Engineering and project delivery company, Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM) has won an Australia-Latin America Business Excellence Award in recognition of the its growth in South America over the past 14 years. It is the second time that SKM has been recognised with an award by the Australia-Latin America Business Council, having received the Export Award for SKM Minmetal in 2007.
SKM’s business in South America has grown significantly since the company first started investigating opportunities in the region in 1998. Activities in South America are now integral to SKM’s global business and represent 8.6% of total SKM revenue. Since 2004, when SKM employed 12 people in Chile and had revenue of A$4.5 million, staff numbers have expanded to 900 with revenue growing to A$108 million. In the past year alone, SKM’s South American business has experienced an almost 20% increase in revenue.
SKM now has offices in Lima, Peru; Bogota, Colombia and Belo Horizonte, Brazil, as well as a purpose-built, 14-storey office tower in Santiago, Chile. Services have expanded to include water, environmental, power, energy and infrastructure, as well as mining capabilities, and plans are underway for further expansion in terms of geography, client base and capabilities. CEO Santo Rizzuto said the firm experienced a major boost over the past year, with the acquisition of leading Chilean water consultancy, IRH. “Now with some 90 environmental and water specialists, SKM recently signed a Cooperation Agreement with the Chilean Government which will involve the transfer of technology and knowledge on water management to Chilean professional teams,” Rizzuto said.
“We have also added power and energy capabilities to our skill mix in South America, with the business now providing services in hydro technology, power for mining projects, transmission and generation, as well as supporting SKM’s global geothermal business. Our building and infrastructure capabilities are also further developing to support mining clients in terms of maritime, rail and non-process infrastructure, as well as providing specialist seismic engineers to SKM’s operations in Christchurch, to assist with the post-earthquake restorations,” Rizzuto said. While providing specialist study and engineering services, SKM’s capabilities in major project delivery have also grown in the region. Five major capital projects have been delivered in the past four years – the most, in terms of number, across SKM’s operational areas.