In fact, the idea is far from new. If you look back in history, you’ll see that turnkey projects were commonplace at the beginning of the 20th century! Take the Eiffel Tower, built for the Universal Exhibition in 1889. The engineer Gustave Eiffel himself designed the plans for the Iron Lady and then managed the construction of this complex structure, all to very tight deadlines. This is a perfect example of the “turnkey” approach, the very essence of civil engineering and, more broadly, of French engineering.
The problem is that, over the years, the public sector has forgotten about this global approach, by bringing the engineering part in-house and entrusting the work to general contractors, who are not responsible for the design. Since its creation in 1992, CAP INGELEC has sought to put engineering back at the heart of the project, relying on a team of design engineers capable of handling complex contracts and monitoring projects from A to Z, from design to completion, right through to handover.
They can be summed up in “3T”: Technicity, Tranquility, Transparency.
Technicity first, because our engineers have a strong expertise and appetite for technical projects. Our teams are able to understand the challenges and issues facing a customer, providing innovative and relevant solutions. I’m thinking in particular of the datacentre and cleanroom markets, which not only require in-depth knowledge of environmental and energy performance, but also optimum technical performance.
Then there’s tranquillity, because with a turnkey contract, the customer has a single point of contact who manages the project, with complete control over technical, financial, logistical and quality constraints. This 360° vision guarantees better coordination between the various trades, as well as a fluid flow of information (with an overall commitment to controlling the schedule and clear responsibilities).
Transparency, because we remain totally clear about deadlines, budgets and costs, which can be presented openly.
To these “3Ts”, I would add one final point: our responsiveness, and above all our ability to carry out complex work on an occupied site.
Absolutely. Turnkey contracts put the customer back at the heart of our thinking. We listen to our customers and work with them to build the project together, in complete confidence and transparency. It’s a genuine long-term partnership, based on expertise, commitment and advice. We take responsibility not only for meeting deadlines, quality and budget, but also for the health, safety and cleanliness of our worksites, which dictate our entire organisation.
We also learn a great deal from feedback, which enables us to challenge our tools and processes as part of a continuous improvement loop. Today, we have carried out more than 150 large-scale turnkey projects for private customers in France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and, more recently, Greece and Hungary. We operate mainly in 4 main areas: data centres, agri-food, critical utilities and industry/cleanrooms, with a strong recent trend towards the re-electrification of factories to free them from dependence on fossil fuels. Our trump card? Our ability to control the environmental footprint and energy consumption of the structures we design, enabling us to support our customers in their energy transition.
We handle all types of project – with contracts worth over €200 million. We support our customers from A to Z, from design to completion, right through to handover.
Cap Ingelec is currently involved in several major turnkey projects worth over €200m.
Timelapse of the Telehouse TH3 P1 building site