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Ramboll goes from strength to strength in UK and beyond

Philippa Spence, UK managing director of Ramboll.

A strategy of responding to the rising demand for sustainable solutions has seen global architecture engineering and consultancy firm Ramboll increase revenue by 12.6%, to 16 billion Danish Krona.

The firm is one year into its strategy of taking an "all in" approach to sustainability and has seen high demand for services in renewable energy, despite macroeconomic uncertainty.

Its offshore wind and Power-to-X solutions, water and climate adaptation, low-carbon buildings and expertise on developing sustainability strategies have led to the firm's continued growth, which reached more than 20% in the UK and Germany. 

Ramboll has seen double digit growth in key markets, driven by demand for sustainable solutions and overall organic growth of 9.9% and a 10% growth in operating profit to 937 million Danish Krona.

Philippa Spence, UK managing director of Ramboll praised the firm's double-digit growth in the UK, as well as its "great performance across all of our markets". 

Speaking of the firm's performance in the UK, she said: "This has resulted in 22% Gross Revenue growth, despite the headwinds of a challenging economy, Brexit and the industry-wide skills shortage.

“This is testament to the effectiveness of our new strategy, which was launched last year and puts sustainability at the heart of what we deliver. 

"Most notably, new energy markets supporting the green energy transition – such as hydrogen and carbon capture and storage – continue to be a major focus within our expanding energy offering."

She added the firm is proudly working with Scotland Gas Networks on a study that maps and evaluates the water requirements of planned and potential new hydrogen production facilities in different regions of Scotland. 

This will enable the rollout of hydrogen across the country.

Ramboll has also significantly grown its offshore wind team. 

Spence said: “2022 was a year of iconic wins for the UK too, including One North Quay Science Tower at Canary Wharf. 

"At 23 storeys, it will be the largest commercial life sciences building in Europe. 

"We also secured the Genova Port regeneration, perhaps Italy’s most important economic growth project currently, and major frameworks with various clients, including Associated British Ports."

Throughout last year, Ramboll also achieved its best-ever client satisfaction scores. 

"Our collaborative, partnership approach to client engagement has helped our Net Promoter Score climb to +62," Spence said. 

“These achievements would not have been possible without our exceptionally talented employees. 

"Our headcount has grown by 11% and retention remains robust, with voluntary turnover well below the industry average. 

"We continue to invest in early careers with apprentices and graduates now equating to over 10% of employees." 

Spence said she was "particularly proud" of how the firm challenges itself on equality, diversity and inclusion progress.

This led to Ramboll recently being awarded Inclusive Employer of the Year at the recent Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE) Awards, sponsored by Building Inclusivity.  

“Ramboll’s expertise in sustainability is a true brand differentiator," Spence said. 

"Becoming the trusted partner for sustainable change was a consistent theme running through our work this year in the UK. 

"It will continue to influence our strategic direction going forwards as we invite our clients, partners and colleagues to work with us to close the gap to a sustainable future.” 

Ramboll’s order book is larger than ever, amounting to 7.9 billion Danish Krona – an increase of 8.8% compared to the end of 2021.

Group CEO Jens-Peter Saul said: “Despite headwinds in the world economy, we have managed to deliver double-digit gross revenue growth and the strongest organic growth in 14 years. 

"This growth is driven by a high demand for sustainable solutions and the dedication of our fantastic employees."

If you would like to contact Sarah Walker about this, or any other story, please email sarah@infrastructure-intelligence.com.