Linesight Maximises Data Centre Opportunity in the Netherlands

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“We had started doing a lot of data centre projects for US multinationals in Ireland so we decided to look at the Netherlands as Amsterdam is a hub of activity for data centres.” – Paul Butler, director, Linesight

 

 

 

Key Takeouts:

  • Enterprise Ireland trade missions and market introductions a key success factor.
  • Excellence in service and personnel a key differentiator and competitive advantage.
  • Dutch data centre business a bridgehead for growing other sectors and European markets.

Case Study: Linesight

Five years ago Dublin-headquartered firm Linesight decided to go on fact-finding missions to the Netherlands with the help of Enterprise Ireland. It was a move which has led to around 70% growth in its fee base in that market since then and an increase in its team based there from four to 30 people.

Linesight provides professional services and strategic support to the global construction industry. Projects span a range of industry sectors including commercial, data centres, life sciences, healthcare, transportation and infrastructure and retail.

Originally established in 1974 as Bruce Shaw, Linesight rebranded in 2016 with a view to having a name that could be owned in all markets. The name Linesight was inspired by the company having its clients’ goals in their direct line of sight from initial concept through to successful project completion.

With staff located across Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific, and North America, Linesight increased its global headcount by 135 and recorded turnover of about €60m for the group in 2016. It now has 17 offices around the world and has delivered projects in 40 countries.

Linesight’s growth in the first 30 years or so was mainly focused on Ireland and the UK where it established a number of offices. When the recession hit in 2008, it had built up a 25% market share in the domestic market for professional services to the construction industry. It had also generated a limited amount of international business.

The downturn in construction at home prompted the company to look at international markets more keenly and the Benelux region – and the Netherlands in particular – seemed a promising area to focus on. It had worked on five or six small projects there, but further to building up expertise and skills in data centre projects it saw an opportunity.

“We had started doing a lot of data centre projects for US multinationals in Ireland so we decided to look at the Netherlands as Amsterdam is a hub of activity for data centres,” says Linesight director Paul Butler.

“In addition, a lot of pharmaceutical multinationals were starting to set up subsidiary plants in the Benelux region. We recognised that we had the relevant in-house expertise and key staff delivering professional services in these areas. We wanted to retain that staff and the Netherlands was of particular interest to us.”

 

Linesights’s Partnership with Enterprise Ireland:

  • Attended a series of Enterprise Ireland workshops on data centres.
  • Benefitted from introductions to the market/local contractors organised by Enterprise Ireland.
  • Participated in Taoiseach’s trade mission to the Netherlands and Germany.

To see how Enterprise Ireland has enabled Linesight’s success, click here.

Competitive advantage through people

Over the years Linesight had established a partnership approach with clients based on consistency and clarity, and it has a proven track record in terms of quality and timely delivery of projects. This stood to the company when it came to building business in the Netherlands.

“For some of our clients developing projects in the Dutch market we were preferred bidders and travelled there with them as part of their team, offering the same service as we had in the Irish market,” Butler explains.

“Other projects involved competitive bidding as companies may have had their own in-house auditing functions – but we were also very competitive in winning that work.”

Some multinational clients even requested that certain individuals from Linesight work on projects with them in the Netherlands, Butler adds, “Our people are key in terms of generating repeat business. Senior project managers see projects through from cradle to grave and directors oversee projects on a 24/7 basis. The personal relationships built up over time have been very important.”

The Netherlands has been a relatively easy market for Linesight to enter as English is widely spoken and its framework in terms of contracting is similar to Ireland’s. “Being fluent contractually is a different thing than being able to speak a language. In other European countries language can be a barrier in this respect. We demand that contractors deal with us in English in the Netherlands,” says Butler.

That being said, once Linesight started to focus on the Dutch market, it invested a lot of time in ensuring it had the right contractors and partners to deliver projects to the standard required. It also had to get to grips with different regulations in relation to construction, planning codes and timeframes.

“Even within the Netherlands different regions are more regulated in terms of construction. For example, near the German border there is still a lot of heavy industry, which contrasts with the Amsterdam area,” says Butler.

“We had to stretch our web of contractors beyond the Amsterdam area. Now we have a high level of tried and trusted partners in the Netherlands that we know will deliver for us.”

Now that Linesight is established in the Dutch market it is looking at new opportunities within its existing client base, such as in the retail and pharmaceutical sectors. It also wants to take advantage of some new areas, in particular in relation to the local supply chain and newly built logistics centres.

“There are some very good companies competing with us for business. What differentiates us, in addition to our people, is the fact that we are an all-in company that can provide cost management, project management and risk assessment. This is vital for a lot of big multinationals,” notes Butler.

“A significant proportion of our people have backgrounds in civil, electrical or mechanical engineering – so our service is not just about number crunching, they can understand the design. They can go through drawings with clients in great detail and are fluent in engineering language.”

Gaining a foothold in the Netherlands has led to Linesight building business in Germany and Belgium. Once clients’ projects are completed in the Netherlands, it has extended its network to continue working with them in other locations.

“They want the consistent, clean approach of dealing with us, rather than having to educate a new local provider in their needs and ways. The flexibility of our people and operation has been key to our success.”

Top Tips for Exporting to Europe:

  • Be flexible and adapt to the needs of major multinational customers.
  • Build a strong local presence to really be successful in a market.
  • Harness the Irish mentality of ‘getting the job done’.

For more details, click here.

Linesight’s top tips for entering eurozone markets

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Linesight has extended its reach as a provider of professional services to the construction industry into mainland Europe and beyond in reaction to the downturn in the domestic market in 2008. Here, director Paul Butler shares some pointers on how to gain a foothold in key eurozone markets:

When working with multinationals in particular, first and foremost you have to be flexible. You have to adapt to the client’s needs in local markets. This means being willing to travel and being available at whatever time the client needs to deal with you. Our senior people travel over and back regularly to meet clients in eurozone markets.

In order to be really successful in eurozone markets, it is vital that you also have a presence on the ground, whether that is a subsidiary company, an office or a dedicated team based in the market. In the Netherlands, we have a dedicated team of 30 people, 95% of whom are based there full-time and integrated into the local community and tax system. There are generous tax incentives for people working in the Netherlands with professional accreditation, such as chartered surveyors or engineers.

It is important to gain a good understanding of local regulations and codes of practice for the industry you are operating in. This is best achieved by becoming part of the local environment with your on-the-ground presence.

The Irish mentality of “getting the job done” is key to success in mainland Europe. Irish companies are used to dealing with multinationals and working 10 to 12-hour days if necessary to make sure a job is completed on schedule. Clients really appreciate this. You need to be mindful that there are work-life balance issues in certain markets, particularly in construction – in the Netherlands for example, workers will walk off site at 3.30pm or 4pm and take their holidays at certain times. You will need to work around the fact that workers will down tools.

Enterprise Ireland companies with Global Ambition

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Attendees at Enterprise Ireland‘s International Markets Week heard from established Irish companies successfully selling globally and had the opportunity for meetings with Market Advisors, available to provide expertise on exporting to new markets.

If you are attending IMW please consider the following:

  • In which markets are you successful and how have you achieved this success?
  • What is your business/value proposition?
  • Why have you decided to target this new market?
  • What market validation have you carried out and what evidence do you have for a demand for your product / service?

Contact the International Markets team at International Markets Week for further information.

Linesight gains from Enterprise Ireland’s networking supports

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Enterprise Ireland’s contribution in relation to knowledge-sharing, market information and access to key contacts has been invaluable to Linesight. Having built up a strong domestic presence since 1974, professional services provider to the construction industry Linesight needed to grow its business in overseas markets when the recession hit in 2008.

Linesight director, Paul Butler

The company found a series of workshops on data centres, organised by Enterprise Ireland, particularly valuable – an area which Linesight wanted to focus more on, according to director Paul Butler.

“Enterprise Ireland brought all the leading consultants and contractors together in one location to discuss the pros and cons of doing business with data centres and how to attract further data centre providers to Ireland,” he says. “All the relevant information was shared with everyone involved afterwards.”

Linesight went about sourcing and training people dedicated to providing professional services to data centre projects, which are very mechanical and technically driven. It now has a designated team which looks after a number of data centre clients in Ireland, the UK and the Netherlands.

Once Linesight decided it wanted to explore opportunities in the Netherlands five years ago, it benefited greatly from several introductions to the market, and with local providers organised by Enterprise Ireland in Amsterdam, according to Butler.

“We were very keen to get local information and find out from others who had tried the market before, the lessons they had learned,” he says.

“Enterprise Ireland put us in touch with key contacts and set up face-to-face meetings with other contractors and consultants in the sector. The support in terms of local knowledge and getting to grips with how things are done there has been excellent.”