With One Foot in the Future

The Synergy Group, a leading general contracting company with a wide geographical presence, providing sustainable design and build services, celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. The company is constantly profiting from its Anatolian roots, reaching out to Turkey for human resources, materials or culture.

Synergy Construction Hungary Ltd. first made the headlines when it was selected by the Hungarian oil & gas and petrochemical trust MOL and the EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) contractor Thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions for site preparation and civil works for the new polyol factory in Tiszaújváros, NE Hungary. As for the relevance of that project in Synergy’s life, Deputy General Manager Csaba Szilágyi explains to Diplomacy&Trade that “after many years of established presence in the region, 2018 was our first year of activity in Hungary. The polyol plant is one of the biggest industrial developments under construction right now in Hungary and actually, we were the first contractor on site for that project. This is the biggest contract value in Synergy’s history so far. Our operation method, which we frequently use in other countries, was uncommon on the Hungarian construction scene at that time: we accommodate our foreign blue-collar workers mainly in the on-site camp facility. Although the local community was initially afraid of our presence, time justified this approach: our workforce was available continuously, without any conflict with the local community and without pandemic impact. Other developers, journalists also visited the site camp, and lately, other clients requested to install similar site camp facilities.”

Built for the future
In Hungary, another major project by Synergy as general contractor is the development of the Danubio residential complex in Budapest that has been recognized, among others, by the European Property Awards in the Multi-Residential Real Estate Architecture category. As the Deputy General Manager notes, “Danubio is a unique residence due to its prime location, elegant architecture, materials and construction details – all of these together make it a really state-of-the-art compound. The first phase is just about to be completed, the first tenants will be able to move in soon and we are really proud to have built it.” Since sustainability and environmental design are very important nowadays, referring to these aspects, Csaba Szilágyi says that energy efficiency, the built-in technology and systems are all up to 2022 standards. “Those who move in there will live in the future.”

Returning clients
“Besides Danubio, we are really proud of our other ongoing projects. We are building three major factory projects in Hungary for the largest Swiss food supplier as design & build contractor. We were awarded the first contract in 2020, and since then, two other large-scale contracts. Having this major client as repetitive customer with multiple projects – that is the real award for us as it shows Synergy’s trustworthiness and good cooperation with the clients,” he notes. Currently, Synergy is building the fourth factory for Procter &Gamble in Romania as well as being appointed for the civil works of a block of the first nuclear power plant project of Turkey, which was extended to the next block as well.

Your second home
The latest venture by Synergy is Han Spaces that offers office space with special settings. As to how the idea came to start a business like this in Hungary, the Synergy Deputy General Manager explains that they were looking for an office for themselves because “we grew rapidly and we needed flexible expansion space. And then, we realized that in this COVID-19 situation, people are really looking for serviced offices and co-working areas instead of home office. We decided to make one, which secondarily can also act as a buffer space for ourselves.” He adds that people feel the difference from the usual office setting when they sit down. “It is just as good and comfy as your second home.” The office area in Balance Hall in Budapest became a co-working hub for startup and scaleup companies, who can instantly get in the bloodstream of construction industry players.

Constant Growth
Throughout the years, Synergy grew into a truly international company with large-scale projects in Hungary, Romania, Germany, Poland, Georgia, Ukraine and Turkey for high-profile clients. The driving force and fuel of internationalization is the heated construction market combined with Synergy’s established know-how, own workforce and cross-border access to resources such as manpower and building materials. “We obviously prefer local sourcing. But we must not allow shortages in manpower or building materials to have a negative impact on our performance and clients’ satisfaction. In these cases, we utilize our international sourcing network and reach out to reliable supplies across borders. This way, we can outrun our competitors by two laps.”
In conclusion, Csaba Szilágyi highlights that “we wish to maintain the growth rates of the recent years: with human resources, with turnover, with customer satisfaction and all other performance indicators, which prove our professional and financial health.”