Walter Construction Group Explained

Walter Construction Group Limited
Former Name:Concrete Constructions
Type:Privately held company
Industry:Construction
Fate:Bankruptcy
Founded:21 April 1920
Founder:Allen Lewis
Defunct:2005
Hq Location City:Sydney
Hq Location Country:Australia
Area Served:Australia
Revenue:$500 million (2005)
Num Employees:1,000
Num Employees Year:2005
Website:www.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 prior to its 2005 collapse. The company was founded on 21 April 1920 by Allen Lewis.[3] It remained independent until 1999, when the company was bought by the German and rebranded as Walter Construction Group.[4]

Collapse

Before its collapse, Walter Construction had two divisions: "Construction and Civil", and "Mining".[5] 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 cashflow negative.[6] During this period the company heavily relied on its parent company for financial support,[7] however Walter Bau was also experiencing financial difficulties and both companies were placed into liquidation on 3 February 2005.[8] [9] KordaMentha was appointed the administrator,[10] and proceeded to liquidate the remaining assets of the company by 2018.[11] [12] [13] During their investigation, it was also revealed that Walter Construction had traded while insolvent.[14] [15]

Prior to the collapse, John Holland had a bid to acquire Walter Construction, however the deal fell through in 2002.[16]

Notable projects

Notes and References

  1. News: 1995-05-22. TODAY'S LAW LIST. 6. Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 2020-05-11.
  2. Web site: Walter buy: Leighton no Wally. 2002-12-18. The Sydney Morning Herald. en. 2020-05-11.
  3. ASIC Connect; ACN 000 008 935
  4. 1999-04-09. CONCRETE CHANGES.(FEATURES). The Australian (National, Australia). en. 035.
  5. Web site: Walter Construction in administration. 2005-02-02. The Sydney Morning Herald. en. 2020-05-11.
  6. Web site: Construction. 2012-08-01. KordaMentha.
  7. Web site: Walter directors 'knew parent was bankrupt'. 2005-03-22. The Age. en. 2020-05-11.
  8. Book: Frericks, Sebastian. Downfall of Large German Listed Companies: A Two-Dimensional Analysis of Failure Factors. 2018-12-28. Springer. 978-3-658-24999-1. 49. en.
  9. Web site: Workers lose millions as builder collapses. 2005-02-03. The Sydney Morning Herald. en. 2020-05-11.
  10. Web site: Walter Construction Group Limited (In Liquidation) 008 390 074 Creditors' Voluntary Liquidation. ASIC. 2018-03-13. ASIC. 2020-05-11.
  11. Web site: Last asset sale for Walter Group. 2005-04-16. Australian Financial Review. en. 2020-05-11.
  12. ASIC Connect; ACN 008390074
  13. Web site: Workers lose millions as builder collapses. 2005-02-03. The Sydney Morning Herald. en. 2020-05-11.
  14. Web site: Walter directors 'knew' it was insolvent. 2005-03-22. The Sydney Morning Herald. en. 2020-05-11.
  15. Web site: AM - Walter Construction Group collapses. www.abc.net.au. 2020-05-11.
  16. Web site: Walter buy: Leighton no Wally. 2002-12-18. The Sydney Morning Herald. en. 2020-05-11.
  17. News: 1950-01-18. BUILDING ESTIMATED TO COST £2 MILLION. 1. Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 2020-05-10.
  18. News: 1979-12-28. Tower Canberra's most prominent landmark. 7. Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 2020-05-11.
  19. Web site: Telstra Tower. www.telstratower.com.au. 2020-05-11.
  20. Web site: 25 YEARS ON: CALLING ON PARLIAMENT HOUSE CONSTRUCTORS Indesignlive. 2013-05-06. Indesignlive Daily Connection to Australian Architecture and Design. en. 2020-05-11.
  21. 1988-05-09. Who was chosen to build Australia's largest Building?. The House Magazine. 7. 12. 2020-05-11.
  22. http://www.sydneyarchitecture.com/cbd/cbd4-041.htm Grosvenor Place