31.08.2022

Sustainability and competitiveness go hand in hand at Becker

A sustainable approach is a fundamental attitude at Becker AS, which is incorporated into everyday life at the company in everything they do. Fortunately, caring for the environment now actually results in competitiveness. This makes Becker very happy to be able to rely on a supplier like Gasum which allows them to run their trucks on biogas.

Hans-Erik Becker established Becker Entreprenør AS in 2001 and still owns the company. Becker’s vision – to change the entire construction industry to face the biggest challenges of our time – still serves as the foundation for the company’s operations.

“We do all kinds of foundation and construction work, water and sewage infrastructure as well as minor concrete work. We have a large modern fleet of machinery capable of responding to most emission-free or at least climate-neutral projects and assignments. For us at Becker, the concept of sustainability is all encompassing, and includes climate, environment, social conditions and economy,” says Hans-Erik Becker, head of sales and production.

The company has a multifaceted strategy for its everyday operations which makes this a natural choice. They have invested in e-machinery at construction sites, but the challenge arises when transporting rocks and soil from the sites, which is already the case with many construction sites. E-solutions are no longer sustainable in this respect since they simply do not have the range required.

Becker’s answer to this is gas-driven hook trucks and so they needed a supplier that had both the location and capacity to be able to refuel the trucks once or twice a day as needed.

Biogas was the answer to the big picture

Becker Entreprenør has always invested in hook trucks and is of the view that this has been important since the company considers the big picture. In fact, they go further than many customers who require environment-friendly transport no more than 10 kilometers from the construction site, after which the powertrain used in the transport solution is a matter of choice.

“Our choice at Becker Entreprenør was very close at hand as we were able to put in place very sustainable cooperation with Gasum: We decided to invest in gas-powered hook trucks. This allows us to lift the entire truck bed from one truck to another at our loading bay. And so, in a few simple moves, we have a technology that is both sustainable and has the required range. In this sense, we can say that our cooperation with Gasum, together with the investments we have made, are contributing to some of the changes we seek to create in the industry,” Hans Erik Becker emphasizes.

Three hook trucks contribute to better sustainability

Becker Entreprenør has acquired three 4-axle hook trucks with trailer that are used for transporting soil masses. This means Becker Entreprenør can ensure that the company operates sustainably throughout the production process, which is an important focus. To a certain extent, it has also delivered greater competitiveness. When we submit a tender to the city of Oslo and others who have already reached a high level of climate and environmental awareness, we can now be sure that the tenders will be weighted in Becker’s favor because we can document that the company works climate neutrally.

“If I could wish for something in this context, it would perhaps be that Oslo and other municipalities went a step further in their sustainability approach,” Hans-Erik Beckers comments.

Becker also has clear views on what this could mean in practice. Clients would have seen that if the change that more and more people want in the construction industry is to become a reality, a more comprehensive view of the entire business is needed.

In concrete terms, this means looking at the climate footprint right up until when the soil mass is unloaded at the landfill. If this were done, it becomes immediately clear that the company has chosen to organize its work far more sustainably than most public procurers currently require. Becker points out that it is their comprehensive approach that resulted in them entering into a contract with Gasum,  an outcome that they are very pleased with.

“We’ve chosen biogas, which gives us around 250 kilometers of driving with up to 50 tonnes of soil mass. How often we need to refuel varies a bit, but the drivers tell me that they reckon they need to visit Gasum’s plant between one and three times a day, depending on traffic conditions and distance,” Becker explains.

“Refueling itself takes very little time compared to recharging an e-truck, which has neither the capacity nor the range that can be obtained using gas,” he says on reflection.

In many ways, this has been an experiment for Becker Entreprenør. It is now some months since we made the investment against a background of wanting to be loyal to the company’s vision of taking environmental aspects into account wherever possible.

So, when acquiring new equipment, Becker is extremely concerned about sustainability. Besides this, the company’s management is also focused on everyday work, so that both quality and safety are very important for them in the production process. Becker is also concerned that they are part of an industry that has many social sustainability challenges. This is why, over the years, the company has evolved into an attractive workplace which attracts employees of high professional competence. They are also proud of educating tomorrow’s construction workers by offering apprenticeships and actively focusing on recruitment.

Gasum is a sound, steady partner

“Gasum has proved to be a sound, steady partner who is contributing to our work to be part of the green transition. Besides this, the investment has shown us that we can deliver sustainability in the WHOLE value chain and that we can benefit from Gasum’s plant here in Eastern Norway. Everything has been problem free within the geographical framework we mainly work in. When we work in Oslo, Gasum’s plant has the advantage of being centrally located, and this has also been highly important for us,” Becker says.

Becker focuses on the company’s investments being able to provide sustainability throughout the entire construction process to municipalities over a fairly wide geographic area, and this bodes well for the future. In 2023, three new biogas vehicles will hit the roads, and then five more in the first half of 2024. With these new additions to the fleet, all diesel vehicles will have been replaced. This is part of a philosophy based on the green transition we are in the middle of will provide many opportunities for those who take a comprehensive approach to sustainability. And for Becker, partnership with Gasum has strengthened this opportunity.

A sustainability approach gives a competitive edge

Becker is convinced that this investment gives the company a competitive edge. Besides this, it reflects the company’s vision that has been a lodestar throughout the 20 years or so that it has done construction work. As equipment has become increasingly available to operate more climate neutrally, the contractor has acted on this the whole way. The investment Becker has now made has taken advantage of the opportunities available to be able to work climate neutrally. They can actually document that they do just this, which means that they can proudly show that they operate completely sustainably. This is in the company’s DNA and makes them both proud and happy to be able to contribute to changing the construction industry in this way.

“I strongly believe that more people will see that this is the right way to work, but that this will perhaps not happen before the clients, who are currently mostly in the public sector, require it,” Hans-Erik Becker says.

Text: Jørn Wad