ROUTES - CANADA MILLER MCASPHALT JOINS COLAS
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ROUTES
www.colas.com
Colas Group magazine number 41 — October 2018
En route
Canada
Miller McAsphalt
joins Colas
CONTENTS NUMBER 41 – OCTOBER 2018
site-seeing crossroads
04 > From New Caledonia to the USA via Gabon, 52 > Strategy, subsidiary life, acquisitions,
Madagascar and France… a rapid trip around human resources, environment, products
the world to see the Group’s jobsites, work and techniques, etc. A look back at recent
in progress and finished projects. months in the life of the Group.
en route in the picture
18 > Colas strengthens its position in Canada. 64 > Citizen actions, street art, awards, trade
26 > In the bauxite mines of Guinea-Conakry. shows… Some images of the Group’s events
32 > The Lens BRT, the secrets of a major project. in France and around the world.
itineraries horizons
38 > They all do their jobs with enthusiasm sponsorship
and have decided to share their daily routine 70 > Colas Foundation: Marion Charlet.
and projects with us.
report
48 > Equipment: a fast-changing sector.
Cover photo: view from the Canadian-Hungarian tunnel,
Budapest park, Toronto (Ontario), Canada.
editorial 03
by Hervé Le Bouc
end of February. The integration process
is ongoing, led by a dedicated team. It is
taking place in optimal conditions and is on
schedule.
As well as several smaller deals in the
construction materials sector, Colas has
also reinforced its railway business, with the
acquisition of Alpiq Engineering Services’
railroad activities at the end of July. As
s you know, one of the Colas a result, Colas Rail has supplemented
A values I feel particularly
committed to is safety.
Our results in this area
continue to improve but
we still have more to do if
its range of solutions and expanded its
geographical scope to include three new
countries: Switzerland, Italy and Germany.
Hence Colas continues to develop its core
businesses - Roads and Railways - and
we want to fulfill our ambition of being the to focus on consolidating its expertise in
benchmark to which other companies aspire. the fields of aggregates and bitumen, key
Today, I’m asking you to take another step resources for its activities.
forward.
A safety culture initiative will be launched In line with its mission - namely to promote
in early 2019 along the same lines as the infrastructure solutions to support responsible
“Goal Zero” program rolled out in our North mobility -, Colas is pursuing its transformation
American companies. All employees based while retaining its singular identity.
in mainland France will be concerned. Its new head office, in Paris, is a symbolic
Baked by innovation, other initiatives will illustration of this.
also help reduce the frequency of accidents. The environmental performance of the
These will include virtual reality safety positive energy building fits squarely with
training for new recruits, and participation, our responsible development approach.
alongside a machine manufacturer, in Its cutting-edge technologies reflect our
a project based on artificial intelligence capacity to innovate. Its architectural quality
targeting jobsite safety. and its sleek lines make it stand out in the
Of equal importance is health, as reflected urban landscape, while being a symbol of
in the campaign focused on fighting dynamic impetus. As for the transparent
addiction underpinning 2018 Safety Week interior, the open spaces, synonymous with
and the gradual roll-out of the ExoPush sharing and conviviality, are designed to
cobotics tool designed to make physical promote well-being in the workplace and
work easier, in France, Europe and as far the dissemination of collective intelligence.
afield as Australia.
I would like to thank each and every one
Among Colas’ strategic priorities, revisited of you for helping to put Colas’ values
within the context of the One Colas project, into practice day-to-day and for your
there is one that goes back a long way in the commitment to the Group’s development
Group’s history: external growth. and transformation.
In this respect, 2018 will be seen as the year
in which Colas made its biggest acquisition
ever. Miller McAsphalt Group, a major road
construction player in Ontario and a leading
bitumen distribution player across Canada
as a whole, joined Colas Canada at the
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018
04 site-seeing
escales
From New Caledonia to the USA via Gabon,
>
Madagascar and France… A rapid trip around
the world to see the Group’s jobsites, work in progress
and finished projects.
USA
FRANCE
SLOVAKIA
MOROCCO
HUNGARY
ALGERIA
REUNION ISLAND
CHILE
GABON MADAGASCAR
NEW
CALEDONIA
MADAGASCAR
Upgrading
engineering structures
on Route RNS 5
Heading north-east on the Red Island.
In Antongil Bay, between the towns
of Mananara Nord and Maroantsetra,
350 Colas Madagascar employees are
upgrading around twenty engineering
structures on Route RNS 5. Access to
the sites is particularly difficult, requiring
a major logistics operation involving the use
of barges to deliver equipment to locations
as close as possible to where they are needed.
Work - using local materials - is being carried
out manually whenever possible, except for
lifting, transport and pile-driving operations.
In addition to training for the local population
and passing on expertise, a health program
has been set up for employees and their
families. Launched in April 2017, work is
set to last 33 months.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018
site-seeing 05
GABON
Spac in
the Baie des Rois
The Baie des Rois (Bay of the Kings)
development project in the old Port Môle
harbor district of Libreville includes plans
for housing units, offices, shops, restaurants
and leisure facilities, to be completed by 2025.
For the time being, site preparation work
is under way on an area covering 360,000 m2.
Commissioned by Colas Gabon, Spac is tasked
with installing the wet utilities on one of the four
blocks: 2 km of pipes for drinking water, 1.5 km
of pipes to drain rainwater into the sea and 1.5 km
of pipes to carry wastewater to a treatment plant.
The company is also installing 500 meters of
ducts and tubes for the electricity and telecoms
cables. Made up of around twenty employees
from France, Togo and Gabon, Spac’s team on-site
has a major challenge ahead of them: to install all
these networks simultaneously, in an environment
complicated by the fact that it is right next
to the sea.
FRANCE
Colas Civil Engineering takes
the metro
Colas Île-de-France Normandie’s Civil Engineering
profit center is currently creating an additional
access to the Champs-Élysées–Clemenceau
metro station in Paris. Located near the Grand
Palais museum, the work is being closely
monitored, with ongoing geometric controls
taking place to avoid any damage to the historic
building. Once the major structural work has
been completed at the end of 2018, Colas Civil
Engineering will move on to the interior fixtures,
to be delivered by the end of 2019.
06 site-seeing
FRANCE
Development along
the Basque coast
One of the most outstanding sites along the Biarritz
coast - the Côte des Basques - has been turned into
a pedestrian-friendly zone. Teams from Colas Sud-Ouest’s
Bayonne profit center carried out redevelopment work
on the boulevard Prince-de-Galles, linking the Old Port
and the villa Beltza to Le Sunset. Pedestrians, cyclists,
skateboarders and joggers can now enjoy the beautiful
landscape to their heart’s content.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018
site-seeing 07
FRANCE
Hitting the runway at Ochey!
In early June, Colas Nord-Est’s Meurthe-et-Moselle profit center
delivered a platform and a taxiway access road for the Nancy-Ochey
air base, in eastern France. Colas Projects’ teams poured a 4,500-m2
concrete base for the 10 hangars that will house Mirage and Rafale
jets. The work was completed in just two days.
CHILE
Smac on the
roofs of Santiago airport
An extension program is currently under
way at Santiago international airport,
including the renovation of the existing
terminals and the construction of a new
terminal. In April 2017, Reali, Smac’s Chilean
subsidiary, secured the contract to design and
install the roof and canopy. The key to its success?
Its capacity to deliver optimal technical solutions,
in this case an acoustic roof complex enabling
a 49-decibel reduction in noise level. Building
Information Modeling (BIM)1 was used to design
the canopies and roofs. The work, launched
in August 2017, is set to continue through
to the end of 2020, with up to one hundred
employees on-site in periods of peak activity.
1. The BIM digital model makes it possible to share all data
and information with everyone involved in the project, from
design to completion.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018
REUNION ISLAND GTOI on the Sans Souci bridge A new bridge, one hundred meters in length, comprised of 750 tons of metal and 1,600 m3 of concrete now spans the two banks of La Plaine ravine in Saint-Paul. The new section is designed to relieve traffic congestion in the municipality. At the end of 2017, with the cyclone season approaching, GTOI’s teams installed the metal frame, then in 2018, the concrete deck, superstructures and connections.
site-seeing 09
FRANCE
Wattway: once upon a time in the East
The USA, Japan, Canada, and cyclists. Ultimately, the out the necessary urban
Reunion Island, the energy produced by the solar development work. With the
Netherlands, etc., trial sites road is set to be used to power agreement of the architect from
incorporating Wattway, a dynamic display panel or Bâtiments de France, a band
the world’s first photovoltaic a bench with electric sockets of red asphalt mix was applied
road surface developed by enabling passers-by to charge around the photovoltaic panels.
Colas in 2015, are popping up their mobile phones, for example. The Châlons-en-Champagne
all around the globe. In May, Great care was taken to make site is now one of more than
in Châlons-en-Champagne, sure the Wattway site would fit 30 pilot Wattway sites around
France, 54 m2 of photovoltaic harmoniously into its environment, the world.
panels were installed in the amidst buildings classified as
town’s historic center. A first Historic Monuments. Teams from
in an urban environment for Aximum Nord-Est installed and
this region and for use in a zone connected the Wattway system
shared by vehicles, pedestrians while Colas Nord-Est carried
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018
10 site-seeing
FRANCE
A new
approach to Saint-
Just-Saint-Rambert
For the renovation of boulevard
Jean-Jaurès in Saint-Just-Saint-Rambert,
Colas Rhône-Alpes Auvergne’s Forez
TPCF profit center was responsible for
the earthworks, roadworks and networks.
The aim was to give a facelift to the
approaches to the town. On the agenda:
the creation of a new access road
on a former railway site, the conversion
of an old roadway into a parking lot for
100 vehicles, the development of numerous
green spaces and the installation of street
furniture. The main challenge involved
the application of asphalt mixes over
a 500 meter-long section in under one day,
in order to minimize disruption to traffic
and local shops. A safety protocol was
drawn up to take into account the proximity
of the site to the railroad.
ALGERIA
Algiers metro extension
Colas Rail carried out extension work on line 1 of the Algiers
underground transport system. With three new stations, extension
C adds 3.6 km to the line going to Ain Naâdja. Extension A adds
1.7 km to the downtown line, with two new stations, including one
beneath the place des Martyrs. In December 2017, with the project
at its peak, up to 650 employees were mobilized on-site, to lay
the track and dedicated electric power rail and install energy,
ventilation and low-voltage
ROUTES systems
N° 41 – octobre 2018 (fire detection, ticketing, etc.).
The infrastructures were delivered in August 2018.FRANCE A304: an Axispot highway Commissioned last summer, the A304 is a new 31-km section of four-lane highway, extending the previously existing A34 highway from south of Charleville-Mézières, in the Ardennes area of northern France, to Belgium. Colas Projects (consortium leader) and Colas Nord-Est carried out the work, aimed at improving access to and from the French Ardennes region. Tasked with installing 15 km of steel guardrails, teams from Lille’s Aximum profit center also carried out ground marking operations using Axispot. This thermoplastic road marking solution is solvent-free and generates no waste.
12 site-seeing
FRANCE
A facelift
for the Pont Lorois
The only bridge between the Pays
d’Auray and the Pays de Lorient,
in southern Brittany, the Pont Lorois
straddles the river Étel. Damaged by
maritime corrosion and increasing traffic,
the 115 meter-long suspension bridge was
showing significant signs of deterioration.
For the renovation work, teams from Colas
Centre-Ouest planed down the existing
surface and waterproofed the deck
before applying 1,000 tons of asphalt
mixes and pouring the concrete required
for 500 meters of curbs. Aximum was
responsible for temporary traffic signing
during the ten months of work. A mission
accomplished in sometimes challenging
weather conditions.
NEW CALEDONIA
Néobus: the BRT
is coming to Nouméa
Néobus is the bus rapid transit system (BRT) introduced
to facilitate access to the city. The 1st route, between Moselle
and Médipe, will consist of 13.3 km of dedicated lanes,
23 stations, 7 eco-mobility interchanges and 2 park and ride
points. Colas New Caledonia is responsible for a 4-km section
in the downtown area, covering everything from the earthworks
through to civil engineering for the stations, via asphalt mixes.
The main challenges facing the teams include diverting
the networks and managing traffic flows during rush hour.
Néobus will hit the road in mid-2019!site-seeing 13
USA
Colaska installs 55 km of water pipes
at the heart of winter
In the town of North Pole, In parallel, Colaska teams time stop it drying out.
south-east of Fairbanks, carried out work to modernize The project, carried out in
Alaska, Colaska, Colas’ and extend the water treatment extreme weather conditions,
American subsidiary, is laying plant. They also modified with temperatures as low as
55 km of pre-insulated water an existing pumping station -35°C, is scheduled for completion
pipes of various sizes. and built a new one, along with by the end of 2019.
Unusually, the project was a drinking water tank with a
launched in the depths of capacity of almost 3 million
winter as frost makes it easier liters. Mission accomplished
to install pipes in wet zones for the teams, who managed
and areas where groundwater to prevent thawing of the
comes to the surface. permafrostand at the same
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018SLOVAKIA AND HUNGARY Buildings projects in Central Europe Local Colas subsidiaries in Slovakia and Hungary are currently working on a number of building projects. In Kosice, Slovakia’s second biggest city, ISK is building a residential complex comprising two 10-story towers that will also house shops and offices. Delivery is scheduled for spring 2019. In Budapest, on the banks of the river Danube, teams from Colas-Bayer are building the Duna Terasz Premium development. This 11-story, U-shaped building will house more than 320 apartments, each with its own outdoor terrace or balcony. Residents will also be able to enjoy the building’s large communal roof garden.
site-seeing 15
FRANCE
A new bridge for Manosque
Colas Midi-Méditerranée is in the process
of building the new 220 meter-long
Manosque bridge. In environmental terms,
this project demands the utmost vigilance
due to the presence of an endemic species
of fish - the Zinger Asper -, the proximity to
Manosque’s drinking water catchment area
and the torrential nature of the river Durance.
The new bridge will be completed in 2019
and work to demolish the old infrastructure
will take place in 2020.
FRANCE
Synergies on
the Caen tramway
By 2019, the Caen tramway will have completed
its transformation: a new model on rails is set
to replace the rubber-tired trams. This major
project - the first of its type in France - began
in January 2018. For the central batch (4.5 km
of track in the downtown area), several Colas teams
are working together. Colas Projects is leading
the operation. Colas Rail is responsible for laying
the tracks and installing the overhead contact line.
Employees of Picheta demolished the existing
reinforced concrete infrastructures, while Colas
Île-de-France Normandie’s Caen profit center
will be responsible for the new platforms (paving,
asphalt mixes, etc.). Finally, Aximum has been
subcontracted to install temporary traffic signing.
Located at the heart of the downtown area,
this project requires permanent adaptability
and a detailed schedule for the completion of each
phase of the work. On the avenues, the central part
of the road is cordoned off with barriers, allowing
the work to be completed in sections and residents
to move around in complete safety.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018FRANCE A safer mountain road at Péone The teams from the Cozzi profit center of Colas Midi-Méditerranée have been back to work on the road through the mountains, this time at Péone. At the request of the Alpes- Maritimes Departmental Council, they have widened the RD 29, a winding road with steep rocky sides, to make it safer. The work involved excavating 20,000 m³ of rock from the up-slope embankment to a height of 20 metres in places, backfilling with rubble excavated to widen the down-slope embankment, and consolidating the existing retaining walls using straps and sprayed concrete. The exceptional nature of the work meant that the road had to be diverted to enable the on-site teams to work free of traffic.
site-seeing 17
MOROCCO
Aircraft can now take off again from Tan-Tan
A month ahead of the scheduled six-month lead time allowed, GTR,
a Moroccan subsidiary of Colas, delivered the runway at Tan-Tan airport
in the south of Morocco at the end of April this year. In addition to
lengthening the runway from 2,000 to 2,600 metres and creating 7.5-meter
shoulders on both sides, the work also involved strengthening the runway,
ramp and aircraft stands, and renovating the access road and outdoor car
park. For this project, the Agadir profit center had to open a temporary
quarry close to the runway and bring in two mobile crushing plants, as well
as an asphalt plant capable of producing 2,000 tonnes per day on average.
In total, a hundred employees and thirty pieces of plant and equipment were
required to move 100,000 m³ of earth and apply 60,000 tonnes of asphalt.
FRANCE
Paris-Saclay
chooses Mobility by Colas
At the start of July 2018, the Paris-Saclay
EPA (public development agency) chose
the consortium led by Colas to develop
the smart shared parking solution for the
Paris-Saclay urban campus south-west
of Paris. The parties have signed a five-year
innovation partnership. The Moov’Hub smart
shared parking solution developed by Mobility
by Colas opens the door to the new mobility
solutions offered by Colas. The online services
platform will show users which parking spaces
are available, guide them to a space that meets
their needs or, during times of high congestion,
offer them alternatives to the car. The result
is a totally new way of managing the use of
space to promote responsible mobility.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 201818 en route
CANADA
February 28, 2018. Colas finalized the
acquisition of Miller McAsphalt, a major
road construction player in Ontario and a leading bitumen
distributer across Canada. The deal gives fresh stimulus
to the Group’s growth strategy in North America. We take
a look back at the biggest acquisition in Colas’ history.
Colas strengthens
its position
in CanadaBITUMEN DISTRIBUTION AND STORAGE IN CANADA Following the acquisition of Miller McAsphalt, Colas Canada now boasts 28 bitumen terminals across the country, from the Pacific to the Atlantic, from Vancouver to Halifax, as well as two barges and 200 tanker railcars.
en route 21
> SURFACE AREA: > 10 PROVINCES
CANADA 9,985,000 km2 AND 3 TERRITOIRES:
Alberta, British
> POPULATION: Columbia, Prince
35 million people Edward Island,
Manitoba, New
> PRINCIPAL CITIES: Brunswick, Nova
Ottawa (capital), Scotia, Ontario,
Toronto, Montreal, Quebec, Saskatchewan,
Vancouver, Calgary Newfoundland
and Edmonton and Labrador;
Edmonton
Calgary > CURRENCY:
Nunavut, Northwest
Vancouver
Montreal Canadian dollar Territories and Yukon
Ottawa
Toronto
> OFFICIAL LANGUAGES:
English and French
W
ith the in Ontario and a leading bitumen markets”, continues Jean-Yves
acquisition storage and distribution player Llenas, Colas Canada’s Vice-
of Miller across Canada as a whole. President for Administration and
McAsphalt, Finance. “So the merger gives
Colas begins Synergy and complementarity us an opportunity to establish
a new chap- “Colas Canada and Miller new bases, in provinces like New
ter in its history in Canada, which McAsphalt are in the same Brunswick and Nova Scotia, or
began in the early 1960s. “This business but they don’t operate even in Manitoba, where we had
move is the fruit of a relationship built in the same regions or the same previously been absent.” In
on trust over the space of 10 years
with the Group’s owners. It is part
of a series of acquisitions made FRANÇOIS VACHON,
over the years to gradually build Vice-President of Operations, Colas Canada
the Colas Canada we know today”,
explains Louis Gabanna, Managing “Find the right words
Director, North America. Miller
to facilitate the integration
of new employees”
McAsphalt was formed from the When François Vachon, responsible
merger of two companies in 1976. for integrating Miller McAsphalt’s
Miller has been instrumental in employees, met them, he was keen
to show them that their company had
creating an extensive network of chosen a good partner in Colas. “Miller has a strong corporate
roads and highways throughout culture. It is based on integrity, loyalty and respect for the company
Ontario, Canada’s biggest and its charismatic leader, Leo McArthur, who knew all 3,000
of his employees by name. It was important for them to realize
province, with the road construction that our model was not so very different from their own and that
company celebrating its centenary we shared the same values.” François Vachon, civil engineer,
in 2017. McAsphalt, created in joined Colas at the age of just 13 to work at a weigh station
before moving out to construction sites at the age of 15. As far as
1970 by John Carrick Sr. and Leo he is concerned, having a deep attachment to a company is not just
McArthur, specializes in bitumen an empty phrase. “My father spent 37 years at Colas and I’ve been
production and distribution. Two here for 22 years. It was easy for me to find the right words to talk
about my experiences with Colas, about the very human approach
complementary businesses that underpinning our businesses. These are realities Miller’s
have allowed the group to become employees can relate to and they gave me a very warm welcome.”
a major road construction player
ROUTES No. 41 – October 201822 en route
Ontario, Colas Canada, which
had not really been present to
any great extent in the province
before, is now a well-established
road construction player and the
outlook is extremely promising:
this is one of Canada’s most
populated provinces and a third
of the road network is in need
of renovation. And the same
development opportunities also
apply to bitumen production,
storage and distribution: before
the acquisition, Colas had six
bitumen terminals and Miller
McAsphalt had 22; today,
Colas has 28 terminals across
the country, from the Pacific to
A LONG STORY
the Atlantic, from Vancouver to Miller McAsphalt Group was created from the 1976 merger
Halifax. Two barges and 200 between Miller, a road construction company that celebrated
tanker railcars transport bitumen its centenary in 2017, and McAsphalt, a company specializing
in bitumen production and distribution, created in 1970.
throughout Canada. “This ‘strike
force’ in terms of organization
and technical expertise has
helped Colas establish itself expertise (concrete structures). manages the construction and
as one of Canada’s leading As for Bitumen, all the assets at maintenance of the Trans-
road construction and bitumen Colas Canada were transferred Canada Highway (a 7,800-km
distribution players”, notes to McAsphalt as of May 1. Our highway system that travels
François Vachon, Colas Canada’s cumulated operational capacity through the ten provinces, from
Vice-President of Operations. and know-how give us access the Pacific to the Atlantic),
But the merger amounts to more to major projects. We can now ports and airports, as well as a
than the simple addition of three bid for PPP projects across few bridges. The provinces and
companies – Colas Canada, Canada.” towns and cities are responsible
Miller and McAsphalt . For for maintaining their own road
Frédéric Roussel, President of A booming country network. The frequency and
Colas Canada: “We immediately Canada is a highly dynamic scale of these maintenance
noted that there wasn’t any real market and PPPs are widely programs thus depend on their
overlap between the companies. used. The country’s annual resources, resulting in some
Instead, there were actually GDP growth is 3%1. The vast major disparities. By way of
many areas in which we could Canadian territory has always illustration, with just over 4 million
benefit from complementary been a favorite zone for Colas. inhabitants, the province of
expertise. We could take the Its advantages? A stable political Alberta, which boasts significant
best of both worlds. For example, situation, high levels of investment oil and gas reserves, invests
we chose to unite the PPP and strong demand for transport three times as much per capita
teams from Colas Canada and infrastructure, particularly in in its road network than Quebec
Miller. This specialized unit, one- and around towns and cities, does (8.5 million inhabitants).
of-a-kind in Canada, can rely where growth is significant – “Globally, there is a degree of
on Colas’ national network and every year, on average, cities coherence between the GDP of
expertise in PPP (Public Private such as Quebec , Toronto, each province, its road investment
Partnership) projects, as well as Montreal and Ottawa build an and Colas’ revenue”, notes Jean-
on Miller’s broad experience in additional 200,000 households. Yves Llenas. Coherence that
Canada and civil engineering T he Fe dera l Gover nment has been further reinforced
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018reportages 23
VERTICAL INTEGRATION
Like Colas Canada, Miller McAsphalt
is a vertically integrated group,
meaning it is present throughout
the value chain, from materials
production through to road building
and maintenance. What’s more,
it has an excellent reputation
for quality, safety and innovation.
For example, Miller McAsphalt
used cold in place recycling
as early as 1989.
ROUTES N° 41 – octobre 201824 en route
ROAD BUILDING IN CANADA
Building and maintaining seasonal nature of the business.
roads in a country 20 times Generally speaking, road
the size of France, with 3.7 construction activities are
inhabitants per km2 and six carried out between May 1
time zones, is challenging and November 1. Everything
to say the least. The climate comes to a standstill in the
is one of the harshest on the winter. Some employees work
planet and the temperature on snow clearing and highway
range between summer and maintenance while others
winter can be as much as 70°C. find work in the mines, in oil
There is heavy snowfall in the exploration zones or in forests.
winter, reaching depths of up Others still simply opt to spend
to 3 meters in Quebec, for the imposed downtime with their
example. Roads are regularly families. When the construction
subject to freezing and thawing season starts again, it’s not
and thus deteriorate twice as always easy to reassemble
quickly as in temperate zones. the teams!
Another specific characteristic
and problem, linked to Canada’s
unique climate, is the highly
since the acquisition of Miller their energy and their knowledge “Over the next two years, new
McAsphalt, while the geographic of the market and the country, management systems will be
and operational distribution of within a new managerial, adminis- rolled out, but teams have
Colas Canada’s activities has trative and legal environment. adapted well to the first changes
improved across the territory. Integration is going smoothly. It already introduced”, enthuses
is based on sharing and François Vachon. Synergy,
The challenge of integration implementation of best practices. opportunities to work together,
“The similarities and comple- Some ten working groups good practices and values
mentarity between the three managed by representatives from common to both groups - loyalty,
entities are significant”, explains the ten Canadian subsidiaries respect, integrity - have already
Jean-Yves Llenas. Like Colas are currently active. Above and been the focus of a first
Canada, Miller McAsphalt is a beyond any improvements, this c o nfe re n c e b et we e n t o p
vertically integrated group, type of event helps employees get managers and they represent a
meaning it is present throughout to know each other and fosters a solid foundation.
the value chain, from materials sense of pride in belonging. As is “We can learn a lot from Miller
production through to road customary in Canada, we do our McAsphalt’s employees who, in
building and maintenance. What’s best to respect the cultures – very a highly competitive market, have
more, it has an excellent reputation similar in fact – and each company successfully established their
for quality and safety. This perfect has kept its name,” underlines company as a major road sector
complementarity of geography Frédéric Roussel. The result? A player across Canada. It’s an
and businesses is an undeniable number of significant paths for excellent acquisition. It’s up to us
asset for successful integration. progress have been identified in to create the synergy required to
The challenge is to turn a family operations and logistics, and bring together the best of
business into an international these are currently being everyone and to maintain and
group, while maintaining the implemented. The desire to reinforce the existing value”,
entrepreneurial fiber of Miller communicate and share is real concludes Jean-Yves Llenas.
McAsphalt’s 3,000 employees, and mutual. 1. Source: World Bank.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018en route 25
COLAS CANADA AFTER THE ACQUISITION
OF MILLER MCASPHALT
The acquisition of the Miller McAsphalt Group will enable Colas to:
- increase its presence in Ontario, a province with considerable potential;
- consolidate its network in Canada;
- reinforce its bitumen business, with total national coverage.
> GEOGRAPHIC AND BUSINESS COMPLEMENTARITY
Yukon
Northwest
Territories
Nunavut
British
Columbia Alberta
Manitoba Quebec
Ontario
Saskatchewan
New Nova
Brunswick Scotia
Road Construction Road Bitumen/ New businesses
construction materials maintenance Emulsions from Miller McAsphalt
acquisition
> KEY FIGURES
100 % 8,000
stake in Miller McAsphalt acquired employees at Colas Canada following
by Colas Canada the acquisition of Miller McAsphalt
BITUMEN STORAGE ANNUAL MATERIALS PRODUCTION
28
facilities
15 Mt
of aggregates
8 Mt
of asphalt mixes
400,000 t 700,000 m3
of emulsions of ready-to-use
and modified bitumen concrete
ROUTES No. 41 – October 201826 en route
REPUBLIC OF GUINEA
> SURFACE AREA: > OFFICIAL
245,857 km² LANGUAGE:
French
> CAPITAL:
Tinguilinta
Conakry > CURRENCY:
Montchanin Guinean Franc
Kamsar > POPULATION:
Conakry 13 million people
REPUBLIC OF GUINEA
In Guinea-Conakry, Colas is
constructing the infrastructures
required for bauxite mining operations. We take a look
at a complex project and an amazing human adventure
in Tinguilinta and Kamsar, northwest of Conakry.
In the bauxite mines
of Guinea-Conakry
A
light veil of red for iron ore. Beneath the surface structures required to mine, crush,
dust billows up as of Guinea-Conakry are thought store and transport the ore: a stor-
trucks and back- to lie half of the world’s bauxite age platform, five bridges including
hoes roll over the reserves, i.e. some 25 billion tons. one that is 200 meters in length
ocher- colored The rock has a very high alumina straddling a sea inlet, mining site
tracks. Tracks are content which is easy to extract in access roads, 18 km of railroad
doused with water to dampen open-cast mines. The Tinguilinta tracks, with two branch lines to
down the burning dust. The dis- mine will be operated by Bouygues link the site to the existing railroad,
tant hills provide a backdrop of Travaux Publics on behalf of which takes bauxite to the port of
gentle, lush curves. The Tinguilinta Guinea Alumina Corporation Kamsar 120 km away, an equip-
construction project is in full swing. (GAC), the Guinean subsidiary of ment maintenance zone, a dam
The site conceals huge reserves of Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA). and a water distribution system.
bauxite, the “red gold” used to make “Signed in October 2016 and
aluminum named after the French Colas in Africa: recognized worth around 150 million dollars,
village of Les Baux-de-Provence, expertise this is an exceptional project for
where it was discovered in the GAC chose Colas Africa and Colas on more than one level.
19th century by a chemist looking Colas Projects to build the infra- It’s a complex, multi-faceted
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018BAUXITE MINE
Colas arrived in Guinea-Conakry in
2017 to build the infrastructures
required to operate a bauxite mine
located to the northwest of Conakry,
the country’s capital.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 201828 en route
mining project. And it’s the are Guineans hired locally and ground, Colas has called in
Group’s first foray into Guinea- trained by Colas managers from two subsidiaries: Spac, for
Conakry”, comments Benoît Ivory Coast, Benin, North Africa pipeline work, and Colas Rail,
Chauvin, International Business and France. for the railroad. As Olivier Dupré,
Development Manager. “In our Spac’s Water, Civil Engineering
favor we had our experience in Complementary know-how and Maritime Works Manager,
Africa, our team management for a complex project underlines: “We’ve contributed
expertise, our capacity to mobi- “The Tinguilinta project is a our technical know-how and
lize our local subsidiaries, our fine illustration of the strategic benefited from Colas Africa’s
technical know-how and our com- “One Colas” initiative (read article logistics support. That’s enabled
mand of HSE requirements”, adds page 54) launched by the Group: us to work in a country where
Stéphane Knebel, Colas Director pooling our expertise to meet we would never have been able
for the ECOWAS1 zone. a challenge. Synergies have to operate without this synergy.”
On the ground, Colas Africa operated between the different Spac’s team laid 8 km of pipelines
assembled a sizable fleet of types of expertise (design, pur- and installed pumping facilities
machinery in record time. More chasing, logistics, construction, downstream of the dam in the
than 300 machines – bulldozers, quality, legal and project control), Tiouladi valley and the Tinguilinta
compactors, graders, crushing as well as between the local river to bring river water to the
equipment and hydraulic exca- experience of Colas Africa and mine. “Since the first pipeline had
vators – were transported from the international experience to cross a 100-meter wide river,
Benin, Ivory Coast and South of Colas Projects”, points out teams had to build a suspension
Africa. 1,200 people are work- Laurent Juillard, Colas Projects bridge with a span of 120 meters
ing on the site, 80% of whom Operations Manager. On the in record time”, adds Olivier Dupré.
SYNERGIES
For the Tinguilinta project,
the Group decided to combine
the expertise of Colas Africa, Colas
Projects, Spac and Colas Rail.en route 29
For its part, Colas Rail laid
18 km of rail track: 10 km on the
“The Tinguilinta project is a fine illustration
Kamsar port site and 8 km in of the Group’s strategic One Colas
Tinguilinta. More than 75,000 tons initiative. Synergies have operated
of ballast were transported to the between expertise, as well as between
site, along with 14,500 tons of the local experience of Colas Africa and the
various machines and plant: the
concrete sleepers came from
international experience of Colas Projects.”
Portugal, South Africa provided
the 22 points and France supplied long pulling 120 wagons, with the place and get our bearings”,
the 1,800 tons of rails. Quite a each wagon carrying 100 tons explains Christian Bardin, Project
feat and one that Muriel Kuser, of ore.” Manager. We were given a warm
Project Manager at Colas Rail, welcome by the Guineans but
recognizes as having been one A challenging environment we had to adapt the construction
of the biggest constraints. It was “Administrative and customs program to the climate, with its
a major challenge, with tracks facilities, catering and accom- alternating dry and rainy seasons
needing more reinforcement modation, transport, safety and impacting the work schedule. For
than those used for high-speed security: drawing on its extensive nine months of the year, temper-
train lines: “A stated axle load of presence in the ECOWAS zone, atures range from 30°C to 45°C
22 tons corresponds to 30 tons Colas Africa had all the necessary and during the rainy season, from
here. A sleeper weighs 330 kg resources to provide its teams with June to October, earthworks and
compared with 300 for a high- optimum working conditions. For construction work are made vir-
speed track and each point all that, the reality on the ground tually impossible by torrential rain.
weighs 60 tons. The objective was far from easy. We arrived in As a result, the schedule is tight.
for the customer is to transport an unfamiliar country clutching In addition to these challenges,
12 million tons of bauxite per year our computers. We had to discov- there are also very strict safety
in trains that are 1,500 meters er the specific characteristics of and procedural rules specific
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018INFRASTRUCTURE CONSTRUCTION Work on the infrastructures required to mine, crush, store and transport the ore consists of the construction of a storage platform, five bridges including one that is 200 meters in length straddling a sea inlet, mining site access roads, 18 km of railroad tracks, an equipment maintenance zone, a dam and a water distribution network.
en route 31
MOBILIZATION
1,200 people are working on
the Tinguilinta site, 80% of whom
are Guineans hired locally and
trained by Colas managers
from Côte d’Ivoire, Benin,
North Africa and France.
to mining companies. What’s without their families because and we all get on well”, confirms
more, Colas’ expertise was seri- we don’t have complete control Muriel Kuser.
ously put to the test by a landslip over the environment. The Ebola The sky is overcast above the
caused by pressurized ground- fever epidemic had just ended hills of Boké. The baking sun has
water, disrupting the creation of when we arrived and employ- gone, to be replaced by heavy
a 20 meter-deep ditch as big as ee safety was our top priority”, showers and a few claps of
three soccer fields. No fewer than explains Christian Bardin. Housed thunder. Workers take shelter
300,000 tons of material had to on a compound, employees eat while they ride it out. An air of
be removed. “Looking back, we and enjoy free time together in relative calm reigns over the site.
can conclude that we did a good a friendly atmosphere where The rainy season is fast approach-
job, thanks to our capacity to deal the main topic of conversation ing. It will last until around the
with a major accidental event. We remains the Tinguilinta and end of October. Then just a few
wasted no time in implementing Kamsar project! “Everyone has more weeks of work will remain
new technical solutions, mobilizing rolled up their sleeves to deal with before this exceptional project
teams and minimizing the delay the challenges. Employees from is delivered.
without compromising safety”, the various subsidiaries all share 1. Economic Community of West African
explains Benoît Chauvin. Team the same concerns and the same States.
safety is a major priority. “We energy”, notes Christian Bardin.
preferred to have employees travel “We’re all part of the same family
ROUTES No. 41 – October 201832 en route
FRANCE
> KEY FIGURES OF THE LENS BRT
Lens
1 2 companies: Colas Projects, Colas Nord-Est
Paris 1 350 employees
1 €60 million of work
1 16 months of work,
1 5 sections
1 38 km of lanes
1 120,000 tons of asphalt mixes applied,
including 20% reclaimed asphalt pavement
1 48,000 hours of job insertion programs
1 130 km of curbs
FRANCE
In the city of Lens, located in the Nord-Pas-de-
Calais region mining basin in northern France,
Colas is working on five sections of a Bus Rapid Transit project (BRT)
as part of a consortium. We take a look at a major project in six acts,
from the taking on of the new account through to the construction work.
The Lens BRT,
the secrets of a major project
F
rom the corons 1 Hénin-Carvin and Béthune- and give all residents access
to the Art Deco B r u ay m a ke 2 . 2 m i l l i o n to a public transport network
façades, from the journeys for work, school, on a regional scale.
spoil tips 2 to the leisure, etc. Traffic congestion
pit head frames 3, means buses are often delayed A project, a team
from the famous and people still prefer to use “This contract had long since
Bollaert-Delelis stadium, their cars rather than public been identified by Colas Nord-
home of the RC Lens soccer transport. To improve mobility in Est’s local profit center, which
club, to the Louvre-Lens this region covering 1,000 km2 immediately saw that a major
museum, the “mining basin”4 and offer an efficient, more project approach was required”,
is constantly reinventing environment ally-friendly explains Stéphanie Minnebois,
itself. The latest development: alternative to the car, the Colas Projects’ Sales Manager.
the BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) project set out to create some Act 1: in September 2016
project, known as “Bulle”. Each 110 km of dedicated lanes a team comprising Colas
day, 600,000 people living in bet ween 2017 and 2019. Projects (leader), Colas Nord-
the area encompassing the The six routes will serve the Est and Bouygues Energies
agglomerations of Lens-Liévin, region’s main commuter hubs and Services (a Bouygues
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018NORD-PAS-DE-CALAIS
MINING BASIN
At the foot of spoil tips, a reminder of
the region’s mining history, teams
from Colas Projects and Colas Nord-
Est are working on five sections of
the Lens BRT project.34 en route
TEAMWORK
350 employees from Colas
Nord-Est and Colas Projects
worked on the Lens BRT project.
“Teamwork is crucial because you have for the Section 6 in Bruay-la-
Buissière was submitted, and
to be able to constantly adapt to the foundations for the other
the people and places. The fact that four briefs were thus laid down.
my managers trusted me helped a lot.” Act 3 : the BRT adventure
Cécile Cadet, Design Office Supervisor (Colas Projects) begins! “In total, five sections
were awarded, representing
Construction company) was Stéphanie Minnebois, “the key more than 38 km of lanes worth
assembled. “The added value of was to show the customer that €60 million”, explains Frédéric
our consortium lay in the creation we had identified the challenges Dutour. “Starting work on these
of a dedicated structure”, - compliance with deadlines five sectors simultaneously
re c a l l s Fré d é r i c D u t o u r, and schedules, integration was a major challenge after
Project Manager. “In addition of the project in an urban fewer than 2 months of
to knowledge of the local environment, environmental preparation, par ticularly in
environment, the mobilization approach - and that we were terms of recruitment and
of Colas Nord-Est’s Artois proposing high-performance team mobilization.” From the
(major projects) profit center technical solutions. We got Hauts-de-France in northern
and SNB unit (landscaping) together in workshops to define France to the Vosges in the
reflected our determination the key items to be inlcuded. As east, 350 employees from
to provide a solution taking for the form, we tried to write a several of, Colas Nord-Est’s
into account the locations, the clear and concise brief. That’s profit centers worked on-site
various representatives and why it was so focused on the at the height of the project.
local residents’ concerns.” customer, and we won with the On the agenda: earthworks,
best bid.” roads, drainage, sur facing,
An optimized technical brief green spaces. Aximum, Colas’
Act 2: the construction of a Five submissions, road safet y a nd signing
high-impact, factual and precise five contracts subsidiary, was responsible
technical brief meeting the In December 2016, the first for temporary traffic signing
customer’s requirements. For brief associated with the bid on the approaches to the site.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018en route 35
Adapting to the local context
Act 4: constantly adapting.
“In this region historically
and topographically marked
by two world wars, the BRT
construction site was, for its part,
impacted by the presence of
shells and mines. Any explosive
device, even when rusty and
old, is dangerous”, underlines
Frédéric Dutour. Just meters
away from the Bollaert-Delelis
stadium - a Lens landmark -, LIGHT, COLORED SURFACING
a former blockhouse was Applying Colclair on the platform
revealed, bringing work to a at the Lens bus station.
halt for a few months while
the building’s galleries were
checked and secured. “One
of the unusual features of this “As job superintendent and someone
project was the involvement
of a company specialised in who lives in the region, I’m proud
pyrotechnical issues, who sent to build infrastructures that will make
a pyrotechnician and special mobility easier for people.”
equipment to sound out the land Florian Rigoulet, job superintendent (Colas Nord-Est)
and detect metal objects prior
to the launch of construction
work”, continues Frédéric events and the site secured with Environment and safety
Dutour. “This was crucial to anti-climb and anti-tip barriers. Act 5: the environment and
prevent any serious risks of This security system had already safety at the heart of operations.
explosion.” The sports arena was been used by the subsidiary From the design stage of the
also an important consideration for the 2016 European soccer project, an environmental
since access to the stadium championships at Lille’s Pierre- expert was brought in to outline
had to be maintained for sports Mauroy stadium. the environmental issues to
SÉBASTIEN BOTHIER,
Colas Nord-Est’s Artois profit center Manager
“Colas Nord-Est agencies worked hand in hand.”
“The BRT project had long since been identified and Colas Nord-Est had all
the resources and experience required to carry it out thanks to its extensive local
presence. But the scale of the work meant that it couldn’t be managed purely
at profit center level. The decision was made to work with Colas Projects from
the time the new account was taken on, since this is a crucial phase demanding
considerable investment in terms of time and people. The main challenge has
concerned our workforce since it was important to avoid disrupting the running of the profit center.
With eight teams present on the site, we had to juggle our employees working on the project and those
working at the profit center because, in the meantime, business had taken off: road maintenance contracts,
logistics platforms, business park projects with roads linking into the BRT lanes. We worked on a just-
in-time basis. As with any major project, this meant we could send employees to where they were required
and optimize the use of the equipment and machinery fleet. Ultimately, it’s all a question of striking the right
balance between the execution of work and commercial relations management.”
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018BEAUTIFICATION Place de la Republique Square in Lens, where printed concrete slabs have replaced old red asphalt sidewalks. BOLLAERT-DELELIS STADIUM When designing the BRT lanes outside the stadium, teams from Colas had to adapt their schedules to accommodate for sporting events, and even the discovery of a WWII blockhouse.
en route 37
“The qualities needed to work on delivering the various
sections of the BRT project.
a major project like the Lens BRT A trial run period is scheduled
are enthusiasm, energy and people for December 2018. And, as
skills. You need to get people Frédéric Dutour concludes:
from a variety of backgrounds “A major project is a human
adventure demanding constant
and professions to pull together. adaptability, humility, energy
Solidarity is a prerequisite in order and effective communication.
to create this team spirit.” With the Lens BRT project, our
Romain Delattre, Works Manager (Colas Projects) greatest success was the team
spirit created. The project
worked because of its
be taken into account when understood is well accepted. people.”
putting together the bid. The The free “Colas et Moi” app
presence of invasive Japanese was used to monitor the
knotweed, consideration for B RT projects in real time. 1. The identical housing units built
for miners in northern France and
migratory species and polluted “With its options to search by southern Belgium.
land management: every sector, publish photos and a
2. Artificial hills, also known as “bings”,
environmental challenge was description of the work, sign formed by the accumulation of mining
addressed during the execution up for alerts, etc., the app was operation waste.
of the project. “Since the risk of our solution to create proximity
3. A structural frame above a mine
accidents was particularly high and facilitate communication shaft.
given the restricted space and with residents.” At the height
4. Area of northern France
the numerous machines present of the project, 300 people economically, socially, topographically,
on the various sites, safety - were using the app. In parallel, ecologically and culturally marked by
Colas’ number one priority - was a facilitator was appointed intensive coal mining operations.
central to site management”, and pairs of ambassadors
underlines Frédéric Dutour. liaised with shop owners and
businesses to monitor the
Integration in an impact on them.
urban environment Fo u r t e e n m o n t h s a f t e r
Final act: social acceptance. the work was launched,
Because a jobsite that is well t h e time has come to start
ROUTES No. 41 – October 201838 itineraries
Profit center manager, project engineer, technical
assistant, foreman… They all do their jobs with
enthusiasm and have decided to share their daily routine
and projects with us.
POLAND
FRANCE
USA
THAILAND
AUSTRALIA
“is mySafety onboard
priority
”
JENJOB NATTHAVUT
BITUMEN TANKER CAPTAIN
TIPCO MARITIME CO., LTD.
THAILAND
As far back as he can remember, Jenjob
Natthavut always dreamed of sailing around
the globe. Determined to make a career of it,
he started out as a ship cadet before joining Tipco.
His job? Captain of the Tasco Tara, a 129 meter-
long bitumen tanker, which sails the world’s seas
and oceans with its crew of 17 men from a variety
of backgrounds and a cargo of up to 12,000 tons
of bitumen. “Between Australia, New Zealand,
China and South Korea, I discover new landscapes
and cultures with every crossing”, explains Jenjob,
who spends an average of seven months of the
year at sea. “My primary responsibility is to ensure
the safety of my crew, the cargo and the ship.
That’s what drew me to Colas, an international
Group that makes safety its number one priority.”
Now 41, this captain is proud of belonging
to a Group that has trained him in the art
of people-oriented, responsible management.
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018itineraries 39
“ My job demands genuine adaptability ”
ALIX MABIRE and began a tour of France that an esplanade at Rennes railway
PROJECT ENGINEER took her around the country. station. “This is a complex project
COLAS CENTRE-OUEST
FRANCE “Roads and services, drainage, with interface and flow
asphalt mixes: I took part in a management issues in an
During her engineering studies variety of projects, discovered all operating railway station.
at the INSA engineering school aspects of jobsite operations and It is also highly qualitative,
in Strasbourg, Alix Mabire learned a lot about the technical with prestigious materials
completed two internships: and organizational side of profit like granite. Good communication
one at Colas Centre-Ouest’s centers. Every four months, with the job superintendent
Bourges profit center, as assistant I moved to a completely different is the key. We work in tandem.
project engineer, and the other professional and personal The city and the profit center
in La Rochelle’s technical services environment. It was a great are extremely dynamic. I feel
department, where she helped experience.” Alix, who returned useful and am delighted to have
draw up the town’s environmental to Brittany in 2017, is now settled in Rennes!”
standards. After graduating at the project engineer on urban
end of 2015 she applied to Colas development projects, including
ROUTES No. 41 – October 201840 itineraries
“ I’ve got the skills, I can do anything ”
KANJANA YINDEE the chance to gain experience her country's road network!
LABORATORY AND R&D MANAGER working overseas”, she says. After two years working for Colas
SAMI BITUMEN TECHNOLOGIES
AUSTRALIA Born in northern Thailand, in Mauritius, she then took her
Kanjana, who has a degree road binder and micro-surfacing
For Kanjana Yindee, in pure chemistry and a Master's expertise to Sami Bitumen
Laboratory and R&D Manager in environmental sciences, joined Technologies in Australia.
for Sami Bitumen Technologies, Tipco, Colas’ Thai subsidiary, “I’m lucky to be working in a
a Colas company in Australia in 1995. She spent fifteen multicultural environment with
specializing in the import and years with the company, first as colleagues of 10 nationalities”,
marketing of bitumen and the a quality control technician, then she explains. “Working for Colas
production and distribution as research and development gives me self-confidence. Every
of special binders, Colas’ manager. The irony is that she day, I say to myself: “I’ve got the
international dimension is grew up in a remote village skills, I can do anything.”
a reality and an opportunity. and had to take a boat to go
“I particularly appreciate the fact to school every day, and yet
that working for Colas gives me she ended up helping to improve
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018itineraries 41
“Helping to improve working conditions for employees ”
ÉRIC MARTIN Alpes Auvergne), he was asked to France, Switzerland, and Northern
EXOPUSH INSTRUCTOR contribute to the roll out in the profit Europe, how to handle the device
COLAS RHÔNE-ALPES AUVERGNE
FRANCE centers of ExoPush, the exoskeleton and gathering grassroots feedback
developed by Colas and the start- that he can share with developers
Éric Martin knows asphalt mixes up company RB3D. This “cobotic” with a view to incorporating further
like the back of his hand. rake is aimed at employees whose improvements. “Whenever a new
Since he began his career in 1980, job is to manually apply asphalt feature is introduced, I’m the first
he has held every possible post in mixes on the road surface. to test out the new version.
the field, including periods spent on “Thanks to ExoPush, the employee I’m passionate about mechanics
major highway projects. “I’ve always can adopt a far more ergonomic and love to find clever tricks.
had a preference for asphalt mixes posture: there is less strain on the I particularly love the interaction
over earthworks, because you get to back and movements are amplified. with employees and being able
see the concrete result of all your There is a five-fold reduction in the to say to myself that I’m doing
work”, he confides. In April 2017, amount of effort required”, explains my bit to improve their working
when he was application foreman at Éric. He has spent the last eighteen conditions.”
Axima Villefranche (Colas Rhône- months teaching his colleagues in
ROUTES No. 41 – October 2018You can also read
