By Karl Davis.
At the start of 2021, it gave me a lot of pleasure to announce another new hire to the growing team here. Opening our Empire Engineering Aalborg office in Denmark was a major milestone in our history. By bringing Martin Underlin Østergaard onboard, we now have geotechnical skills inside the business and it also gives Empire ‘boots on the ground’ in a very important market.
It would be a fair question to ask – why now?
I think we can all agree that 2020 was a year like no other. We’ve all experienced our own version of the ups and downs of living through the pandemic. It has not been easy. I for one was quite glad to see the back of 2020.
As humans, one of our standout qualities is our ability to adapt. We’ve changed the way we work, we’ve changed the way we live. Through the brilliance of science there is now light at the end of the tunnel.
As a business leader how I respond to challenge has a considerable impact on company trajectory
I’m not saying it’s all been plain sailing over at Empire Engineering – far from it. 2020 saw both highs and lows. There was work we successfully completed on and there were tenders we lost. Some familiar faces decided to move on and in-turn we had new faces to say hello to.
The life of a founder never runs smooth. But we keep going.
Coupled to that is the fact that the global environmental agenda has not gone away. If anything, with the passing of another year it’s become even more pressing. If we’re going to get anywhere close to our respective country’s commitments to net zero then real action needs to take place and take place quickly.
The good news is that while time has not stopped, neither has the pace of innovation in our industry
You only need to look at how many sites are being scoped or are under construction, the positive news now coming from the USA, the sheer size of the turbines being manufactured and the scale of the new wind farms under construction.
I have firsthand experience of seeing innovation in action, most recently during my time at the Dogger Bank project.
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The need to be ambitious, Empire Engineering in Aalborg
As Empire Engineering, we’re an ambitious business and one that is filled with talented people. We want to be part of the industry conversation.
And that’s why, for me, there is no option but to push forward and grow in size and stature. In 2020, right in the peak of the first wave we opened our London office. Aaron Zigeng Du, who heads up that team has made considerable impact since joining. In the latter half of 2020 we added to the London team with Wei-Ting Hsu joining in November.
And I’m pleased to say we’re not stopping there. Martin is now our man in Denmark. I’m looking forward to welcoming Martin aboard in person and working with him through this year and beyond.
While 2020 was a tough year for all sorts of reasons none of us could ever have predicted, I’m proud with what my team have achieved and the business that we’ve built and continue to build. Here’s to 2021 and whatever it may bring.
To find out more, please get in touch with the team at Empire Engineering.
