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BUSINESS NEWS POINTE LNG SIGNS AGREEMENT FOR ENGINEERING AND TECHNICAL SERVICES WITH KELLOGG BROWN & ROOT FOR PLAQUEMINES PARISH LNG EXPORT FACILITY Pointe LNG, LLC, announced that it has signed an engineering and technical services agreement with KBR to provide Pointe LNG with front end engineering design submittals and services as required to obtain Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approval for Pointe LNG’s proposed LNG liquefaction and export facility to be located in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. “We are pleased to have KBR, a global
EPC LNG Contractor, as a partner, and this strategic agreement is an important step in the development of our project. We are thrilled about the opportunity to add KBR’s decades of LNG experience on board as we bring Pointe LNG to market,” said James Lindsay, Pointe’s co-founder. “Selecting KBR to provide the full engineering design on FERC FEED, Full FEED and a lump sum EPC turnkey bid package assures that Pointe LNG will complete the FERC filing process on time and ensures the quality design needed,” said Tom Burgess, the company’s co-founder.
“KBR is pleased to be working with Pointe LNG in this key role and contribute to this important development in Louisiana,” said Farhan Mujib, KBR president, hydrocarbons delivery solutions. “KBR’s selection for this work demonstrates Pointe LNG’s confidence in KBR’s LNG project experience, leverages our U.S. construction capability and provides opportunity for a full service EPC contract at a later date.” Construction is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2021 with initial operations expected in the first quarter of 2025.
DAVID WANTMAN, from page 9
market value, it sends a message that they want the new own- ers and the firm to succeed. To build and grow a legacy firm, ownership must transition, at most, annually; this consistent ownership invigoration communicates the expectation of excellence at every level. Change in your ownership profile is the sign of a healthy firm; embrace it! ❚ ❚ Strive for diversity and inclusion. Diversity at AEC com- panies should dovetail with clients’ ongoing increase in di- versity, strengthening reputation and parity. A homogenous talent pool can only deliver homogenous solutions. While it is possible to reach a certain level of success without great diver- sity and inclusion, companies can never truly rise to their full potential without a broad cross-section of talent. The AEC profession hasn’t kept up with the broader pace of diversity, largely because our colleges also struggle to attract a diverse student population. Fortunately, that is changing. Even so, it will take time for the management-level talent pool to catch up and usher in this much-needed change. Leadership must recognize the benefits of diversity and prioritize it to attract more associates offering different per- spectives. It starts with your brand, not human resources. Build a brand recognized for inclusion if you want to succeed. Of course, when you show up at a college recruiting fair, be represented by a diverse group of professionals. Diversity at- tracts diversity. ❚ ❚ Join the technology revolution. Technology is the fourth industrial revolution, and it is changing at exponential speed. AEC companies that embrace technology will thrive, especial- ly those first adopters. Companies that are slow to adapt will flounder and, even more probably, cease to exist. New technologies have fundamentally changed how we work, live, and relate to each other. That is especially true within the AEC profession as technologies such as artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and autonomy are expanded and fine- tuned. The concept of smart cities is at the forefront, as services that include transportation, waste management, product delivery, and communications are delivered in new, more-efficient ways. There are endless opportunities for companies that ag- gressively leverage new technologies, while those that ignore them are left hopelessly behind. Embrace the change that technology demands! DAVID WANTMAN, P.E., is chief executive officer of WGI. Contact him at david.wantman@wginc.com.
most successful associates are hired straight out of college, then trained on-site to ensure work is accomplished in the company’s preferred and established methods. This home- grown talent doesn’t bring bad habits or previous employers’ methodologies that may not mesh with company culture and standards. However, companies can’t rely entirely on organic growth; it is usually slow – certainly much slower than gaining talent through a merger or acquisition. Let’s say a company has 1,000 associates and through attri- tion, loses 15 percent of its associates each year. To maintain the talent pool, the company needs to hire 150 associates to replace those lost through attrition. In that case, to grow even 10 percent, the company would need to annually hire 250 associates. Achieving that in a strong economy is dif- ficult when considering the small talent pool combined with constant competition, as associates move to other companies. That’s a significant amount of change, one body at a time! “The playing field constantly changes, so it only makes sense that companies shift accordingly. Companies must proactively initiate internal changes rather than simply react to external changes because, at that point, it may already be too late.” ❚ ❚ Even ownership needs to change. When a firm stops grow- ing, profits stagnate, and leadership doesn’t change as fre- quently as the market requires, it’s a warning sign – especially if peer firms are thriving. Chances are, leadership is the issue and change is needed. Difficult though it may be, leaders must be selfless and exit when it’s best for the company, not for them. The same people who started the company may not be the right ones to lead it into the future. Companies should strongly consider shareholder agreements, with triggers for shareholders to sell all or part of their hold- ings when they reach certain ages. No wiggle room, no pref- erential treatment. Shareholders shouldn’t have the option of hanging on solely for their personal gain. When owners are willing to sell shares at the right time for the firm, and at fair
© Copyright 2019. Zweig Group. All rights reserved.
THE ZWEIG LETTER April 22, 2019, ISSUE 1293
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