Discussing Construction in Ghana with Leading Construction and Engineering Company GROW Engineering

Interview with Armenio Felicio, General Manager at GROW Engineering

Could you give us an overview of GROW Engineering?

We are a construction company, a main contractor. We are specialized in all kinds of buildings. We do building construction from housing, hospitals, hotels, schools, offices and warehouses. We can do the construction work from A to Z, but the market sometimes just requests for us to do the shell and core, while other times we only do the finishings. It depends on the market that we are working in. We have been present in Ghana since 2013. We belong to a Portuguese group that has presence in several countries. We have companies in Mozambique, Angola, Ivory Coast, Portugal and France, as main contractors. In the main group that is based in Portugal, we have some other companies related to construction, with fixed presence in other markets. Apart from that, we can sometimes go outside our markets for some particular projects and come back again, but not with a regular presence like we have here in Ghana.

Here in Ghana, we have built office buildings from the initial work to the key delivery. We have done some residential projects as well, such as apartments and town homes ranging from medium to high level construction. Most of the works are based on residential and offices. We have done some shell and core for a four star hotel. Regarding finishing works, we have done offices for some international companies, like Oracle, the IMF, etc. For the PwC office, we have done the full work as main contractors. We have also done the shell and core, as well as the ceilings, for Ernst and Young.

The construction industry is very competitive. What makes you standout in order to get all these projects with PwC, Oracle and the IMF?

These projects require a high level of finishing that are not so common here in Ghana. And this is where we are more competitive because we know the market and we have the proper solutions, not only in Ghana, but also in Portugal and in all the other countries where we are present. We are aware of the technical solutions that exist and we know how to implement them. This is how we became competitive in this kind of works. And, of course, we bring the European quality to Africa or Ghana in this particular case, and that’s what makes the difference in these cases.

Did the pandemic have an impact on your business? What strategies did you put in place to overcome these challenges?

Initially, there was a direct impact as the sites had to be stopped for some weeks. It was not possible to work. But later on, some measures were taken to mitigate the risks, and we have implemented those protocols on our sites. For instance, we measured the temperature each time someone was going out or coming into the site, we enforced hand washing, we provided sanitizers, etc. Construction is an intensive manpower work, but fortunately, most of the time we are working in open areas, which reduces the impact. So this initial impact was well accepted by the workers and the stakeholders.

But then there were some direct impacts that created bigger problems, such as the supply of materials, which we are still feeling today. When we want to buy materials from outside, there are some problems in terms of transportation, the prices have increased a lot, we need to book the containers one month in advance, we do not know if we will have the containers on time, etc.

Could you tell us more about your presence in Africa?

In West Africa, we are present here in Ghana and we have a company in Ivory Coast too. The focus mainly is Ghana, but we have contacts to do other projects elsewhere, while being based here. The idea is not to open new branches, but from here, go and do jobs and come back. In the case of Mozambique and Angola, we opened an office, registered the business, and while business is developed in country we are part of the local economies in order to help and develop them. The idea is not coming to do a project and going back. In both cases, it was natural for a Portuguese company to set there, because they are Portuguese speaking countries and even the systems and laws are similar.

What is your vision for GROW Engineering in next three years?

Projection is one of the challenges that we face here. Our life is made up of studies and reports, but here it is quite difficult to do. Of course we do it, every year we have some targets, objectives and ways to go, but the market is unpredictable. Sometimes we are expectating things to happen and other times, suddenly, several projects come up at the same time. So you need to be ready for both scenarios. In Europe for instance, you can manage your construction projects better, knowing that there was a tender, that the due date is defined, that everything has been negociated properly, etc. Here, sometimes you go through all these steps, everything is ready but the project never happens. Or sometimes projects come in and you need to start tomorrow, so you need to be ready to move on. But still, Ghana and West Africa as a whole, is a market with potential and there is a lot to do here. There is a lot of infrastructures to be done and investments to be made. The population is growing.

Since I arrived here till now, that is a huge difference and that will continue. As GROW Engineering, we would like to increase the business, add to our portfolio and work with other areas in terms of buildings. In the future, we are studying the chance to bring some other sister companies related to construction work here in Ghana.

Is there anything you would like to add?

The clients appreciate that we bring more added value to the projects. We like to work hand in hand with our clients to do some value engineering and to increase the value of the projects. It is something that we do frequently. That is the way I can be different from the other companies. Construction is always a challenge. Each project is different and each client is different, but that is what we do and that is what we like to do.

What inspires you to do what you do?

There is one thing that is always present in my mind, and that is to work in a proper way. If you work hard, and if you work in a proper way, sooner or later, you will get results. Sometimes you do not get them immediately but if you do a good job, and if you do it the right way, sooner or later, they will come. This is something that I try to share with my team too. Internally, we have weekly meetings, and sometimes I use some guiding phrases. Two weeks ago, I told them: “The cows do not give milk. You need to take out the milk.” So that would be my philosophy.

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