Exhibitor interview Cowi

2022-06-17

How are you and wht is your role at Cowi?
My name is Kristina Strömgren and is the Senior Marketing Director for civil engineering in Cowi Sweden.

What kind of company is Cowi and what do you work with?
Cowi is a engineering and civil engineering consultant that works with everytning within community development, such as large infrastructure projects, railways, industrial buildings, environmental projects, water, energy and architecture.

What is Cowi's goal with Train & Rail?
It is at Train & Rail where the industry will come together and we want to be seen and heard, med costumers and dialogue with partners.

Which issue is most important from your perspective for the railways of the future?
For Cowi, efficient and sustainable construction is absolutely central. Just seven years ago, there was no talk of LCA calculations, we didn't talk about green concrete or how we can coordinate transport in a good way, but now it's about thinking one step further. Where does the electricity come from, is it really sustainable? What kind of material do we build into the railway when we rebuild and build new? How do we ensure sustainability during the actual construction period?

How do you yourselves work with this question today?
We have recently launched a new strategy - Future Now - which means that Cowi will work 100% on projects that drive our customers' sustainability. The ambition is that within 3-5 years we will have 100% of our income from customers who drive sustainability or strive to make a change. The background to the name "Future Now" is that if we as a society and Cowi as a company want to survive and prosper in the future, we must act today. Therefore, we have taken the point of departure in the future; what will it look like and what does it mean for us today? We want to work long-term and for real with sustainable, large infrastructure projects. In that work, the railway, which is basically sustainable, will be an important component that we are investing heavily in with a new national department within the company.

What do you want from industry colleagues/decision makers so that society can better meet the climate goals for future rail transport?
What we want from the industry is clear – we need to cooperate in the ongoing projects around sustainability. Many of our customers are in one way or another connected to public procurement and we want to be involved and influence so that the sustainability perspective is even more highlighted and valued in the procurements. This is a journey we make together, but at the same time on our own. Train & Rail then plays an important role as we can meet and exchange ideas and thoughts about what we have done and what steps those who purchase our services take. All these puzzle pieces together become the movement we as an industry make forward to become more sustainable together.