connection has never been greater.

“The company’s strategic intent is to be the market leader for the wirelessly connected home” BE Europe | 175

“The ability to deliver a fantastic user experience time and again really typifies AirTies and gives us the edge that we have over our competitors�

176 | BE Europe

AirTies Turkey “Our solutions, products and technology allow us to create a network within a home or business that provides the best possible pathway for any content that one wishes to access wirelessly through a particular device,” Alcaras says. “That ability to deliver a fantastic user experience time and again really typifies AirTies and gives us the edge that we have over our competitors.”

Equally significant is its seemingly never-ending search for new technological advances that will enhance user experience, something that it does not just by itself but also in partnership with other industry players who the company feels share a similar vision and values.

“A lack of collaboration between companies is something that we see as a real issue within our industry with the concept of joint research and development being something that is very much in its infancy,” Alcaras highlights. “What we want to do is take this concept and move it forward. The reality of the world today is that consumer habits change and grow at a much faster pace than the industry itself, therefore the norm of taking some 18 months to deploy a new solution is too long. It is my belief that the best way to bring this time down is through honest,

Air 4400 300 Mbps Wireless Range Extender

open collaboration between companies that will ultimately reap benefits for all parties.”

When looking at what the future holds for AirTies Turkey, one of the initiatives currently in the early stages of planning involves the company rolling out its technology to Turkey’s steadily expanding hospitality sector. “Our research into this particular market has shown us that in order to ensure complete coverage throughout a hotel one requires a greater use of smart technology as opposed to networking technology,” Alcaras says. “Where we also see the hospitality market benefiting from our solutions is in the ability to self-install quickly and simply. As you can imagine, for a hotel to call in an engineer each time they need to install connectivity to a room you are

BE Europe | 177

AirTies Turkey looking at a time consuming, costly exercise.

The self-installing nature of our technology helps to lower the cost of installation while continuing to ensure maximum wireless coverage everywhere. This reason alone gives us great confidence that our products can sit well within the hospitality sector.”

While Turkey continues to be a hugely important market for AirTies, a breakdown of its annual revenues reveals that its dependence on the country has decreased slightly over the last three to five years. As Alcaras himself acknowledges, this highlights the fact that the opportunity for the company to expand internationally is at hand.

“In addition to expanding our existing presence in Europe,” Alcaras concludes, “we are also looking more and more at potential business opportunities in North America and Asia. While this makes for an exciting time for us we do realise that, good as we are, we are not yet in a position where we can provide our technology on a global scale in the short term. In order to combat this we are increasingly looking to partner with a number of premium operators so that we can better provide hardware, finished goods and licensing throughout the world. Although it is difficult to forecast precisely what the future may hold we are certainly preparing ourselves for the possibility of multiplying our current revenue by three or four in the next five years.”

For more information about AirTies Turkey visit: www.airties.com

BE Europe | 179

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