1142

w Office the east.

Zweig Group is social and posting every day! C O N N E C T W I T H U S

facebook.com/ ZweigGroup

twitter.com/ ZweigGroup

linkedin.com/company/ ZweigWhite

blog. ZweigGroup .com vimeo.com/ ZweigGroup

London begins as an international hub, but within five years, it should be positioned as a headquarters of its own, one that can flourish in the ultracompetitive, talent-rich en- vironment of the United Kingdom. “Eventually when we are more comfortable and more known, we will do work in London itself,” says Leventis. “ Th at’s the general idea of London.” At an astounding 3,281 feet – nearly twice as high as the Freedom Tower in New York – Jeddah will easily be the tallest skyscraper in the world when completed in 2018. Leventis, 56, says the global development market is driv- en in part by upcoming events like the 2020 World Expo in Dubai, expected to attract as many as 25 million visitors, and the 2022 soccer World Cup, the world’s most popular sporting event, in Qatar. Deeper into the market are places like Turkey and the Commonwealth of Independent States, where, despite sagging oil prices, activity is driven by social projects like schools, hospitals, and infrastructure. IbisWorld, a global business intelligence firm, sees good days ahead for the worldwide architectural industry, which reflects development and engineering, and expects it to grow from $204 billion in 2015 to $240 billion by 2020. Th e market, according to IbisWorld, will be largely powered by development in the U.S. and in emerging economies. With established o ffi ces in the UAE, Qatar, and Turkey, Lan- gan is involved across a wide array of projects, including the Grand Airport City, and the Ikitelli Hospital, both in Istan- bul and both expected to be the largest in the world upon completion. Th e true eye catcher, however, is the Jeddah Tower, currently in progress in Saudi Arabia. At an astound- ing 3,281 feet – nearly twice as high as the Freedom Tower in New York – Jeddah will easily be the tallest skyscraper in the world when completed in 2018. Langan performed civ- il, geotechnical, and transportation services for the project. Word of Langan’s London venture flew through the A/E/P industry on the wings of a press release. But the e ff ort lead- ing up to the London move was sustained, deliberate, and informed by years of experience. And in large part, it was led by Leventis, the firm’s globe-trotting workhorse and a 31-year member of the Langan team. Born in Greece, Leventis graduated from the National Tech- nical University in Athens before earning his master’s in geotechnical engineering from the University of Illinois. From 1998 to 2001, Leventis served as director general of the organizing committee for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. He also played a big part in the firm’s role as the

Covent Garden, London / Google Maps

lender’s technical advisor for the Rion-Antirion Bridge across the Corinthian Straights. Th rough projects like the Olympics and Rion-Antirion, Lev- entis and the firm developed a big appetite for internation- al work, and as a consequence, Langan International was formed in 2001. But then came the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York, which destroyed Langan’s headquarters at 90 West St. in Manhattan. Th e firm suddenly had to think about survival, not international projects. “It makes perfect sense for us to also have a footprint here to service these clients on both domestic and worldwide projects.” “All the attention went to New York,” Leventis says. “It took us a year to recover.” Indeed, the firm persevered, and by 2008, had licenses to work in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Shortly thereafter, Lehm- an Brothers, a global financial services firm, collapsed. Th e Great Recession was underway. During the downturn in the United States, Langan pros- pered internationally. For Leventis, key reasons why the firm succeeded were that it took its time in sizing up the market, weighing challenges, and finding opportunities.

See LANGAN, page 8

arch 7, 2016, ISSUE 1142

Made with FlippingBook Annual report