GMR builds construction unit to cut costs, meet deadlines

Mumbai: After building an international airport in Istanbul 12 months ahead of schedule, Bangalore-based infrastructure developer GMR Infrastructure Ltd is setting up an in-house engineering, procurement and construction, or EPC, division. The objective is to reduce future project costs and ensure that deadlines are met.
Designed to handle 20 million passengers a year, Turkey’s Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport, or SGIA, was completed in 18 months.
SGIA, twice the size of the new Hyderabad airport and 3.5 times the Bangalore airport, was built by a consortium including GMR, Limak Insaat San Ve Tic AS and Malaysia Airport Holding Bhd.
It was the third airport project for GMR, and the first outside of India, where large infrastructure projects typically run into long delays. The record time of completion apart, SGIA was also significant for GMR because it was the first project in which it had participated in the actual construction, said group financial officer Subba Rao Amarthaluru.
Established in 1978, GMR Group used to outsource project construction to other firms, mainly engineering and construction company Larsen and Toubro Ltd, or L&T, and Punj Lloyd Ltd. Both compete with GMR for airports, roads and power projects.
15/11/09 P.R. Sanjai and Satish John/Live Mint

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Categories: Airports Nov 2009