Walter Construction Group Limited
Privately held company
Former nameConcrete Constructions
IndustryConstruction
FateBankruptcy
Founded21 April 1920
FounderAllen Lewis
Defunct2005
Hq location citySydney
Hq location countryAustralia
Area servedAustralia
Revenue$500 million (2005)
Num employees (2005)1,000
ParentWalter Bau
Websitewww.walter.net.au

Walter Construction Group Limited, known for most of its life as Concrete Constructions Pty Ltd,[1][2] was one of Australia's oldest and fifth largest construction company[3] prior to its 2005 collapse. The company was founded on 21 April 1920 by Allen Lewis.[4][5] It remained independent until 1999, when the company was bought by the German Walter Bau and rebranded as Walter Construction Group.[6]

Collapse

Before its collapse, Walter Construction had two divisions: "Construction and Civil", and "Mining".[7] While the mining division was profitable and expanding, the construction division had been losing money since 2000. By the company's collapse, 18 of its 21 contracts were cash flow negative.[3] During this period the company heavily relied on its parent company for financial support,[8] however Walter Bau was also experiencing financial difficulties and both companies were placed into liquidation on 3 February 2005.[9][10] KordaMentha was appointed the administrator,[11] and proceeded to liquidate the remaining assets of the company by 2018.[12][13][14] During their investigation, it was also revealed that Walter Construction had traded while insolvent.[15][16]

Prior to the collapse, John Holland Group had a bid to acquire Walter Construction, however the deal fell through in 2002.[17]

Notable projects

See also

References

  1. ^ "TODAY'S LAW LIST". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 1995-05-22. p. 6. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  2. ^ "Walter buy: Leighton no Wally". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2002-12-18. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  3. ^ "Construction". KordaMentha. 2012-08-01.
  4. ^ ASIC Connect; ACN 000 008 935
  5. ^ Perkins, John, "Allen Charles Lewis (1891–1970)", Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved 2020-05-11
  6. ^ "CONCRETE CHANGES.(FEATURES)". The Australian (National, Australia). 1999-04-09.
  7. ^ "Walter Construction in administration". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2005-02-02. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  8. ^ "Walter directors 'knew parent was bankrupt'". The Age. 2005-03-22. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  9. ^ Frericks, Sebastian (2018-12-28). Downfall of Large German Listed Companies: A Two-Dimensional Analysis of Failure Factors. Springer. p. 49. ISBN 978-3-658-24999-1.
  10. ^ "Workers lose millions as builder collapses". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2005-02-03. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  11. ^ ASIC (2018-03-13). "Walter Construction Group Limited (In Liquidation) 008 390 074 | Creditors' Voluntary Liquidation". ASIC. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  12. ^ "Last asset sale for Walter Group". Australian Financial Review. 2005-04-16. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  13. ^ ASIC Connect; ACN 008390074
  14. ^ "Workers lose millions as builder collapses". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2005-02-03. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  15. ^ "Walter directors 'knew' it was insolvent". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2005-03-22. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  16. ^ "AM - Walter Construction Group collapses". www.abc.net.au. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  17. ^ "Walter buy: Leighton no Wally". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2002-12-18. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  18. ^ "BUILDING ESTIMATED TO COST £2 MILLION". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 1950-01-18. p. 1. Retrieved 2020-05-10.
  19. ^ "Tower Canberra's most prominent landmark". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 1979-12-28. p. 7. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  20. ^ "Telstra Tower". www.telstratower.com.au. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  21. ^ "25 YEARS ON: CALLING ON PARLIAMENT HOUSE CONSTRUCTORS | Indesignlive". Indesignlive | Daily Connection to Australian Architecture and Design. 2013-05-06. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  22. ^ "Who was chosen to build Australia's largest Building?". The House Magazine. Vol. 7, no. 12. 1988-05-09. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  23. ^ Grosvenor Place Sydney Architecture