ICEF REVIEW
International Construction
Economic Forum
ICEF
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CONSTRUCTION EUROPE
DECEMBER 2013-JANUARY 2014
Construction is key
Inaugural ICEF
welcomed 200
delegates, 2014 event
location confirmed
“Europe still holds a key position in world,”
he said. “But we cannot sit back and watch
the world. Europe must recover a sense of
purpose and set out a plan of action that can
be supported across the EU.”
CONTRACTING AND MATERIALS
Speakers from the contracting and materials
side of the industry also addressed delegates.
They included Xavier Therin, vice president of
land, mineral resources and mining at Lafarge
Aggregates & Concrete, and Miguel Jurado
Fernández, general manager of contractor FCC
Construcción.
Therin delivered a robust speech directed at
equipment manufacturers. “I’d rather spend
more on a machine and have something
that is reliable and last longer, then have
something that is cheap and cheerful but will
last three years,” he said.
As Lafarge branches out more and more into
emerging markets, Therin said the cement
producer expected the same standards in the
equipment it used as in more mature markets.
“What this means for suppliers is that we
can’t use second rate equipment because it is
an emerging market,” he said, adding that this
expectation extended to the servicing and
maintenance of machines.
For his part, FCC’s Fernández said the
contractor was determined to continue to
pursue international expansion in the wake
of the bankruptcy of its Austrian subsidiary
Alpine.
“We purchased Alpine in 2007 to develop
activities in foreign countries. Alpine started
expanding very rapidly. It was risky and not
profitable and, at the end of the day, it was a
big failure. This year, in May, we decided not
to continue with the subsidiary because it was
unsustainable.
“The main mistake was a very rapid growth
in foreign markets without establishing
knowledge of countries and situations first.
We have to learn from this,” he said.
However, that is not to say the contractor is
giving up on its domestic market – far from it.
“In Spain, for sure, we are going to maintain
activity, and we are waiting for a recovery,
which we see coming in the following years.
We think that the worst has passed – the
economy is out of recession,” Fernández said.
Meanwhile, prominent figures representing
the manufacturing industry also addressed
the conference, including Zeng Guang’an,
president of Liugong Machinery.
Zeng spoke about the coming of age of
China’s construction equipment industry, and
sought to dispel some of the stereotypes that
exist about Chinese-made machines.
“There is a stereotype of low cost and
low quality in Chinese-built products, and
while this idea existed 10 years ago and was
right, today it has totally changed. There
are many misconceptions about Chinese
T
he construction sector is of strategic
importance in Europe, representing
more than 10% of GDP and over 50%
of fixed capital investment, according to
former Spanish Prime Minister José María
Aznar, speaking at November’s International
Construction Economic Forum (ICEF).
Some 200 delegates and speakers took part
in the inaugural conference, awards ceremony
and networking event.
Aznar made the keynote address at ICEF,
which took place from 20 to 22 November
in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and was
organised by
CE
’s publisher KHL.
He said, “The health of the European
construction industry is the health of the
European economy. Construction is the
biggest industrial employer in Europe, with
more than 20 million direct employees and
affecting some 44 million workers Europe.”
Aznar, who was in office from 1996 to 2004,
also said he did not share view that Europe
was condemned to a long period of decline.
One of the highlights
was the keynote
address and question
& answer session
from former Spanish
Prime Minister José
María Aznar
Xavier Therin, vice president of land, mineral
resources and mining at Lafarge Aggregates &
Concrete, delivered a strong speech directed
at OEMs
In a dynamic address, Zeng Guang’an,
president of Liugong Machinery, spoke about
the coming of age of China’s construction
equipment
