By Vipin Agnihotri
Most of you will agree with my opinion that construction industry is the one sector that has benefited most visibly from the India growth story. Then it is hardly a surprise that titanic-sized tower cranes busily moving blocks of concrete and steel are quite a common sight across Indian metros. However, I am confidant that you have not noticed the performance of lots of construction companies that have built solid fortunes amidst the boom.
In general, one such company is the $7-billion, UK-based construction group Laing ORourke (LOR), which set up operations in India in the 2003. From that moment onward, Laing ORourke has been low profile and in few cases in news as one of the joint venture partners of Indian real estate major DLF.
It is worth mentioning in this regard that the two have an equal joint venture for construction DLF-Laing ORourke that clocked a book-turnover of Rs 800 crore this year and has more than 1,000 people on its rolls. According to sources, Laing ORourke is adding more than 100 people every month.
It has come into the notice of The India Street that independently Laing ORourke has participated in projects such as Mukesh Ambanis new home Antilla, the Asian Games stadium in Ranchi and two build-operate-and-transfer road projects.
If experts are to be believed, Laing ORourke intends to straddle the gamut of construction-related activities in India ranging from services to manufacturing and even equipment leasing.
Point to be noted here is that Laing ORourke journey in India started with Eigen, which offers support and technical services to construction-related firms globally. In the coming days, Laing ORourke is planning to leverage the low-cost strength of the Indian economy to give outsourced services such as remote monitoring of facilities.
Furthermore, on the manufacturing side, there are signs that Laing ORourke is setting up a timber door manufacturing plant in the Kandla SEZ in Gujarat. According to company sources, company is also planning to rope in its current suppliers in the United Kingdom into this joint venture and others that may look at manufacturing curtain walling and concrete sleepers.
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