glob e - Bilfinger Berger Industrial Services

SOLUTIONS FOR INDUSTRIAL SERVICES 

Page 3 Continuity in the face of change 

The BIS Group’s 

new management team 

Page 12 BIS plus MCE 

Added skills 

Page 52 Quality assurance 

Systematic approach to achieving 

uniformly high standards 

Benchmark An effective für compliance 

in system der Praxis generates bewährtes trust 

Compliance-System 

and provides security 

glob e 

The BIS Group magazine for 

customers, partners and the Group 

n o 1 2010

EDITORIAL 

» Everyone pulling on the same end of the rope 

GLOBE, THE BIS GROUP’S INFORMATION MEDIUM, HAS BEEN GIVEN A NEW 

LOOK. YET, IT STILL HAS THE SAME FUNCTION – TO FACTUALLY PRESENT TO OUR 

BUSINESS PARTNERS THE BROAD RANGE OF SERVICES PROVIDED BY OUR GROUP. 

WITH ITS SIZE AND INTERNATIONAL COMPOSITION, IT STANDS FOR THE 

DYNAMIC GROWTH OF OUR STILL RELATIVELY YOUNG INDUSTRY. FOR THIS 

REASON IT IS ALL THE MORE IMPORTANT FOR US TO DEMONSTRATE CONTINUITY 

IN THE FACE OF CHANGE. 

In our new functions as 

chairman of the newly 

established Advisory 

Board of the BIS Group 

and new CEO, we are 

both committed to this. 

As the long-standing CEO 

and the new CEO, we are 

both pulling at the same 

end of the rope, signalling 

to our customers 

a clear consensus in all 

fundamental matters. 

This particularly applies 

to our understanding of 

corporate compliance, 

which is the title theme 

of this issue to stress 

the importance which 

we attach to it. We are 

convinced that integrity forms the basis for 

earning our customers’ trust, thus creating 

the foundations for sustained partnerships. 

This is not merely a credo but stems from 

the experience that we have gained and 

which is confirmed by what our operating 

companies and our customers have repeatedly 

told us. 

In addition, this issue explores in detail the 

integration of the former MCE companies. 

We have provided examples demonstrating 

some of the skills which they are contributing 

to the BIS Group. Despite their different 

backgrounds, the BIS Group and the former 

MCE companies have expressed from the 

outset their clear commitment to providing 

their customers in the process and power 

generation industries with sustained sup- 

Thomas Töpfer (left) and his successor as CEO, Dr. Michael Herbermann, want to continue the 

BIS Group's success story. 

port as service partners in their efforts to 

boost productivity and efficiency. In its core 

market of Austria and Central Europe, this 

has allowed MCE to evolve into one of the 

leading providers of plant engineering and 

industrial services, while the BIS Group has 

advanced to become the European market 

leader in industrial services. With the addition 

of the new companies, the BIS Group is 

further reinforcing its profile as a provider 

of solutions and as a strategic partner to its 

customers. 

The way in which customers are able to 

benefit from the synergistic effects arising 

from the integration of MCE is illustrated 

in the report on the construction of a pilot 

plant at the Schwarze Pumpe industrial and 

commercial estate in the German Lausitz 

region. Further examples 

can be found in the 

“Divisions” section, ranging 

from processing 

plants for crude biogas 

to the development and 

assembly of new flue 

gas absorbers as well as 

power station projects 

and major contracts in 

the oil and gas industry. 

In a further firm section 

entitled “Networks”, the 

new Globe addresses 

subjects to which the BIS 

Group attaches particular 

importance and which 

our customers tell us are 

also crucial for them. In 

this issue, we explore 

quality assurance as well as training for specialists 

and executives at the BIS Academy. 

We are proud to be able to present this 

broad range of subjects to you. It is not least 

of all confirmation of what our customers 

think we are capable of achieving. We are 

working in concert to ensure that this does 

not change. 

Thomas Töpfer 

Member of the Executive Board of Bilfinger Berger SE 

and Chairman of the Advisory Board 

of the BIS Group 

Dr. Michael Herbermann 

CEO of the BIS Group 

globe 1/2010 

page 2

EDITORIAL 

CHANGES IN THE EXECUTIVE BOARD 

Dr.-Ing. Michael Herbermann was appointed 

new Chief Executive Officer of Bilfinger 

Berger Industrial Services GmbH effective 

1 September 2010. He took over from Thomas 

Töpfer, who assumed the position of 

Chairman of the Company’s newly created 

Advisory Board in accordance with his responsibility 

as a member of the Executive 

Board of Bilfinger Berger SE on that date. The 

Advisory Board has replaced the previous Supervisory 

Board following the change in the 

BIS Group’s corporate status, as a result of 

which it was converted from a German joint 

stock company (AG) to a limited-liability company 

(GmbH) at the beginning of the year. 

Dr. Michael Herbermann (50) comes to the BIS 

Group from technology company GEA Group, 

where he was most recently Division Presi- 

THE NEW MANAGEMENT TEAM 

dent at Netherlands-based GEA Refrigeration 

Technologies and, in this function, CEO of Royal 

GEA Grasso Holding NV. Before assuming 

global responsibility for industrial refrigeration, 

he was head of the Power business unit 

within the GEA Energy Technology segment 

and simultaneously Chairman of the Executive 

Board at GEA Energietechnik, Bochum. 

Born in Krefeld, Germany, Dr. Michael Herbermann 

studied mechanical engineering 

at the Aachen University of Applied Sciences, 

majoring in process technology and industrial 

engineering. He completed his doctorate 

in engineering at the Jülich Research Centre. 

After commencing his career at RWE Entsorgung, 

where he was involved in thermal 

waste disposal equipment, he joined the 

GEA Group in 1997. 

The BIS Group’s Executive Board comprises – from left – Dr. Michael Herbermann, CEO, Matti Jäkel, CFO, Dr. Rudolf K. Jürcke , COO, 

and Gerhard Schmidt, COO. 

As part of efforts to streamline structures 

within the BIS Group, the Company’s management 

team has also been reorganised. 

Alongside the new CEO Dr. Michael 

Herbermann, Matti Jäkel was appointed 

CFO effective 1 October 2010. He comes to 

the Company from Bilfinger Berger Ingenieurbau 

in Wiesbaden, where he held the 

same function. The COOs are Dr. Rudolf 

K. Jürcke and Gerhard Schmidt, who are 

each responsible for two divisions. Dr. 

Rudolf K. Jürcke is in charge of the Northern 

& Eastern Europe Division and the 

Western Europe & International Division 

with its focus on Northern America, while 

the Central Europe Division and the crossborder 

Plant Technologies Division report 

to Gerhard Schmidt. 

The Central Europe Division comprises the 

companies based in Germany, Austria and 

Switzerland as well as Benelux. 

With its new structure, the BIS Group is 

remaining on its growth trajectory underpinned 

by organic growth as well as 

acquisitions aimed at reinforcing activities 

in existing markets or entering new ones. 

Matti Jäkel (49) sees this in particular as 

the main appeal of his position as CFO 

at the BIS Group. Born in Düsseldorf, he 

graduated from the Technical University 


page 3 

“I look forward to being able to contribute 

my international industrial experience 

to such a successful company as the BIS 

Group,” says Dr. Michael Herbermann. “I 

am convinced that the BIS Group’s status 

as a provider of solutions and the crucial 

importance which it attaches to service 

and customer orientation have been instrumental 

in its business success. This proven 

track record is to be maintained in the 

future.” 

In his capacity as chairman of the new 

Advisory Board, Thomas Töpfer will continue 

to accompany the BIS Group closely. 

During his tenure as CEO, the Company’s 

revenues widened from around EUR 850 

million in 2004 to a current figure of EUR 

3 billion. 

of Munich with a degree in engineering. 

He then went on to study business administration 

at the Henley Management 

College and Brunel University in England, 

completing a part-time MBA course. Upon 

joining Bilfinger Berger in 1989, he initially 

worked as an engineer but assumed commercial 

duties as of 1994. His career within 

the Group took him to Australia, where 

he held management duties from 1997 to 

2000, and to the United States, where he 

held the position of CFO. In this function, 

he was assigned to the Construction segment, 

moving on to the Engineering segment 

in 2007.

CONTENTS 

» Contents 

7 PIONEERING ROLE IN COMPLIANCE 

Integrity is a core aspect of the BIS business principles. This 

goes beyond simply complying with the law, something 

which in any case goes without saying, but refers to the basic 

way in which the Company defi nes itself. On page 11, 

12 

12 A HARMONIOUS FIT AND REINFORCEMENT 

With the integration of the former MCE companies, the BIS Group 

has sharpened its profile as a strategic solutions partner for industrial 

services and plant engineering. The reports on our focus theme 

offer examples of this, illustrating these additional skills and explaining 

how they come together to create a situation which is best 

described as “Even better together”. This is also demonstrated by 

the intensive collaboration between former competitors during the 

construction of a pilot plant in Lausitz (page 30). 


page 4 

Thomas Töpfer, who was the BIS Group’s CEO for many years, 

discusses compliance in globe’s title story, succinctly stating 

that “we want to assert ourselves in the market place on the 

strength of our performance, quality, reliability and fairness.” 

32 PIONEERS IN BIOGAS 

Working with renowned partners, the specialists at BIS E.M.S. 

have developed and launched a new process for treating 

biogas. 

36 FOR CLEAN AIR 

Innovative flue gas absorbers supplied by BIS Industrieservice Mitte 

ensure that the sludge incineration plant in Frankfurt am Main is 

able to operate within the maximum levels prescribed by the EU. 

7 

36

CONTENTS 

46 STRONG VOTE OF CONFIDENCE 

Master contracts worth around EUR 230 million awarded by the 

oil and gas industry testify to BIS Industrial Services’ growing reputation 

in the United Kingdom. 

46 

52 SETTING STANDARDS 

BIS companies impress their customers with their systematic commitment to site safety. 

The HSEQ awards received by the BIS Group provide further incentive. 

55 INVESTING IN THE FUTURE 

The extensive training activities organised by the BIS Academy for the employees of the 

BIS Group constitute major investments by the Company in its continued future viability. 

After all, only qualified operatives and executives are able to provide the quality 

expected by customers. The broad range of training activities and the depth which it 

achieves set the BIS Academy apart from the rest of the industry. 

52 

TITLE 

7 Integrity is the basis of successful 

partnerships 

FOCUS 

12 BIS plus MCE – exemplary references 

illustrating the broad range of services 

16 “Linthal 2015” extension project 

18 Overhauling a blast furnace in the winter 

20 Ideally positioned for pipeline engineering 

22 A successful turnaround 

24 Award for VibraCheck 

25 High operating times 

26 Prestigious project in Paris 

28 Specialist in checking centres 

DIVISIONS 

30 Combined skills for pilot project in the 

German Lausitz region 

32 Top-quality biogas 

34 New maintenance base for the Gassco 

gas terminals 

36 Innovative flue gas absorbers 

38 Extensions to Hungarian power station 

40 Follow-up contract for large power station 

42 Clean energy for Europe 

44 Merger strengthening position in UK 

market 

46 UK oil and gas industry placing its trust 

in BIS skills 

48 BIS Salamis recipient of a safety award 

49 Current contracts 

NETWORK 

52 Convincing HSEQ efforts 

54 High-level quality assurance 

58 BIS Academy-Quality comes from 

qualifications 

60 Credits 


page 5

TITLE 

» Integrity is the basis of successful 

partnerships 

INTEGRITY IS ONE OF THE MAIN ASPECTS OF THE BIS BUSINESS PRINCIPLES. 

IN A BROADER SENSE, IT ALSO DEMONSTRATES THE COMPANY’S COMMITMENT 

TO A POSITIVE DEFINITION OF HOW IT SEES ITSELF, WHILE PROVIDING THE 

UNDERPINNINGS FOR SUSTAINED BUSINESS SUCCESS. WITH INTEGRITY, WE 

ARE ABLE TO SECURE OUR CUSTOMERS’ TRUST AND QUALIFY FOR A LONG- 

LASTING MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL PARTNERSHIP GOING BEYOND TECHNICAL 

SKILLS. WITHIN OUR COMPANY, INTEGRITY ACTS AS A CATALYST, ENCOURAG- 

ING A CULTURE OF CLARITY, TRANSPARENCY, RELIABILITY AND A PREFERENCE 

FOR COMING STRAIGHT TO THE POINT. 

With its vision of “Solutions for Industrial Services” and resolute efforts 

to imbue this vision with life, the BIS Group has made a crucial 

contribution to establishing industrial services as a separate sector. 

The leading European provider of services for the process industry is 

also setting standards in corporate compliance. In fact, it was one of 

the first operators in this industry to establish a broad-based compliance 

system. As Andreas Frey, the BIS Group’s compliance officer 

stresses, “one of the main tasks is to impress on all parties involved the 

necessity of a compliance programme, to heighten their awareness 

of the numerous risks to which the Company and its employees are 

exposed and to encourage transparency in all business processes.” 

SETTING STANDARDS WITH COMPLIANCE 

The importance of corporate compliance is repeatedly thrown into 

relief when large international companies attract critical media 

coverage on account of corruption. In such cases, the economic loss is 

exacerbated by a heavily tarnished image. Consequently, honesty is 

increasingly emerging as the crucial basis for protecting a company’s 

public image and retaining the respect of customers and suppliers. 

Ultimately, an effective compliance system and transparent business 

processes safeguard a company’s solidity and ensure its continued 

future viability. 

Against this backdrop, it is the most natural thing in the world for a 

company like the BIS Group to develop and implement a compliance 

system. Yet, as is the case with the many other standards which a 

well-managed company must take into account these days, compliance 

should not be seen as a necessary evil but, on the contrary, embraced 

with particular enthusiasm and resoluteness. Management 

at the BIS Group have given compliance top priority out of their own 

personal conviction. A further factor is the Group’s decentralised 

structure characterised by the allocation of a high degree of busi- 


page 7 

Andreas Frey, the BIS Group’s 

compliance officer, wants to 

strengthen trust and peace of 

mind by means of an effective 

compliance system. 

ness responsibility to the operating units. In this connection it is and 

always has been a question of defining integrity as a crucial element 

of the entire Group’s approach to the way it does business. For this 

reason, the BIS Group has been flanking its compliance activities 

with a broad-based information and communication strategy from 

the outset. 

“It is important for us,” says compliance officer Andreas Frey, “for 

compliance not be seen as something negative which everyone associates 

with unsuspected conflicts and personal risks. For this reason, 

we have taken a highly hands-on approach to this issue from the very 

start and see one of our main tasks as being to render the numerous 

legislative rules applicable to an internationally active company 

as transparent as possible for each individual employee by defining 

a small number of basic and general rules and guidelines.” What is 

more, this matter is continuing to grow in importance for national 

and international companies. Like the BIS Group, many enterprises 

have adopted a code of conduct or a similar set of rules. This opens 

up the possibility of working more closely together in the area of corporate 

compliance in our relations with our customers and suppliers 

and of receiving and offering mutual support. The BIS Group will 

continue to play a pioneering role in the future. 

CLEAR RULES AS A GUIDELINE 

The BIS Group’s compliance programme is based on the seven principles 

of conduct binding throughout the entire Bilfinger Berger Group 

and the ancillary code of conduct. They primarily cover matters such 

as corruption, embezzlement and anti-competitive behaviour as well 

as unlawful employment, moonlighting and social conduct within 

the Group. These rules are worded in a readily understandable and 

succinct form, giving each employee a clear basis for his or her own 

activity and providing protection in the event of any conflicts.

TITLE 

Specifically, the Company is expressly committed to combating all 

forms of corruption and corruptibility. All attempts to exert illegal 

influence on the decisions of customers and other contractual partners 

are rejected, as are all forms of enrichment at the Company’s 

expense. Employees are made to realise that the consequences of 

corruption can wipe out entire company facilities and destroy jobs. 

The Company is also expressly against illegal agreements which 

distort competition. Submission agreements, price-fixing and market-sharing 

arrangements are specifically cited as being illegal and 

subject to criminal prosecution. Clear rules also apply to the allocation 

of the Company’s own employees as well as the deployment 

of subcontractors. Illegal employment and moonlighting are not 

tolerated. 

Over and above this, the Group is committed to the principles of 

mutual respect, fairness and loyalty and thus rejects all forms of 

discrimination and workplace bullying. The Company expressly reminds 

executives of their function as role models and expects them 

to treat their staff cordially and with respect. In addition, a duty is 

imposed on all employees to refrain from using confidential information 

for their own purposes without authorisation and to make 

donations only in accordance with the applicable rules. 

However, merely having rules is not sufficient if a compliance system 

is to be effective in practice. In addition, ongoing information 

and training as well as clear monitoring and sanctioning mechanisms 

are required. Regular reports on new statutory requirements 

and court judgements at executive meetings or at staff assemblies 

in particular have proven their merits. In addition, the compliance 

officer is available for personal discussions on all matters related to 

corporate compliance. All training sessions – both face-to-face and 

in the form of IT-based e-learning – aim to provide participants with 

basic knowledge concerning corporate compliance and to describe 

practical examples from day-to-day operations. “We are broadening 

ORIGINS IN THE UNITED STATES 


page 8 

The term “compliance” arose at the end of the eighties in the 

US financial services industry. Companies started implementing 

systems imposing on all employees the duty to observe 

the applicable legal rules and regulations, particularly those 

aimed at preventing money laundering, corruption and insider 

trading. As international business relations grew in importance, 

compliance also gained additional significance not 

only in the European financial services sector but in other 

industries as well – especially at companies which operate 

on a cross-border basis in heavily regimented markets such 

as energy, pharmaceuticals and chemicals and which must 

come to terms with rapidly changing local rules and guidelines. 

In Germany, all major companies now have compliance 

departments and systems, which are being extended all 

the time. This reflects the fact that corporate compliance not 

only entails the observance of all legal and statutory obligations 

but increasingly also involves adherence to ethical 

principles. At the same time, large enterprises have adopted 

their own specific codes of conduct. The BIS Group is playing 

a pioneering role in compliance in the industrial services 

sector.

TITLE 

Kurt Harald Aase 

Head of human 

resources and compliance manager 

BIS Industrier AS 

COMPLIANCE SYSTEMS EXPECTED 

THESE DAYS 

“The decisive focus which BIS Industrier 

places on compliance has strengthened 

many customers’ trust in our company. 

Since the adoption of our principles of 

ethics in 2004 and the implementation 

of the BIS code of conduct, we have noted 

rising interest in compliance on the part 

of both customers and employees. The ongoing 

further development of the compliance 

system and the sharing of experience 

within the BIS Group are therefore very 

important for us. None of our customers 

in Europe would place any orders with a 

company which had been known for compliance 

breaches or did not have a compliance 

system in place.” 

Franz Braun 

Managing director 

BIS Maintenance Südwest GmbH 

CORRECT BEHAVIOUR 

ALWAYS PAY OFF 

“No-one can afford to breach legal or statutory 

rules or principles of ethics. That 

is why mid-size companies have recently 

started paying a great deal of attention to 

this issue as they have not yet fully implemented 

end-to-end compliance systems. 

Accordingly, we broach this subject from 

the outset in our initial presentations and 

describe our business principles and code 

of conduct in detail. Our customers respond 

very favourably to this, applauding 

the clear vision which we have for executing 

our business in full observance of all 

legal and ethical rules. They repeatedly 

confirm that we operate a very professional 

compliance system. And indeed, the 

system in use at the BIS Group is so tightly 

knit that breaches are almost impossible. 

All our employees are very aware of the 

fact that it is not worth succumbing to 

short-term temptations and that – like 

the quality of their work – fair and correct 

conduct ultimately always pay off. What is 

more, everyone has the peace of mind of 

knowing that nothing can happen to them 

personally as long as they remain within 

the defined boundaries.” 

Friedrich Lampe 

Head of sales and project management 

BIS E.M.S. GmbH 

THE KEY TO FAIR COMPETITION 


page 9 

“Compliance has been part of our 

day-to-day business activities for a long 

time as we work with leading international 

companies. These companies have 

for many years been implementing numerous 

measures aimed at preventing any 

breaches and irregularities of any kind. 

This includes, for example, the unbundling 

of networks and sales and regular 

job rotation for executives. The contracts 

which we sign with our customers also 

include compliance requirements, which 

we undertake to observe by signing the 

contracts. Accordingly, our management 

takes a very proactive approach both internally 

and externally to such issues and 

systematically ensures that no breaches 

occur. New employees are immediately 

acquainted with our compliance rules 

and required to take part in training held 

at the BIS head office. It would be desirable 

for all companies in Germany to adopt 

comparable compliance systems as this 

is the key to fair competition.”

TITLE 

our e-learning offerings both in terms of content and scope but are 

also attaching key importance to face-to-face training with the possibilities 

that this provides for sharing information and expressing 

opinions in person,” explains Benedikt Gruhn, corporate compliance 

assistant. “Experience shows that this gives us valuable feedback, 

allowing us to identify problems out in the field and pointing to areas 

in which we can provide additional support and information.” 

Experience gained from the local training organised by the individual 

BIS subsidiaries is also incorporated in the training syllabi on an 

ongoing basis. In this way, the content of the training programmes 

and e-learning modules can be enhanced and additionally translated 

into the individual local languages in use within the BIS Group 

step by step to ensure that linguistic barriers do not stand in the 

way of a common understanding of the rules and requirements. 

All information and training activities are documented. It is also important 

for matters liable to be of relevance for compliance purposes, 

e.g. invitations, to be documented in writing. The transparency 

and audit-proofness of business activities not only makes it more 

difficult for individuals to breach compliance policies but also serves 

to protect employees. 

In addition to preventive information and training measures, effective 

supervision is, of course, also necessary. Any suspicions are 

investigated systematically but free of any prejudice in close colla- 


page 10 

boration with other relevant departments within the Group, local 

colleagues and, if necessary, business associates. As a matter of 

principle, it is also possible for any suspicions to be reported anonymously 

or via an external ombudsman. These monitoring activities 

also provide the Company with valuable knowledge, allowing it to 

additionally enhance its compliance rules and practical implementation. 

ZERO TOLERANCE TOWARDS DELIBERATE BREACHES 

With its compliance system, the BIS Group not only observes legal 

requirements but also fulfils its duty to protect its employees as 

many breaches are caused by ignorance. The code of conduct and 

the information and training programme ensure that employees are 

aware of potential risks and heighten their awareness of conflict situations. 

However, the principle of zero tolerance applies to all cases 

of deliberate breach. Anyone deliberately and consciously breaching 

legal and statutory rules and regulations in the performance of 

their duties for the BIS Group cannot expect to receive any lenience 

from their employer. In the interests of safeguarding the internal 

and external credibility of the compliance system, no compromises 

whatsoever are possible. 

Yet, for all the decisiveness with which the compliance system is 

implemented, the main focus at the BIS Group is always on convincing 

staff of the merits and importance of the system. This – 

far more than the fear of personal consequences – has helped to

INTERVIEW 

ensure that compliance is not associated with the loss of business 

opportunities. Rather, there is a general understanding that compliance 

serves to highlight the risks occurring in day-to-day business 

and helps to find shared alternative solutions involving less risk. As 

a result, a successful compliance team protects not only the individual 

employees but the enterprise as a whole. However, in the long 

“COMPLIANCE BREACHES ARE NOT A 

TRIVIAL MATTER” 

globe: Mr. Töpfer, as an industrial services 

provider the BIS Group is operating 

successfully in a still young sector and is 

amongst the pioneers when it comes to 

compliance. What prompted you to take 

such a pro-active approach to this issue? 

Thomas Töpfer: As one of the leading providers 

of industrial services, we are a role 

model in every respect. This imposes on 

us a great responsibility which we take 

very seriously. With our solutions-oriented 

range of maintenance services, we are 

committed to enhancing the availability 

of industrial assets and, hence, to heightening 

our customers’ productivity and 

improving their cost structures. At the 

same time, it goes without saying that we 

guarantee the highest order of health and 

environmental protection, on-site safety 

and quality. And this also includes lawful 

and correct conduct. We want to succeed 

in the market place on the strength of our 

services, quality, reliability and fairness. 

globe: What is the main reason for the 

success of your compliance system? 

Thomas Töpfer: A recent study conducted 

by PricewaterhouseCoopers discovered 

that the acceptance and success of compliance 

programmes materially hinge on 

corporate culture. The more positive this 

corporate culture is, the greater the acceptance 

will be throughout the entire 

Group. 

At the core of our corporate culture stands 

credibility. We have defi ned clear values 

and entrenched them in our business 

principles to provide all our employees 

with orientation. At the same time, they 

stress the high priority which we give to 

quality, service orientation, integrity and 

safety as well as team spirit and personal 

commitment. These are the values 

by which we are measured – something 

which particularly also applies to the 

strict observance of all applicable statutory 

rules, internal guidelines and general 

principles of ethics. 

globe: The same study stated that German 

companies as a whole still have 

quite a bit of catching-up to do as far as 

compliance is concerned. What is the situation 

with respect to the BIS Group’s 

customers? 

Thomas Töpfer: Our customers are predominantly 

active in the process industry. 

They not only have very demanding HSEQ 

requirements but also extensive compliance 

rules. This means that it is important 

for us to set standards with our own compliance 

system. In addition, we operate internationally, 

including in countries which 

have a far longer history of compliance, 

such as the United States and Norway, 

for example. We can learn from the experience 

gained in these countries and use 

them as a source of inspiration for ongoing 

improvements. 


page 11 

term this is possible only with the active support of all employees. 

Within the BIS Group, what has become evident is that the key to 

this is communication at all levels, clear commitment on the part 

of management to compliance and also support on the part of all 

employees. 

Thomas Töpfer, a member of 

Bilfinger Berger's Executive Board 

globe: Looking forward, will compliance 

continue to grow in importance in this 

country? 

Thomas Töpfer: Yes, it probably will. Compliance 

is already crucial for the long-term 

success of any company. Breaches are not 

a trivial matter and must never be viewed 

as such. Accordingly, all companies must 

encourage a strong sense in all employees 

of what is right and what is wrong 

and keep this awareness well-honed at 

all times. This takes time and effort but 

is something which we do gladly. In this 

way, we are able to make sure that dishonest 

business practices contravening the 

law or unethical conduct don’t have any 

chance at our Company at any time in the 

future.

» BIS plus MCE – 

a harmonious fit and reinforcement 

ANNOUNCED IN OCTOBER, APPROVED BY THE EU COMPETITION AUTHORITIES 

IN DECEMBER, EXECUTED IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2010 AND ALREADY 

COMPLETED IN ORGANISATIONAL TERMS ON 1 APRIL: THE SPEED WITH WHICH 

THE ACQUISITION TOOK PLACE IS ALL THE CONFIRMATION NEEDED TO SHOW 

THAT THE INTEGRATION OF AUSTRIAN INDUSTRY AND POWER STATION SER- 

VICE PROVIDER MCE WAS A PERFECT FIT FOR THE BIS GROUP. MCE IS MATERI- 

ALLY SUPPLEMENTING AND STRENGTHENING THE BIS GROUP AS A STRATEGIC 

FULL-SERVICE PARTNER FOR INDUSTRIAL SERVICES AND PLANT ENGINEERING 

IN THE PROCESS AND ENERGY INDUSTRIES. 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

together!

FOCUS 

The new Plant Technologies Division is home to the extended range of services targeted at 

industrial assets, making them available on a cross-border basis. 

In 2009, the former MCE companies which have been integrated within 

the BIS Group generated revenues of around EUR 700 million. As 

a result, the Group’s total revenues have surged to some EUR 3 billion, 

accompanied by an increase in employees to more than 27,000. 

Customers are benefiting from an extended range of services and 

a broader regional reach. This is not least of all reflected in the 

enhanced organisational structure. In addition to the existing regionally 

oriented divisions, namely Industrial Services Central Europe, 

Northern & Eastern Europe, Western Europe & International, the 

Plant Technologies Division has been established as an additional 

strong pillar within the BIS Group. The new cross-regional division 

is home to all of the BIS Group’s extended range of plant technology 

activities. The geographical divisions will retain their strong regional 

relationships with customers. 

INTERNATIONAL OUTLOOK 

The new Plant Technologies Division specialises in international projects, 

to which it contributes its core skills in industrial plant engineering 

and assembly expertise. It primarily targets the chemicals/ 

petrochemicals, metallurgy, paper and pulp sectors as well as the 

energy production and distribution industry with a range of services 

comprising planning, fabrication, assembly and commissioning 

of entire plants or sub-plants as well as components at power stations 

and industrial installations. The previous core MCE companies 

BIS VAM Anlagentechnik,Wels, Bohr- und Rohrtechnik GmbH – BIS, 

Vienna, BIS Gerätetechnik, Wels and Bochum, and Slovakian company 

BIS Slovensko reside within the Plant Technologies Division. In 


page 14 

connection with the integration plans, MCE Industrietechnik Linz has 

been amalgamated into BIS VAM. 

With their regional focus, the geographic divisions primarily concentrate 

on the full range of industrial services, such as static equipment 

and rotating machinery, E/I&C, scaffolding, insulation and 

surface protection. Of the previous MCE companies, BIS Chemserv 

with headquarters in Linz and offices in Schwechat, Krems, Ebensee 

and Burghausen in Lower Bavaria, BIS Industrietechnik Ost (Leuna), 

BIS TSG Industrieservice in Gersthofen and BIS Personalservices have 

been integrated within the Central Europe Division. At the same 

time, the BIS Group’s position in the pharmaceuticals and bioengineering 

industry has been additionally strengthened with the inclusion 

of BIS Industrietechnik Salzburg. MCE’s specialist skills in steel 

and mechanical engineering, which entail activities in steel structure 

and bridge construction, have been added to the Northern & Eastern 

Europe Division. 

Whereas Germany has previously formed the focal point of the BIS 

Group’s activities in Central Europe, the integration of most of MCE 

will yield an additional strong market presence in Austria. All in all, 

the Company now has around 100 operating subsidiaries at 130 

locations as well as numerous further branches across Europe and 

North America. With the addition of the former MCE companies, 

the BIS Group’s profile as a solutions provider has been sharpened 

decisively. This is demonstrated by the references described on the 

following pages.

FOCUS 

BIS’s geographically oriented divisions specialise in comprehensive maintenance services ranging from 

individual tasks right through to full-service solutions as well as personnel and equipment services. 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

together! 


page 15

FOCUS 

BIS VAM Anlagentechnik is responsible for a substantial part of the steel engineering 

for the new Limmern power station in the Swiss canton of Glarus. 

» Demanding extension project 

“LINTHAL 2015” IS THE NAME OF A DEMANDING PROJECT WHICH KRAFT WERKE 

LINTH-LIMMERN AG HAS LAUNCHED IN THE SWISS CANTON OF GLARUS. IT 

ENTAILS THE CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW SUBTERRANEAN PUMPED STORAGE 

ELECTRICAL POWER STATION TO ADD A FURTHER 1,000 MW TO THE EXISTING 

POWER GENERATION CAPACITY AT THIS SITE. BIS VAM ANLAGENTECHNIK 

TOGETHER WITH MCE INDUSTRIETECHNIK LINZ, WHICH HAS BEEN INTEGRATED 

INTO IT, IS ALSO INVOLVED IN THE PROJECT. 

With its three storage power stations Muttsee, Tierfehd and Linthal, 

Kraftwerke Linth-Limmern AG, a partner to the canton of Glarus and 

the energy company Axpo, primarily supplies peak power, i.e. the 

part of electricity consumption exceeding the base load required to 

cover daily basic requirements. For this purpose, the Muttsee power 

station uses the water of Lake Mutt to produce electricity. The central 

facility is located in a rock cavern from which the water flows into 

Lake Limmern. The Tierfehd power station comprises two levels, one 

working with water from Lake Limmern and the other with water 

from the Hindersand service reservoir. After the electricity has been 


page 16 

produced, the water flows into the Tierfehd service reservoir. In times 

of low demand for electricity, the water can also be pumped from 

the Hintersand service reservoir to Lake Limmern. The Linthal power 

station, in turn, makes use of the height difference between Tierfehd 

and Linthal. 

SIGNIFICANT BOOST IN OUTPUT 

The power station array currently achieves an output of 460 MW. As 

there is steadily growing demand for peak power, the Limmern power 

station is to be fitted with a strong additional pumped storage

FOCUS 

station as part of the “Linthal 2015” project to help ensure reliable 

supplies of electricity to the north-eastern and central parts of Switzerland. 

Unlike straight storage power stations, pumped storage 

stations not only generate peak energy but can also convert excess 

electricity arising during low load times into peak energy. 

The additional power station is to pump water from Lake Limmern 

back into Lake Mutt, which is almost 630 metres higher. This water 

can then be re-used to generate electricity when it is required. A new 

cavern facility for four pump turbines and a pump station is being 

built at an altitude of around 1,700 metres, roughly 600 metres inside 

a mountain. It will be supplied by water from Lake Mutt, which is 

located at an altitude of around 2,400 metres, via two parallel pressure 

shafts connected to a pressure tunnel. In turn, water will flow via 

two subterranean water tunnels from the cavern station to Lake Limmern, 

which has an altitude of around 1,850 metres. In accordance 

with current plans, the new facility will go into operation at the end 

of 2015/beginning of 2016, resulting in an increase to around 1,460 

MW in the aggregate output of the power station array. 

TWO-YEAR ASSEMBLY PERIOD 

At the end of last year, a contract for part of the hydraulic engineering 

work was awarded to BIS VAM Anlagentechnik together with 

MCE Industrietechnik Linz, which has since been integrated into it. 

This marks the first venture with Kraftwerke Linth-Limmern AG. The 

contract provides for the delivery of two Y-pipes and four distribution 

pipelines. Y-pipes are the elements used to connect piping with 

a smaller diameter. In the case of the “Linthal 2015” project, the Ypipes 

measure 4.2 by 2.9 by 2.9 metres and weigh a total of 238 tons. 

The distribution pipes have an interior diameter of 2.9 metres and 

a length of up to 80 metres. Their weight ranges between 192 and 

244 tons. All pipes are made from high-strength steel sheeting and 

must be able to withstand high operating pressures. The walls have 

a thickness of between 50 and 120 mm. 

The services being provided by BIS VAM Anlagentechnik include full 

detail engineering of the Y-pipes and distribution pipes as well as the 

procurement of the necessary material, prefabrication and assembly. 

Work on the project commenced in November 2009. After the completion 

of detail engineering, the necessary parts will be fabricated 

at the company’s plant in Wels over a period of one year and transported 

by truck to the site in Switzerland, where they will be brought 

to their final destination by means of a cable car. 

Assembly work is to commence in 2013 and continue over a period of 

two years. The parts are to be put together and welded on site. The 

Y-pipes will be tested with a pressure of 114 bar. “The difficult conditions 

for assembly pose a particular challenge,” explains managing 

director August Oberndorfer, “but this project will mark a further key 

foreign reference in pressure pipe engineering.” 

POOLED SKILLS 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

together! 

BIS VAM Anlagentechnik, as it is now known, has been a leading 

company in Europe for industrial plant, piping, apparatus 

and tank engineering for decades. The company off ers a full 

range of services encompassing planning, fabrication, assembly 

and start-ups. Individual components and full-scale plants 

are supplied by the company’s industrial and power station 

pipe engineering, subterranean pipe engineering, apparatus 

and tank engineering and hydro power departments. Its services 

are supplemented with the provision of expert specialists, 

non-destructive materials testing, welding support and training 

and skills development for welders. 

The skills previously held by MCE Industrietechnik Linz have 

also been integrated. As a result, the company has evolved into 

a leading partner for assembly and engineering services and 

primarily targets the metallurgy and power production/distribution 

industries. However, the Linz-based company is also at 

home with mining and tunnel engineering and works in the 

paper and pulp industry, the rock, earth and cement industry 

and waste incineration. 

The pumped storage station is to cover electricity requirements in 

North-Eastern and Central Switzerland. 


page 17

FOCUS 

» Highly adverse conditions overcome 

PREMIERE AT VOESTALPINE’S STEEL WORKS IN LINZ. FOR THE FIRST TIME, A 

BLAST FURNACE WAS CLOSED DOWN AND OVERHAULED DURING THE WINTER. 

MCE INDUSTRIETECHNIK LINZ, WHICH HAS NOW BEEN INTEGRATED WITHIN 

BIS VAM ANLAGENTECHNIK, PLAYED A CRUCIAL ROLE IN THIS PROJECT. 

DESPITE THE HIGHLY ADVERSE CONDITIONS, THE DEADLINE FOR COMPLETION 

WAS ACHIEVED. 

At its steel works in Linz, voestalpine operates blast furnace A as its 

main aggregate for producing pig iron as well as the smaller blast 

furnaces 4, 5 and 6 with an interior diameter of eight metres. The 

blast furnace is the first stage in the production of steel. Iron ore, 

coke and additional substances such as limestone are placed in the 

stack of the blast furnace, where they undergo various physical and 

chemical reactions in steadily rising temperatures, as a result of 

which the iron ore is converted into pure iron. The waste product 

is slag together with blast furnace gas, which is used for heating in 


page 18 

the power station. The pig iron and slag collect in liquid form at the 

bottom of the blast furnace, where they are regularly “tapped”. This 

entails drilling a “tap hole” in the refractory clay plug, through which 

the molten mass flows at a temperature of around 1,250 degrees 

Celsius. The slag is separated from the iron by means of troughs and 

transported away in ladles. The liquid pig iron is then immediately 

converted to steel at the steel works. 

The three blast furnaces at the Linz site have a height of 75 metres 

and each contain a hearth and a stack which is 35 metres tall. The 

MCE Industrietechnik Linz played a key role in 

overhauling Blast Furnace 5 and 6 operated by 

voestalpine at its steel works in Linz (left). 

The assembly team with bunker as part of the 

new hopper system (right).

FOCUS 

hearth is made from heat-resistant steel-panels lined with firebrick. 

“The firebrick of the furnace shell lasts around eight years,” explains 

project manager Markus Koch, “after which it must be replaced and 

completely renewed.” At the same time, many repairs which are not 

possible while the furnace is in operation due to the consistently high 

temperatures are completed. What this meant for blast furnaces 5 

and 6, which were due for an overhaul, is that the faulty parts had 

to be cut from the steel panelling and replaced. At the same time, a 

new hopper at the top end of the stack was assembled in the interests 

of heightened quality. The hopper is used to alternately inject 

coke and the charge of ore and fluxes such as limestone in such a 

way that no gas escape. 

WORK COMPLETED ON SCHEDULE 

BIS Industrietechnik Linz was materially involved in both shutdowns. 

Specifically, it was required to dismantle the stages, gangways, stairs 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

together! 


page 19 

and various steel structures which were no longer required, assemble 

new stages, platforms, gangways, stairs and load-bearing structures 

and mount new hoppers. In addition, various access holes had to be 

drilled in the furnace wall and then sealed again after the repairs had 

been completed. A total of around 60 employees were deployed at 

the site, working in four shifts on some days. 

An execution period of nine months had been scheduled for the work 

on blast furnace 6 in 2009. Accordingly, it went back into operation in 

September 2009. By contrast, the turnaround of blast furnace 5 had 

to be completed in only three months. Likewise, it returned to operation 

on schedule on 12 March 2010. “This was the first time that 

a shutdown had been executed during the winter,” reports Markus 

Koch. “Yet despite the extremely adverse conditions caused by the 

harsh winter and its low temperatures, we were able to meet the 

defined schedule.”

FOCUS 

» Well positioned in pipe construction 

PIPELINES ARE ESSENTIAL FOR THE SAFE AND SECURE TRANSPORTATION 

OF RAW MATERIALS SUCH AS OIL AND GAS. BUILDING PIPELINES IS AN 

EXACTING AND DEMANDING JOB REQUIRING SPECIAL EQUIPMENT. BIS 

GERÄTETECHNIK HAS RECOGNISED THE DEMAND AND IS PROVIDING ITS 

CUSTOMERS WITH THE LATEST PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT. 

CELEBRATION WITH EMPLOYEES AND CUSTOMERS 

Together with its employees and customers, BIS Gerätetechnik 

celebrated its 15th anniversary and also the inauguration of 

its new logistics centre at its headquarters in Wels, Austria, in 

September 2010. This also coincided with the traditional GT 

race. Further highlights included bungee jumping, a climbing 

wall, a competition and a broad range of culinary treats. 

BIS Gerätetechnik’s new logistics centre at its headquarters in Wels. 

Currently, there are pipelines with a total length of some three million 

kilometres around the world, a fi gure which grows by around 

25,000 kilometres each year. “Pipeline construction comprises multiple 

phases,” explains specialist Peter Lorenz, “for which there is 

special equipment such as bending machines, welding beads and 

sidebooms.” Cold bending is one of the fi rst steps in the process: 

the bending machine is used to bend the cold pipes in the pit in 

accordance with the surveyor’s measurements. Then welding beads 

are used. Explains Peter Lorenz: “These are mobile machines used for 

welding ancillary elements and links with the assistance of crawler 

vehicles in diffi cult terrain. In this way, the pipes can be prewelded 

outside the pit and then welded together after being put in place.” 

Finally, the sidebooms are used to lift, hold and lower the welded 

pipes. They have retractable counterweights to hold the vehicle with 

the necessary stability. 

BIS Gerätetechnik is off ering the latest generation of this heavy-duty 

pipeline construction machinery. Thus, sidebooms have a weight of 

25.9 to 58 tons or even more, while bending machines weigh between 

5.5 and 32 tons or more and welding beads between six and 

15 tons. “All the equipment is able to lift up to one third of its own 

weight and also lower the load in a single process,” explains Gerhard 

Hunger, managing director of BIS Gerätetechnik. “In this way, we are 

able to off er our customers the best possible equipment for pipeline 

construction.” 

MACHINERY RENTALS A SUCCESS FACTOR 

Based in Wels in Upper Austria, BIS Gerätetechnik has been specialising 

for many years in rentals of a full range of construction site 

equipment. With further offices in Bochum, Vienna and Salzburg, it 

offers the latest tools, equipment and vehicles for use at industrial 

plants in the metallurgy, energy, pipeline, steel and bridge construction 

sectors. It boasts a pool of over 11,000 products including containers, 

welding machinery, vehicles, pipeline construction machinery, 

hydraulic tools, lifting equipment and power supply aggregates. 

This is backed by full service including procurement, rental, provision 

of equipment, maintenance, repairs and, if requested, transport and 

insurance. Qualified technicians provide advice and ensure compli- 

The pipeline is welded in a fully equipped tent. 


page 20

FOCUS 

Sidebooms are used to lower the welded pipes into the pit. 

ance with the applicable statutory provisions and the application of 

approved testing processes. The pool of equipment is checked regularly 

in accordance with the applicable statutory provisions in order 

to ensure safety. 

NEW LOGISTICS CENTRE 

A new warehouse was constructed at the company’s headquarters 

in Wels last year. Fitted with a modern shuttle system which is linked 

to SAP, it provides greater convenience, eff iciency and reliability in 

the commissioning process. The goods are assembled in such a way 

as to ensure that they reach the customer with minimum delay. As 

Gerhard Hunger stresses, “With our ultra-modern logistics system 

we serve around 1,000 construction sites per year. There is currently 

a pronounced trend in favour of equipment service as renting machinery 

off ers major economic benefi ts over buying it, reducing investments 

and releasing capital which the customer can channel 

into its core business, while also helping to ensure effi cient assembly 

activities.” 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

together! 

FIRM PART OF CONSTRUCTION SITES 


page 21 

BIS Gerätetechnik has been supplying numerous construction 

sites for 15 years now. One prime example is the construction 

of Austria’s largest gas storage tank near Strasswalchen from 

June 2006 until January 2007 for which it supplied machinery 

and tools. BIS Gerätetechnik also supplied all the equipment 

– i.e. containers, vehicles, assembly tools, electrical tools, conventional 

welding machinery and WIG hot-wire welding equipment 

– for the construction site for the Kops II underground 

power station in Partenen, Vorarlberg. Located in the Canton 

of Wallis in the Swiss Alps, the 1,200 MW Cleuson-Dixence 

power station is being fitted with an impressive new pressure 

pipeline. All the construction site equipment – including 

the entire machinery required for WIG hot-wire welding 

for high-strength steels – has been supplied by BIS Gerätetechnik.

FOCUS 

» Successful team work 

WITH THE SUPPORT OF THE OTHER BIS GROUP COMPANIES, BIS CHEMSERV 

SUCCESSFULLY HANDLED THE TURNAROUND OF THE MALEIC ANHYDRIDE (MAH) 

PLANT OPERATED BY DSM FINE CHEMICALS AUSTRIA AT THE LINZ CHEMICALS 

ESTATE. THE TURNAROUND TOOK TWO WEEKS AND, THANKS TO CAREFUL PREPA- 

RATIONS, IT WAS POSSIBLE FOR PRODUCTION TO BE RESUMED ON SCHEDULE. 

Owned by Dutch chemicals company DSM, DSM Fine Chemicals 

Austria produces intermediates for the pharmaceuticals, crop and 

cosmetics industry at the Linz chemical estate. One of these products 

is maleic anhydride, which is primarily used for producing non-saturated 

polyester as well as in the synthesis of surfactants, insecticides, 

herbicides and fungicides. Last October, the MAH plant with its three 

production lines was scheduled for a general overhaul, something 

which entailed a full two-week turnaround. DSM Fine Chemicals 

Austria assigned the turnaround duties to Linz-based BIS company 

Chemserv. With further offices in Vienna, Krems, Kirchdorf, Ebensee, 

Neustadt an der Donau and Burghausen, this company specialises in 

industrial maintenance and has successfully handled a number of 

turnarounds for DSM in the past. 

BROAD RANGE OF SERVICES 

As the general contractor, BIS Chemserv was responsible for providing 

a large range of services. Specifically, these included planning 

and project management, plant service for apparatus and piping, 

construction such as furnace construction work and refractory work, 

assembly, dismantling and servicing of fittings such as hand, regulating 

and safety valves, E/I&C including process control, USV facilities, 

frequency converters, analysis and calibration, servicing of motors, 

pumps, turbines and compressor, non-destructive materials testing, 

transportation and related activities such as scaffolding, insulation 

and cleaning by the customer’s contractors. It was also necessary to 

replace the fluid bed steam generator, which has a function similar 

to that of a heat exchanger, and to overhaul the start-up heater, i.e. 

a gas burner with a stack required to start up the plant. The work 

performed entailed replacing the interior gas and cooling lines and 

repairing the firebrick lining. 

Other BIS companies were also involved alongside Chemserv. Thus, 

for example, BIS Industrietechnik Ost serviced the apparatus and dismantled 

and re-assembled the valves. Support was also provided by 

Slovakian affiliate BIS Industrietechnik Slovensko. Linz-based company 

BIS Standortservices, which specialises in providing infrastructure 

services at industrial sites, was responsible for the site infrastructure 

including the provision of equipment and tools. BIS Personalservice 

Österreich, which also has its head office in Linz, covered additional 

staff requirements. 

CAREFUL PREPARATIONS 

Given the short turnaround period of only two weeks, careful preparation 

of the job was given top priority. In fact, BIS Chemserv started to 

determine the scope of the necessary activities and to plan the individual 

tasks a year ahead of the turnaround, working closely and very 

efficiently with the customer. The turnaround entailed a total of 350 

work packages comprising a total of 21,000 hours of work. Some 3,500 

flange connections were opened, 1,200 meters of welding seams applied 

to apparatus and piping executed and 500 release certificates issued. 

Despite the onset of severe winter conditions in the second week 

of the turnaround, not a single accident or leak occurred during the 

entire project. Looking back on the project, Dieter Greuter, turnaround 

project manager at BIS Chemserv, is very satisfied, saying, “We achieved 

a high degree of efficiency. Accordingly, our turnaround method 

from the planning phase through to execution and full documentation 

proved its merits once more.” 

COMPREHENSIVE FINAL ANALYSIS 

The individual phases of the turnaround were analysed together with 

the customer in detail in a concluding workshop and the results summarised 

in an evaluation report. In this way, the knowledge gained 

from the execution of the project can be put to good use in future 

activities. Summing up the project, Dieter Greuter has this to say: 

“The turnaround at DSM was further proof of the strengths of our 

Group, particularly the availability of qualified resources and expertise 

at both the planning and execution level.” 

COMPLEX PLANT RELOCATION 


page 22 

From December 2008 until February 2010, BIS Chemserv relocated 

existing facilities at the Linz chemical estate and at 

Borealis sites in Sweden and Norway to the new Borealis Innovation 

Headquarters at the Linz chemical estate. Among 

other things, this entailed injection mould machinery, blown 

fi lm equipment, fi bre machinery, pipelines and laboratory 

and testing equipment. Throughout the entire project, between 

30 to 40 BIS Chemserv employees were on duty at all 

times. All agreed schedule, cost, safety and quality targets 

were achieved thanks to the successful collaboration of all 

parties involved.

FOCUS 

BIS Personalservice Österreich provides qualified and reliable personnel to cover peak requirements in maintenance, 

assembly, service and production activities. 

TOP ADDRESS FOR SPECIALISTS 

Looking ahead over the next few years, the shortage of qualified 

staff in industrial services and plant engineering is set to remain 

a key issue. This makes the role played by personnel service providers 

all the more important. BIS Personalservice Österreich is 

one of the leading providers of bespoke personnel services for 

industrial partners in Austria and Germany. The company defines 

itself as a link between employers seeking to fill vacancies 

swiftly with qualified staff and applicants in search of positions 

matching their qualifications and skills. The focus is on selected 

large industrial customers with comparable tasks, the execution 

of large-scale projects and structural adjustments. 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

together! 


page 23 

Key importance is also attached to training and qualifications. 

BIS Personalservice Österreich provides qualified personnel 

meeting a precisely defined profile of requirements to cover 

peak requirements in maintenance, assembly, service and production 

activities swiftly and with minimum fuss. “We know the 

market for skilled labour like a locksmith knows his tool box,” 

says managing director Manfred Handschuh. “And we know 

where to find suitable staff.”

FOCUS 

» And the winner is … 

IT IS PRESENTED ANNUALLY – AND BIS CHEMSERV HAS ALREADY RECEIVED 

IT TWICE. WHAT IS IT? THE MAINTAINER AWARD, THE “OSCAR OF 

MAINTENANCE”. BIS CHEMSERV IS ALSO A FREQUENT RECIPIENT OF 

CUSTOMERS’ AWARDS. 

In collaboration with industrial companies, 

consulting company T.A. Cook has 

been presenting the Maintainer Award 

since 2009 to recognise and further the 

contribution which maintenance makes 

to companies’ efficiency. The award comes 

in three categories: “project of the year/ 

industrial company”, “project of the year/ 

service provider” and “special innovation 

award”. The recipients are announced 

and the awards presented at the “Main- 

Days” industrial maintenance conference 

in Berlin. In addition, the award-winning 

projects are described in detail in the 

“Instandhaltung” trade magazine. 

IMPORTANT INNOVATION 

This year, the “Maintainer 2010” award for “project of the year/ 

service provider” went to BIS Chemserv for VibraCheck®, its autonomous 

roller bearing monitoring system. This system provides 

customers with an inexpensive and reliable diagnostic tool to 

help schedule maintenance in such a way as to maximise economic 

efficiency. It has been undergoing extensive field testing by 18 

selected customers in Austria and Germany since the beginning of 

2009. Using VibraCheck®, one company, Planung und Errichtung 

von Kleinkraftwerken AG, was able to monitor existing damage to 

the roller bearing of a machine on a condition-oriented basis until 

the next planned turnaround, thus preventing premature failure. 

GREAT INTEREST 

VibraCheck® was developed by the Centre of Maintenance Methods 

and Technology under the management of Erich Meyer. This system 

was developed, tested and finalised over a period of three years, after 

which the finished product was unveiled. VibraCheck® has been 

on the market since autumn 2009 and is now a firm part of BIS 

Chemserv’s maintenance services. “The product has aroused great 

interest and has met with a favourable market response,” says Erich 

Meyer. He was the recipient of the Maintainer Award on an earlier 

occasion as well – specifically in 2008 for the maintenance school 

managed under his supervision. 

BIS Chemserv received the “Maintainer 2010” award for its 

autonomous roller bearing monitoring system VibraCheck. 

AWARDS RECEIVED FOR 

OUTSTANDING SERVICES 

Customers also greatly appreciate BIS 

Chemserv’s services. Thus, the Company 

received the 2009 Safety and Quality 

Award from Bayernoil Raffineriegesellschaft 

GmbH in recognition of the quality 

with which it performs its core activities. 

For this purpose, the procurement, production 

and engineering departments at 

Bayernoil review the quality of the work 

performed, incidents, employee qualifications, 

reliability, the construction site 

facilities/equipment, flexibility, the safety 

standards of the machinery used and 

general safety standards on a quarterly 

basis. BIS Chemserv ranked very highly in 

all these categories in 2009. 

In addition, Chemserv was the only contractor to figure amongst the 

recipients of the Borealis “Runners-up Award” for HSE in 2009. Borealis, 

a leading producer of innovative high-quality plastics announces its 

annual HSE awards in recognition of improvements made in the areas 

of accident prevention, process safety and environmental protection. 

Chemserv received the award in recognition of the engineering 

and production of wagons for transporting metal panels and pipes at 

the Schwechat plant, one of the most modern and important plastic 

production facilities in Europe with an annual polyolefin capacity of 

around one million tons. 

SATISFYING CUSTOMER REQUIREMENTS EVEN 

MORE EFFECTIVELY 


page 24 

The Centre of Maintenance Methods and Technology (CMMT) 

ploughs the latest fi ndings in maintenance technology into 

day-to-day maintenance activities. It provides support in all 

aspects of operating and managing technical equipment in 

production plants and infrastructure. The focus is on improving 

and optimising technology and maintenance. Says Erich 

Meyer, the head of the CMMT: “Our primary goal is to develop 

new methods and possibilities in the area of industrial maintenance 

in order to satisfy customer requirements even more 

eff ectively.”

FOCUS 

» Consistently high operating times 

FOR MANY YEARS NOW, BIS INDUSTRIETECHNIK OST HAS BEEN A RELIABLE 

PARTNER IN MAINTENANCE SERVICES FOR BOREALIS AGROMELAMIN 

DEUTSCHLAND GMBH VIA ITS WITTENBERG CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTRE. 

NOW THE EXISTING MASTER CONTRACT HAS BEEN RENEWED FOR THE 

GENERAL OVERHAUL OF THE MELAMINE PRODUCTION PLANT IN PIESTERITZ/ 

LUTHERSTADT-WITTENBERG. 

In industry, melamine is mostly refined to produce melamine resin, 

which is used in high-quality resin adhesive systems, among 

other things. In addition, melamine resin foam is utilised as a noncombustible 

upholstery for aircraft and cinema seats as well as 

an acoustic absorber in cinemas, recording studios or sound-dead 

rooms. Conventional detergents also contain melamine. Borealis 

Agromelamin Deutschland, the world’s largest producer of melamine, 

put its melamine production plant in Piesteritz, Germany 

into operation in 2004, achieving an annual production output of 

around 80,000 tons. 

From the outset, the Wittenberg customer service centre operated 

by BIS Industrietechnik Ost was assigned responsibility for general 

maintenance of the plant. Signed for a period of five years, the 

master contract provided for maintenance and repairs of all of the 

equipment in use at the melamine plant, including pumps, piping, 

field equipment and process control systems. Even during the commissioning 

phase, the Wittenberg customer service centre worked 

with the customer, planning and executing optimum maintenance 

with the support of all of BIS Industrietechnik Ost. For this 

purpose, “Comos iAge”, a modern maintenance management 

system, was implemented, permitting improved planning and 

controlling of the necessary activities, among other things. With 

the introduction of this system-based maintenance scheduling, 

we were able to find an optimum way of performing all 

the contractual services,” reports project manager Sven Kluge. “The 

efforts which we took during system implementation paid off 

as we have been able to boost the technical availability of the 

melamine plant step by step.” 

In December 2009, Borealis renewed the master contract by a 

further three years, thus confirming its satisfaction. The new contract 

for general maintenance services also makes high demands of 

the Wittenberg customer service centre and BIS Industrietechnik Ost 

as it stipulates that operating times must be kept at a consistently 

high level. As well as this, the maintenance process is to be additionally 

optimised to render operations even more efficient and costeffective. 

“This is of crucial importance in difficult economic times 

in particular,” explains Wolfgang Amerer, managing director of BIS 

Industrietechnik Ost. “And with our highly motivated team, we will 

master this challenge.” A total of 24 employees have been deployed 

for the performance of the new master contract. 

BIS Industrietechnik Ost will be handling the maintenance of the Borealis 

melamine plant in Piesteritz for a further three years. 

FULL-SERVICE PARTNER 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

together! 


page 25 

Based in Leuna, BIS Industrietechnik Ost is a lifecycle partner 

offering a full range of services in the construction and maintenance 

of industrial assets. The company combines the technical 

expertise of a plant engineering company with maintenance 

skills for industrial assets. Its range includes full-service partnerships, 

industrial maintenance, plant assembly, turnarounds 

and revamping, fabrication, materials management and 

engineering. It is chiefly engaged in north-eastern and central 

Germany and has nine offices throughout Germany.

FOCUS 

» Prestigious project in the 

pharmaceuticals industry 

SANOFI-AVENTIS, THE WORLD’S THIRD LARGEST PHARMACEUTICALS COMPANY, 

IS CONVERTING ITS VITRY-SUR-SEINE PRODUCTION SITE CLOSE TO PARIS INTO 

A FULL-SCALE BIOTECHNOLOGY PLATFORM. BIS INDUSTRIETECHNIK SALZBURG 

HAS BEEN AWARDED THE LARGEST SINGLE CONTRACT WITHIN THIS PROJECT. 

Hitherto known for its vineyards, figs and lilac, Vitry-sur-Seine to the 

south of Paris is set to become a key centre for biotechnology in the 

future. Under the name “Biolaunch”, Sanofi-Aventis is establishing a 

biotechnology platform at a cost of around EUR 200 million comprising 

research, development and production activities for harvesting 

monoclonal antibodies from cell cultures, among other things, from 

2012 onwards. These activities are then to pave the way for a new 

generation of more effective and efficient forms of treatment with 

only minor side effects. Monoclonal antibodies are already being 

used today to treat cancer and autoimmune conditions and to suppress 

transplantation-related rejection effects. 

SITE EVOLUTION 

The project forms a key part of the development plan for the Vitrysur-Seine 

site, which is to be converted into a comprehensive biotechnology 

platform with research, development and production 

activities. BIS Industrietechnik Salzburg, which forms part of the 

BIS Group’s Central Europe Division, was awarded the largest single 

contract within this prestigious project. The BIS 

company had sought close contact with a delegation 

of the Austrian chamber of commerce in 

Paris in order to prepare as efficiently as possible 

for specific conditions in the French market. 

This delegation provided valuable support with 

the project. Dr. Joachim Kreysing, Executive Vice 

President of the Central Europe Division, stresses 

the strategic significance of the project: “Over 

the past year, the BIS Central Europe Division has 

reinforced its activities in the biotechnology/ 

pharmaceuticals segment by means of acquisitions 

in Switzerland and Austria. The contract 

awarded to BIS Industrietechnik Salzburg will 

additionally strengthen our position in what we 

consider to be an important market segment.” 

The contract entails the mechanical installation 

of the entire process and energy supply piping, 

assembly of the apparatus including tanks, 

pumps, heat exchangers and filters and startup 

support. BIS Industrietechnik Salzburg will 

be prefabricating the piping at its own production 

site in Salzburg, where it has the necessary 

machinery including an NC-controlled bending 

machine, and will be specifically leveraging its 

technological lead in plant engineering for the 

pharmaceuticals industry. Around 40 employees will be assigned to 

prefabrication activities. 

MANY DECADES OF EXPERIENCE 


page 26 

BIS Industrietechnik Salzburg specialises in planning, fabricating 

and assembling piping, systems and facilities in the 

biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals and energy 

technology industries. Specifically, its range entails process, 

apparatus and piping technology as well as E/I&C. With a 

headcount of 250, the company handles complex projects 

throughout Central Europe. Backed by 50 years of experience 

in project execution and five offices in Austria, Germany 

and Switzerland, it boasts both sector skills and customer 

proximity.

FOCUS 

ADDITIONAL PROJECTS IN SITE 

At the site in Vitry-sur-Seine, the equipment will be installed and 

assembled, the piping and insulation laid, the necessary testing performed, 

the documentation drawn up and support provided during 

the start-up phase. Up to 120 employees have been deployed at the 

site. “We are proud to have been awarded this contract for the largest 

section of the project,” says Ludwig Gold, managing director of 

BIS Industrietechnik Salzburg. “At the same time, promising negotiations 

are currently ongoing for additional contracts in connection 

with which we stand to benefit from our experience as a supplier of 

systems and components.” These include the delivery of skids for the 

production of supply media for production operations and the delivery, 

fabrication and assembly of six super-skid production facilities. BIS 

Industrietechnik Salzburg started work on the project last December, 

with completion scheduled for the end of 2011. The management 

spokesman, Ludwig Paradeiser, is highly optimistic about the future: 

“The pharmaceuticals market will continue to grow in importance for 

our Group. Sector representatives are paying close attention to the 

pooled skills and capacity which we are able to offer together with 

our affiliates.” 

The picture to the right shows assembly work on the Clone Explorer satellite 

fermenter system. 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

together! 


page 27

FOCUS 

» All climatic zones under a single roof 

WITHIN A SHORT SPACE OF TIME, MCE STAHL- UND MASCHINENBAU HAS BEEN 

AWARDED THREE CONTRACTS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF CLIMATE WIND 

CHANNELS FOR THE MOTOR VEHICLE INDUSTRY, INCLUDING ONE FOR THE 

WORLD’S LARGEST WIND TUNNEL. THE PROJECTS HAVE A COMBINED TOTAL OF 

AROUND EUR 175 MILLION, OF WHICH A SUM OF AROUND EUR 80 MILLION HAS 

BEEN ASSIGNED TO THE LINZ-BASED BIS COMPANY. 

The BMW Group’s Energy and Environmental Testing Centre in Munich, 

for which a syndicate lead-managed by MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau 

constructed the turn-key test route with five climate wind channels, 

recently went into operation. The BIS company was responsible 

for the entire steel engineering, the delivery and installation of part 

of the testing facilities to simulate snow and rain, the boundary layer 

and exhaust extraction system, the main fan and the transportation 

system for the test vehicles. One particular technical challenge was 

posed by the assembly in a single unit of the pressure chamber, which 

weighs 190 tons, for the altitude testing facility. 

Vehicles undergo extensive testing at the BMW testing centre prior to 


page 28 

being launched on the market. Mountain trips of an altitude of up to 

4,200 meters and speeds of up to 280 km/h as well as all climate zones 

from the Arctic to the Sahara can be realistically simulated in the two 

climate channels and the three wind channels. 

Bilfinger Berger is currently constructing a comparable facility with 

two climate wind channels for a further major German carmaker. 

Other European automotive groups have also expressed interest in 

such facilities. The first project of this type was completed by the company 

in Vienna. This entailed the world’s largest climate wind channel 

for Rail Tec Arsenal, an internationally active independent research 

and testing institute for rail and road vehicles. 

MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau is sought after 

internationally as a specialist in the construction of 

testing systems for the automotive industry, such 

as the BMW Group’s new Energy and Environmental 

Testing Centre in Munich.

FOCUS 

THE SUCCESSFUL COLLABORATION BETWEEN MCE SLANÝ AND EUROVIA CZ, 

WHICH SPECIALISES IN TRAFFIC ROUTE CONSTRUCTION, IS CONTINUING. 

IN THE CZECH TOWN OF KOLÍN, AROUND 35 KILOMETRES FROM PRAGUE, A 

GIRDER BRIDGE WILL BE LINKING THE TWO SIDES OF THE RIVER ELBE IN THE 

FUTURE. THE CZECH BIS COMPANY IS HANDLING THE FABRICATION AND 

ASSEMBLY OF THE STEEL STRUCTURES. 

The project involves the replacement of the existing railway bridge, 

which is a good 100 years old, with a new dual-carriageway girder 

bridge across the River Elbe and the neighbouring flood areas. At the 

same time, the maximum clearance of the waterway is to be increased 

from 4.35 to 5.25 metres. In addition, the lifting field above the 

shipping route is to be modified to permit a maximum clearance of 

up to seven metres. 

CONSTRUCTION SITE ACCESSED BY TRUCK 

The new bridge comprises two load-bearing steel structures, which 

MCE Slaný is fabricating and assembling. They have a total length of 

133.8 metres and, together with the road flooring, weigh 1,384 tons. 

With the exception of the final coating and sealing of the bridge deck, 

the steel structures including anti-corrosion surface protection were 

completed at the BIS company’s facilities in Slaný, around 25 kilometres 

north-west of Prague, from August 2009 until February 2010. With 

a width of 5.2 metres, a length of 29 metres and a weight of some 

43 tons, the assembled right-hand structure, which comprises seven 

road and girder elements, was transported directly to the construction 

site in Kolín in mid-March. There, heavy-duty mobile cranes placed the 

individual elements in their final position on top of provisional stilts, 

after which they were joined and welded together. 

ASSEMBLY IN TWO STEPS 

A different approach is being taken to the second field. “This is the 

longest part of the bridge and has been split into three elements 

for assembly in two stages,” reports project manager Karel Kovář. 

After the first two elements are assembled by crane and then joined 

and welded together, a first longitudinal shunt is performed. This 

is a special construction process which allows long elements to be 

MCE Slaný is responsible for fabricating 

and assembling the steel structures 

of the new dual-carriageway 

girder bridge in Kolín . 

Even better 

BIS + MCE 

» After 100 years time for a new bridge 

together! 

shifted without any interruption. Then the third element is mounted. 

“During a second shunt,” explains Karel Kovář, “the entire field 

is then pushed into its final position.” The longitudinal shunt has a 

total length of 46 metres. 

After the completion of all the assembly work, the final coating is 

applied. The railway link was closed for a total of 70 days while the 

assembly and all the construction work was completed on the first 

structure. The same amount of time will be required again for the 

completion of the second structure, which was transported to Kolín 

once more by truck in July. 

SPECIALIST SKILLS IN STEEL AND MECHANICAL 

ENGINEERING 


page 29 

MCE’s specialist skills in steel and mechanical engineering have 

been added to the BIS Group’s Northern & Eastern Europe 

Division. MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau GmbH & Co. KG has 

many years of experience in planning, engineering and assembling 

complex steel structures such as steel bridges, steel construction 

elements and hydraulic steel structures as well as 

special industrial and infrastructure elements. With its own 

engineering and assembly facilities, it is able to provide highprecision 

elements and execute construction and assembly 

work within a short space of time. MCE Slaný is a subsidiary of 

MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau in Linz.

DIVISIONS 

180 tons of piping material and 15,000 welding seams are required for the plant being built by Schmid Silicon Technology at the 

Schwarze Pumpe industrial estate. 

» Combined skills for pilot project 

in the German Lausitz region 

THE INTEGRATION OF MOST OF MCE AG WITHIN THE BIS GROUP HAS 

ALLOWED MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF SYNERGISTIC BENEFITS TO BE 

HARNESSED. THIS IS ALREADY BECOMING EVIDENT FROM INITIAL PROJECTS 

SUCH AS THE CONSTRUCTION OF A PILOT PLANT FOR THE PRODUCTION OF 

MONOSILANE AND SILICON AT THE SCHWARZE PUMPE INDUSTRIAL SITE IN 

LAUSITZ. BIS INDUSTRIETECHNIK OST (FORMERLY MCE INDUSTRIETECHNIK 

OST) AND BIS INDUSTRIESERVICE OST ARE PLAYING A KEY ROLE IN THIS 

PROJECT. BOTH COMPANIES ARE HEADQUARTERED IN LEUNA. 


page 30

DIVISIONS 

“As affiliates within the BIS Group, our partnership 

has gained a new intensity, offering 

a multitude of benefits for our customer,” 

says Matthias Kopp, managing director of BIS 

Industrieservice Ost. “It is now receiving all 

services under the same roof and has a single 

contact.” Adds Wolfgang Amerer, managing 

director of BIS Industrietechnik Ost: “As well 

as this, the customer benefits from greater 

transparency and can depend on enhanced 

reliability in the execution of the project. This 

is because we are far more flexible as a group 

– not least of all with respect to personnel 

capacity. In this way, we are able to plan and 

coordinate the project even more efficiently.” 

The first joint project being executed by the 

two BIS companies is already well under way. 

BIS Industrietechnik Ost is the general contractor, 

offering a wide range of services for 

the construction of a pilot plant for the production 

of monosilane and silicon for Schmid 

Silicon Technology at the Schwarze Pumpe 

industrial estate in Lausitz. At the same time, 

BIS Industrieservice Ost is responsible for all 

the insulation work. Both BIS companies are 

working for Schmid Solar Technology for the 

first time, a leading supplier of technology 

for the production of high-purity silicon and 

monosilane based in Baden-Württemberg. 

Specifically, the services provided by BIS 

Industrietechnik Ost include pipe assembly, 

picking, temporary storage and the assembly 

of all machinery and apparatus as well as the 

delivery of two conversion tanks and a reactor 

weighing 40 tons. The piping activities 

entail the delivery of pipes with a diameter 

of between eight and 400 mm including brackets 

and ancillary structures, prefabrication 

and assembly. The necessary isometrics are 

produced on the basis of the PIDS provided 

by the CAE System PDMS. 

All told, around 180 tons of piping material 

are required, necessitating close to 15,000 

welding seams and 60,000 hours of work. 

BIS Industrieservice Ost is supplying around 

6,000 m² of insulation for tanks and pipelines. 

Both thermal and refrigeration insulation 

is required. The two BIS companies have 

assigned a total of some 100 employees to 

the project. 

With the pilot plant, Schmid Silicon Technology 

wants to find the optimum technology 

and plant configuration for the new process 

which it has developed for the production 

of monosilane as a basis for large-scale in- 

dustrial production. Silicon is an important 

material in the production of solar panels, 

computer chips and transistors. “For BIS 

Industrietechnik Ost and BIS Industrie service 

Ost, the construction of the pilot plant 

is both a challenge and an opportunity,” 

explains Frank Heyme, the department manager 

at BIS Industrietechnik Ost responsible 

for the project. “A pilot plant is like a living 

organism, developing as construction progresses. 

For this reason, changes may arise 

at any time, making it important for us to be 

as flexible as possible.” When it comes to refrigeration 

insulation, this is no mean feat as 

the foam glass used is a special, non-flexible 

insulation material. “If any subsequent changes 

are necessary, the insulation is adjusted 

accordingly, something which is a very complex 

task,” explains Matthias Kopp. 

Even during the pre-project phase, BIS Industrie 

technik Ost was able to contribute its 

extensive experience as a plant engineering 

and maintenance specialist. “At the same 

time,” Frank Heyme says, “maintenance, 

which is an important aspect of our range of 

services, was a crucial issue. If certain things 

such as the pipeline configuration are taken 

AN INDUSTRIAL SITE WITH A LONG HISTORY 

BIS Industrietechnik Ost and BIS Industrieservice 

Ost are both based at the Leuna 

chemical estate in the German state 

of Saxony-Anhalt, where they have been 

working on joint projects since German 

reunification. Now, the two BIS companies 

are strengthening their operations 

in Lausitz with their participation in the 

pilot plant project at the Schwarze Pumpe 

industrial and commercial estate. With 

an area of 680 hectares, Schwarze Pumpe 

is currently home to some 80 companies 

with 3,600 employees. The estate can 

look back on more than 50 years of industrial 

history. Up until the eighties, a large 

part of Eastern German electricity and 

gas production was based there. Numerous 

innovative coal processing and che- 


page 31 

into account during the construction phase, 

this simplifies the ensuing maintenance and 

renders repair work easier.” 

The two BIS companies’ acknowledged expertise 

and great commitment during the 

planning and construction of the pilot plant 

are to form the basis for further contracts. 

“With our detailed knowledge of the plant, 

we are in the running for post-construction 

maintenance contracts,” says Wolfgang 

Amerer. “Our aim is to build up an established 

position in Lausitz as the Schwarze 

Pumpe industrial estate is clearly a very important 

site in strategic terms.” On top of 

this, the two affiliates are hopeful of being 

able to participate in the construction of 

the plants required for large-scale industrial 

production and thus of forging a long-term 

partnership with Schmid Silicon Technology. 

An additional benefit could also be the 

further intensification of business relations 

with Linde Gas, which will be marketing the 

monosilane and is one of BIS Industrietechnik 

Ost’s key customers. At the Leuna chemical 

estate, it is currently constructing a 

pilot plant for Linde Gas for the production 

of “green” hydrogen, i.e. hydrogen produced 

from regenerative raw materials. 

mical processes were implemented on a 

large scale at the industrial estate for the 

first time. 

Over the last few years, Schwarze Pumpe 

has evolved from an energy production 

and coal processing site into a multifunctional 

industrial estate. For one thing, it 

accommodates one of the world’s most 

modern lignite-fuelled power stations 

and, for another, more and more companies 

which are primarily involved in new 

technologies, such as Schmid Silicon Technology, 

are settling at the industrial estate. 

At the same time, new uses are being 

found for deactivated industrial plants. 

Thus, for example, a methanol production 

plant is to be started up again to produce 

bio-ethanol.

DIVISIONS 

» Top-quality biogas 

BIOGAS IS PLAYING AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN GERMAN NATI- 

ONAL ENERGY SUPPLIES. WHEREAS IT IS CURRENTLY STILL CHIEFLY USED FOR 

GENERATING ELECTRICITY, IT WILL BE INCREASINGLY FED INTO GAS DISTRIBU- 

TION NETWORKS IN THE FORM OF BIOMETHANE IN THE FUTURE. HOWEVER, IT 

MUST FIRST BE CLEANED. WORKING IN COLLABORATION WITH BASF, WINGAS 

AND WINTERSHALL, CLOPPENBURG-BASED BIS E.M.S. GMBH HAS THEREFORE 

COME UP WITH A NEW PROCESS FOR PREPARING THE CRUDE GAS EFFICIENTLY 

AND INEXPENSIVELY. 

The German federal government has defined 

ambitious targets, stipulating that six 

billion m 3 of biogas a year are to be fed into 

the German gas network by 2020, equivalent 

to around six percent of the country’s energy 

requirements. However, biogas production 

plants currently only produce 162 million m 3 

– barely 2.7 percent of the target set by the 

German federal government. 

For these ambitious goals to be achieved, it 

will be necessary for around 900 biogas processing 

plants to be constructed in Germany 

by 2020, up from the current figure of some 

35. “We want to help accelerate the progress 

being made in this area and, in doing so, 

open up a new area of activity for ourselves,” 

explains Andreas Möller, department head 

in charge of process technology at BIS E.M.S. 

To this end, the Cloppenburg-based company 

has joined forces with BASF and WIN- 

GAS, a BASF/Gazprom subsidiary, as well as 

Wintershall, a solely owned BASF subsidiary, 

to develop a new method of processing 

biogas. The chemicals giant developed the 

PuraTreat TM R+ detergent while BIS E.M.S. 

planned and engineered the technical facility. 

Working together, the participating companies 

readied the new detergent for the 

market in a pilot plant, where it underwent 

over 1,000 hours of testing. 

The new detergent is now being used in 

two of the largest European scrap fermentation 

plants in Schwedt and Zörbig near 

Bittersfeld, where BIS E.M.S. built two biogas 

processing plants incorporating the new 

procedure. Upon completion, the two plants 

will each be supplying 26 million m 3 of highquality 

biomethane per year. 


page 32

DIVISIONS 

EVERYTHING COMPLETED IN 

A SINGLE GO 

Efficient and inexpensive, the newly developed 

process simplifies the process substantially. 

Thus, with the conventional method it 

is frequently necessary to desulphurise the 

biomass during the fermentation process, 

something which requires ferric chloride and 

air. “However, the introduction of air has an 

adverse effect on the quality of the gas. On 

top of that, the use of ferric chloride costs 

money,” explains Friedrich Lampe, the project 

manager in charge of biogas purification 

technologies at BIS E.M.S. In the case of the 

new process developed by the four partners 

this step is not always required. “Our detergent 

removes hydrogen sulphide and carbon 

dioxide in a single sequence,” explains Friedrich 

Lampe. 

In contrast to previous products, the detergent 

used retains its effect even after extended 

use. “In addition, it can be regenerated 

for further use at lower temperatures than 

is the case with comparable products,” he 

adds. With its affinity to hydrogen sulphide, 

the BASF detergent can absorb a large proportion 

of this substance, thus removing it 

almost completely from the gas. A further 

advantage is that only 0.01 percent of the 

methane is lost, compared with between 

three and six percent in the case of other 

processes. As Friedrich Lampe explains: 

“Water washing extracts the methane via 

the water. With pressure swing adsorption, 

methane can be lost as a result of the extraction.” 

Almost identical in design, the two waste material 

fermentation plants operated by Verbio AG in 

Zörbig near Bitterfeld (to the left) and Schwedt 

figure amongst the largest European reference 

facilities. They were built and put into operation 

by BIS E.M.S. The picture in the top-right corner 

of this page shows the stripping column under 

construction. 

The results achieved with the new process 

are highly impressive: gas with a methane 

content of over 99 percent, similar to highcalorie 

natural gas, is achieved. Thanks to 

this high methane content, it is no longer 

necessary to blend the biogas with liquid 

gas. 

SWIFT INCREASE IN DEMAND 

While the two gas processing plants were 

still under construction, the Cloppenburgbased 

specialists placed further bids in the 

market. Demand is enormous as the German 

federal government has stipulated 

that ten billion m³ of biogas per year are to 

be fed into the gas network by 2030. This 

means that a total of some 1,500 biogas processing 

plants still remain to be constructed 

in Germany. 

GAS FROM LIQUID MANURE 

Experts assume that many fossil fuels will 

become scarce in 50 years’ time at the latest. 

This means that new processes for 

generating energy must be developed. 

One of these entails the use of biogas, a 

combustible gas which is produced from 

the fermentation of biomass in biogas 

plants. The input material for technical 

production of biomass mostly comprises 

liquid manure, dairy, biological and food 

wastes or regenerative materials such as 

maize. 

50 to 70 percent of biogas comprises 

combustible methane as well as carbon 

dioxide and a small proportion of hydrogen 

sulphide, nitrogen, hydrogen and 

ammonia. The biomass is placed in fermenters 

to produce biogas. The substrate 

is stored in the fermenters for a period of 

up to 30 days and constantly stirred. The 

activity of microorganisms results in biogas. 

The next step is for the gaseous mixture 

to be purified. Before it can be used 

for producing electricity and heat in combined 

power/heat stations, the gas must 

be dried and desulphurised. The mass 


page 33 

remaining after fermentation is suitable 

for use as biological fertiliser. 

Whereas electricity can be fed into the 

grid without any problems, there are 

frequently no suitable uses for the heat 

produced. This situation can be remedied 

by processing the biogas and feeding it 

into the gas distribution network. In this 

way, biogas can be used at any location as 

bioheat or bioelectricity or as biofuel for 

motor vehicles. 

However, this in turn necessitates prior 

processing of the biogas in special processing 

plants to remove the carbon dioxide 

and hydrogen sulphide. Consequently, 

the ideal gross caloric value is achieved 

and the risk of corrosion, e.g. as a result 

of carbon dioxide, averted. The standard 

processes currently in use today are pressure 

swing absorption, water washing as 

well as physical and chemical absorption. 

One of the chemical absorption methods 

includes the process described here called 

PuraTreatR+.

DIVISIONS 

» New maintenance base 

NORWEGIAN COMPANY GASSCO AS HAS AWARDED BIS E.M.S. GMBH 

“MAINTENANCE AND MODIFICATION CONTRACTOR” STATUS. ACCORDINGLY, 

THE CLOPPENBURG-BASED BIS SUBSIDIARY IS NOW RESPONSIBLE FOR HAND- 

LING MAINTENANCE AND PLANT MODIFICATIONS AT THE THREE GASSCO 

GAS TERMINALS IN EAST FRISIA. 

Looking forward to working together: Gassco German CEO Egil Herløe (right) and BIS E.M.S. managing 

director Theodor Osteresch. 

East Frisia is an important region for German 

gas imports. In fact, the gas delivered via 

Emden currently accounts for around 27 

percent of total German gas consumption. 

Gassco operates three landing stations in 

Emden and Dornum, acting as the terminals 

for a total of three pipelines via which 

Norwegian gas from the North Sea is pumped 

to Germany. The gas is processed at 

the terminals. This includes measuring the volume 

received, decompressing and par tially 

desulphurising the gas and finally feeding 

it into the downstream gas distribution 

network. 

EXTENSIVE PARTNERSHIP 

In the past, Gassco has handled maintenance 

and repair work at the terminals itself. 

Now, however, it is relying on the skills and 

expertise of BIS E.M.S. As the maintenance 

and modification contractor, the BIS company 

is responsible for the entire maintenance 

activities and modifications at all three 

stations. “We are very pleased to now have 

on board a maintenance and modification 

contractor with whom we can organise our 

processes even more effectively and who is 

committed to the same high standards of 

accident protection and safety as we are,” 


page 34 

stresses Egil Herløe, managing director of 

Gassco Germany. Adds BIS E.M.S. managing 

director Theodor Osteresch, “we see this 

contract as a great opportunity and will be 

doing everything we possibly can to justify 

the trust placed in us and to live up to our 

customer’s expectations.” 

SUPPORT GUARANTEED 

The partnership commenced with a twomonth 

mobilisation phase during which 

BIS E.M.S. acquainted itself with the processes 

and structures at Gassco. At the same 

time, coordination and organisational tasks 

were defined to prepare the mechanical and 

E/I&C services. A five-strong management 

team will be overseeing the new base and 

handling the necessary activities with a 

team of 25 operatives. “Our headquarters in 

Cloppenburg will be providing support and 

advice during the preliminary phase in particular,” 

says Roland Päplow, general manager 

at BIS E.M.S., who played a material role in 

the pre-contractual phase. 

The contract between Gassco and BIS E.M.S. 

has a term of three years with an option to 

renew it by a further three years. Gassco intends 

to extend the master contract in the 

course of the partnership to include other 

activities.

DIVISIONS 

High expectations are being pinned to BIS E.M.S. as the maintenance and modifications contractor for the Gassco gas terminals in East Frisia. 


page 35

DIVISIONS 

» Innovative flue gas absorbers 

for clean air 

CLEAN AIR IS FLOWING FROM THE STACK OF THE MUNICIPAL SLUDGE DEHYD- 

RATION AND INCINERATION PLANT INTO THE AIR ABOVE THE GERMAN CITY 

OF FRANKFURT THANKS TO THE NEW FLUE GAS ABSORBERS SUPPLIED BY 

BIS INDUSTRIESERVICE MITTE. THE IMPROVED ABSORPTION CAPABILITIES OF 

THE ACTIVE CARBON ENSURE THAT THEY FILTER POISONOUS MERCURY FROM 

THE FLUE GAS EMITTED BY THE PLANT. 

During the assembly of the flue gas absorbers, the ring elements were lifted one by one using a crane. 


page 36

DIVISIONS 

The sludge dehydration and incineration 

plant in Frankfurt-Sindlingen on the outskirts 

of the city burns the solid sludge recovered 

from the Sindlingen and Niederrad 

waste water treatment plants. However, it 

is necessary for the resultant gases to be 

filtered out. “The flue gas, which has a temperature 

of around 80 degrees in this part 

of the sludge incineration plant, flows from 

the top into the steel structure through the 

charcoal beds and comes out at the bottom 

again,” explains Stefan Korthals, project 

manager at Frankfurt-based BIS Industrieservice 

Mitte. 

SUBSTANTIALLY IMPROVED 

SECONDARY GAS LEVELS 

In summer 2009, it was necessary for the 

old packed scrubbers to be replaced in two 

lines by new activated carbon absorbers. At 

the same time, it was not possible to retain 

the old structure of the activated carbon 

absorbers in two other lines. Accordingly, 

they had to be completely redesigned and 

re-engineered as progressive corrosion of 

the existing flue gas absorbers was creating 

problems for the plant operators. In addition 

to the mercury filter, further constituents 

of the flue gas are removed with the assistance 

of the active carbon, thus ensuring 

that the thresholds stipulated by the EU are 

observed. The City of Frankfurt called on BIS 

Industrieservice Mitte to build the new flue 

gas absorbers. Two of the systems went into 

operation at the end of 2009, achieving top 

results, while a further two are to follow this 

year. 

The new smoke gas absorbers offer multiple 

benefits. Thus, the glass-fibre-reinforced 

plastic with which the entire interior of the 

absorber is lined helps to prevent corrosion. 

“It was necessary to channel the stream of 

air through the charcoal beds in such a way 

that we were able to achieve an optimum 

degree of efficiency and make the greatest 

use of the active carbon,” explains Stefan 

Korthals. Whereas the charcoal beds in the 

old absorbers were located behind perforated 

stainless-steel panels, BIS Industrieservice 

Mitte is now using corrosion-resistant, 

louver-like brackets which are aerodynami- 

cally enhanced. These ensure that the charcoal 

beds have an optimum fit while producing 

minimum air resistance and maximum 

flow rates through the active carbon. 

HIGH-PRECISION EXECUTION 

The assembly of the new flue gas absorbers 

posed a particular challenge. Given their 

height of ten metres and a weight of 17 tons 

each, it was not possible for the units to be 

lifted over the roof for final positioning. As 

a result, the individual components were 

configured to fit through the doors and 

gates at the incineration facility. In this way, 

the BIS specialists were able to dismantle 

the absorber into five ring elements, which 

they moved piece by piece to the operating 

hall for final assembly. “The top element 

was first positioned on the concrete foundations. 

Then we lifted it and placed the next 

one beneath it. In a final step, everything 

was welded together,” the BIS project manager 

says, explaining the complicated process. 

Welding templates were used during 

prefabrication of the individual segments to 

ensure the correct fit. Reports Stefan Korthals: 

“We used a double-layer structure for 

the interior walls. Needless to say, precision 

fitting for this as well as the round parts was 

crucial.” The BIS insulation specialists also 

lived up to expectations, supplying a secure 

lid stable enough to be walked upon and involving 

a special construction made of firm 

insulation cassettes. Thanks to the inclusion 

of portholes, it is also possible for the operator 

to perform visual examinations of the 

absorber. 

The challenges were overcome with flying 

colours as all activities were synchronised 

and coordinated carefully. The necessary 

engineering, apparatus technology, coating, 

insulation, heavy duty assembly and scaffolding 

activities were all completed effortlessly, 

swiftly and safely in the course of the 

project. Werner Fischer, project manager at 

the municipal sewerage authority, is satisfied: 

“What was particularly praiseworthy 

was the adherence to the schedule despite 

the occurrence of a number of unexpected 

problems as well as the efficient collaboration 

on all activities.” 

The GRP interior lining of the absorbers prevents 

corrosion and was mounted during prefabrication. 

DANGEROUS HEAVY METAL 


page 37 

Mercury was identified back in the 

sixties as a neurotoxin. Consequently, 

the use of this substance in industry 

was initially reduced and finally eliminated 

altogether in the mid-eighties. 

This is why it is no longer possible to 

buy thermometers or batteries containing 

mercury. 

Yet, this poisonous heavy metal has 

not been banned in its entirety and 

is still released by incineration plants 

through the combustion of fossil 

materials. Flue gas filtering systems 

fitted, for example, with an active 

carbon absorber remove a large part 

of the mercury from the flue gas. 

The emissions are measured and documented 

before the gas leaves the 

plant via the stack.

DIVISIONS 

» Extensions to Hungarian power station 

ONE OF HUNGARY’S LARGEST POWER STATIONS IS LOCATED IN SZÁZHALOM- 

BATTA, CLOSE TO THE NATION’S CAPITAL OF BUDAPEST. OVER THE PAST FEW 

YEARS, THE POWER STATION HAS BEEN UNDERGOING EXTENSIONS AND MODI- 

FICATIONS WITH THE AIM OF ENHANCING ITS EFFICIENCY AND OF IMPROVING 

ITS ENVIRONMENTAL STATUS. BIS HUNGARY KFT. IS ALSO INVOLVED IN THE 

MODERNISATION WORK AND IS CURRENTLY ASSEMBLING A HEAT RECOVERY 

STEAM GENERATOR TO OPTIMISE THE EFFICIENCY OF THE POWER STATION. 

BIS Hungary was awarded a contract for full assembly of the heat recovery steam generator for the Dunamenti power station. 


page 38

DIVISIONS 

Built in the 1960s, the Dunamenti power 

station is located on the banks of the River 

Danube around 30 kilometres south of 

Buda pest. With an output of some 2,000 

MW, it was once the largest power station 

in Hungary. However, its efficiency started 

declining in early nineties and it was converted 

over the years into a combined gas and 

steam power station with a current output 

of around 1,740 MW. 

Work is currently being performed at full 

speed on extending and modernising 

Duna menti. As part of these activities, a 

new gas turbine system is being installed 

in the power station. Belgian mechanical 

and plant engineering company Cockerill 

Maintenance & Ingénierie awarded BIS 

Hungary Kft. the contract for the construction 

of the heat recovery steam generator. 

Specialists from the Hungarian BIS company 

will be working on assembling the entire 

heat recovery steam generator up until 

November of this year. 

These activities chiefly comprise the assembly 

of the steel structure, which weighs over 

650 tons, the construction of twelve boiler 

modules, the stacks with a height of up to 

80 metres and the assembly of the steam 

boilers and the blow-down tank. This is supplemented 

by coating, piping and insulation 

both inside and outside the facility covering 

a total area of around 3,220 m 2 . 

IMPROVED QUALITY THANKS TO 

PREFABRICATION 

The severely confined spaces at the construction 

site posed a particular chal lenge 

during the project. For this reason, the 

Hungarian specialists decided to pre-weld 

a large part of the necessary piping at their 

own workshop in Tiszaújváros in Eastern 

Hungary. In fact, they prefabricated around 

80 percent of the piping with a total weight 

of 250 tons. Prefabrication has a further 

advantage. “The quality is better,” explains 

Imre Somogyi, project manager at BIS Hungary. 

“At the workshop, the material is protected 

from wind and rain. As well as this, 

the pipes can be turned and thus welded 

more accurately.” 

FURTHER CONTRACTS ON THE 

HORIZON 

Particular attention must be paid to HSEQ 

rules at the construction site. “Our customer 

attaches particular importance to this,” says 

Imre Somogyi. For this reason, three employees 

are permanently assigned to overseeing 

safety at the construction site. The 

same thing applies to guidelines applicable 

to pressurised equipment such as steam 

boilers and pipes. “Normally, we work in accordance 

with European rules. However, for 

this contract, we were required to apply US 

ASME rules,” explains Imre Somogyi. These 

are particularly strict regulations, which primarily 

relate to welding and non-destructive 

materials testing. 

All told, up to 120 BIS employees will be stationed 

at the site until its completion in the 

autumn. Work with the customer is proceeding 

well. Imre Somogyi is satisfied: “We 

have even been asked whether we are willing 

to handle work in other countries.” 

A steel structure weighing over 650 tons was 

involved. 

DOUBLE BENEFITS 


page 39 

A combined gas/steam power station 

unites the principles of a gas-turbine 

power station with those of a steam 

power station. The process uses the 

thermal energy of the hot waste gases 

in two ways. For one thing, these 

gases are used to directly drive the 

gas turbine as a means of generating 

electricity and, for another, the 

thermal energy contained in the gas 

is channelled into the heat recovery 

steam generator. This process generates 

high-energy steam containing 

heat from which rotation energy is 

harnessed in the steam turbine and 

which thus generates additional 

electricity. With a utilisation coefficient 

of up to 60 percent, gas/steam 

power stations are amongst the most 

efficient conventional power stations.

DIVISIONS 

» Experienced team awarded followup 

contract for large power station 

EXTENSIVE MODERNISATION ACTIVITIES HAVE BEEN ONGOING AT 

BEŁCHATÓW IN POLAND, THE WORLD’S LARGEST LIGNITE-FUELLED POWER 

STATION, FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS NOW. THREE POLISH BIS COMPANIES ARE 

WORKING ON THE PROJECT: WHEREAS BIS PLETTAC SP. Z O.O. IS RESPONSIBLE 

FOR THE ENTIRE SCAFFOLDING, A WORK GROUP COMPRISING BIS MULTISERWIS 

AND BIS IZOMAR SP. Z O.O., IS HANDLING THE INSULATION WORK. 

Located in Rogowiec, around 150 km south 

west of Warsaw, and in operation since 1981, 

the Bełchatów power station has twelve 

blocks fuelled by lignite generating a combined 

total output of 4,400 MW. This makes it 

Europe’s largest conventional thermal power 

station and also the world’s biggest lignitefuelled 

power station. Work on modernising 

the power station commenced around five 

years ago to bring it into line with the latest 

European environmental standards. 

Following the completion of activities on 

Block 4 last year, work is now being continued 

on Block 5. As with Block 4, the boiler and 

piping are being modernised, insulation replaced 

and the damaged parts of the boiler 

shell repaired. BIS plettac is responsible for 

assembling, dismantling and maintaining 

the scaffolding. The total volume required 

stands at around 55,000 m 3 plus platforms 

measuring roughly 1,500 m 2 in size. At the 

same time, the two other Polish BIS companies, 

BIS Multiserwis and BIS Izomar, are responsible 

for ensuring that all the insulation 

work is executed without a hitch. The customer 

is Steinmüller-Instandsetzung Kraftwerke 

Gesellschaft für Energie und Umwelttechnik 

mbH, a subsidiary of Bilfinger Berger 

Power Services GmbH. 

WORKING AROUND THE CLOCK 

This is the second contract which the Polish 

BIS company has received from Stein müller- 

Instandsetzung. Last year, it was also involved 

in the scaffolding work required for 

modernising Block 4. Between January and 

November 2009, the experts from BIS were 

responsible for ensuring problem-free assembly 

of the scaffolding. The services entailed 

scaffolding for the insulation of the 

internal and external walls of the boiler, 

funnels, piping, flue-gas channels and the 

hot air system. All told, 50,000 m 3 of scaffolding 

was required. The job was completed 

without a hitch, as Piotr Kraszkiewicz, 

a member of BIS plettac’s management, 

stresses. “It was only thanks to careful organisation 

and planning that we were able 

to assemble such a large volume of scaffolding.” 

An additional complication was the 

fact that the power station was still in operation 

when work commenced. 

Over at Block 5, the Polish experts are working 

around the clock once more to execute 

and oversee the assembly of all scaffolding 

whenever it is required by the participating 

companies. On top of this, 

BIS plettac is responsible for 

a type of facility management. 

i.e. the orderliness and 

cleanliness of the site as well 

as the logistic management 

of the storage areas and lifts. 

This specifically entails loading 

and unloading as well 

as the storage of the technical 

gases. 

20 percent of all the electricity 

produced in Poland comes from 

the Bełchatów power station. 


page 40 

As well as this, it operates the winches and 

lifts required to transport the materials 

during the execution of the modernisation 

activities and is collecting and disposing 

of the industrial waste. All told, up to 80 

scaffolding assemblers are stationed at the 

site. “The fact that we are coordinating all 

the subcontractors for scaffolding and organising 

the site is of great advantage for 

our customer,” stresses Piotr Kraszkiewicz. 

“Even so, we were very pleased to be awarded 

this follow-up contract as it shows how 

satisfied the customer is with our work.”

DIVISIONS 

» Combined expertise and skills in Spain 

IN SPAIN, THE TWO COMPANIES BIS MULTISERVICIOS INDUSTRIALES SA AND 

BIS DIASA HAVE MERGED TO FORM BILFINGER BERGER INDUSTRIAL SERVICES 

SPAIN SA. AS A RESULT, THE NEW COMPANY WILL BE OFFERING INSULATION 

AND SCAFFOLDING UNDER A SINGLE ROOF. IN ADDITION, THE MERGER OF 

THE TWO SPANISH COMPANIES WILL ENABLE BIS SPECIALISTS TO BE DEPLOYED 

ACROSS THE ENTIRE COUNTRY. 

The new management team at Bilfinger Berger Industrial Services Spain SA: 

Ana Alzugaray, corporate director, and Ramón Oliver Ruiz, managing director, and (standing, from left) 

Antonio Martin Zapata, technical director, Jan van Asperen, production director, Jose Antonio Martinez, 

regional director, Iker Garrido, regional director, Federico Medina, regional director, and Sergio Corbacho, 

regional director. 

With a total of some 600 employees, the 

new BIS company has nine facilities, including 

in Madrid, Barcelona and Ferrol. “Many 

customers seek contractors who can provide 

industrial services not merely at a single 

site but at different places across the entire 

country,” explains Ramón Oliver Ruiz, the managing 

director of Bilfinger Berger Industrial 

Services Spain SA. “As a result of the merger, 

we are now able to offer this service.” 

Back in 2003, BIS Multiservicios Industriales 

S.A., had already started broadening its 

footprint in the Spanish market for industrial 

services. For this purpose, it initially restructured 

its insulation business, followed 

in 2007 by the acquisition of DIASA. The two 

companies supplement each other well in 

terms of their services, geographic location 

and management. Whereas BIS Multiservicios 

Industriales SA is an insulation specialist 

primarily active in the south east part 

of Spain, BIS DIASA is a scaffolding expert 

based for the most part in the north of the 

country. 

ENTERING NEW MARKETS 

“The merger has simplified the company’s 

structure,” explains Ramón Oliver Ruiz. “At 

the same time, we are able to coordinate our 

resources more efficiently from a single head 

office and deploy our staff with greater efficacy 

at the construction sites.” In addition, 

the company is in a better position to generate 

new business and enter new markets. 

“DuPont is one of DIASA’s key customers. 

Today, we can offer this customer more than 

just scaffolding,” says Ramón Oliver Ruiz, 

citing an example. “As well as this, BIS 

DIASA is active in the shipbuilding sector, an 

additional market for demanding industrial 

services.” 

The integration process was structured and 

overseen by a committee especially established 

for this purpose. This committee 

was responsible for handling matters which 

were particularly affected by the merger, 

such as the overall structure of the company, 

the business model, specific trade-related 

matters, corporate and financial factors 

and changes to the management structure. 

In addition, processes were standardised. 

BOOMING SOLAR MARKET 


page 41 

The booming Spanish solar market 

offers great opportunities for Bilfinger 

Berger Industrial Services Spain 

SA. This is because the piping and apparatus 

used in the solar power stations 

located in southern Span must 

be carefully insulated. Mineral wool 

and aluminium cladding are used to 

ensure that as little energy as possible 

is lost in the transportation of oil 

and steam. Bilfinger Berger Industrial 

Services Spain SA has already been 

involved in numerous projects, more 

details of which can be gained from 

Bilfinger Berger SE’s annual report 

(www.bilfinger.com).

» Clean energy for Europe 

COAL-FUELLED POWER STATIONS ARE INCREASINGLY BEING REPLACED BY 

ENVIRONMENTALLY MORE FRIENDLY COMBINED POWER STATIONS – SUCH AS 

IN PORTUGAL AND THE NETHERLANDS, WHERE NEW POWER STATIONS ARE 

BEING BUILT. BIS PREFAL HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN NO LESS THAN THREE SUCH 

PROJECTS. THE PORTUGUESE SPECIALISTS HAVE BEEN PERFORMING EXTENSIVE 

INSULATION WORK. 

The stipulations of the European Council are 

clear: All EU countries are required to cut 

emissions of greenhouse gases by at least 20 

percent relative to 1990 levels by 2020. This 

goal is particularly to be achieved by utilising 

renewable and environment-friendly sources 

of energy. As a result, older coal-fuelled 

power stations are being modernised and 

fitted with waste gas desulphurisation systems. 

New facilities are generally configured 

as combined power stations. 

Also known as gas/steam power stations, 

they are generally fuelled with gas. The major 

advantage of this type of system is the 

combined gas and steam turbine, which increases 

the overall efficiency of the power 

station to almost 60 percent. By compari- 

son, conventional heating power stations 

achieve an efficiency level of only around 35 

percent. 

One such gas/steam power station went 

into operation in Lares, Figueira de Foz in 

Central Portugal at the end of last year. 

Owned by Energias de Portugal, SA (EDP), 

one of the largest European utilities, this 

gas-fuelled combined power station comprises 

two blocks achieving a total output of 

862 MW. This is sufficient to produce around 

4,000 gigawatt/hours of electricity a year. 

Work was commenced on building the power 

station in June 2007 at a cost of EUR 400 

million. A total of around 250 companies – 

including BIS Prefal, which supplied the thermal 

insulation – worked on the site. 

EXPERIENCE PAYING OFF 

The BIS company commenced its work 

in August 2009, completing it on schedule 

and free of any incidents in December. 

During this period, it was necessary to insulate 

a total area of 35,185 m 2 , including 

31,338 m 2 for the piping system alone. 

75,400 person/hours were required. The 

insulation was made of stone wool and 

an aluminium encasement. The insulation 

material required for the gas/steam turbine 

was provided by General Electric. 

A second gas-fired power station is currently 

being constructed in Pego, Abrantes, 

also in Central Portugal. With an output of 

800 MW, this gas/steam power station is 

to go into operation in 2011. Here as well,

the BIS Prefal is responsible for providing 

thermal insulation for the piping, boilers, 

turbines and other equipment. In addition, 

the two boilers are to be fitted with soundproofing. 

Stone wool of varying thicknesses 

with a specific weight of 70 kg/m 3 will 

also be used here together with an aluminium 

encasement. The total surface to be 

insulated measures around 30,000 m 2 in 

area plus 5,000 m 2 of sound-proofing. On 

average, 50 insulation experts are working 

at the construction site. 

PROGRESS IMPEDED BY RAIN AND 

LOW TEMPERATURES 

The work is to be completed by the middle of 

the year. “Despite the tight schedule, we will 

be able to complete the job on time,” reports 

Hugo Pires of BIS Prefal, “even though working 

conditions were far from easy at the beginning 

of the year in particular. We had a very 

cold and wet winter which continued until 

into April.” 

A third project on which BIS Prefal was working 

has recently been completed in Lelystad 

near Amsterdam. Here, the Portuguese also 

supplied insulation for a new combined power 

station with an output of 870 MW. A surface 

with an area of 16,000 m 2 was insulated 

in around 50,000 incident-free person/hours 

provided by some 45 employees. 

With these three projects, the Portuguese 

specialists were again able to impressively 

demonstrate their core insulating skills and 

The new Flevocentrale combined power station in the Netherlands is located 

directly on the banks of Markermeer, a lake with an area of some 700 m 2 (left). 

The piping, boilers and turbines at the Lares power station in central Portugal 

were insulated with stone wool and encased with aluminium. 

The gas/steam power station in Pego, Portugal, was constructed directly 

adjacent to a coal-fuelled power station. 

have become sought-after experts. “We were 

involved in all of the four combined power stations 

built in Portugal and a further three in 

the Netherlands and Spain,” says Hugo Pires. 

This makes us one of the most experienced 

insulation specialists in Europe.”

DIVISIONS 

» Amalgamation strengthening position 

in UK market 

A STRONG NEW COMPANY HAS ARISEN IN THE UNITED KINGDOM UNDER THE 

ROOF OF BILFINGER BERGER INDUSTRIAL SERVICES (UK) LTD. IN JANUARY 2010, 

BIS OHARE LTD. AND BIS SALAMIS LTD. JOINED FORCES TO FORM BIS INDUSTRIAL 

SERVICES LTD. THE MERGER POSITIONS THE NEW COMPANY WITH UNIQUE SKILLS 

DESIGNED TO REDUCE COSTS AND RISK FOR CUSTOMERS IN THE ONSHORE 

PROCESS INDUSTRY. 

Gas from the North Sea arrives at the Theddlethorpe onshore gas terminal in the east of the UK. 

By restructuring its UK companies, BIS has 

concentrated of its onshore and off shore 

service into separated entities in the interests 

of heightened transparency for customers. 

Therefore the newly formed BIS 

Industrial Services off ers onshore customers 

the full range of professional engineering, 

mechanical, E&I and SIP (scaff olding, insulation, 

painting) capabilities. Aberdeen-based 

BIS Salamis (M&I) is not aff ected by these 

changes. Managed by Mike Main, this company 

specialises in fabric maintenance and 

inspection services for the off shore market. 

Located in Cheshire in the north west of 

England, the new company is managed by 

Duncan Hall. Some 1,500 employees are 

based at six locations across the UK from 

the northern base at Sullom Voe in the Shetland 

Islands to the south coast of England. 

With annual revenues of EUR 210 million 

and 2,700 employees, BIS Industrial Services 

and BIS Salamis have been providing 

BIS service capability for the UK market 

since in 2007. 

COMBINED SERVICE OFFERINGS 

The breadth and depth of service integration 

provided by BIS IS constitutes a substantial 

advantage for customers. As Steve 

Waugh CEO of BIS UK explains: “This service 

addresses the onshore markets in refining, 

chemicals, power and distribution. In 

our view it provides ‘third generation’ outsource 

solutions for the onshore process 


page 44 

industry supply chain, offering customers 

a sustainable solution to a step change in 

cost reduction execution models of up to 20 

percent.” 

The business commissioned work with a 

consulting company early in 2009 to review 

the options, opportunities and customer 

response to the proposition to combine engineering, 

MEI and SIP services into a single 

managed service for the execution of project, 

overhaul and maintenance/inspection 

services in the process industry. It was clear 

that significant opportunities existed for 

reducing delays/lost time in work execution 

and for making better use of the employees’ 

skills to achieve overall customer objectives 

as a single team. 

One of the recommendations made by the 

consultants was that to achieve the maximum 

benefits from combined service application 

the skills, competencies, culture and 

commercial interests had to be aligned in 

one organisation. The maximum benefits 

simply cannot be delivered through normal 

sub-contract engagement or temporary 

business “partnerships”. That is one of the 

reasons why the management merged BIS 

OHARE and BIS Salamis into a single seamless 

organisation in January of this year and 

made Simon Hicks the director responsible 

for combined services to meet its full potential. 

The first fully integrated combined 

services contract has already been secured

DIVISIONS 

“WE OFFER UNRIVALLED CORE AND SPECIALISED SERVICES” 

Steve Waugh, CEO of Bilfinger 

Berger Industrial Services (UK) Ltd. 

globe: In addition to your combined services, 

you intend to restructure the planning 

and execution of traditional services. What 

does this mean? 

Steve Waugh: To achieve the demanding 

targets set by our customers, it is not sufficient 

for us at BIS to merely have a broad range 

of high-quality services. In addition, the 

changes which we offer our markets also 

involve comprehensive planning and organisation 

of work packages. A straight forward 

example of this is the use of rope access 

facilities instead of scaffolding for work at 

height provided that this is appropriate. 

with BP, which is seeking 20 percent cost 

reductions on a sustainable basis over the 

next 12 - 24 months without compromising 

safety and essential engineering standards. 

THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS 

“In basic terms we help customers to reduce 

costs and risks in the execution of 

essential engineering and industrial service 

delivery in the process industries. The 

depth and breadth of our combined capabilities 

following the merger allows BIS IS 

to eliminate waste at the interfaces of both 

management processes and work execution 

skill sets. That leads to fewer people and 

reduced complexity when work is planned, 

The services will still be carried out safely 

and in full accordance with the applicable 

standards. However, by including this option 

in the planning and organisation phase, 

additional resources will be avoided which 

can lower the job cost significantly. 

At BIS we expect our management teams to 

adjust their working methods with the support 

of our staff so that all our skills and capabilities 

are channelled into lowering time 

and cost requirements. 

globe: Does this mean that the product 

range has been extended? 

Steve Waugh: In addition to our core and 

combined services, which of course entail 

different delivery models, we have established 

alongside the BIS offshore division 

a range of specialist services providing 

our customers with alternative solutions. 

Examples of these include the fabrication 

and repair of GRP equipment, surface 

tension welding, laser surveying and rope 

access. 

globe: The UK industrial services market is 

currently dominated by three or four leading 

companies. What competitive advantage 

does BIS Industrial Services have? 

managed and executed. As a result, costs 

are reduced and risks are more adequately 

defined and mitigated. BIS Industrial 

Services’ capabilities and track record of 

reliable delivery provide a powerful selling 

proposition in the market for ‘single 

sourcing’”, Steve Waugh stresses. 

However customers retain the option to buy 

individual services or cluster combinations 

of services that meet their requirements or 

purchasing policies. The company therefore 

retain the core expertise necessary to provide 

those customers with flexibility and 

confidence in our ability to deliver on our 

promises. The merger of the two companies 


page 45 

Steve Waugh: BIS Industrial Services has 

an unrivalled range of core and specialist 

services and the engineering capabilities 

to incorporate those solutions safely and 

efficiently in the design and planning of 

solutions for customers in the UK process 

industry. The business has proven expertise 

in the technical solutions available and 

the skills within the management team to 

engineer change and improvement programmes 

that benefit our customers. 

The company is backed by an experienced 

and focused shareholder who provides 

knowledge, relationships and investment 

backing from across Europe to meet 

the changing needs of the UK process 

industry. 

BIS Industrial Services recognises the potential 

we have to provide our customers 

with cost and risk reduction benefits in 

the outsource market, but we know that 

the clear market lead we have needs to be 

maintained through delivery, reputation 

and ongoing innovation in the way we 

serve customers. 

has also allowed the business to optimise 

its cost base in the provision of the essential 

support services and business facilities/ 

assets that are necessary to operate a leading 

outsource service. Steve Waugh: “We 

recognise that customers want attractive 

pricing as well as efficient service delivery, 

so we have made sure that the cost base of 

the business has been optimized without 

compromising the skills necessary to support 

our customers and the business operating 

teams.”

DIVISIONS 

» UK oil and gas industry placing 

its trust in BIS skills 

MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY ARE GROWING 

ALL THE TIME. BP, ONE THE WORLD’S LARGEST OIL AND ENERGY COMPANIES, 

IS RELYING ON THE EXPERTISE OF BIS INDUSTRIAL SERVICES LTD. FOR THIS PURPOSE. 

OVER AN INITIAL PERIOD OF FIVE YEARS, THE UK BIS COMPANY WILL BE RESPONSIBLE 

FOR EXECUTING INDUSTRIAL SERVICES AT THREE BP SITES. IN ADDITION TO THIS, 

BIS HAS ENTERED INTO A CONTRACT WITH A FURTHER UK OIL AND GAS COMPANY. 

THE TWO LONG-TERM CONTRACTS HAVE A TOTAL VOLUME OF SOME EUR 230 MILLION. 

Recently signed, the contract marks a milestone 

in the history of BIS Industrial Services 

Ltd., which is headquartered in Runcorn. For 

one thing, it is the largest contract which 

BIS has ever been awarded by BP in the UK 

and, for another, it is the first major contract 

which the company has gained since 

being restructured. Duncan Hall, managing 

director of BIS Industrial Services, additionally 

sees the contract as testifying to 

the great confidence which customers are 

placing in his company’s skills: “To secure 

a contract of this scale with BP is a significant 

achievement for the growing reputation 

of BIS in the UK both onshore and in the 

North Sea”. 

He goes on to say that BP was particularly 

impressed by the broad range of services 

offered and the ongoing technological 

and process improvements. Adds Bernhard 

Looney, managing director of BP North Sea: 

“I am delighted that BIS Industrial Services 

has been awarded this important onshore 

contract and I look forward to a productive 

partnership. The North Sea plays a crucial 

role in our global business and we aim to 

continue our investments there over the 

next decade and beyond.” 

SEVERAL HUNDRED SPECIALISTS ON SITE 

Over a period of five years, BIS Industrial 

Services Ltd. will be supporting its customer 

BP with the full range of its industrial 

services in maintenance, various projects 

and turnarounds. The activities entail engineering, 

mechanical services, E&IC and SIP 

work (industrial scaffolding, insulation, surface 

protection). The BIS specialists will be 

stationed at the two BP terminals in Falkirk, 

Scotland (Forties Pipeline System Terminal) 

and the CATS (Central Area Transmission 

System) terminal in Teesside on the North 

Eastern coast. 

In addition, BIS Industrial Services Ltd. will 

be providing services at a BP site on the 

Shetland Islands. At the Sullom Voe Terminal, 

BIS is responsible for industrial scaffolding, 

insulation and surface protection. 


page 46 

Depending on the project and the task at 

hand, between 250 and 500 BIS employees 

will be deployed at the three BP terminals. 

NO COMPROMISES IN WORK 

SAFETY AND QUALITY 

BP and BIS plan to work particularly closely 

at all three terminals to heighten safety 

and also to boost productivity. The aim is 

to improve productivity by ten percent 

a year without sacrificing on-site safety, 

health, environmental protection or quality 

standards. This is to be done by analysing 

existing processes so as to identify possible 

shortcomings and inefficiencies. BIS will be 

applying two different parameters in this 

analysis: firstly, “hard” factors such as the 

availability of materials and the location 

of warehouses and, secondly “soft” factors 

such as work and travel times, employees’ 

ability to work in a team and motivation. 

“Using this process, we have been able to 

boost productivity for another customer of 

ours by 25 percent over a three-year period,” 

says Duncan Hall.

BIS Industrial Services Ltd. supports its customer BP in maintenance, project work and turnarounds by offering it the full range of its services such as 

engineering, mechanical services, E/I&C and SIP. 

In addition to this, BIS Industrial Services 

has also signed a contract with another oil 

and gas company for a period of five years 

which will substantially extend the existing 

relationship. Under this new contract, the 

BIS specialists will be providing mechanical 

services in particular for one of the largest 

refineries in the country. BIS has been working 

with this refinery since 2006, racking 

up some 100,000 person/hours in the last 

17 months alone without a single reportable 

incident. 

LEADING POSITION 

REINFORCED 

Dr. Rudolf Jürcke, the member of the BIS 

Group’s Executive Board responsible for 

Western Europe, is very satisfied, saying: 

“The BIS Group’s UK companies have grown 

at an extraordinary pace in just a few years. 

BIS is seen as a strong name in industrial 

services characterised by problem-solving 

skills and reliability. These recent successes 

confirm that we are able to achieve considerable 

growth in the United Kingdom.” 

The UK industrial services market is currently 

dominated by three or four companies. 

“So as to maintain our leading position, we 

must continue our HSEQ efforts and enter 

OIL AND GAS FROM THE NORTH SEA 

new markets,” explains managing director 

Duncan Hall. “As well as this, it is necessary 

to develop new special services and to additionally 

broaden our combined services.” 

The three terminals operated by BP in Scotland and Northern England play a crucial 

role in the oil and gas market. The Forties Pipeline System, which terminates in the 

Scottish port city and refinery centre of Grangemouth, is the largest oil and gas pipeline 

system in the United Kingdom, linking over 50 oil and gas fields in the North Sea. 

It has a capacity of more than one million barrels a day. 

Opened in 1993, the Central Area Transmission System (CATS) on the North Eastern 

coast transports gas from the North Sea to Teesside over a distance of 404 kilometres. 

With a capacity of some 48 million m 3 a day, it contributes around 20 percent to the 

UK gas market. 

The Sullom Voe Terminal is located on the Northern tip of the largest of the Shetland 

Islands and is one of the most important oil and liquid gas terminals in Europe. It first 

went into operation in 1975, when oil fields such as Brent and Ninian initially started 

supplying “black gold” for Europe.

DIVISIONS 

» BIS Salamis trainee recipient of a safety award 

VICTORIA LEE, A TRAINEE HSEQ ADVISOR AT BIS SALAMIS (M&I) IN ABERDEEN, 

HAS WON THE “SAFETY AWARD FOR THE MOST PROMISING INDIVIDUAL”. THE 

AWARD WAS CONFERRED FOR THE FIRST TIME BY OIL & GAS UK IN RECOGNITION 

OF OUTSTANDING EFFORTS TO PROMOTE ON-SITE SAFETY. THIS NON-PROFIT 

ORGANISATION, WHICH REPRESENTS THE INTERESTS OF THE UK OFFSHORE OIL 

AND GAS INDUSTRY, ALSO ANNOUNCED A FURTHER FIVE AWARDS IN OTHER 

HSEQ CATEGORIES. 

Victoria Lee (right) is the recipient of the Safety Award for the Most Promising Individual. 

The 23-year-old trainee has been with offshore 

maintenance service and inspection 

specialist BIS Salamis since July 2009. During 

this short space of time, Victoria Lee 

has been closely involved in HSEQ matters. 

In order to gain a better appreciation of the 

risks arising in both onshore and offshore 

activities, she took part in training courses 

on rope access and high-altitude work. In 

addition, she visited the gas terminal in St. 

Fergus, which is operated by several large 

oil companies, as well as four North Sea oil 

rigs. 

At the same time, Victoria Lee is working 

actively on improving communications 

with her colleagues. One of her duties is to 

coordinate the “Meet Joe” safety campaign. 

Each month, she selects a specific aspect 

of HSEQ such as safety to and from work or 

avoidance of injuries to the eye. Using this 

as a basis, Victoria Lee develops a short story. 

This story is then illustrated and turned 


page 48 

into a poster, which is put on prominent display 

at all sites at which BIS Salamis employees 

are deployed. In addition, the posters 

and stories are published on the Internet at 

www.meetjoe.co.uk. 

“I would like to thank BIS Salamis for giving 

me the opportunity of taking part in the 

competition,” says Victoria Lee. “The award 

is incentive for me to continue learning and 

thus to help make our jobs even safer.”

CURRENT ORDERS 

» Current Orders 

CUSTOMER BIS COMPANIES 

INVOLVED 

INDUSTRIAL SERVICES CENTRAL EUROPE 

Abendgoa Bioenergy 

Netherlands B.V. 

BIS Industrial Services 

Nederland B.V., Zwartewaal, 

Netherlands; BIS 

ICT N.V., Schoten, Belgium 

Alstom Mannheim BIS arnholdt GmbH, 

Gelsenkirchen, 

Germany 

Alstom Power Systems BIS OKI GmbH, 

Pforzheim 

Bioenergie 

Heizkraftwerk 

Hirschegg 

Borealis – 

Agro Melamin 

BIS Industrietechnik 

Salzburg GmbH, 

Salzburg, Austria 

BIS Chemserv GmbH, 

Linz, Austria 

Corus BIS Industrial Services 

Nederland B.V., 

Zwartewaal, Netherlands 

Delo BIS TSG Industrieservice 

GmbH, Gersthofen, 

Germany 

Essent BIS Industrial Services 

Nederland B.V., Zwartewaal, 

Netherlands 

ExxonMobil BIS Industrial Services 

Belgie N.V., Zwartewaal, 

Netherlands 

Nestrada S.A. BIS Industrietechnik 

Salzburg GmbH, 

Salzburg, Austria 

Ruhr Oel Gelsenkirchen BIS Industrietechnik Ost 

GmbH, Leuna, Germany 

Schmid Silicon 

Technology GmbH 

BIS Industrietechnik Ost 

GmbH, Leuna; BIS Industrieservice 

Ost GmbH, 

Leuna, Germany 

Sea Invest BIS ROB Montagebedrijf 

N.V., Beveren-Melsele, 

Belgium 

voestalpine BIS Chemserv GmbH, 

Linz, Austria 

TECHNICAL NOISE CONTROL 

Derif (French Road 

Construction Authority) 

BIS Gerber GmbH, Dortmund, 

Germany; BIS Industrieservice 

Nordwest, 

Lünen, Germany 

NAME OF PROJECT PLACE/ 

COUNTRY 

New bioethanol plant Rotterdam, 

Netherlands 

RDK8 machine building Karlsruhe, 

Germany 

Mannheim power station Mannheim, 

Germany 

Hirschegg district heating 

network 

Hirschegg, 

Austria 

Insulation for piping with a total length 

of 33 km 

2010 

Scaffolding 03/2010 - 12/2012 

Insulation 04/2010 - 12/2012 

Piping 04/2010 - 11/2011 

AMI TA2010 Phase 1 Austria Turnaround: project management, time 

management and documentation as 

well as the termination of work for plant 

engineering, rotating equipment, electrical 

engineering and materials testing, 800 

items of equipment in the pressure gasification 

plant, 20,000 hours 

Scaffolding Ijmuiden, 

Netherlands 

Construction of a pilot 

plant for the manufacture 

of adhesives 

Scaffolding for new Claus 

C power station 

Scaffolding for new 

hydrotreater 

03/2010 - 04/2010 

New framework agreement for scaffolding 2010 - 2013 

Germany Planning, procurement and construction of 

a procedural pilot plant for testing and producing 

adhesive input and output products 

Maasbracht, 

Netherlands 

Phoenix Konolfingen, 

Switzerland 

Rhine Hub Olefin IV TAR 

2010 

Scaffolding 2010 

Antwerp, Belgium Scaffolding 2010 

Gelsenkirchen, 

Germany 

Silicon plant Schwarze Pumpe, 

Germany 

Pipeline construction, assembly 

coordination, start-up 

Mechanical inspection work on columns, 

reactors, tanks, heat exchangers, fittings 

and valves 

05/2010 - 06/2011 

01/2010 - 12/2010 

09/2010 - 10/2010 

Pipeline work 09/2009 - 07/2010 

Too See Belgium Construction of 30,500 m of pipeline 09/2009 - 06/2010 

Continuous Casting No. 5 Austria Automation of continuous casting CC5 12/2007 - 07/2010 

Landy tunnel on the A1 

motorway in Paris 

SHORT DESCRIPTION EXECUTION 

PERIOD 

France Delivery and assembly of over 42,000 m² of 

fire panels to improve safety in motorway 

tunnel 

02/2010 - 11/2011 


page 49



INVOLVED 

General Electric BIS Gerber GmbH, Dortmund; 

BIS Hertz GmbH, 

Billerbeck, Germany 

Siemens BIS Gas Turbine 

Systems GmbH, Bremen, 

Germany 

INDUSTRIAL SERVICES NORTHERN & EASTERN EUROPE 

Česká rafinérská a.s. EUROMONT GROUP a.s., 

Most, 

Czech Republic 

Elkem BIS Production 

Partner AS, Porsgrunn, 

Norway 

Hydro Aluminium 

Metal 

BIS Production 

Partner AS, Porsgrunn, 

Norway 

Linjebygg BIS Industrier AS, 

Sandnes, Norway 

Statoil BIS Industrier AS, 


Statoil BIS Industrier AS, 


StatoilHydro BIS Industrier AS, 


Unipetrol RPA BIS Czech s.r.o., Most, 


Vattenfall BIS MainServ, Warsaw, 

Poland 

STAHL- UND MASCHINENBAU 

Airbus Germany MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau 

GmbH & Co KG, 

Linz, Austria 

DB Netz AG MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau 

GmbH & Co KG, 

Linz, Austria 

North Rhine-Westphalia 

state road 

construction authority 

ODS DopravnÍ Stavby 

Ostrava 

MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau 

GmbH & Co KG, 

Linz, Austria 

MCE Slaný s.r.o., Slaný, 


Premium Aerotec MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau 

GmbH & Co KG, 

Linz, Austria 

Thuringian Road 

Construction Authority 

MCE Stahl- und Maschinenbau 

GmbH & Co KG, 

Linz, Austria 


COUNTRY 


PERIOD 

Salalah Oman Delivery of various acoustic enclosures for 

five gas turbines with associated generators, 

steel share about 250 tons, about 

3000 m² vibration control 

01/2010 - 09/2010 

Basra/Kirkuk PP5 Iraq Delivery of eight air intake systems 2010/2011 

Inspection of machinery 

and technical equipment 

Maintenance partner 

concept 

Maintenance partner 

concept 

Litvínov und Karlupy, 


Machinery, technical equipment, 

scaffolding, insulation 

Svelgen, Norway Maintenance, mechanical and electrical 

work, instruments 

Various sites in 

Norway 

Master contract Ormen Lange, 

Norway 

ISP - Offshore - Snorre, 

Sleipner, Oseberg, 

Heimdal, Huldra, Brage 

and Veslefrikk 

ISP onshore - Sture, 

Kollsnes and Kalundborg 


Norway 


Norway and 

Denmar 

Hammerfest LNG Hammerfest, 

Norway 

Inspection of chemical 

plants 

UR4 full-service contract 

for five thermal power 

stations 

Airbus A350 XWB Section 

16 and 19 

Litvínov, 


Maintenance, mechanical and electrical 

work, instruments 

210,000 m² surface treatment and 

insulation, 112,000 person/hours 

780 tons of scaffolding, 

845,000 person/hours 

375 tons of scaffolding, 


560 tons of scaffolding, surface treatment, 


Machinery, technical equipment, 

scaffolding, insulation 

Warsaw, Poland Maintenance including repairs and inspection, 

mechanical and electrical works, 

instrumentation, control and regulation 

systems 

Hamburg, 

Germany 

Railway bridge Dietfurth Dietfurth, 

Germany 

Bad Oeynhausen 

Northern bypass 

Bad Oeynhausen, 

Germany 

Mokré Lazce bridge Mokré Lazce, 


Airbus A350 XWB Section 

13 and 14 

Nordenham, 

Germany 

Schmalkaldetal bridge Wernshausen, 

Germany 

Planning, delivery and assembly of 

assembly lines 

Planning, delivery and assembly of a steel 

structure weighing 300 tons 

Planning, delivery and assembly of a steel 

structure weighing approx. 6,000 tons 

Planning, delivery and corrosion protection 

for steel structures of around 2,300 tons 

Planning, delivery and assembly of 

assembly lines 

Planning, delivery and assembly approximately 

1,400 tons of steel construction 

05/2010 - 04/2013 

04/2010 - 03/2013 

03/2009 - 02/2014 

07/2007 - 12/2011 

01/2011 - 12/2014 

01/2011 - 12/2014 

09/2006 - 12/2010 

01/2010 - 12/2010 

07/2010 - 06/2014 

08/2009 - 06/2012 

01/2010 - 04/2011 

11/2009 - 09/2012 

01/2010 - 03/2011 

08/2009 - 06/2012 

01/2010 - 06/2012 


page 50



INVOLVED 


COUNTRY 

INDUSTRIAL SERVICES WESTERN EUROPE & INTERNATIONAL 

Austin Energy BIS Tepsco Inc., Deer 

Park, Texas, 

United States 

BASF BIS Frucon Industrial 

Services Inc., Ballwin, 

Missouri, United States 

Exxon Mobil BIS Industrial Services 

Ltd., Runcorn, United 

Kingdom 

Ineos Chlor Vinyls BIS Industrial Services 

Ltd., Runcorn, United 

Kingdom 

Marathon Oil Company BIS Salamis Inc., 

Broussard, Louisiana, 

United States 

Navantia Bilfinger Berger Industrial 

Services Spain S.A., 

Madrid, Spain 

Petronor Bilfinger Berger Industrial 

Services Spain S.A., 

Madrid, Spain 

Shell BIS Tepsco Inc., Deer 

Park, Texas, United 

States 

Tennessee Air National 

Guard 

PLANT TECHNOLOGIES 

E.ON Anlagenservice 

GmbH 

E.ON Gas Storage 

GmbH 

Kremsmüller 

Industrieanlagenbau 

BIS Frucon Industrial 

Services Inc., Ballwin, 

Missouri, United States 

BIS VAM Anlagentechnik 

GmbH, Wels, Austria 

BIS E.M.S. GmbH, 

Cloppenburg, 

Germany 

BIS VAM Anlagentechnik 


LG BuR-Integral Bohr- und Rohrtechnik 

GmbH – BIS, Vienna, 

Austria 

Nafta a.s. BIS Hungary Kft., 

Budapest, Hungary 

Rohölaufsuchungs AG BIS VAM Anlagentechnik 


SIEMENS AG Austria BIS Bohr- und Rohrtechnik 

GmbH, Vienna, 

Austria 

Technip Germany BIS Rohrleitungsbau 

GmbH, Bitterfeld, 

Germany 

Turboteam BIS Hungary Kft., 

Budapest, Hungary 

Cold water supply system Austin, Texas, 

United States 

Auto loading Attapulgus, Georgia, 

United States 


PERIOD 

Pipeline construction for a utility company 01/2010 - 01/2013 

Mechanical work 01/2010 - 04/2010 

CPD term contract United Kingdom Master contract for five years, annual 

piping construction of approx. 100,000 m 

ISIS United Kingdom Engineering, mechanics, instrumentation, 

scaffolding, insulation and corrosion 

protection, pipeline construction 

Offshore maintenance 

service 

Australian helicopter 

carrier 

Offshore, Gulf of 

Mexico, United 

States 

2010 - 2015 

Q1/2009 - Q3/2010 

Maintenance services 01/2010 - 12/2010 

Ferrol, Spain Scaffolding, construction of two special 

vessels in Navantia 

ADI 100 project Bilbao, Spain 25,000 m² of insulation, 


Installation of a 

compressor station 

Replacement of and 

repairs to roofs 

Construction of 

Maasvlakte hydropower 

plant, reheat/cold reheat, 

ancillary steam 

Texas City, Texas, 

United States 

Knoxville, Tennessee, 

United States 

Maasvlakte, 

Netherlands 

05/2010 - 07/2012 

05/2010 - 06/2011 

Installation of a compressor unit 11/2009 - 06/2010 

Mechanical and engineering work 01/2010 - 04/2010 

Planning, production, supply and installation 

of a high-pressure pipeline system 

EON Etzel III Etzel, Germany Planning, delivery, assembly and initial 

start-up of three gas dehydration plants 

RDK8 coal power station 

Karlsruhe 

Karlsruhe, 

Germany 

Planning and installation of linking systems 

and pipes for a coal-fired power station 

block 

GDL Mellach Mellach, Austria Engineering, supply and installation of the 

water-steam cycle 

Underground gas cavern Garay, Slovakia Pipe engineering with a wall thickness of 

up to 36 mm 

Pipeline and heavy 

assembly for 7 fields 

Haidach, Austria Installation of gas tanks at 3 different 

locations with compressor units 

02/2010 - 08/2012 

03/2010 - 03/2012 

01/2010 - 12/2012 

02/2010 - 12/2011 

03/2010 - 10/2010 

08/2009 - 12/2010 

GDK Mellach Graz, Austria Piping System for Balance of Plant (BoP) 01/2010 - 12/2011 

Lot 410 storage tank Germany Piping 01/2010 - 07/2010 

Compressor station for 

natural gas pipeline 

Báta, Hungary Pipe construction, NW 50 – NW 800, 

total of 420 t 

01/2010 - 08/2010 


page 51

NETWORK 

» Convincing HSEQ efforts 

HEALTH, SAFETY, ENVIRONMENT AND QUALITY (HSEQ) AWARENESS IS FIRMLY 

ENTRENCHED AT THE BIS GROUP, A FACT WHICH IS NOT LEAST OF ALL RE- 

FLECTED IN THE REDUCTION IN ACCIDENT NUMBERS. BETWEEN 2003 AND 2008, 

THE NUMBER OF ACCIDENTS WAS CUT BY 70 PERCENT, WITH FURTHER 

IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY AWARENESS AND CONDUCT RESULTING IN AN 

ADDITIONAL DROP OF FOUR PERCENT IN 2009. 

The BIS Group’s HSEQ awards are designed to act as an incentive for the subsidiaries to heighten awareness of 

workplace risks and to take specific measures to successfully reduce accidents. 


page 52

NETWORK 

All BIS companies participate with great 

commitment and verve in the Group-wide 

HSEQ initiative. In fact, they repeatedly receive 

awards from customers in recognition 

of their consistent efforts to achieve the best 

possible HSEQ results. One particular success 

was reported by BIS E.M.S. GmbH, Cloppenburg. 

In 2008 – just as it had previously 

done in 2007 – it attained the highest ranking 

in ExxonMobil Production Germany’s 

“EMPG Safety Award” ratings, thus defending 

its leading position in accident protection 

in maintenance and project management 

in a field comprising 250 contractors. 

As a pioneer in HSEQ, EMPG has extremely 

demanding expectations with respect to 

health and environment management. 

HSEQ requirements at Dow Deutschland 

Anlagengesellschaft mbH are also of an 

exceedingly high standard. BIS E.M.S. received 

the safety award at Dow’s Stade plant 

in 2009 in recognition of an exemplary site 

safety record and 13 years of incident-free 

service. 

NEW STANDARDS SET 

BIS Prozesstechnik and BIS Industrieservice 

were awarded BG Chemie’s “Sicher mit System” 

seal of quality, the first companies at 

the Höchst Industrial Estate in Frankfurt am 

Main to achieve this distinction. This award 

for outstanding site safety management recognises 

commitment to systematic and effective 

plant safety beyond the scope required 

by law. With their extensive site safety 

programme, the two BIS affiliates were able 

to reduce by half the lost time incident frequency 

within two years, cutting the number 

of lost days by 80 percent. 

BIS Industrial Services in the Netherlands 

is also achieving considerable success with 

its far-reaching site safety programme. On 

9 July 2010, it recorded three million hours of 

work without a single accident-induced loss, 

thus breaking its own record which it had 

set three months earlier on 20 April 2010, 

when it racked up two million hours of zeroaccident 

work. Customers appreciate this 

commitment. DuPont, one of the world’s 

largest chemicals companies, bestowed on 

the Dutch BIS company an award in acknowledgement 

of five million hours of zeroaccident 

work. It was also the recipient of 

ExxonMobil Chemical’s “All Green Award” 

for its site safety excellence. Last year, 

Fina Antwerp Olefins, a Total/ExxonMobil 

Chemical joint venture, bestowed on BIS 

Industrial Services the “2008 Contractor 

Award”. On top of this, BIS was the recipient 

of the “2009 Contractor Safety Award” 

given by the leading Netherlands utility Essent. 

Belgian affiliate BIS ICT NV was also an 

award-winner, receiving as it did the “2009 

Global Contractor Award” from the Total 

Antwerp refinery in June 2010. 

DETAILED CHECKS 

To date, around 50 companies in the Czech 

Republic have received the “Safe Enter prise” 

Award. In October 2009, BIS Czech was given 

the “Safe Enterprise Award” for the third time 

by labour and social minister Petr Šimerka. 

The award is preceded by a detailed audit, 

during which seven inspectors scrutinise 

all aspects of the company’s site safety and 

environmental management efforts over a 

period of 14 days. Since the establishment 

of the “Safe Enterprise” award, safety standards 

at large Czech companies have risen 

substantially. 

Currently, the airport in Dublin is being 

extended. BIS Willich Industrial Services was 

also materially involved in the construction 

of the new Terminal 2. As the general contractor 

for scaffolding, the Irish BIS company 

worked for various customers on the site, 


page 53 

ensuring the problem-free assembly of and 

extensions to all necessary scaffolding. BIS 

Willich’s dedication to these activities was 

acknowledged in April 2010 when it was named 

“Contractor of the Month Safety”. 

ADDITIONAL INCENTIVE FROM 

INTERNAL AWARDS 

In 2009, the BIS Group introduced the “HSEQ 

Award” and the “Best Improver Award” as 

additional incentive for the subsidiaries to 

consistently work towards achieving the 

Group-wide “zero is possible” target. To be 

eligible for the “HSEQ Award”, companies 

must achieve a zero-accident record over 

three consecutive years or during 700,000 

work hours performed in a period of up to 

three years and prove that specific measures 

were implemented to achieve this target. 

This is determined on the basis of the 

uniform Group-wide LTIF (lost time incident 

frequency) indicator. 

The first recipients of the reward in 2008 

were the North German company BIS E.M.S., 

Czech company EUROMONT Group a.s. and 

Norwegian company BIS Industrier AS. This 

year, South Germany-based BIS Maintenance 

Südwest and – for the second time 

running – Norwegian subsidiary BIS Industrier 

as well as BIS MainServ from Poland and 

US company BIS Salamis Inc. were named 

winners of the 2009 Award. The Best Improver 

Award goes to the company which has 

made the greatest progress in improving 

LTIF. The award is accompanied by a sum of 

EUR 10,000 for use by the winning company 

for social investments. BIS Willich Industrial 

Services Ltd. of Ireland was named Best Improver 

in 2008 and BIS Isenta AB of Sweden 

in 2009.

» High-level quality assurance 

CAREFUL EXECUTION OF PROJECTS CALLS FOR SYSTEMATIC OBSERVANCE OF ALL 

ASPECTS OF QUALITY ASSURANCE, STARTING THE MOMENT THE CONTRACT IS 

AWARDED AND EXTENDING ACROSS THE INDIVIDUAL PHASES OF THE PROJECT 

RIGHT THROUGH TO FINAL ACCEPTANCE BY THE CUSTOMER. BIS ARNHOLDT 

AND BIS ROHRLEITUNGSBAU PROVIDE PERFECT EXAMPLES OF HOW THIS DEFINI- 

TION OF QUALITY ASSURANCE IS PUT INTO PRACTICE. 

For the quality management system at BIS Rohrleitungsbau to unleash its full effect, it must be 

supported effectively and constructively at the project realisation level by means of project documents, 

plans and instructions.

NETWORK 

“Quality does not happen by chance but is 

the result of a systematic approach,” stresses 

Dr. Rudolf K. Jürcke, the member of the 

BIS Group’s Executive Board responsible 

for Technical Services/HSEQ. “The basis for 

this is formed by enterprise-wide standards 

which are subject to ongoing further development. 

This is achieved by means of the 

integrated management system which the 

BIS Group established last year as part of 

its sustained quality initiative. It combines 

the constituent quality and environmental 

management systems with site safety and 

accident prevention, the risk management 

system and compliance, ensuring the endto-end 

optimisation of processes within the 

BIS Group. 

Quality assurance awareness is just as firmly 

entrenched at the BIS Group’s operating 

companies as the realisation of the importance 

of safety, health and environmental 

protection is. This is documented by the extensive 

quality objectives in project planning 

and execution as well as staff training, the 

far-reaching audits and quality checks accompanying 

each step of the process as well 

as regular certification in accordance with 

the applicable quality standards. 

All aspects of quality assurance are intermeshed 

with each other seamlessly, thus 

forming an uninterrupted chain. “Taken as 

a whole, the quality assurance measures 

implemented by all of our companies both 

inside and outside Germany adhere to very 

high standards. At the same time, expectations 

are rising all the time,” explains Anke 

Sudeck, the BIS Group’s HSEQ manager. 

“This ensures that the customer receives 

the level of quality expected, thus resulting 

in a high degree of satisfaction and making 

a crucial contribution to the entire Group’s 

success.” 

SPECIAL CHALLENGES 

When it comes to scaffolding, for instance, 

the customer gauges quality directly in terms 

of the actual scaffolding supplied. Yet, the 

focus is not solely on the way in which employees 

assemble, modify or dismantle the 

scaffolding but also on the way in which the 

material is delivered. “For this reason, quality 

assurance starts for us the moment we 

receive the contract,” says Rainer Zielke, quality 

manager/safety engineer at BIS arnholdt. 

“This is because the entire organisation of 

the project hinges on what is to be scaffolded 

and where it is located. Frequently, our scaffolding 

reaches extreme heights or extends 

throughout the entire plant, for example, as 

it is required for pipelines. This always poses 

particular challenges for us in terms of quality 

assurance.” 

This is reflected in the requirements which 

the Gelsenkirchen-based scaffolding specialists 

have formulated for site safety, employee 

qualifications and training. Thus, it goes without 

saying that staff are provided with personal 

protective clothing and that qualified 

assembly experts from within the company 

are deployed. Subcontractors must also satisfy 

stringent requirements. Key importance 

is attached not only to the company’s own 

training activities for apprentices but also to 

ensuring that staff undergo systematic and 

regular skills development. This takes the 

form of monthly instruction in accordance 

with training plans as well as special training 

on such items as the “Gotcha” rescue kit. 

BIS arnholdt has implemented this rescue kit 

throughout the entire enterprise – the first 

scaffolding company to do so. This is a rescue 

device for raising or lowering people wearing 

a safety brace who have slipped and are thus 

suspended in mid-air. “After a fall, swift action 

is crucial as the person concerned must be 

recovered within 15 to 20 minutes so as to 

avoid the risk of a trauma,” explains Rainer 

Zielke. For this reason, we have a “Gotcha” 

rescue kit available at all major sites. In addition, 

it must be taken to the place of deployment 

in the case of special scaffolding 

projects. 

HIGH-LEVEL EXPERTISE 

At the same time, employees must undergo 

regular tests on their knowledge of the scaffolding 

manual, which BIS arnholdt drafted 

in 2007 in compliance with site safety rules. It 

contains general safety rules, the precautions 

to be taken to prevent falls, extensive assembly 

instructions, information on components, 

assembly alternatives, hazard assessments 

as well as checking controls and is systematically 

kept up to date. Like special actions 


page 55 

such as the poster campaign “Safe scaffolding” 

and the regular meetings of different 

departments within the company, the tests 

of knowledge are a key element in efforts 

to maintain specialist skills and to heighten 

awareness of the importance of safety and 

quality in scaffolding. 

The transportation and examination of scaffolding 

materials also play an important role. 

Thus, all the material handled by BIS arnholdt 

in Gelsenkirchen is checked to ensure that it 

is in proper condition. Only selected forwarders 

able to comply with the specified safety 

requirements are used to transport the material 

to its destination. After it reaches the 

site, it undergoes further visual examination. 

As well as this, BIS arnholdt has its own fleet 

comprising a large number of vehicles and 

machinery as well as specialist equipment 

such as rough-terrain trucks for use at opencut 

mining sites. All necessary examinations, 

maintenance and repairs are performed by 

the company’s own workshop. If it is necessary 

to use equipment which is not held by 

BIS arnholdt itself or only authorised for use 

in certain plants, it is checked by means of a 

mobile workshop vehicle. 

One key element of quality assurance at BIS 

arnholdt is the use of a checklist to document 

the examinations performed as soon 

as the scaffolding has been completed. This 

involves the use of a special scaffolding slip. 

“We introduced a checklist-based examination 

long before this became standard practice 

for scaffolding companies,” explains Rainer 

Zielke. “Even customers who do not stipulate 

such a check quickly come to realise that 

it fulfils an important purpose and that they 

ultimately also benefit from it.” 

STRICT RULES 

Various rules and regulations such as the 

Pressure Equipment Directive and the Operating 

Safety Regulation for pipeline construction 

prescribe comprehensive documentation 

of all processes within the project. This 

is also reflected in the quality management 

practices at BIS Rohrleitungsbau GmbH, 

Bitterfeld. They are based on an integrated 

management system complying with the 

ISO 9001 (quality management) and SCC 

(safety management) standards, with the

NETWORK 

latter also covering all environmental aspects 

of relevance for piping. Implementation of 

this system is monitored on an ongoing basis 

by means of internal and external audits. “For 

a quality management system to unleash its 

full effect, it must be supported effectively 

and constructively at the project realisation 

level,” explains Alexander Wrobel, head of 

quality management at BIS Rohrleitungsbau. 

“To this end, we use various instruments such 

as contract-management documents for ensuring 

quality assurance such as a testing 

schedule as well as welding plans and work 

instructions for the specific project.” 

EXTENSIVE PREPARATIONS 

Prior to the commencement of work on the 

contract, a project team is assembled and 

briefed to the necessary extent. The members 

of the team are required to document 

the completion of all defined activities in accordance 

with the requirements stipulated. 

One key aspect of this is comprehensive documentation 

of the welding processes and 

related tasks such as checking, heat treatment 

and surface protection. “This,” explains 

Alexander Wrobel, “materially reflects 

the quality of our work and means that the 

project manager and the welding and check- 

Industrial scaffolding makes high demands of all employees. 

Systematic quality assurance of the type pursued by BIS arnholdt therefore covers the entire project organisation. 


page 56 

ing supervisors must have scope to exert 

influence on the production processes at all 

times. In addition, checking mechanisms are 

incorporated in the process, allowing us to 

monitor the quality of our product by applying 

acknowledged testing methods, including 

welding process checks to demonstrate 

that the welding process selected has been 

mastered. 

All production and checking activities are 

documented in the checking schedule drawn 

up for the individual project. This schedule 

defines the individual steps to be taken as 

well as the criteria for acceptance. Although

Professional planning of the preparations for a construction site plays a crucial role in ensuring that the scaffolding is assembled effectively and securely. 

many pipe construction companies use 

checking schedules these days, for many 

years it was far from being standard practice. 

“We started using such a document at a very 

early stage,” reports Alexander Wrobel. “And 

in the course of the years we have steadily 

adjusted it to incorporate new technical developments 

and the specific requirements of 

the trade so as to satisfy customer requirements 

even more efficiently.” 

MANUAL DEXTERITY SOUGHT 

BIS Rohleitungsbau attaches crucial importance 

to training welders. In some cases, additional 

qualifications are required for the 

individual welding methods. In particular, 

welding of chrome steel types P 91, P 92 and 

X 20, which are frequently used in power station 

construction but are very susceptible to 

the risk of cracking, make high demands of 

welders’ dexterity and not everyone is capable 

of achieving the necessary results. What 

is more, notched-bar impact bending tests 

are necessary with these types of steel as 

proof that the welder has utilised the special 

technology required. Notched-bar impact 

bending tests are a means of assessing 

the tensile strength of the material, helping 

to detect the cause of embrittlement, e.g. 

hollow spaces, inclusions, separation and 

aging. 

Accordingly, the welders permitted to work 

on these demanding types of steel are 

selected carefully on the basis of the results 

of welding seam tests and observation by 

the welding supervisors. The welders 

deemed suitable for working on these 

materials then undergo professional training 

at the company’s own academy in 

Bitterfeld, which, among other things, is 

an approved vocational training institute 

in accordance with Book III of the Social 

Security Code and certified by TÜV 

Rheinland. Currently, BIS Rohrleitungsbau 

has 16 welders qualified to work on 

these materials. “This,” explains Alexander 

Wrobel, “is unique in all of Germany.” 

HEIGHTENED TRANSPARENCY THROUGH THE USE OF A DATABASE 

Transparency is a key factor in quality assurance. In the United Kingdom, BIS Industrial 

Services Ltd. records and maintains all scaffolding in a database. By entering all equipment 

uniformly in the database, it is possible to monitor the scaffolding status, which 

is updated once a week. The results are entered in the database and form the basis for 

determining the date of the next mandatory examination. This is of great advantage 

particularly in the case of long-term scaffolding. In addition, the documentation of all 

changes in the database means that details can be readily attached to the scaffolding 

in question. At the same time, the database aids internal cost accounting as the data 

provides an indication as to whether the scaffolding is being used for a longer period 

than planned, thus meaning that corresponding reserves must be set aside. A similar 

database is currently also being implemented at BIS arnholdt, with 75 percent already 

in place.

NETWORK 

» Quality comes from qualifications 

THE BIS ACADEMY REFLECTS THE DIVERSITY AND QUALITY OF PERSONNEL 

DEVELOPMENT WITHIN THE BIS GROUP WITH THE INTEGRATION OF FURTHER 

UNITS, PARTICULARLY THE INDUSTRIAL AND POWER STATION SERVICES 

PROVIDER MCE, VIRTUAL TRAINING AND SKILLS-DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES 

HAVE GAINED FURTHER DEPTH AND SCOPE, ENHANCING THE RANGE OF 

OFFERINGS PROVIDED BY THE BIS ACADEMY. 

The uniform family of symbols with the 

BIS Academy logo placed at the top ensures 

immediate recognition of all the activities 

performed by the BIS Academy and, as 

a registered trademark, is a guarantee of 

quality. “This underscores the benefi ts and 

the qualities which set BIS training activities 

apart in the market place,” says Silvia 

Hägele, personnel development offi cer. “It is 

an expression of the professional approach 

and sustainability of our training and skills 

development activities.” 

The content of off erings available from the 

BIS Academy has been widened substantially. 

Modular training programmes for both 

maintenance and project business have 

been developed on the basis of the operating 

companies’ requirements and ensure 

adherence to BIS standards. Known as “BIS 

Maintainer” and developed in close consultation 

with BIS Maintenance Südwest 

GmbH, the fi rst modular training course 

has been launched in a pilot project. Comprising 

six integrated modules, it seeks to 

heighten participants’ theoretical, methodical 

and social skills. The “BIS Maintainer” 

course has a duration of around 18 months 

and is paving the way for further modular 

training courses for specifi c target groups. 

Managing director Franz Braun is convinced 

of the benefi ts of the programme: “With 

this investment in our staff we are able to 

secure even greater quality for our clients. 

The superb collaboration with Central Personnel 

Development helps us to maintain 

and extend our high standards of quality.” 

TAILORED PROGRAMS 

Specially tailored programmes ensure sustained 

improvements in skills. Examples include 

FRUCIT and the “Fit for Managing”/“Fit for 

Market” programmes. Targeted at various 

management levels in the financial area, 

FRUCIT aims to enhance theoretical and social 

skills on a sustained and long-term basis and 

to prepare young high potentials for management 

tasks within the BIS holding company 

as well as at the subsidiaries. Initiated by managing 

director Günther Illig and coordinated 

by Personnel Development, these programmes 

have been utilised by BIS Industrieservice 

Mitte over the last two years to 

enhance the communications, management, 

project management and sales skills of its 

specialists and executives. 

STRONG COMMUNITY 

The BIS Networks form a material part of the 

BIS Academy and act as a platform for sha- 


page 58 

ring experience and best practices within the 

BIS Group on a cross-company/cross-border 

basis. They pool the strengths of a non-centralised 

structure with central support functions 

and have thus become a successful 

model. There are currently 14 thematic networks 

with around 250 employees from the 

BIS Group, all of which are putting specialist 

knowledge to good use in specific projects. 

One example is the new edition of a manual 

for thermal and refrigeration insulation, 

which was produced by the BIS Insulation 

Network. This book sets out the BIS Group’s 

core skills and knowledge in a compressed 

form. Practitioners are able to use the application-oriented 

reference directly in their 

day-to-day work. The new edition has been 

extended with the addition of important new

NETWORK 

UNIFORM QUALITY STANDARDS 

All personnel development activities 

are linked and constantly enhanced under 

the roof of the BIS Academy. Central 

and local training offerings are targeted 

at management staff, young potentials, 

project/construction managers and employees. 

All activities are tailored to meet 

the specific needs of the BIS employees 

and subsidiaries, thus ensuring shared 

success at the individual and strategic 

level. The operating units have always 

displayed considerable initiative of their 

own when it comes to personnel development. 

Examples include the training 

and skills development centres for the 

areas, includes the latest changes to legal requirements 

and standards and is suitable for 

international use. “This manual is a great advantage 

for us in our own work and can also 

be put to very good use by our customers,” 

explains Michael Schmitz, head of Personnel 

Development at the BIS Group. “Accordingly, it 

is an excellent example of the results-oriented 

activities and capabilities of the BIS Networks.” 

SUBSTANTIAL GAIN IN SKILLS 

BIS Networks are an ideal instrument for integrating 

acquired companies, particularly 

also the previous MCE companies. For one 

thing, the BIS Networks are able to benefit 

from an influx of new members, while, for 

another, the sharing of knowledge is enhanced 

through the addition of the new 

members’ knowledge. As well as this, 

effective social networks are established 

and extended. The same thing applies to 

the Junior Management Team (JMT), which 

has been used successfully for many years 

within the BIS Group as a means of developing 

young management talent. Now, it will 

additionally be home to the high potentials 

from the former MCE companies. 

“This,” says Timur Tavas, head of Corporate 

Human Resources & Services, “constitutes a 

decisive competitive advantage particularly 

given the shortage of qualified management 

staff.” 

technical employees operated by BIS 

Salamis in the United Kingdom, BIS 

Industrier in Norway and BIS Multiserwis 

in Poland. 

The BIS Group has set itself the goal of 

jointly defining cross-company/crossborder 

training standards. In this connection, 

the main emphasis is on guaranteeing 

the defined quality levels 

across the entire Group by defining standards. 

To achieve this, the “BIS Competence 

Committee” has been established. 

It forms part of the BIS Academy and is 

composed of representatives of the BIS 

training centres, local and central per- 

The personnel development activities of the 

former MCE companies have strengthened 

the BIS Academy, additionally reinforcing 

its expertise. In this connection, a key contribution 

is coming from the Maintenance 

School (IH-Schule), which has been providing 

technical staff and operatives at the 

key maintenance sites with theoretical as 

well as practical knowledge since 2005. This 

information is supplemented with practical 

tips and suggestions from experienced industrial 

service experts as well as external 

specialists and trainers. The advantages of 

the Maintenance School are not difficult to 

see. Specialist skills are developed and enhanced, 

access to internal expertise ensured 

and the quality of work enhanced in the interests 

of the customers. 

Alongside main contract business, project 

business is also increasingly growing in importance 

within the BIS Group, particularly 

in the new Plant Technologies Division. To 

ensure that the high expectations of quality 

in this segment can be satisfied, the BIS 

Academy is offering project managers and 

employees a range of training activities 

meeting their specific requirements. These 

activities have been assembled under the 

“Fit for Project” motto in consultation with 

the operatives requiring them and undergo 

consistent improvement. 

sonnel development departments and 

management staff from the operating 

companies. By defining uniform BIS 

standards it is possible to ensure high 

quality in the training which BIS Group 

employees receive. In a preliminary step, 

competence profiles are defined. Looking 

forward, there are plans to arrange 

for external certification of these Groupwide 

standards. What this means for 

the BIS Group’s customers is heightened 

transparency and even greater quality 

in planning and executing all industrial 

services projects. 

CUSTOMERS BENEFITING 

All told, the integration of MCE has resulted 

in a win-win situation in the personnel development 

area as well. Our professional and 

systematic personnel development activities 

reflect the Group’s leading position in 

this still-young industry,” says Thomas Töpfer, 

a member of Bilfinger Berger’s Executive 

Board. “The range of services contributed by 

MCE is additionally enhancing our training 

efforts, not only benefiting our employees 

but also offering our customers clear added 

value.” 

serer Mitarbeiter und unserer Beschaften 

ausgerichtet. So machen 

e Erfolge möglich – auf individueltrategischer 

Ebene. 

alle Fragen der Personalentwickir 

Ihnen kompetente Beratung 

zung. Unser Leistungsspektrum 

che Prozessschritte von der Kone 

Umsetzung bis zur Qualitätssir 

Maßnahmen. 


page 59

CREDITS 

Published by: 

Bilfinger Berger Industrial Services GmbH, 

Munich, represented by its 

Chief Executive Officer, 

Dr. Michael Herbermann 

Editorial team: 

Ullrich Esser (responsible), 

Beate Kneuse and Susann Naumann (copy), 

Michaela Helm (assistant) 

Editorial address: 

Corporate Communications, 

Gneisenaustraße 15, 

D-80992 Munich 

Telephone +49 89 14998-135 

Telefax +49 89 14998-277 

E-Mail: ukomm@BIS.bilfinger.com 

Internet: www.BIS.bilfinger.com 

Reprinting with indication of source 

permitted. 

The globe is available in German and 

English.

glob e - Bilfinger Berger Industrial Services

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