Cell sheet or perforated polyester fabric? For Katja Kocak, Product Group Manager at Skanska Oy, the question of the materials of the work site boards is significant and topical, as such boards are needed for every construction site the company manages. It is extremely important for a responsible construction company that the materials are recyclable.
Skanska invests in durable and safe materials, minimises wastage, and treats all created waste accordingly. The question of the materials of the work site boards is one practical example of how responsibility and environmental perspectives can affect the daily choices in a construction company that is one of the biggest in Finland. Quality comes from the details.
“The suggestion to use recyclable perforated polyester fabric came from Grano. They know the Skanska values, and make suggestions actively related to new ways of doing things,” Kocak praises.
She is responsible for indirect acquisitions, including all the marketing communications-related printing services. The range of different kinds of printed products alone is extensive, from various corporate publications to magazines and brochures. The materials are printed for use, not to be stocked up in a storage room.
The acquisition processes are perfected to the last. The acquisitions are made by the site organisation as well as full-time acquisition professionals. Each site orders the applicable site signs from Grano’s materials and services within the range of products selected to the electronic acquisition system.
The sum of competence
Grano and Skanska have cooperated in many ways for a long time. When it comes to the SokoPro project bank for construction site project management, for example, the cooperation started in the early days of Skanska.
“Copying the drawings and maintaining the project bank makes up some 60 per cent of our cooperation, while the rest come from work site boards and various printing products,” Kocak calculates.
Throughout the chain
Some 70 per cent of Skanska’s construction costs consist of services and materials purchased from external suppliers. Skanska emphasises responsible business, and it is of vital importance that the subcontractors and suppliers commit to Skanska’s principles.
As an example, Kocak tells of a competitive tendering process for printed services that occurred a few years ago. The service providers had to carefully recount how they took care of work safety issues, which is a matter of great importance to Skanska. Even the drivers of delivery trucks must have appropriate shoes on when coming to the work site, for example.
Skanska requires a lot from its partners. However, Kocak notes that meeting the criteria and proving it can be used as a merit in itself:
“Being selected as our cooperation partner is a strong reference, as you must really pay attention to all the essential issues.”
